[Image from TechCrunch, thanks to the magic of Google Images]
February has many important holidays and themes associated with it. You have Valentines Day, a holiday both cherished by couples and cursed by singles. Then there’s Presidents Day, Black History Month, and not to mention a day that comes and goes mysteriously every four years. For being the shortest month of the year, there’s a lot to celebrate.
Yet for us humble and lowly pipe smokers, we have etched out a holiday just for us on February 20th, International Pipe Smoking Day! All around the world, people gather around, huddled in the cold (or suffer in the heat if you’re below the equator), light our pipes, and celebrate the hobby that we all cherish. Schools remain in session, and you won’t hear about this holiday on the news, but for the community of pipe smokers, it’s our day.
Why was February chosen? I don’t know. The committee who decided that probably isn’t from the North where we’re at the mercy of old man winter. But besides that, how great is it that we have a day set aside to honor our little hobby? As pipe smokers, we have to deal with the scorn and comments from those who don’t understand our hobby, thinking we’re killing ourselves with our evil pipes. Today is our day, whether the anti’s like it or not.
So brothers and sisters, grab your favorite pipe and blend and puff away. Perhaps make an online order for a new pipe or tobacco, or visit a local tobacconist in celebration. Don’t forget to raise your pipe and remember those pipe smokers, pipe makers, and tobacconists who have come before us and kept the tradition alive for us, and may we continue to pass this legacy to others who wish to join our ranks. I’ll smoke my pipe in honor of the man who would puff his pipe around my mother’s work, who in a small way turned my interest to the pipe. He passed away a few years ago, but I’ll always remember him walking with a limp, and his pipe jutting out of his mouth as he walked around the neighborhood.
Happy International Pipe Smoking Day friends, and smoke your pipe in peace.
–TheBadgerPiper ~\U
thebadgerpiper 