With debates about smoking bans and stopping the sale of disposable vapes in the air my mind wandered back to my own smokes.
Both my parents smoked. After fighting in WWII they did everything. Smoked, drank, worked hard and had lots of babies, two of whom still smoke in the 70's.
For some odd reason it never appealed to me growing up in smoke-filled Preston. I can sum up my own smoking 'career' as 1 Gitane [French?], 1 black Sobrane [Russian?] and 1 herbal cigarette [Boots?], all puffed as a teenager in the 1970's and not an experience I enjoyed at all, although I always liked the packaging and artwork.
Much more to my taste were the chocolate cigarettes of my earlier youth, which I bought for pence in the local penny shop near Sacred Heart school. I don't think you ate the paper and I'm pretty sure they were always in packets like these I found on the net.
The chocolate was quite delicious, sort of powdery, about halfway between Cadburys and cooking chocolate. Its unlikely you can get them anymore given the current climate but I was wrong about Old Jamaica so who knows.
What's for certain,is that on the Continent you can get chewing gum cigarettes for kids still. When we were in Germany I saw stacks of them in sweet aisles. I suppose I was a bit shocked really but then again I ate tons of chocolate cigarettes and didn't make the leap to childhood smoking. Anyhow here's a large assortment currently on Amazon de. I assume the 'tricks' mentioned is a blowable cloud of icing sugar or something like that, certainly a step too far. What do you think?
As a kid there were smoking gags around back then. I got mine from Ellisdons in Liverpool but I reckon jokes and tricks were available on racks most everywhere, especially at the seaside.
The two I recall the most were a smoking monkey [not a pleasant thought now], which puffed special roll-ups, which gave off intermittent smoke and also a more robust card cigarette which sort of glowed at the end when you took a drag. That's how I remember it anyway!
Here's a the smoking monkey just as I remember it, this one seen on sale online.
Do any of these light any fires for you readers?
Like you I ate loads of chocolate and sweet cigarettes Woodsy, but never took to smoking.
ReplyDeleteI tried a few real ciggies as a teenager, but didn't enjoy them so never really started.
My old man smoked a pipe and, sadly, went on to get lung cancer in his early 60s (which he survived, after a lung operation), but I was already a non smoker by then.
Glad your Dad survived Mish. Nearly everyone in my Mum and Dad's world smoked; friends, neighbours, the lot! Oddly, my Wife's German parents didn't. You can still get fags there from vending machines in the streets, but you need an ID card.
DeleteWoodsy, I'm the only one in the family who never smoked. My parents were both two-legged chimney's and my three sisters all smoked. I remember drives to northern Wisconsin in a smoke filled car and how horrible it was. At the same time I remember the candy cigarettes - of the cornstarch and sugar variety. Fortunately, I had the sense never to even start!
ReplyDeleteCandy cigs, yes, they were great Ed! They're still around and I sometimes get my Grandkids a packet if they're Superman or Batman themed.
DeleteI do not remember packets of sweet cigarettes in NZ, although they may have been around. The ones I recall were single peppermint sticks, with a red dot on one end. Bought one at a time from the local dairy/corner shop.
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother smoked when I was little, and that put me off for life. Never even tried the real thing myself.
The red dot! That brings back memories Paul. Yes!
DeleteReal cigarette cases often had interesting patterns on the metal foil.
ReplyDelete