Green Smoke

So a few days ago I was – rather stupidly – prolonging an absolutely horrible habit that I picked up decades ago in college – I purchased yet another pack of cigarettes. I usually smoke the Marlboro Light 100’s; however CVS was out of stock on these so I opted for the Marlboro Ultra-Light 100’s instead. Due to the popularity (I suppose) of the Marlboro Light 100’s, this is not the first time that I had been forced to make this same concession. Unfortunately my body seems to be somewhat allergic to the Ultra-Lights (it took me many years to finally make that connection) but that doesn’t matter – I needed my nicotine!

Sure enough after “enjoying” a couple of the newly purchased death sticks, the mucus began amassing in my chest and the wonderful hacking/coughing episodes began. I’m not really sure what it is with the Marlboro Ultra-Light’s; however it’s become blatantly clear to me that every time I smoke those I end up with a chest cold that lasts at least a week. Is it possible that this might be an allergic reaction to one of the thousands of malicious, often carcinogenic compounds found in the Ultra-Light’s? (Interestingly enough, it’s only the Ultra-Light’s that do this so consistently … I seem to respond much better to the Light’s…)

I decided to investigate this a bit. I figured I’d see if anyone else out on the “information superhighway” was experiencing a similar bugaboo with the Ultra-Light’s and – as we so often love to do on the Internet – bitching about it. Although my quest for an explanation didn’t find much with regards to why the Ultra-Light’s agreed less with me than my usual Light’s, it did discover something absolutely fascinating! Have you ever heard of electronic cigarettes (aka e-smokes)??? I hadn’t…

I was well aware of the existence of vaporizers. As a means for THC consumption, they were known to me. I never actually used a vaporizer … mainly due to the complication and expense involved with purchasing the vaporizer, warming it up for use (granted I never actually did this, but it seemed to me – back when I actually smoked marijuana – an unnecessarily long process to smoke some weed) and basically inhaling the tasteless water-like vapor. All this to basically get the same results obtained much more easily by just sparking a bowl. I do believe however that these electronic cigarettes have actually addressed these complications and are a much better, much safer and much more convenient nicotine conveyance system than the current socially unacceptable, filthy, repugnant and just plain dangerous technique. And, as an added bonus (as if there needed to be an added bonus to NOT killing yourself), these e-smokes can be enjoyed safely pretty much anywhere – e-smoking is NOT “smoking”…

Currently there are several different brands of e-smokes available. I’m not sure if these can currently be purchased at any physical place of retail in America; however ordering starter kits, batteries, flavored cartridges and accessories online is very easy. The brand I decided to try was Green Smoke. Purely by chance, Green Smoke just happened to be the first e-smoke brand that I came across during my Marlboro Ultra-Light allergy related information quest. The concept intrigued me and information about these e-smokes became my new target of inquiry.

If you search for reviews of Green Smoke (as I did), I believe you will quickly discover what I found – all reviews are positive, almost making this brand of e-smoke sound like absolutely the greatest thing to come around since the discovery of sex itself. Not that any of these reviewers are lying; but I now know why this is. Not only has the team over at Green Smoke created a very good electronic cigarette (granted it’s the only one I’ve ever used – I won’t lie…), they have also created an astonishingly great marketing approach that basically guarantees positive reviews from what I am thinking will be a majority of their customers. Anybody (and I do believe this is “anybody” – customer or not) can become a Green Smoke sales representative free of charge. I did. After becoming a sales rep, you are given access to your own web page with links to everything you would ever need to help you promote your sales of Green Smoke products – and I do mean everything up to and including the kitchen sink.

I’m sure you already noticed the Green Smoke banners I have put up on my blog page, right? Clicking on these banners will, of course, take you to the main Green Smoke homepage; however the page you are actually taken to is my special version of the homepage. Don’t get me wrong, please use these links – I earn commissions through any sales made. An advantage I am able to offer you as well are the following discount codes that can be used at any time:

disc5-4276 – 5% discount on order total
disc10-4276 – 10% discount on order total greater than $100

Whether you use my links or codes is really not that important. I’m not, in any way, fooling myself into believing that I’m going to get rich from sales commissions on somebody else’s product. However, if you currently smoke and are unable to quit (I really do believe that quitting outright is the best course; however I never could…) then I highly recommend investigating the use of e-smokes instead. Heck, even if you aren’t interested in quitting, wouldn’t a far safer, more convenient “smoke” sound somewhat compelling? From all the data I’ve seen, it might just extend your life a few decades…

Now for the sales pitch.



I received my Green Smoke “starter kit” opting for the “5 flavor sampler,” 6mg nicotine cartridges yesterday. The kit I received came with two rechargeable lithium ion batteries (one short and one long), a USB home charger kit with wall adapter and 5 nicotine cartridges flavored tobacco, menthol, chocolate, vanilla and coffee. I completed the initial 8-hour charge (as recommended in the user guide – subsequent charges should only require a couple of hours…) for the long battery last night and have been using the e-smoke throughout the day whilst sitting at my desk. The need to leave my work and wander outside in order to get my nicotine hit is now gone.

I must admit that “smoking” at work still seems a bit strange; however nobody is complaining and, after explaining to the skeptical that what I was exhaling was not smoke and letting them observe first-hand the non-existence of any noxious odors, all of my colleagues have shown nothing but support for my latest choice in a nicotine delivery system. Although walking outside to smoke in the past did keep the second-hand smoke away from everyone else in the office, it didn’t protect anyone from the second-hand stench associated with the average smoker’s clothing. I now solve both issues without even having to leave my desk.

And as far as a replacement for my old habit, the e-smoke route is great! I’ve tried everything else. I’ve paid the $50 for a box of Nicorette multiple times with the end result always being the same – giving in and buying a pack of cigarettes. I’ve worn the patches time and time again only to end up as secondary nicotine sources once the opportunity to go through the habitual motions of the smoking routine returned – and the opportunity always returns… At least with the e-smokes I can continue the routine … without the stench and nefarious chemicals that is…

With the Green Smoke system you can actually choose the strength for your cartridges – all the way down to no nicotine at all. This makes it possible (if one so desires) to gradually reduce your nicotine intake in an effort to get that monkey off your back for good. If you still craved the routine, you could continue with zero nicotine cartridges and still enjoy the variety of flavors available…

So if you’re like me and have been unable to quit smoking no matter what you’ve tried, I strongly encourage you to investigate the electronic smoke alternative. It might just save your life…

bis später,

Coriolis

Me, blog…?

Times, they are a-changin’… It’s been so long since I wrote anything in this here little blog of mine; I’ve pretty much forgotten how to do it. I suppose basically having nothing to say is the main culprit behind my absence, but that’s just me passing the buck. There have been many times in the past when I had nothing to say although I used to be able to rile my lazy-ass butt up enough to write the nothing. I guess this lack of life lust that I’ve acquired recently (“recently” is admittedly an arguable choice of words here) has taken its toll. Oh well, screw it. I may not have much to say, but I’m back and I’ve decided to say it…

As I mentioned at the start of this posting, times – at least for me – are currently going through a rather unexpected (well, possibly “expected” yet very much un-chosen) state of major flux. My connections back at my home in Colorado have deteriorated to such a degree that it is now vividly apparent that Colorado is no longer my residence of note. Without getting into too many details (no sense in further piquing an already seemingly tense situation) I’ve decided to hand over control of my Colorado property to a property management firm. This way, rather than being forced to continuously deal with upkeep on a house that my future return to is at best questionable, I can leave the hassles up to the experts and at a minimum (hopefully) get some help on making the mortgage payments.

What this means, of course, is that I will (well at least I plan to) be taking on the role of landlord where the property management team becomes responsible for renting out my house as well as taking care of any and all related maintenance. They (I’m currently thinking of using PML) sent me an “Owner Packet” describing their services and it appears that this should be possible … at a cost, I’m sure. I guess the game now becomes weighing these costs versus any potential monetary income (rent) and trying to decide if it’s worth all the hassle.

Option #2 on the table doesn’t seem very fiscally prudent in the current market; however I could just bite the bullet and sell the house. Having only owned the place for a bit over eight years with two rounds of refinancing already completed (including adding the cost of a brand new LT1 engine for a car I no longer own during round 2) it’s a miracle that I’m not one of the rather large percentage of people in this country that are currently underwater in their mortgages. Don’t get me wrong here – I’m barely skimming the surface; however I am slightly on the breathable side. I do however doubt that after realtor fees and closing costs and blah blah blah I would walk away from that deal with any profit that could be accounted for with a positive figure. Unfortunately I do need to keep this option available … I’ll discover more in a couple of weeks when the PML meeting is scheduled. After they’re able to see the place and hear exactly what I’m looking for; I should be able to get a much better idea about associated costs and hopefully possible influxes…

Whatever the case, I have already begun the various procedures required to officially change from a Coloradan to one of those ever-abundant Californians. Not like they need any more people here in southern California but I suppose I am now forcing them to make room for one more. And here I was spouting time and time again that I would never actually move to California. Sure, I was willing to swoop in from time to time in order to continue making a living; but NEVER was I going to move here. My official address is now in the 91360 zip code … funny how plans that either come to naught or half a page of scribbled lines are so often the case in reality … or is it just me…?

And for those in the know with this country’s zip codes, 91360 is not Camarillo. Nope, I am now living in a fascinating, rather small as rooms go, bedroom in Thousand Oaks. It’s in a house although I’m not claiming to “live” in the house as much as reside in a room. Perhaps it’s just my unrealistic opinion on the definition of the term “living”; however basically spending 99.9% of the time I am home in my designated little walled-off area of occupation isn’t much of what I would call a life. Don’t get me wrong here, the rent’s good and there’s really nothing wrong with any of the other people that also choose to reside in various other rooms of this domicile; it’s just not how I envisioned spending the years of my life where I had finally obtained a capacity to – as I had envisioned it – live my life without being shackled by the constraints of past. But you never completely break the shackles now, do you…?

But I digress. I didn’t come here today to babble on about the philosophies associated with not living up to often ignorant (or at least misguided) ambitions of youth. No, anyone who’s been lucky enough to live beyond their youth is already well versed in that course. I’m just here today to say that I’m still here. Will the postings begin returning more often? I don’t know … it seems that I’m expecting to be having quite a bit of time for it in the near future if I so desire though…

bis später,

Coriolis