Saturday at the Hut - 4/20/13

Saturday at The Tobacco Hut was marked by my new pipe's inaugural smoke. I purchased a monster of a pipe from David Jones, a master carver and true artist located in Texas. He's noted for shaping large chunks of wood and for aging his briar more than 15 years. His craftsmanship is evident and the smoking quality of his pipes are outstanding. I owned two of his already and when I saw this one his eBay shop, I just had to have it.

My new David Jones pipe (click to enlarge).

I filled the bowl with some of McClelland's Wilderness tobacco, and kept filling! It's a gigantic bowl surrounded by so much briar that I barely felt the heat. The pipe measures 6-1/2" long and the bowl stands a full 2" high and about the same in diameter. For all the wood, it's surprisingly light, although I definitely won't be clenching it between my teeth.

The pipe provided an excellent, cool, dry smoke. It's definitely an all-day pipe: I fired it up around 9:15 and dumped the last bit of ash out around 2:30. But what a smoke! It's definitely in the rotation. Of course, Paula objected just a bit when I announced that I needed a new pipe. "You have so many, plus they all look the same!" I explained that she had so many shoes and they all looked the same too. Then I ducked.

Apparently last week, Joe's son James made a rare appearance at The Hut. From what the other guys told me, I pulled in about thirty seconds after they had left. Thank you Joe and James for letting me know you were going to be there. I guess I'll have to wait another several years before I see James again. I think the last time I saw him he was still drying vodka out of his ear after swimming across a retention pond. This week Joe was attending some family function out of town, but hopefully he'll be at the shop this coming Saturday.

Today's attendance included Pete and myself, of course, and Rob, Paul, Lou, Ed F, and Aaron. Something interesting came to light as one of the aforementioned regulars came in and stocked up on cigars. I won't mention names, but while another regular has been away this particular person has been raiding his neighbor's humidor. Now I don't know any details, and far be it from me to engage in gossip or throw anyone under the proverbial bus, but I just thought it shouldn't go unmentioned.

There have been quite a few entries in the Name The New Tobacco Contest. Whoever wins gets a free pound of their favorite tobacco (or the equivalent value in other merchandise - $62 worth). The winner will be announced at, appropriately enough...Pipe Night! That's right, as mentioned in this space in the last blog post, The Tobacco Hut introduces its first Pipe Night.

Pipe Night will be held Friday, May 3rd, from 6-8 PM at the store. Pete will provide food and beverage, and there will be discounts on selected pipes, plus buy one/get one on tobacco up to 4 ounces. And, as always, you can fill up your pipe with a new tobacco to give it a try. And the best part, everyone who walks in receives a raffle ticket for a chance to win a $50 store gift card! Even if you're not a pipe smoker, you can still show up and have fun!

And if you're reading this Tom L, I've converted another one! That's right, Rob has gone from cigars to pipes! And they keep coming! Jimmy is a newcomer who has been in a couple times now. Pete and I helped him pick out his first pipe last week and he came back to try some other tobaccos this week. Hopefully we'll see more of him in the future. See, it's my diabolical plan to convert everyone to pipes. You're next Tom!

Speaking of upcoming events, Pete is looking at holding the official Grand Re-Opening the third week in May, so probably Saturday, May 18th. More details to come on that, but hold that date and plan to attend. It promises to be quite the blow-out!

If you haven't already, please surf on over to The Tobacco Hut's Facebook page and click "Like". The community of Tobacco Hut fans is growing and there's always something brewing there, like exclusive weekly Facebook specials.

See you next time!

Saturday at the Hut - 5/12/12

We had quite a full house at The Tobacco Hut today. I thought I was getting there early enough to get a chair but alas, no. Fortunately Aaron was kind enough to give up his comfy club chair for the fold-up one he brought with him. Thank you, Aaron, for respecting your elders.

While I puffed on my Ascorti Peppino pipe filled with Tinder Box Reserve 1928 I tallied up the roll call (see how I slipped in what I was smoking today?): Lou, Joe K, Don W, Paul O, Aaron C, Peter G, Tom L, Vic, Blake, Tony, and myself.

Nice to see Vic making the trip up from Bradenton. It looks like we might see some more of him as he's squirreled his nuts away for the summer. Vic also recounted a story from a recent conversation with Mike G. Many of us probably remember Mike's old pick up truck...well, he's had it for sale in Tennessee for awhile and finally sold it to a young lady up there. Well, apparently, the night she actually took possession of the vehicle, just several hours later, it broke down on her.

If yer in need of a good car or truck that'll git
ya a mile or two down the road, call Mike!

Mike had to go and push it off to the side of the road, I guess, but rather than declaring simply, "Let the buyer beware", Mike went the extra mile and offered to refund the woman's money. Good on you Mike for doing the right thing! In honor of your integrity, I've created the logo above for your next company if you should decide to open a car dealership...

Today the topics revolved, strangely enough, around birds. Aaron told a story, complete with pantomime, of two seagulls engaged in coitus on a street light. Aaron's hip gyrations, arm flapping and gull-like squawking presented quite the entertaining vision.

Joe remarked that in his younger days he often went to the beach with his parrot on his shoulder and attracted flocks of ladies (pun intended). After bragging about his exploits for a time, Vic commented to me quietly that I should inform Joe that that wasn't exactly Christian behavior. So I started to say something, but before I did, Joe reminded me that he had just fixed my mother's computer which I had taken delivery of not an hour before. He also implied that the wizardry he employs to repair the computers can also be used to disable them, so I kept my mouth shut. Vic said I wussed out, but I prefer to think that I merely took the high road and adopted the very Christian principle of "judge not, lest ye be judged."

Vic helping Don ease his big rig
safely out of the parking spot
(click to enlarge)

Don cashed out and said goodbye, and we were then all treated to his driving prowess as he backed out of his spot, pulled forward a little, backed up, came forward again, backed up again, pulled up, back and forth, back and forth. It was all quite dizzying, but he finally managed to clear his parking spot, with a little help from Vic. For some unknown reason, he did a U-turn behind the building and drove past giving us all the "one-finger salute". I think some bikers in the barber shop noticed and we may not be seeing Don for awhile.

Blake made a rare Saturday appearance and met some of the guys for the first time. Tom was especially glad to meet a fellow pipe smoker. Paul feigned boredom with the whole topic of pipe smoking, but sure asked a lot of questions about it, as did Tom. I think they are both considering coming over to the right side of tobacco, but for some reason want to keep it on the DL. As Blake was leaving, Vic offered him a cigar from his recent purchases, in a last ditch effort to switch teams. As magnanimous as the gesture was, I don't think Blake will abandon his true calling as a pipe smoker. And, Vic, where was my cigar? Don't you want me on your team?

Other topics included some sports talk between Peter and Tom, and some politics/current events, but nothing too intense. I do like having Vic around as he and I are on the same page on a lot of issues, so I don't have to hold the Progressive flag by myself. Finally, Vic regaled us with tales from his days as a correctional officer in the New York State Prison system.

Have a good week everyone!

Saturday at the Hut - 2/25/12

Today saw a good crowd at The Tobacco Hut: Joe K and Scott R were there when I arrived in the morning. Aaron, Paul O, and Tom L all came in shortly after I got there. Fortunately, I timed it right to ensure the proper seating.

Crown Viking freehand with
Erik Nording's "Fox Hound"
(click to enlarge)

I settled in with a bowl of Erik Nording's Hunters Blend "Fox Hound" in a Crown Viking freehand I got from Lou several years ago. Fox Hound is a delightful English blend with a fantastic flavor and pleasant room note. The pipe I was smoking, the Crown Viking, was one that I had reserved for the occasional aromatic tobacco but, the last few times I've used it, I've smoked English blends in it. I realize I'll probably never smoke another aromatic, so why keep a pipe back just for them and not enjoy it. So I've brought the Crown back into the rotation and am quite happy with it.

Our friend Scott has met Erik Nording, having visited Blue Smoke in Clearwater when Scott worked there. Apparently Mr. Nording is quite the hunter and outdoorsman, so it's only natural that he created a series of tobaccos reflecting one of his passions. Maybe I should develop a tobacco called "NPR" - it will have liberal amounts of Virginia, and a solid redistribution of Latakia, and a progressive pinch of Perique.

Scott showed off a couple of pocket knives and it appears he is approaching his one year mark writing a very popular blog on the subject. Congratulations Scott! His blog is titled, appropriately enough, Pocket Knives Blog, and is attracting quite an audience. And Scott has recently added some video content to his pages. Nicely done, my friend! Maybe we could do a joint video sometime - you reviewing pocket knives and me reviewing tobacco. Of course, I have the perfect face for radio, so maybe I should reconsider. Check out Scott's blog here.

Advertisement from Popular
Mechanics, 1950.
(click to enlarge)

Scott brought in an interesting artifact for me to look at. It was a Beattie Jet Lighter. He told me about it yesterday when were discussing a meetup at the Hut and, I confess, I had never heard of one. I did a little research on it before I saw it and have to admit, it's pretty cool. After I got home I did some more research and discovered that they stopped making them fifty years ago and were designed for pipe lighting. Well now, that got my attention! Scott said he wanted to give me first crack at it before he sold it on eBay and, at the time, my thoughts were, "Meh." Interesting lighter but I'm not that into old lighters, but when I discovered they were specifically for pipes (and "thawing out frozen car locks, blackening gun sights, lighting campfires and fireplaces, and doing small soldering jobs" according to some of the original marketing materials) now I'm more interested. So Scott, text me with what you'd like to get out of it and we'll talk!

Other topics of conversation included spirits. Not the ghostly kind but whiskey, bourbon, scotch, etc. Tom recalled his trying a particularly strong bourbon and liking it after it had settled down a bit. Aaron, Paul and Scott all have a lot more experience with such distilled liquors than I certainly do, so it was fascinating to hear them explain the differences between the various brands and types.

And just to help spread the word, while you're sitting around smoking your cigar or pipe and sipping your bourbon, if you're looking for a cool new Internet radio station, check out Psychedelicized Radio. It's a streaming station that plays groovy psychedelic tunes from the 60s and early 70s. Not the headbanging stuff, but some great music from a lot of bands you've never heard of, and obscure tracks from bands you have heard of. Give it a listen here.

Lou and Tom, late in the day.
(click to enlarge)

Here's a picture I snapped late in the day when it was just Tom, Lou, and me. Notice what's missing? Remember that tall free-standing humidor that was for sale? Lou finally sold it and the buyer showed up today to haul it away. Lou has some ideas as to what should go in its place, but I'm thinking a cigar store Indian would go there nicely. Failing that, maybe a life-sized cardboard cut out of Bertrand Russell, the liberal's liberal! And a pipe smoker, of course.

Bertrand Russell, philosopher,
mathematician, atheist, pipe
smoker.
(click to enlarge)

Cheers!

Saturday at the Hut - 1/28/12

Happy New Year to all my faithful readers (both of you!) as this is my first blog of 2012. The last blog was December 31 where I lamented not being able to smoke the new pipe and tobacco that Paula gifted me for Christmas due to a cold. I have since been able to enjoy it and what a great combination of the new Stanwell and Erik Nording's Hunter Blend tobacco. It's a combination I'll return to many times, I'm sure.

Today at The Tobacco Hut found me smoking a bowlful of McClelland's Wilderness tobacco in a Cassano quarter bent pipe. Paul O even commented on the aroma, and was later overheard asking some questions about pipes and pipe smoking, so we may yet another convert on the horizon (take that, Tom L - soon you cigar smokers might be in the minority!).

The gang today consisted of the aforementioned Paul O, Joe K, Aaron C, Peter G, and Lou and myself of course. Present briefly by proxy was Bobby M, who called me and said he was going to try and make it but, alas, wasn't able to.

Happy belated birthday to Aaron - it was his b-day last Saturday. I wasn't at the Hut, and he apparently chose not to spend the day at the shop either, opting to spend it in the hospital instead. He's all better now and enjoyed his first cigar since last week with us today.

Even though Aaron is still a newbie, and will always be considered one until he supplies with the Rookie Pizza (Jim S, you're still on the hook for a pizza too you know!), he's been coming in pretty regularly on Saturdays and sharing some pretty disgusting stories with us. His chosen occupation is as a nurse and today he regaled us with tales involving some pretty revolting smells emanating from a rather large patient. He then offered to go get us that pizza, but we all declined.

Speaking of birthdays, Scott R is turning The Big 50 this coming Friday, Feb. 3rd, so we're going to celebrate next Saturday (Feb. 4th) at the Hut. Let's have a big turnout and help him jump into senior citizenship with a bang! Scott's the knife nut - hmm...maybe that should be spelled knife knut - in addition to being quite the outdoorsman, is an Internet marketing guru, and all around great guy, so I want to put on a big spread like we had for Joe's son, James, several years ago. Remember? We had dancing girls, a catered spread, celebrity appearances, and a live band. Well, okay, actually all we had was a half-opened bag of M&M's and someone turned up the radio in their car before the battery died, but it was the thought behind it all!

This will be a morning party, as Scott plans on being at the Hut around 10 o'clock next Saturday, so adjust your plans accordingly!

As I was AWOL last Saturday, I didn't hear about Joe's recent trip to Vegas and Consumer Electronics Show, but I was all ears today as he told me how much fun he had wandering the convention center floor, drinking in all the new gadgetry. Some additional fun facts about his lodgings in Vegas - beware the mini bar in the hotel room. You can open it up and look, but if you even just pick up a bottle of something or snack, you bought it. You don't have to open it, just pick it up, and it's yours. And a pot of coffee via room service in the morning? $28!

He and Val had what sounded like an incredible helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon too while they were out west. I've never made it out there, but plan on it someday. Any pictures from your trip, Joe?

Funny story about Joe (sorry, buddy, have to do it!)...he called me Thursday afternoon on my cell phone and left me a voice mail as I was in a meeting and couldn't pick up. So I called his cell - as requested - a couple hours later, around 2:30, but got his voice mail, so I left a message. Around 4:00 I tried again, and had to leave a voice mail. Finally around 7:30 that evening I tried yet again, and it went to voice mail. I decided then to try his home phone, and he picked up right away. "Joe!" I said, "I've been trying to reach you all day on your cell." "Did you leave a voice mail?" "Yes, I've left three of them now." There was a pause as Joe muttered a little to himself something along the lines of, "I don't know where my cell phone is." As he wandered around his house and property on his cordless phone, he then exclaimed, "There it is - in my car!" Pay attention, Scott, now that you're soon a senior citizen, you'll be having moments like this too!

Later in the afternoon today at the Hut found us discussing, as we sometimes do, some of the old TV favorites, including Andy Griffith. Not so much the show itself, but the actor and his earlier career. We also laughed about Tim Conway, who I saw in person last Saturday at Ruth Eckerd Hall, and his great work on the Carol Burnett Show. I'm afraid Aaron felt a little left out as he's probably never heard of these TV greats!

Before I sign off, I do want to recommend a streaming Internet radio station, "Psychedelicized Radio". It's an incredible storehouse of musical gems, commercials, and radio station air checks from the 1960s. It's not head-banging stuff by any means, but rather the groovy, mind-expanding psychedelic tunes from that era. Well worth a listen here.

That's it for this week - hope to see everyone next Saturday around 10:00 to wish Scott a Happy 50th!

 - Bob

Saturday at the Hut - 12/31/11

We had a full house at The Tobacco Hut today! Lots of folks in attendance and lots of fun. Nice to see a great turnout to support Lou. Let's get started with the roll call and then I'll dive into the highlights. Today saw Joe K, Tom L, Paul O, Ed B, Scott R, Jeff D, Don W, Brian J, Barry C, and a new guy, Aaron C. Aaron is a friend of Don's and may have been in before, but this is my first time meeting him, so I'll just call him the new guy. (Jim S, it looks like you're no longer the new guy). BTW, Aaron, it's customary for the new guy to bring pizzas for everyone even though Jim never did. Not that we're bitter or anything.

My new as yet unsmoked Stanwell
pipe and Erik Nording Hunter
Blend pipe tobacco
(Click to enlarge)

Paula got me a shiny new pipe for Christmas and I was so looking forward to smoking a bowl from a brand new tin of tobacco, but I've been sick all week so arrived at the Hut empty handed. When I have a cold, I don't feel like smoking anything. Tom L, on the other hand, was sick last week but lit up anyway so he's obviously more of a man than I am. Hmm...Tom was sick last week and now I'm sick this week. Coincidence? Anyway, hopefully next week this is the pipe you'll see me lighting up for the first time. It's a Stanwell Vario quarter bent w/acrylic stem. Can't wait to fire it up.

It got to be pretty crowded after awhile and it was such a nice day that most of us moved outside. We did leave Joe and Lou inside so that Joe could get some help with his upcoming trip to Vegas. Below is Lou pointing out on Joe's iPad where the Bunny Ranch is. (Click to enlarge).

Below are a couple shots of the gang enjoying their cigars. It really was a perfect day to be outside and I'm only sorry that I couldn't enjoy the fun and been able to light up as well. But I certainly enjoyed all the smoke that wafted my way.

Lou and Joe
(Click to enlarge)

Tom L, Ed B, Paul O
(Click to enlarge)

Scott R, Lou, Joe K
(Click to enlarge)

Tom L, Ed B, Paul O, Scott R, Joe K,
Out of frame: Jeff D, Aaron C, Don
(Click to enlarge)

We soon noticed that the fruit shipping place next door was getting an awful lot of traffic, even though it was closed for the holiday. Every five minutes some old person would hobble out of their car up to the door and tug on it in frustration, anxious to get their half gallon of orange juice or pint of orange-flavored ice cream.

In a flash of pranking genius, Tom L came up with the idea of creating a sign that read "Back in 5 Minutes" and taping it to the door, so that's what we did. We sat back and waited for the ensuing hijinks. Well, we waited and waited and nobody showed up so after our crowd had thinned out a bit, we moved back inside and kind of forgot about it.

Just having a little fun with the
customers of the store next door.
(Click to enlarge)

It didn't take long though for the first victim to come along - an orange colored pickup pulled up and promptly pulled away, presumably after reading the sign. A few minutes later a couple came up, hung around for a minute or two and left. Then the same woman in the white Buick from a month ago (see earlier post) arrived, read the sign and went back to her car to wait. And wait. And wait. Ed finally took a little pity on the lady and went out to inform her that the sign had been there all day and they were probably closed.

A little later a Phyllis Diller-look alike arrived and took the record for waiting. She stood outside the door for easily fifteen minutes. At one point, she even stood in front of our open door drilling us as to where the owners were. We expressed the proper indignation that they weren't there and sent her on her way. She was soon joined by another woman and when they finally left in a huff, we could hear one of the women say that she had already called the business and left a nasty message. 

Phyllis Diller look-alike
waiting impatiently
for the 5 minutes to be up.
(Click to enlarge)

A short time later, a woman carrying an almost-empty bottle of orange juice arrived in our doorway inquiring about the shop next door. She said she wanted to return the orange juice as it was sour. Of course, it was practically gone, but I'm sure the store has a very liberal return policy. In any case she, for some reason, found it necessary to tell us to remember the "Three A's" to please a woman. I tried to block out this whole portion of the afternoon, so can't recall exactly what she was talking about.

Ed joking with crazy O.J. Lady
(Click to enlarge)

Wanting to take the prank to the next level of immaturity, we decided to update the "Back in 5 Minutes" sign and add Joe's phone number to it, so that's what we did. Joe had already left for the day, so we couldn't ask him if it was okay. I'm sure he won't mind.

We just had to make a small
addendum to the sign.
Sorry Joe!
(Click to enlarge)

Barry continues to attract the crazies to the Hut. This time it was a lady who was walking past the store and glanced in, obviously attracted by Paul's pretty shirt. Paul waved hello but Barry beckoned her in and invited her to sit in Lou's chair. Fortunately for Lou, he wasn't sitting in it at the time, but he was not happy when he looked from behind the counter and found this woman sitting in his chair. She got on a tirade about presidential politics which was good for a laugh or two especially when Barry urged her to vote for Bob Harrison and she had never heard of him. Paul assured her that he was an idiot though and not worthy of her vote. I concurred.

Barry with his new
crazy friend of the week.
(Click to enlarge)

A quick note upon closing...let's plan on a get-together to celebrate Scott's 50th birthday on Sat, Feb 4th. Scott's usually a morning guy, so how about around 10:00? I'll bring the Doritos and Mountain Dew - just kidding Lou!

P.S. Aaron, we're just joking about bringing pizza. Of course, if you did we wouldn't turn it down.

P.P.S. Don't worry Joe, we took the sign down right after I took the photo of it. I think.