LincolnBlogs

I don’t hide the fact that I am a smoker, and have been that way for a very long time. There is just something soothing about it, I crave the nicotine and have that oral fixation too I suppose. I will admit, however, that it’s a very bad habit. It stinks, it’s hazardous to your health, not to mention physically hazardous, etc..

The other day, my wife was once again complaining about me smoking in the house. I normally do not smoke in my bedroom, however, I was on call all week and was in there frequently for long hours at my computer working, and smoking too. That stunk the place up – too much so for her comfort. I am not sure why the idea popped into my head, but as she was chewing me out I thought, why not electronic cigarettes? It was then that I resolved to try them. At least if I had to work in my bedroom, even if I did not like e-cigs, I could probably stand it enough to get me by in there, and hey, the winter is coming up too, and it’s *cold* outside 🙂

I called around to every tobacco shop and drugstore I could think of, and found one that actually sold the rechargeable / reusable kind (was Rite Aid BTW), and decided to give it a shot. Here are some of my initial thoughts.

It is different feeling and tasting, and that takes a bit of getting used to, but no more than if you ran out of smokes and had to bum one off a friend who didn’t smoke your brand, or you were forced into buying a pack of a different brand for some reason. For that reason, do yourself a favor and make sure you actually smoke the equivalent of a cigarette or three before actually making up your mind.

It looks slightly ridiculous in your face with odd colored leds glowing at the end of your cigarette, so be prepared to intercept questions about it’s use.

Charging your cigarette is a weird feeling. On that note, I wish I had gotten a usb charger. That would be more convenient for me.

You can not only smoke in the house, but smoke in bed if you like.

There is no heat, no fire, no ashes.

Doesn’t stink or stain your teeth.

No tar or other nasties that traditional smokes deposit in your lungs.

Cheaper – way cheaper.

Smoke less – lasts longer? This is an interesting one. When you are smoking a traditional cig, how much of it do you waste? I did it all the time, light one up, take 2 drags and then it burns out while I am in conversation or something, so I light another. Rinse, repeat, etc.. With e-cigs, there is no such thing. Drag and put it back in your pocket. You are not wasting anything at all and you also are not obligated to hang out and smoke the whole cigarette so you don’t feel you are wasting it.

I figured I would give it the college try so willed myself to use the e-cig *only* through my weekend. The first day was hard. Mentally I really wanted to grab and light up. It wasn’t a need – I didn’t need the nicotine, just really wanted to light up. After that it was pudding. I had absolutely no remorse about leaving my half finished pack of traditional smokes at home today and walking out the door with only my e-cig.

Time will tell how this all works out, but looks good so far. I expect to review some different e-cigs here from time to time as well, for those of you who are interested, so stay tuned.