# Mature Smokers Who Don’t Want to Stop Smoking **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 24, 2015, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718 "2015-08-24T13:40:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Randolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Randolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randolph)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/81 "2015-09-18T12:16:33Z")
Gee, I wish I had it all figured out like that. ---
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/82 "2015-09-18T17:11:14Z")
I roll up and smoke your sarcasm, **Randolph** 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Randolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Randolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randolph)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/83 "2015-09-18T17:22:28Z")
Just tweakin’ ya, man. Nothing is more pleasurable than feeding an addiction. /ex-smoker ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/84 "2015-09-18T17:38:45Z")
I quit 14 years ago. And then I quit again 52 days ago. I picked them back up in April of 2014 by just smoking occasionally and thinking I could control the addiction. That was a really stupid mistake. I have two young sons and was always careful to never let them see me smoke, but then I found myself getting cranky and edgy and realized it was time to snuff them out. I had to reset my quit date three times, but eventually I completely quit them for the second time on my son’s 5th birthday. That was the last piece of motivation I needed. My birthday present to my son is that I’ll hopefully be around a little bit longer than I would have otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/85 "2015-09-18T18:05:44Z")
> [@August\_West](#): > > I have two young sons and was always careful to never let them see me smoke, but then I found myself getting cranky and edgy and realized it was time to snuff them out. Snuff the _kids_??? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/86 "2015-09-18T19:39:50Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Snuff the _kids_??? :eek: Hoo boy, that was some unfortunate sentence construction! 😃 The kids are safe, I promise! ---
**Author:** ![Shakester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shakester/32/437_2.png) [@Shakester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shakester)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2015, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/87 "2015-09-18T19:44:59Z")
I’m a couple of weeks shy of 5 years since I quit. I’m a little surprised by how much I _don’t_ miss it. My brother, who was still a smoker, died of pneumonia last month. Helping to clear out his flat, it reeked of smoke, dust, ash. Reeked. No one who went in there was in any doubt that smoking and living in that environment played a big part in his death. He was 56. Who dies of pneumonia at 56 in this day and age? Chronic smokers. Don’t bullshit yourself: it’s not _that_ hard to quit once you make your mind up to do it. I was a slavering nicotine addict who _loved_ smoking, too. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/88 "2015-09-22T04:26:33Z")
I’m down to a back every few weeks or so, and don’t really have a desire to be 100% smoke free. If you want to meet interesting people at work, or socially, hang out with the smokers. And I kind of like they way the smoke smells. ---
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/89 "2015-09-22T04:51:04Z")
> [@Randolph](#): > > Just tweakin’ ya, man. Yeah, I know … 😃 > [@Randolph](#): > > Nothing is more pleasurable than feeding an addiction. > > /ex-smoker True dat - that’s why I still have three. On rotation. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/90 "2015-09-22T13:31:25Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > As a side note: > > Quite a few people start in their teens, but when I went to university (not long ago, 2003-2007) I knew an alarming number of university students who started smoking in their early 20s, not to look cool, but to deal with the stress of university. > > I’m not saying it was a good or an intelligent thing to do, I’m just saying it happened. I noticed that a number of 18-19 year olds who started smoking upon joining the military for the same reasons, as far as I could tell. I also notice that in a work environment, smokers sometimes take their smoke breaks at the same time, making the activity linked to social needs, as well. ---
**Author:** ![6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/6/e19adc/32.png) [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/91 "2015-09-22T14:44:23Z")
> [@mlees](#): > > I also notice that in a work environment, smokers sometimes take their smoke breaks at the same time, making the activity linked to social needs, as well. Nah - it’s for group protection from the snipers 🙂 Also, you don’t want to have trekked all the way to fucknuckle-wherever Land of the Damned to find your lighter doesn’t work. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/92 "2015-09-22T14:59:23Z")
> [@6ImpossibleThingsB4Breakfast](#): > > Nah - it’s for group protection from the snipers 🙂 > > Also, you don’t want to have trekked all the way to fucknuckle-wherever Land of the Damned to find your lighter doesn’t work. heh. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718/93 "2015-09-22T18:48:06Z")
> [@EmilyG](#): > > As a side note: > > Quite a few people start in their teens, but when I went to university (not long ago, 2003-2007) I knew an alarming number of university students who started smoking in their early 20s, not to look cool, but to deal with the stress of university. Actually, smoking \*causes \*stress. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mature-smokers-who-don-t-want-to-stop-smoking/728718.md?page=4)