Back to 40 smokes a day. Just as pruning a plant promotes strong regrowth, time away from smokes makes them all the more seductive if you relapse. In this era of corporatism and the worship of productivity, having a quiet smoke can be like raging against the machine. Even if you are forced to stand outside in front of your office building in the pouring rain, having that smoke is a quiet, Zen-like moment. A rationed pleasure.
Smokers are never more themselves then when they are having a cigarette.
If only the bloody things weren't lethal. As someone who smoked I know that when a friend quits, it can feel like you've lost them. Gone are those special understandings, that sacred bond over coffee, those shared moments in stairwells. You are alone. You may even hate that person for giving up.