Non-Smoking Please

Confession: I smoked in college. Well to be precise I took one drag (is that what they call it?) from one cigarette. I was walking with a friend who smoked. I was curious what the attraction was; it was one of those “just to say I’d done it” things. She demonstrated for me how to do it; I even practiced breathing in and blowing out. I’m technical that way…ridiculous.


It was disgusting; I couldn’t stop spitting the rest of that day. My stomach was upset, I had a horrible taste in my mouth, and I felt sick. I can’t imagine any circumstances where I would have become addicted. I’m pretty sure that my initial response was pretty typical….why on earth would anyone do it again? I don’t get it, I don’t get it, I don’t get it.

I don’t understand why anyone would have started to smoke in the last 15 years? I really don’t, I mean, don’t they know what the risks are? What benefits are there that make it worth the risk? Are there benefits at all? The documented and researched risks are well-known, like cancer and over-all health risks of smoke and second-hand smoke. But there are other risks too. Smoking is expensive, and sadly the majority of smokers are the people least able to afford it. It influences the way people perceive you. I am guilty of that. I know it’s unfair, but…. And finally, smoking is smelly.

The smell of a person smoking two cars ahead of me in a drive-through is enough to make me gag. It’s annoying that people smoke right in front of the entrances to buildings. While I realize that no one smokes inside the building, how does having to walk through a poisonous cloud protect me from second-hand smoke?

When L was born we lived in a half-house, the people we shared the building with were smokers. It seeped through the walls and wafted through the windows. D’s mother and step-father were heavy smokers at the time, and I refused to take my infant son to their house. We made them come to a hotel to see the baby for the first time. Thankfully they no longer smoke, and while D’s step-father has passed away his mom is able to have her grandsons to the house, and more importantly she is healthier.

I think it is unacceptable and irresponsible to smoke with children around…and saying that it is an addiction doesn’t make it okay.