Wow they reek!

[IntelligentDesigner]

I hate to be all hoity toity about being a non smoker now, and like to think as a former smoker that I'm a little more tolerant of smoking.

But the other day after biking for a few hours, I stopped at Kroger to get some coffee creamer. Figured while there, I'd get a snack too. Went outside to eat and there was a lady outside smoking. I was about 20 feet away and could smell the cigarette strongly, and not the good diluted smoke type smell. It was almost as if I had my nose right by the end of her ciggy. I couldn't enjoy my candy bar and started walking away. I had to get about 40 feet away from her to not be able to smell it and actually enjoy my candy bar.

That's the first time since I quit smoking over 4 months ago that a cigarette has bothered me and I've been around other smokers many times with no problem.

Is this how we affected other folks in public? Or is there a possibility that we're more sensitive to smoke now? I never could stand those fools who started fake coughing as soon as they realized there was a lit cigarette in their vicinity, even if freshly lit before even a molecule of smoke hit their nose. Were we always bothering people that much without realizing it? Or just didn't care?

 

[JoJoVa]

I think you covered it all. For me, I think it is a combo of being familiar with the scent and that it just isn't a pleasant smell. And you're right, when I smoked a cig, i just didn't care how other people felt about the smell- especially if I was in a smoking area. All I know is that I am glad to no longer be the culprit of that smell!

 

[barbee865]

I never noticed the smoke smell when i was smoking, but now, i notice it everywhere. Even in line at stores i smell it on people's clothes. I don't say anything, but damn it stinks. The "coughers" always made me laugh before and still think some of em' need to shove it. Smoke bothers some people more than others, you would think, being ex smokers, we wouldn't be as sensitive to it as a non smoker (someone that has never smoked)

 

[Johnnie Price]

Yeah, we were.

 

[Chimney34]

I think it's both! We didn't realize it & we didn't care. It was such a part of us that we didn't even realize how bad it was. I have the exact same feeling. I was standing outside vaping with a friend the other week while he smoked a cigarette & the wind blew the smoke in my direction. Funny thing was he smokes the brand I smoked for 15 years!!

 

[vsummer1]

I started noticing it too after I gave up cigarettes. I was leaving a store, same as you, and could not believe how strong it was! Usually I would have been right out there smoking also. And the realization that I used to be the cause of all that smell sure did hit me. And smelling it on others, I just cannot believe I walked around like that for decades. I was actually pretty shocked.

And I would never say a word to anyone about their smoking unless they asked me about vaping. Then I would be glad to help them out.

 

[Mud Pie]

I made a promise to myself to not become a "preacher" of non-smoking. I will not admit publicly about the stink of cigarettes. I will not wave my hand in front of my face while others smoke. I will not make the squinty-face or let out the fake cough. Others (non-smokers) have done that to me while I smoked.....in a smoking area !! Was I polite about it ? Not in the least bit. I would blow smoke somewhat in their direction and say, "Then get out of the smoking area.".

Now, do I notice the smell of someone that smoked ? Sure do. Do I like it ? Nope. Will you ever hear me say anything about it ? Not happening. For I was once them. They know, they don't need me preaching to them.

 

[IntelligentDesigner]

Yeah, no, certainly wouldn't be one of those holier than thou, born again non smokers preaching the reckless hellfire and brimstone on the end of a lit cigarette sacrilege to anyone.

Sometimes even when I smoked, I could smell the stench on another. And I realized how bad it must smell to non smokers. And sometimes, especially in a car with the windows down, the first puff of a smoke smelled great. I still think that particular smell is great. It's just that for this lady, the smoke smell was so concentrated, even from 40+ feet away. I'm wondering if that's how all cigarette smoke is going to smell from now on.

 

[DarkKnightZX]

I can totally relate!! A few weeks after I stopped smoking the smell became VERY noticeable to me. A month and a half later I can barely stand it now. Worse then that a while back when I was at work my battery went dead (lord help) and I was without a charger. I broke down and bummed a marlboro red 100 from a co-worker. WOW! I was barely able to smoke it, nearly made me sick!

 

[crxess]

I think unless she was smoking something really odd, she was just a victim of visual assumption. Probably an area where everyone hangs out to smoke and the Walls are Saturated. Any dampness would exaggerate the smell even more. Without a tunnel breeze 20ft is quite a distance and 40ft is totally unreasonable, especially for an ex-smoker. Just saying, there were probably other factors involved.

 

[Scoop224]

What really bugs me is when I have to walk past a smoker, or the .... they just tossed on the ground that's still burning, I getthe smell of it on me and in my clothes...

See, one of the biggest pleasures and affirmations I've found since quitting is the way I smell now. I love smelling soap on my hands all day long, smelling my clothes that retain the fresh scent of fabric softener even after a full day of wearing them. But all of that smoke gets trapped in the fibers of my clothes even after a few seconds of exposure, and stays there for quite a while. My nose can still detect it up to an hour later. That, is not fair to anyone.

I feel terrible for contributing to that all these years. I don't say a word to those that still smoke, if they want to harm themselves to their heart's content....fine by me. But I do avoid them like the plague anymore. I just don't want to smell like that ever again.

 

[jfalbanese]

i have said it many times. there is nothing worse than a liar, or a Reformed Smoker. always a clean ashtray (and ECF Card) for my brethren. no matter how much i hate the smell. air freshener fetish lately. was treated like a second class citizen as a result of my habit. can't do that to someone else. my hypocrisy runs only so deep.

 

[Scoop224]

Is that post in response to me? I'm not a hypocrite.

I see there must be a sale on soapbox rental....your was spent wisely, my friend.

Say....I'm also a recovering sex addict....does that mean everyone should let me come over and sleep with their wife, too?

A clean ashtray for your brethren, eh? But a ....-chewingg for anyone who says smokers stink? Sounds more hypocritical than what I said....just sayin'.

 

[OnTheFidele]

Not for me, especially when someone's puffing on an American Spirit. Even though I don't have the urge to smoke (I am convinced vaping is better in every way except for the ritual and fire aspects of smoking), something about the smell of burning tobacco sends me off into a spinning abyss of nostalgia...

 

[Abe_Katz]

I've only an ex-smoker for a short period of time, about a month. Already I prefer the smell of soap, fabric softener/detergent, and etc over tobacco smoke smell. That said I've yet to actually say anything to anyone about their smoking. I always hated being preached at, and I won't preach at others.

That said, yes I do find the smell of cigarettes, and pipes to be unpleasant. So much so that I've bought a bag of potpourri to cover up the odor that comes from the drawer where I stored my pipes. I can't bring myself to throw them out for some reason--though when I move to Chicago in a few years they are unlikely to move with me.

 

[yoitzo]

It's kind of the opposite for me. Even when I smoked, I could smell a cigarette a mile away and I would LOVE it. I could pin point a person half way across campus follow the scent. Maybe it's because I haven't quit for quite as long as a lot of people here but I still really enjoy the smell of a cigarette.... to the point where I still go to the smoking spot at my school and vape there (ok it's also right in front of most of my classes but I enjoy the smell ^__^;

However, I was having a really stressful day, about a week ago. I broke down and took a puff of my friend's cigarette and it really tasted gross. My taste buds and my nose was going through a strange battle and my brain just asked "... is going on here?!" O_O

 

[Rocketpunk]

Same here, OP. I can smell it big time, now. However, we must all understand, we smelled JUST LIKE THEM. We did! All the time! We thought no one would notice! At least I did. I was obsessed with carrying hand sanitizer (I do work in a restaurant, and your health really is a priority for us) and packs of gum. I used to chew on lemon slices and squeeze lemon juice on my hands if I was out of gum or hand sanitizer. I thought that would be enough. I was so, so, so wrong! Smoke clings to EVERYTHING. Clothes, especially.

It's just one of those things that reinforces my desire never to touch another real cig again.

EDIT: I always edit my posts. Heh. Anyway, my girlfriend has been a non-smoker all of her life, but she said she actually enjoyed the smell of tobacco on my moustache. Not the smoke, but the tobacco. Smell is a very visceral sense, it can affect almost every other sense outside of sight (unless you're looking at poo, then eyesight is visceral, too.)

 

[DC2]

Is this how we affected other folks in public? Or is there a possibility that we're more sensitive to smoke now?

I often wonder this myself.

Sometimes I think we may be more sensitive to the smell.
And other times I think we were just stupid and ignorant the whole time.

My non-smoker wife, if asked, would go with stupid and ignorant.

 

[Rocketpunk]

to the point where I still go to the smoking spot at my school and vape there

.

I do the same. So far, I have gotten a lot of looks, but no one on campus has approached me to talk about vaping. Except one kid, he asked, "What'choo smokin?!" And I just said, "An e-cig", and he kept on walking.

EDIT: I felt a surge of happiness at school the other day when a guy came up to me and asked to borrow a light. I lifted up my Provari. "It's electric", I replied.

In my mind, I finished with, "Boogie woogie woogie."

 

[grandmato5]

It amazes me how sensitive I am now to being able to smell smoke on someone else inside or outside. All those years I smoked I knew I smelled but I never had any idea how badly I smelled or easy it was to detect that I was a smoker by non-smokers.

Never does one negative word come out of my mouth about smoking to a smoker. I know how I felt about comments made to me and I will never return those comments to anyone that chooses to continue smoking.