I went to the Little Smoke this last fall, at a restaurant near Milwaukee - first year I've done that - at the urging of some good friends who told me it would be a great time. Entry fee was a paltry $120 per person - which included a dinner and huge bag full of smokes as you walked in. The various manufacturers sponsored tables - and depending on where you were seated, you got various "goodies" put out by the manufacturers. They even had a silent auction to raise funds for a local charity. To be honest, $120 was nothing - I walked out with well over $200 worth of cigars - and had a very nice dinner on top of that. Plus - I had the pleasure of smoking cigars with some very incredible people!!
But then there's the dark side... I shoulda known the event was too good to be true. While I was chatting with the Oliva rep, with my wife seated a short distance away - some schmuck walked over to our table - opened up MY portable humidor - and helped himself to an Anejo. Now mind you - you could not even mistake my beat up plastic portable humidor for one of the boxes of cigars left at the table. Even if you were a totally dummy - opening it up would have given a clue that something was amiss (there was a varied selection of cigars, some with hand written bands)....
But, wait - there's more. At the end of the evening I learned that one of the "guests" had snuck out with two large cardboard boxes of cigars and lighters a rep had brought with them. Several hundred dollars worth of goodies, taken by one of the "guests". There was no mistaking these two boxes belonged to someone, and were not there for the taking - unless you felt entitled, I suppose....
Then there was the silent auction. Someone apparently felt the wine that was being auctioned was a give away as well - they spirited away 5 or 6 bottles of some pretty expensive stuff...
Well - now there's serious doubts there will be a little smoke next year, given what happened. Pretty doggone sad, I gotta tell you...
So I'm left wondering - who is Dr. J? I know so very little about him - and he wants to remain mysterious to us...
....and did he possibly attend the Little Smoke last year?
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