El olor de humo

Since I came back from England I've struggled to get rid of the symptoms of the cold I picked up there. One of those symptoms is a sore throat which seems to come and go. When my throat is sore it puts me off smoking my pipe which many of you would say is a good thing but to me it is a sign that all is not well.

It occurred to me the other day that my sore throat might be caused, not by my tobacco but by all the wood smoke in the air at the moment. It pervades the atmosphere up here at Villas Andrea and is particularly strong down in the town itself.

Most of the houses at Villas Andrea were built with chimneys and fireplaces. To make use of them you only needed to buy an open grate to place the wood in. Some residents have gone one step further by adding a cassette. For those who are unfamiliar, a cassette is a closed wood burning stove with a glass door. It avoids the obvious problem of smoke blowing back down into the room.

I have no intention of lighting a fire in our fireplace, whether in an open grate or a cassette. We like the chimney clean and refuse to blacken it with wood smoke. In any case, the last thing I want to do is collect firewood and then later dispose of ashes. The romantic ideal of a crackling wood fire does not appeal to me one bit. Give me the convenience of gas central heating any day.

Where is this post leading to you ask.

For a number of years there has been a campaign against smokers. We have been made to feel like pariahs with successive legislation being brought against us. I can well believe that in future, those of us who indulge in tobacco will be confined to smoking in our own homes and only then when there are no others about who could be polluted.

Once governments have achieved that aim, will they then turn on those who pollute the atmosphere with wood smoke? After all studies have shown that wood smoke contains the same harmful ingredients as cigarette smoke and is possibly more damaging. Just read this article to see what I mean.

If this cold weather persists, then I could have a sore throat until Spring.