Hi all,
I had just typed this up in a reply to one of the NT-forum threads, but when I tried to post it, I was informed the forum had closed.
I figured I'd start this thread, and if previous fans of NT wander in here, make yourselves at home!! Below is the post I was trying to post:
Hmm. Tensions are high here.
Today, I received 9 60ml bottles of 6mg Wakonda. I haven't vaped Wakonda in over a year (I think), but it used to be my favorite juice. I uncapped two bottles and am letting them breathe. The rest will remain sealed for a while.
The Virus was the juice that "clicked" for me and gave me the courage to stomp out that final cigarette over 2 1/2 years ago. Wakonda was the juice that made me think "oh man - I'll NEVER go back." I never did.
But I did go forward. After DIYing for well over a year now, in complete and brutal honesty, I am not surprised to see NT and other juice companies closing up shop. Why? Because DIY is growing - and DIYers know, we can do this, too. Making juice is simply not rocket science. When I am able to make several juices that are as good or better than premium juice, but for a TINY fraction of the price - is it any wonder it's been over a year since I ordered Wakonda? No. No, it's common sense if anything.
That said, I feel immense sorrow today. For this is truly my last order of NT. These 9 bottles of Wakonda are the last I'll ever have. I will enjoy them immensely, for they are unique and wonderful. Clark does have a skill for making eliquid, and IMHO Wakonda is a skilled feat. For one, coffee is difficult to do right in eLiquid - and he did his own coffee extraction for this, as well as the tobacco and vanilla. So it is clearly unique, and not something I could ever replicate. And it's heavenly!!
But for me personally, I just don't care. I'll enjoy these bottles a lot, and spread them out over a year or 2. But I'm cranking out juice that's freaking awesome for less than a buck or two per 30ml. And all I'm doing is forging ahead - learning more - making better stuff. And this is the future of vaping.
For those who don't DIY, and specifically for those who will/would come into the fold eventually, this is a tremendous loss. Would I be where I'm at today if not for NT? If not for awesome juices somebody made for me? Would I be able to say I'll never smoke again if not for Clark??
The FDA certainly plays the largest role in what we're seeing and it is terrible. I do feel the growing DIY community is a part of it, too. When I went DIY, NT lost hundreds of dollars from me alone. Multiply that by however many others went DIY. But the bottom line is, that part of it is a beautiful thing - people moving forward, learning, and taking this "hobby/lifestyle" through the logical next step.
I'm very sad that NT is closing. I remember making so many YT videos reviewing Clark's juices. Some of the most fun I've ever had honestly. I remember late-night video chats with Clark and DaBucs, and Soignee and ShaneGuide. Such, such, such good times.
It is easy for us to scold Clark for throwing away 15k bottles and say "you should've sent that overseas" etc but we must remember that A) Clark is one of us, a human being, who wants to move on and B) doing that costs money. It is easy for us to say "release your recipes" and easy for Clark to say "I didn't liquidate my inventory, and that was what needed to happen for me to release them."
If Clark chooses to release his recipes, he will be doing the DIY community and Nicoticket a favor. He will essentially prove everything he has said NT was about since day one. But, the DIY community does not need his recipes, and if he chooses not to release them, NT will fade into oblivion, only existing through the memory of those who enjoyed his juices a long time ago.
I don't care. But it would be nice if he'd do it as he has nothing to lose, and it would be taken as a wonderful gesture and ensure NT never dies in the world of eLiquid. That's all I have to say about that.
If people stop vaping because they can no longer get their NT, well - so long as they don't return to smoking, they're doing themselves a favor really. If someone returns to smoking because they can't vape their favorite juice, they're not doing themselves a favor and they're choosing to ignore the vast, vibrant DIY community which is here and ready to help them move forward.
All in all, this is just a sad, sad day for me. Clark, I'll miss you, and I'll miss making videos and chatting about the juice. Thanks for the good deal on these last 9 bottles of Wakonda. Tomorrow, I'll load it up, and remember that first hit I ever took of Wakonda beside of a lake one evening, where I thought to myself "damn--smoking is obsolete."
---end post
So - let's just chat, yeah?
I had just typed this up in a reply to one of the NT-forum threads, but when I tried to post it, I was informed the forum had closed.
I figured I'd start this thread, and if previous fans of NT wander in here, make yourselves at home!! Below is the post I was trying to post:
Hmm. Tensions are high here.
Today, I received 9 60ml bottles of 6mg Wakonda. I haven't vaped Wakonda in over a year (I think), but it used to be my favorite juice. I uncapped two bottles and am letting them breathe. The rest will remain sealed for a while.
The Virus was the juice that "clicked" for me and gave me the courage to stomp out that final cigarette over 2 1/2 years ago. Wakonda was the juice that made me think "oh man - I'll NEVER go back." I never did.
But I did go forward. After DIYing for well over a year now, in complete and brutal honesty, I am not surprised to see NT and other juice companies closing up shop. Why? Because DIY is growing - and DIYers know, we can do this, too. Making juice is simply not rocket science. When I am able to make several juices that are as good or better than premium juice, but for a TINY fraction of the price - is it any wonder it's been over a year since I ordered Wakonda? No. No, it's common sense if anything.
That said, I feel immense sorrow today. For this is truly my last order of NT. These 9 bottles of Wakonda are the last I'll ever have. I will enjoy them immensely, for they are unique and wonderful. Clark does have a skill for making eliquid, and IMHO Wakonda is a skilled feat. For one, coffee is difficult to do right in eLiquid - and he did his own coffee extraction for this, as well as the tobacco and vanilla. So it is clearly unique, and not something I could ever replicate. And it's heavenly!!
But for me personally, I just don't care. I'll enjoy these bottles a lot, and spread them out over a year or 2. But I'm cranking out juice that's freaking awesome for less than a buck or two per 30ml. And all I'm doing is forging ahead - learning more - making better stuff. And this is the future of vaping.
For those who don't DIY, and specifically for those who will/would come into the fold eventually, this is a tremendous loss. Would I be where I'm at today if not for NT? If not for awesome juices somebody made for me? Would I be able to say I'll never smoke again if not for Clark??
The FDA certainly plays the largest role in what we're seeing and it is terrible. I do feel the growing DIY community is a part of it, too. When I went DIY, NT lost hundreds of dollars from me alone. Multiply that by however many others went DIY. But the bottom line is, that part of it is a beautiful thing - people moving forward, learning, and taking this "hobby/lifestyle" through the logical next step.
I'm very sad that NT is closing. I remember making so many YT videos reviewing Clark's juices. Some of the most fun I've ever had honestly. I remember late-night video chats with Clark and DaBucs, and Soignee and ShaneGuide. Such, such, such good times.
It is easy for us to scold Clark for throwing away 15k bottles and say "you should've sent that overseas" etc but we must remember that A) Clark is one of us, a human being, who wants to move on and B) doing that costs money. It is easy for us to say "release your recipes" and easy for Clark to say "I didn't liquidate my inventory, and that was what needed to happen for me to release them."
If Clark chooses to release his recipes, he will be doing the DIY community and Nicoticket a favor. He will essentially prove everything he has said NT was about since day one. But, the DIY community does not need his recipes, and if he chooses not to release them, NT will fade into oblivion, only existing through the memory of those who enjoyed his juices a long time ago.
I don't care. But it would be nice if he'd do it as he has nothing to lose, and it would be taken as a wonderful gesture and ensure NT never dies in the world of eLiquid. That's all I have to say about that.
If people stop vaping because they can no longer get their NT, well - so long as they don't return to smoking, they're doing themselves a favor really. If someone returns to smoking because they can't vape their favorite juice, they're not doing themselves a favor and they're choosing to ignore the vast, vibrant DIY community which is here and ready to help them move forward.
All in all, this is just a sad, sad day for me. Clark, I'll miss you, and I'll miss making videos and chatting about the juice. Thanks for the good deal on these last 9 bottles of Wakonda. Tomorrow, I'll load it up, and remember that first hit I ever took of Wakonda beside of a lake one evening, where I thought to myself "damn--smoking is obsolete."
---end post
So - let's just chat, yeah?
