A love story
For 16 years I've been chasing the feeling of that first nicotine hit. My first was Old Holborn. I was working as a fisheries assistant for a large reservoir in the south. Every morning I'd be out on a boat chucking pellets in the trout cages and the rest of the day would be spent with the rollie smoking grounds manager, bumbling around in a Defender, chopping down trees etc etc. My dream job (instead of working in this damn office). One day I pinched one of his many half full packets of Old Holborn from the 4X4 and sneaked it off home.

Getting home before my parents, I went around the back of the house, carefully looking and listening to make sure none of the neighbours could dob me in, because in those days everyone knew who your parents were, even strangers. Unfortunately I hadn't pinched any papers, so I used a brown sandwich bag from my mums cooking drawer, cut to size.

I remember opening the packet and inhaling the sweet, sweet smell of the sticky tobacco. I rolled what I can best describe as a rather joint size, shabby, brown roll-up. I lit it with a Bryant & May safety match from my own little hidden pyro stash. I inhaled. I collapsed backward against the wall and slid down it in absolute ecstasy as the pleasant dizziness took over my head. Until I discovered weed and sex, it was the best feeling I'd ever felt. From that point on I was a smoker.

To this day I'm convinced there was maybe a little something extra in that packet, something the grounds manager maybe grew himself.

I'm now 30 and my parents only found out I smoke 3 years ago. They've offered to pay for all sorts to get me off it. Hypnotherapy, patches, acupuncture etc etc. But the fact is, I love it. I enjoy smoking. If I wanted to stop, I would try myself. And until I've rediscovered that first nicotine hit again, I'm not likely to stop.

Any other smokers remember trying to buy cigs when you were 15 but had received your N.I. card which you were only supposed to get at 16? Or wearing your dads best leather jacket to look that tiny bit older. 10 Red Stripe for 99p?
(Big Smurf Brush me daddy-O, Thu 20 Mar 2008, 10:11, Reply)