Cigarette holders: cool or pretentious? - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

skizziks · 10-09-2008, 09:52 AM

I bought a cigarette holder. I got it because I don't like my fingers smelling like cigarette, I like to keep the cigarette in my mouth but I don't like the smoke in my eyes, and frankly I think they look super bad ass cool.

Hunter S. Thomspon had one, The Penguin had one, why shouldn't I have one?

I was hanging outside smoking this morning, a guy said "Hey, cool cigarette holder" and he wasn't mocking.

I know a good portion of it has to do with how you carry yourself, if you are comfortable with it or just posing, no matter what the true self shows through.

I was wondering if anyone else uses them, if you know anyone who uses them, what you would think if you saw a guy with one.

I have two, a short one, and the black 4-6 inch telescoping one first one on this page:

http://www.theladysmokes.com/Gentlemen.html

Vigilante · 10-09-2008, 10:13 AM

This is not personal, but it is a truthful opinion.

I'd say it's pretty ghey. Then again, I think a man-bag is ghey too. Not GAY, ghey, as in fugly, worthless and metrosexual, all rolled into one. Might as well go get a facial and put some cucumbers on your eyes. Oh and grab a 6-pack of whine coolers.

I lose a small amount of respect for smokers in general though. Not much, but enough that next time I see them, I think oh yeah, s/he's a smoker. Women smoking are an immediate turn off. If I were single again, I wouldn't date a smoker even if she looked like Hayden Panettiere.

I'm not trying to raise my "manly" status by saying this, it's just that certain things bother me and I'm not afraid to say it. Smoking is about as smart as rubbing paint thinner on your legs for fun. Anyone with a decent education and sense of self worth knows what it does and avoids it. Hell you don't even have to have a decent education. I don't understand the other people outside of those groups.

Jetée · 10-09-2008, 10:33 AM

Chic as in, looks appropriate only for chicks.

Unless you work in the theatre in Paris, I don't see any man using a cigarette holder with any ounce of self-respect.

Cigar cases, though, are another matter altogether.

roachboy · 10-09-2008, 10:45 AM

o pshaw.

if you're fabulous enough to pull it off, of course you can use a cigarette holder.
you're all just pissy because you can't do it.

Vigilante · 10-09-2008, 10:47 AM

perfecto1 · 10-09-2008, 10:52 AM

I don't think anything else needs to be said

World's King · 10-09-2008, 10:55 AM

It only works if you're Hunter S Thompson...

Or you wear a suit everyday... and I'm not talking about a new suit... It has to be vintage. Or a velvet smoking jacket.

jewels · 10-09-2008, 11:10 AM

Cool and pretentious. Unless it's got a filter.

lostgirl · 10-09-2008, 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jewels

Cool and pretentious. Unless it's got a filter.

+1

ratbastid · 10-09-2008, 11:56 AM

The only person I ever knew to use one was my great-aunt Judy.

So, if you want to be cool like my great-aunt Judy, go get 'em.

vanblah · 10-09-2008, 12:28 PM

You should just carry it around clenched between gritted teeth without a cigarette in it at all -- ever. Now THAT would be pretentious.

little_tippler · 10-09-2008, 12:53 PM

I can't envisage finding that cool or pretentious. Just...odd. I don't much like smoking anyway. I'd probably do a double take if I saw you.

Halx · 10-09-2008, 01:33 PM

I'll go with pretentious. Smokers are pretty much maligned nowadays. Any attempt to make it any more dignified in the face of adversity is pretension.

Willravel · 10-09-2008, 01:36 PM

My avatar demonstrates that cool and presumptuous don't have to be mutually exclusive. Sexual innuendo at the baccarat table? Cool and presumptuous.

Likewise, cigarette holders are both.

skizziks · 10-09-2008, 02:25 PM

Gay or not, I dig it. It's nice to know everyone is laughing at me though.

While some friends say I remind them of HST, I'm more Penguin than HST.

And I know smoking is bad for you, I quit for a while, but I'm trying to jump start some lung cancer, and as much as my body is rebelling against it, I'm sticking with it. Just like anything else, you gotta want it. (italics spoken in a jock/coach voice)

SSJTWIZTA · 10-09-2008, 05:23 PM

i like the idea.

im actually thinking about buying one.

Charlatan · 10-09-2008, 05:35 PM

Here's the thing... if you are going to use one, use it always. Sure it's a pretentious affectation... but so what? As long as you are comfortable with it you can pull it off. Of course, the moment you feel awkward with it you will be a pretentious loser.

Be bold. Be confident. Normalize it.

People will talk and they may make snide comments but that is the price of walking a different path.

(of course, creating a thread like this already indicates that you are questioning it and that is the wrong direction).
-----Added 9/10/2008 at 09 : 37 : 31-----

roachboy · 10-09-2008, 05:49 PM

so many possibilities are being overlooked.

sapiens · 10-09-2008, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charlatan

Here's the thing... if you are going to use one, use it always. Sure it's a pretentious affectation... but so what? As long as you are comfortable with it you can pull it off.

Agreed. I can't help but think of the wise words of the eminent drag queen, RuPaul:

Quote:

You better work, work it girl.

Honestly, if you prefer to use one, use one. Don't doubt yourself.

Martian · 10-09-2008, 06:51 PM

Charlatan is certainly the man with the plan. Do what makes you happy, and to hell with anyone who tries to tell you different.

I'd never use a cigarette holder. It doesn't fit my style. If it fits yours, go for it.

Bill O'Rights · 10-10-2008, 04:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by World's King

It only works if you're Hunter S Thompson...

Or you wear a suit everyday... and I'm not talking about a new suit... It has to be vintage. Or a velvet smoking jacket.

As much as this makes my hair stand on end...I agree 100% with WK here.

Hunter S. Thompson pulled it off because...well, because he was Hunter S. Thompson. For him, it worked.

And, unless you are going for a vintage look, I don't think that it can be pulled off. Not now. 40 years ago...maybe. definately 60-70 years ago. Not now.

Poppinjay · 10-10-2008, 05:05 AM

The Penguin. Now THERE'S a vision of coolness. Hunter has nothing on wak wak boy.

I think it works if you use words like "moxie".

And you wear a purple top hat.

That may be something only Burgess Meredith could pull off without being extremely teh ghey.

It also works if you're married to Mr. Slave.

MSD · 10-10-2008, 06:21 AM

It's kind of like people who wear fedoras. There's nothing inherently wrong with it, but you're still going to have a big uphill battle to convince me you're not a colossal douche.

roachboy · 10-10-2008, 06:42 AM

personally, i am fine with the associations that are triggered by such devices. i am ok with being taken for audrey hepburn. i really am.

Baraka_Guru · 10-10-2008, 06:52 AM

I think you'd also have to wear a pocket watch.

roachboy · 10-10-2008, 07:04 AM

a pocket watch creates an unsightly irregularity in the flow of my carefully tailored back dress.

evilbeefchan · 10-10-2008, 07:05 AM

I see nothing wrong with it, though the telescoping one borders on costume rather than style.

skizziks · 10-10-2008, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charlatan

........

(of course, creating a thread like this already indicates that you are questioning it and that is the wrong direction).........

Oh, I'm not questioning it at all, I use it all the time. I just wanted to know what others thought of it. I'm gonna use it no matter what people think, I just kinda wanna know where I stand.
-----Added 10/10/2008 at 12 : 45 : 46-----

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poppinjay

......

I think it works if you use words like "moxie".

......

I do use the word moxie. Often.
-----Added 10/10/2008 at 12 : 46 : 50-----

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baraka_Guru

I think you'd also have to wear a pocket watch.

I do. Not always, but often.
-----Added 10/10/2008 at 12 : 48 : 50-----

Quote:

Originally Posted by evilbeefchan

I see nothing wrong with it, though the telescoping one borders on costume rather than style.

I actually have two, the telescoping one (which I never fully open all the way) and a short basic one. I alternate between the two.

Poppinjay · 10-10-2008, 08:51 AM

Do you also wear a monocle? That would seal it.

KirStang · 10-10-2008, 09:00 AM

Only if you wear a suit everyday. You gotta pull it off just right, with a hint of class & retro.

Vigilante · 10-10-2008, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MSD

you're still going to have a big uphill battle to convince me you're not a colossal douche.

This. I had to laugh.

Willravel · 10-10-2008, 10:00 AM

Not all holders are cool or pretentious. Black and Milds? They have a built-in holder and they're just about as tacky as anything I can imagine.

RangerJoe · 10-10-2008, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luciferase75

Smoking is about as smart as rubbing paint thinner on your legs for fun. Anyone with a decent education and sense of self worth knows what it does and avoids it.

This is actually a daily ritual of mine.

As for the OP, I think you can do whatever the hell you want. People can say that it's a HST thing because he made it that way. I'm sure when he first started using it, people were like "ew, wtf." Now, because he made it a staple, is it associated with him.

Does that make sense? I can't tell. ): Stupid working on Fridays. Screws up my brain.

lostgirl · 10-10-2008, 11:43 AM

I agree with Ranger Joe, you could make it your thing.

From what you said about your style, it sounds like it would go quite well.

Do it!

Reese · 10-10-2008, 01:55 PM

Hate to tell ya, but your fingers aren't the only thing that smells like cigarettes. I do like cig holders though.

sadistikdreams · 10-10-2008, 07:18 PM

I like them.

Personally, I think people pointing out that things are pretentious, are pretentious.

I mean, if you're going to point it out, aren't you doing it out of pretension?

newtx · 10-11-2008, 07:57 PM

Kind of like a pipe but without the bowl and a cigarette stuck in its place. I like the monocle idea. Very old school.

10-09-2008, 09:52 AM	#1 (permalink)
skizziks Insane Location: out west	Cigarette holders: cool or pretentious? I bought a cigarette holder. I got it because I don't like my fingers smelling like cigarette, I like to keep the cigarette in my mouth but I don't like the smoke in my eyes, and frankly I think they look super bad ass cool. Hunter S. Thomspon had one, The Penguin had one, why shouldn't I have one? I was hanging outside smoking this morning, a guy said "Hey, cool cigarette holder" and he wasn't mocking. I know a good portion of it has to do with how you carry yourself, if you are comfortable with it or just posing, no matter what the true self shows through. I was wondering if anyone else uses them, if you know anyone who uses them, what you would think if you saw a guy with one. I have two, a short one, and the black 4-6 inch telescoping one first one on this page: http://www.theladysmokes.com/Gentlemen.html

10-09-2008, 10:13 AM	#2 (permalink)
Vigilante Broken Arrow Location: US	This is not personal, but it is a truthful opinion. I'd say it's pretty ghey. Then again, I think a man-bag is ghey too. Not GAY, ghey, as in fugly, worthless and metrosexual, all rolled into one. Might as well go get a facial and put some cucumbers on your eyes. Oh and grab a 6-pack of whine coolers. I lose a small amount of respect for smokers in general though. Not much, but enough that next time I see them, I think oh yeah, s/he's a smoker. Women smoking are an immediate turn off. If I were single again, I wouldn't date a smoker even if she looked like Hayden Panettiere. I'm not trying to raise my "manly" status by saying this, it's just that certain things bother me and I'm not afraid to say it. Smoking is about as smart as rubbing paint thinner on your legs for fun. Anyone with a decent education and sense of self worth knows what it does and avoids it. Hell you don't even have to have a decent education. I don't understand the other people outside of those groups. __________________ We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle. -Winston Churchill Last edited by Vigilante; 10-09-2008 at 10:16 AM..

10-09-2008, 10:33 AM	#3 (permalink)
Jetée The Reforms Location: Rarely, if ever, here or there, but always in transition	Chic as in, looks appropriate only for chicks. Unless you work in the theatre in Paris, I don't see any man using a cigarette holder with any ounce of self-respect. Cigar cases, though, are another matter altogether. __________________ As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world (that is the myth of the Atomic Age) as in being able to remake ourselves. —Mohandas K. Gandhi

10-09-2008, 10:45 AM	#4 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	o pshaw. if you're fabulous enough to pull it off, of course you can use a cigarette holder. you're all just pissy because you can't do it. __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

10-09-2008, 10:47 AM	#5 (permalink)
Vigilante Broken Arrow Location: US	LOL __________________ We contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle. -Winston Churchill

10-09-2008, 10:52 AM	#6 (permalink)
perfecto1 Upright Location: Baltimore, MD	I don't think anything else needs to be said __________________ Dr. Peter Venkman: Alice, I'm going to ask you a couple of standard questions, okay? Have you or any of your family been diagnosed schizophrenic? Mentally incompetant? Librarian Alice: My uncle thought he was Saint Jerome. Dr. Peter Venkman: I'd call that a big yes.

10-09-2008, 10:55 AM	#7 (permalink)
World's King Here Location: Denver City Denver	It only works if you're Hunter S Thompson... Or you wear a suit everyday... and I'm not talking about a new suit... It has to be vintage. Or a velvet smoking jacket. __________________ heavy is the head that wears the crown

10-09-2008, 11:10 AM	#8 (permalink)
jewels Eponymous Location: Central Central Florida	Cool and pretentious. Unless it's got a filter. __________________ We are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess. Mark Twain

10-09-2008, 11:56 AM	#10 (permalink)
ratbastid Darth Papa Location: Yonder	The only person I ever knew to use one was my great-aunt Judy. So, if you want to be cool like my great-aunt Judy, go get 'em.

10-09-2008, 12:28 PM	#11 (permalink)
vanblah Junkie	You should just carry it around clenched between gritted teeth without a cigarette in it at all -- ever. Now THAT would be pretentious.

10-09-2008, 12:53 PM	#12 (permalink)
little_tippler Leaning against the -Sun- Super Moderator Location: on the other side	I can't envisage finding that cool or pretentious. Just...odd. I don't much like smoking anyway. I'd probably do a double take if I saw you. __________________ Whether we write or speak or do but look We are ever unapparent. What we are Cannot be transfused into word or book. Our soul from us is infinitely far. However much we give our thoughts the will To be our soul and gesture it abroad, Our hearts are incommunicable still. In what we show ourselves we are ignored. The abyss from soul to soul cannot be bridged By any skill of thought or trick of seeming. Unto our very selves we are abridged When we would utter to our thought our being. We are our dreams of ourselves, souls by gleams, And each to each other dreams of others' dreams. Fernando Pessoa, 1918

10-09-2008, 01:33 PM	#13 (permalink)
Halx Please touch this. Owner/Admin Location: Manhattan	I'll go with pretentious. Smokers are pretty much maligned nowadays. Any attempt to make it any more dignified in the face of adversity is pretension. __________________ You have found this post informative. -The Administrator [Don't Feed The Animals]

10-09-2008, 01:36 PM	#14 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	My avatar demonstrates that cool and presumptuous don't have to be mutually exclusive. Sexual innuendo at the baccarat table? Cool and presumptuous. Likewise, cigarette holders are both.

10-09-2008, 02:25 PM	#15 (permalink)
skizziks Insane Location: out west	Gay or not, I dig it. It's nice to know everyone is laughing at me though. While some friends say I remind them of HST, I'm more Penguin than HST. And I know smoking is bad for you, I quit for a while, but I'm trying to jump start some lung cancer, and as much as my body is rebelling against it, I'm sticking with it. Just like anything else, you gotta want it. (italics spoken in a jock/coach voice) Last edited by skizziks; 10-09-2008 at 02:27 PM..

10-09-2008, 05:23 PM	#16 (permalink)
SSJTWIZTA Master Thief. Master Criminal. Masturbator. Location: Windiwana	i like the idea. im actually thinking about buying one. __________________ First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out because I was not a communist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist Then they came for me And there was no one left to speak out for me. -Pastor Martin Niemoller

10-10-2008, 06:52 AM	#25 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	I think you'd also have to wear a pocket watch. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

10-09-2008, 05:35 PM	#17 (permalink)
Charlatan Getting it. Super Moderator Location: Lion City	Here's the thing... if you are going to use one, use it always. Sure it's a pretentious affectation... but so what? As long as you are comfortable with it you can pull it off. Of course, the moment you feel awkward with it you will be a pretentious loser. Be bold. Be confident. Normalize it. People will talk and they may make snide comments but that is the price of walking a different path. (of course, creating a thread like this already indicates that you are questioning it and that is the wrong direction). -----Added 9/10/2008 at 09 : 37 : 31----- __________________ "My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars." - Old Man Luedecke Last edited by Charlatan; 10-09-2008 at 05:37 PM.. Reason: Automerged Doublepost

10-09-2008, 05:49 PM	#18 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	so many possibilities are being overlooked. __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

10-09-2008, 06:51 PM	#20 (permalink)
Martian Young Crumudgeon Location: Canada	Charlatan is certainly the man with the plan. Do what makes you happy, and to hell with anyone who tries to tell you different. I'd never use a cigarette holder. It doesn't fit my style. If it fits yours, go for it. __________________ I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said - Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

10-10-2008, 05:05 AM	#22 (permalink)
Poppinjay You had me at hello Location: DC/Coastal VA	The Penguin. Now THERE'S a vision of coolness. Hunter has nothing on wak wak boy. I think it works if you use words like "moxie". And you wear a purple top hat. That may be something only Burgess Meredith could pull off without being extremely teh ghey. It also works if you're married to Mr. Slave. __________________ I think the Apocalypse is happening all around us. We go on eating desserts and watching TV. I know I do. I wish we were more capable of sustained passion and sustained resistance. We should be screaming and what we do is gossip. -Lydia Millet

10-10-2008, 06:21 AM	#23 (permalink)
MSD The sky calls to us ... Super Moderator Location: CT	It's kind of like people who wear fedoras. There's nothing inherently wrong with it, but you're still going to have a big uphill battle to convince me you're not a colossal douche.

10-10-2008, 06:42 AM	#24 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	personally, i am fine with the associations that are triggered by such devices. i am ok with being taken for audrey hepburn. i really am. __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

10-10-2008, 07:04 AM	#26 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	a pocket watch creates an unsightly irregularity in the flow of my carefully tailored back dress. __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

10-10-2008, 07:05 AM	#27 (permalink)
evilbeefchan Addict Location: Alhambra, CA	I see nothing wrong with it, though the telescoping one borders on costume rather than style.

10-10-2008, 08:51 AM	#29 (permalink)
Poppinjay You had me at hello Location: DC/Coastal VA	Do you also wear a monocle? That would seal it. __________________ I think the Apocalypse is happening all around us. We go on eating desserts and watching TV. I know I do. I wish we were more capable of sustained passion and sustained resistance. We should be screaming and what we do is gossip. -Lydia Millet

10-10-2008, 09:00 AM	#30 (permalink)
KirStang Future Bureaucrat	Only if you wear a suit everyday. You gotta pull it off just right, with a hint of class & retro.

10-10-2008, 10:00 AM	#32 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	Not all holders are cool or pretentious. Black and Milds? They have a built-in holder and they're just about as tacky as anything I can imagine.

10-10-2008, 11:43 AM	#34 (permalink)
lostgirl lightform Location: Edge of the deep green sea	I agree with Ranger Joe, you could make it your thing. From what you said about your style, it sounds like it would go quite well. Do it!

10-10-2008, 01:55 PM	#35 (permalink)
Reese Delicious	Hate to tell ya, but your fingers aren't the only thing that smells like cigarettes. I do like cig holders though. __________________ “It is better to be rich and healthy than poor and sick” - Dave Barry

10-10-2008, 07:18 PM	#36 (permalink)
sadistikdreams lonely rolling star Location: Seattle.	I like them. Personally, I think people pointing out that things are pretentious, are pretentious. I mean, if you're going to point it out, aren't you doing it out of pretension? __________________ "Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials." -Lin Yutang hearts, by d.a.

10-11-2008, 07:57 PM	#37 (permalink)
newtx Addict	Kind of like a pipe but without the bowl and a cigarette stuck in its place. I like the monocle idea. Very old school.