Vance Reeser

Comments

1. yeah, that definitely holds true, at least in part, for me.

   — brian warren    543 days ago    #

2. not as much for me. although i do remember them talking about a “well spliced pipe” as one of the things the demons should try and stop the human from enjoying in the screwtape letters which lessened my guilt quite a bit.

   — bv    543 days ago    #

3. What does spliced mean? I forgot about that in Screwtape…

   — vance    543 days ago    #

4. Well, it certainly didn’t hurt. Tolkien and Lewis are both just about impossible for me to picture without pipe in hand. And I suppose that did contribute to my sense that pipes feel strongly connected to mediative sorts of people.

   I recently found a book of Lewis poems that has a wonderful author photo in the back cover with him lighting his pipe, the smoke partly obscuring his hands and face. I think my favorite picture of him.

   On the subject, at least peripherally, England just followed Scotland and Ireland in banning indoor smoking entirely. The air in the Eagle & Child looks strangely clear, and it feels somehow like the ghosts of the former residents are no longer welcome.

   — Casey    541 days ago    #

5. Partly…

   But my fond memories of pipes came from my days of bailing hay in high school. As I walked those Texas fields as the sun was going down after a hard days work, this 80 year old man would drive the tractor with a pipe in his mouth. The smell flowed through the air and created a perfect atmosphere for that time of night. And ever since I wanted to smoke a pipe.

   — Matt    541 days ago    #

6. @Casey – Thats exactly the photo I have in mind when I think about Lewis and pipe-smoking!

   Meditative is a good word for a pipes-smoke, yes. I like that it forces you to slow down if you’re going to enjoy it.

   @Matt – great story man. Thanks for sharing.

   — vance    540 days ago    #