I've read several stories about those who smoke cigarettes. I've heard the bad. I've heard the good. I've heard about President Obama smoking one occasionally. We've all heard it all.

As smokers we have been pointed at, yelled at, pushed into the cold, listened to complaints, have had people wave their hands as they've walked by us, and witnessed others cross the street to avoid us.

Laws have been passed, fines have been issued, prohibitions have been implemented, boundaries have been drawn, lawsuits have been filed and won, taxes have been raised.

Now, why don't all of us Xombie smokers tell our story and include whether you like it, don't like it, want or don't want to quit, reasons why you smoke, and how you started.

And let's hear from smokers. No band-standing just for pointing fingers.

I'll begin.

Until I started writing this I thought I started at 47, but, it turns out I started at 42. It was Christmas Eve 1993. A good friend of mine worked at the Incline Village (Nevada) 7-11 Store. I was driving my taxicab that night. I had stopped for a cup of coffee.

As I walked in my friend says “here, Merry Christmas!” He handed me a little plastic tube slightly bigger than a regular cigarette (i thought it might be a joint - but I remembered we were in Nevada where a seed gets you 60 days), and a box of chocolates. I said, “oh, I don't smoke.” He smiles and laughs and says, “well, this is a special cigarette (I was still thinking pot). It's made in Indonesia. Go ahead and keep it, and the coffee is free!”

I put the single cigarette up over my visor and there it stayed until New Year's Day, 1994. At 6am in the morning I got a call from the Cal-Neva Hotel/Casino for a fare to Sacramento, California. The California - Nevada state line goes right through the west end of the Cal-Neva. Slot machines line the Nevada side of the line, and the hotel desk is on the California side. Quite a unique place. The Cal-Neva is one of the places that Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack liked to come and stay.

I picked up my fare and we headed west to Sacramento, California's capitol. Because of the high mountain passes the California Department of Transportation (CALTRANS) uses cannons to blast avalanche dangers from above the heavily traveled mountain passes of the Sierra Nevada mountains. When this work is in-progress all traffic is stopped, sometimes for long periods.

I had offered to turn around and go back to Incline, but, my customer said “no let's wait and you can keep the meter running (gosh, what a deal - keep the meter running).” After 2 ½ hours my customer mentions he's going to stretch his legs and smoke a cigarette. I reached up to get a pen from my visor and the cigarette in the tube fell in my lap.

I opened it, loved its smell (cloves and tobacco), tasted the end of it, and lit it!
It tasted really good. Two-hits later I was dizzy. It took me a whole week to smoke that one cigarette.
Djarum Clove non-filtered cigarettes. I smoked them until an new law went into effect in Oregon on January 1, 2007. On that date no cigarettes could be sold in Oregon unless they were self-extinguishing. Well, so much for my favorite cigarettes. Yea, they sell them in Washington, 20 miles north, but, I never go to Washington.

So, I started rolling my cigs, still non filter. I do believe stress causes more smoking. I know I should stop, but, life, these days, for me, is just not quite the right time. I don't smoke around children or schools. I support the new higher taxes, and would like to see a day where cigarette are no more.

So, there's my story.

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