Today was the day the Sherlock Holmes Pipe Club of Boston chose to celebrate International Pipe Smoking Day (which is officially tomorrow). I shared a post about these plans, including some videos, yesterday.
It turned out to be a long, satisfying day -
in all the best of ways. Sure, all we did was go out to lunch at the Tipsy Toboggan fireside pub, and then head over to the Old Firehouse smoke shop, where we spent several hours meeting new people and talking about our favorite pipes and tobaccos.
But it's days like this, and conversations like this, that bridge the boundaries between generations and knit a culture together. We need more smoke in this world, I say. And more conversation.
I'm so grateful that there are still a few places where people are allowed to smoke together, and talk.
This is our oldest member. He looks pretty good for someone who is turning 90 next month, doesn't he? And he had some great stories about his service in Germany just after World War Two.
This is Bob, one of the employees of the Old Firehouse Smoke Shop. He's a talented pipe carver in his own right, and a wealth of knowledge about pipe construction and pipe tobaccos. And would you just look at that selection of tobacco tins behind him!
They also have tobacco available in bulk, by the ounce - maybe even more jars than I've got at home!
Of course, they've got an extensive walk-in humidor as well. It's mostly stocked with boutique and unique hard-to-find cigars. I even picked up a couple of My Father Cigars that 
Here's our club president, about to present the charter certificate to the new president of the Fall River Chapter. The speech was kept short and sweet, so we could all get back to smoking and bullshitting. (And yes, that's a professional photographer behind the counter, here to document the proceedings.)
Just a bit more camaraderie. A couple seasoned newspaper journalists talking shop. It was fascinating for this blogger to hear stories about how news is made in the world of print. (Short version - there's a lot of outsourcing, but still no substitute for on-the-ground reportage.)
The official International Pipe Smoking Day is Tuesday, February 20.
That's tomorrow. For you blokes in Europe - it has already begun!
I will most definitely be lighting a pipe or three tomorrow to celebrate. Not that this is different from any other day. But tomorrow, I'll be doing it with an extra degree of solemnity and companionship with my pipe smoking brothers and sisters around the world. I sincerely hope you can find a moment of peace to light up and celebrate with me.