Cigarette Smoking

Recently, my wife mentioned that she’d learnt that one of her apartment friends used to smoke. My 10 yo daughter was all ears – “Does her (12 yo) son know?”, she asked (They are in the same basketball class). My wife warned her not to mention it to the kid. I, on the other hand, told her to definitely tell him. “Let’s give the boy some ammunition for the time when his mom gives him parental gyan on why smoking is bad”, I said to her amusement (my daughter’s, that is).

 

The conversation continued with my wife wondering what the connection between road-side chai and smoking was, something her friend had mentioned. “Oh that”, I said wisely, “it happens because you can’t smoke within these AC’ed offices. So one has to step out of the building. And nobody carries a pack on them – it ensures their pack isn’t used by others”. My daughter was hearing all this intently. “Instead, these guys will buy a cigarette each from the stall outside, which also sells munchies and chai. Thus, the chai and cigarette combo,” I finished, answering my wife’s question.

 

My daughter pounced on me. “How come you know such things? Do you smoke on the sly?”, she demanded. She’d make a good detective. Or lawyer. “No,” I said honestly, “But I’ve gone out with such guys plenty of times”. She rolled her eyes and said, “Yeah, yeah, that’s what everyone says. When you lie dying coughing uncontrollably, only then you’ll admit you were a smoker”…

 

She’s been seeing too much TV, I realized. The silver lining is that she seems to be aware of the connection between smoking and coughing uncontrollably, I consoled myself.