Late back from Smoky-Drinky tonight.
Here's something antismokers will consider perverse. It has been a still and gentle night, not too warm, low humidity, not even a breeze. We sat in the garden for our Smoky-Drinky. We all have seats and tables in the garden, you know.
Antismokers, especially the mindless of CAMRA, will be incensed. Why did we not simply go to the pub? After all, if it's nice outside, what can we object to? Should we not, in fine weather, be supporting those businesses that regard us as filth when it suits them?
The problem , antismokers, is that it is indeed very nice outside and you vicious swines want to have that to yourselves. You were happy to let us shiver in the rain and the snow and the wind but now, well, you want those spaces we earned and we have to just piss off to suit you. The publican support of their smoking customers? Zero. So on pleasant evenings we smoke outside at Smoky-Drinky and let the pubs revel in their Puritan customer base. Stand or fall, pubs, it makes no difference to the smokers you have discarded. We have our own places now. Increasingly, we don't need you any more. If you plan to whine, remember who chose this path. We didn't. You, pubs, still deny that banning us has had any effect. Feel free to continue with that. We no longer care. We are smoking and drinking and socialising without your help and we have gardens to smoke in when it's nice without your preferred customers nagging at us. You have become irrelevant to us and you, pubs, made that happen. So don't bleat when we brew and grow our own. You didn't want our custom anyway.
If there is no smoky-drinky near you, start one. Rules? Not open to the public, no money changes hands (strictly BYOB) and no advertising. Word will get around anyway and you'll be surprised how many non-smoking former pub customers are interested. Non-smoking is allowed at Smoky-Drinky. Antismoking is not. Non-smoking and non-drinking is allowed. Anti-either is not. We don't care what your preferences are as long as you don't try to impose them on us. Note that, pubs. Let one group impose their personal preferences on your business if you want. Accept the consequences. Or pretend they aren't happening. We smokers are out of your hair either way so you won't have to wash it any more. I realise how much of an inconvenience that was for you horrible scummy anti-soap people, but that inconvenience is no more. If you would like to stop whining about it three years after it became illegal for us to trouble you in this way, you might find yourself regarded as adult. Possibly for the first time in your life.
In other news. Stolen Child has been booked into a dog's home because his foster parents are on holiday. I have no experience at all of foster parenting and never will. Are these children really treated as pets by foster parents? Do you really put them in kennels when you go on holiday?
It's very late and I am very disgusted. There are Emails awaiting responses but I won't attempt them tonight.
Too much rage.
17 comments:
"Should we not, in fine weather, be supporting those businesses that regard us as filth when it suits them?"
That's not the best business model I've ever seen... ;)
"Stand or fall, pubs, it makes no difference to the smokers you have discarded. We have our own places now. Increasingly, we don't need you any more. "
That certainly seems to be the case, according to Quiet Man's post on the drop in beer sales in pubs.
Self inflicted injury by both the Government and publicans.
Massive loss in revenue and pubs closing daily.
The only pubs that make an effort to provide a decent area for smokers around my way are the grottiest old pubs, so they get my full support.
Slightly of topic: My wife runs a pub, and has a large garden she has spent much money on helping smokers, being one herself. This includes four heaters two awnings ans a small marque, plus extra seating. I popped in to see her this lunch time, and was chatting with some customers and staff, this woman? in her early 60's came out and sat down at one of the tables, all of a sudden she went of on one saying paul paul (hubby?) there are smokers out here how disgusting and left the pub in a hurry, all tho it was not my place to say anything, I followed her and her cucukled hubby and let them have a piece of my mind. I may add that I do not smoke, but have seen my wifes profits plummet and her expense go up. those who say that they would come to pubs without smokers are liars they have not come thats right you righteous asrsehole you have not come! A further point is the pub is a old style 2 bar pub my wife tried and experiment she made one side smoking and the other bar and resturant non smoking it worked and it worked well. Just thought I would share this little story with you. If anyone would like the true impact of smoking and the pub trade please ask.
I posted this on DP blog a couple days ago. the above is true and happend on weds this week.
Sadly, yes. Children in foster care are sometimes treated like pets. They don't call them holidays, they call them respite. Nice term eh, respite from a job you chose to do and get paid a lot of money for (we are talking hundreds per week). I will add though not all foster parents enter this game for the money and the two couples I know would never dream of booking their charges into the local kennels whilst they swan off to sunny Spain for a hard earned break. However, where there's muck there's brass and the way social workers treat the disabled and their true parents (like shit) it is no wonder a whole market has sprung up around fostering.
Mummy x
Maybe some website is needed, listing those pubs where smokers are welcomed and accommodated reasonably (insofar as the effing law permits). That way the self-inflicted cull of pubs will be more selective, removing those who collaborated wholeheartedly, but giving a fighting chance to those who did their best, like Anon's wife. The ban will fall at some point. Let the decent publicans be there when it does. The rest can join the happy folk at the Jobcentre Plus.
And, of course, it is cheaper to drink alcohol from Tesco at home than drink in the pub, so you can afford far more!
Hardly helps the anti-alcohol fraternity
Juky 2007 was the last time I went down the Pub.
I ain't the only one.
Follow the Dutch lead or go extinct.
Cracking idea PT Barnum. The word would get out and those of us that still venture out could spend our hard earnt pennies at the pubs that have made an effort.
In early July a friend and I 'experimented' with a Smoky-Drinky at his place, a relatively rural spot with a large garden. We invited some mates along and told them to bring a friend or two. Ground rules were explained and accepted. Eleven people turned up and a grand time was had by all. And, yes, there were non-smokers present who whined not a jot.
Two weeks later we held another S-D. Over twenty turned up! Another great time was had with not the slightest sign of any bother.
Our next S-D is going to be held on a farm, courtesy of one of our new friends!
Just to piss everyone off my wifes pub (as above) had its licence reveiwed and people now have to stop drinking out side by 1130pm this was caused by assholes-sorry neighbours- who objected to the alledged noise caused by smokers.
this cost her £8k in legal fees. she reckons she has lost about £65 in revenue over 3 years and paid out over £15k in fees and equpiment.
Long live new labour!
O/T (or perhaps not) but EMERGENCY!!!
"E-cigs to banned"
Over at Frank Davis.
link here
Or for as long as it remains in the green bit on the right.
JuliaM - the only ones who won't see it are the pubs. Some have and have done their best but still, many of them simply pretend it has nothing to do with the smoking ban.
Anon 1 - the grotty pubs have always been the best ones. The Prim and Proper never went to those pubs anyway.
Anon 2 - Around here, the harridans don't leave. It wouldn't be so bad if they did. They want us to leave. We did. Now they complain that we aren't supporting the pub.
It's like talking to a brick wall.
Mummylonglegs - I had thought that all foster parents did it for the love of looking after children. It was a hell of a shock to me to find that some of them put their charges in kennels while they go on holiday.
I mean, I knew the Righteous regarded people as pets but I didn't know how far it went.
PT Barnum - that's a good idea. Places where smoking areas are provided and declared as such during good weather as well as bad.
It could also list places where they allow Electrofags indoors when the weather is seriously nasty.
Fair enough, a lot of publicans don't know about Electrofag yet, but they will.
Pubs can also declare that they are totally antismoking on a site like that. Then the antismokers can flock to them. Ha ha ha.
English pensioner - for whisky it's a hell of a lot cheaper. Booze from the supermarket, tobacco from Man with a Van.
It's not the same though, which is why Smoky-Drinky places are taking off.
Selsey Steve - sounds like you have a good one rolling. ours has been static for a while, same old faces. We could do with some new folk.
Hangemall - I called in on Frank's place earlier and caught that one.
There's not even a pretence of 'harm' as an excuse this time.
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