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Comment RSSPardon My Stench
3.10.07 # 8:38 # Adventures in Real Life # 6 CommentsHere in Alberta, the majority of communities have passed smoking by-laws which ban smoking in all public places. Of course the bar owners whined about the legislation before it passed, claiming it would stop people from going out. Clearly they underestimated the human desire to get falling-down-puking-stupid-drunk in a public place surrounded by strangers while crappy music gets played at a deafening volume. As far as I know the smoking by-law has not affected business at bars nor at bingo halls.
However, I think these laws don’t quite go far enough. For one thing, I work in a lumber yard and quite a few of the customers seem to think that because they are outdoors it’s okay for them to be smoking. Just yesterday, I was helping load up one guy with some concrete slabs. Due to the heaviness of these slabs it requires two people to lift them and because of the relatively small size you have to stand less than two feet apart. This particular customer had a lit cigarette in his mouth while we were loading him, so I was forced to second-hand smoke right along with him. I felt it was highly impolite.
There is another aspect of smoking that I find just as bad. I’ll be sitting in the lunch room at work, minding my own business and eating a sandwich when a smoker comes in and sits beside me. Although they smoke outside, they come in absolutely reeking of cigarette stench. It strongly impacts my enjoyment of the food I’m eating. Naturally, they can’t smell anything since they’ve just been inhaling all that smoke. They are oblivious of anyone else. Now don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying that they shouldn’t have the right to smoke but I think that laws should be passed that would force these people to smoke in such a way that they don’t smell bad after-wards. I envision some sort of a bio-hazard type-suit with only an opening large enough for them in inhale and exhale. That should be sufficient. After all, what if I came to work reeking of beer, what would these people have to say about that?
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That’s a good point; the odour is an invasion of personal space.
I’m here as a delurker. Any excuse, right?
Well, sitting next to someone that stinks isn’t fun, but a lot of people who don’t smoke still stink. Why just last week I was accused of having *onion-breath*. (Well, okay it was true, but there ya go.)
I would hate to have a lurker with onion breath invading my personal space.
I favour Hazmat suit laws. For the smokers. Who have a right to smoke in their contained environments.
I agree with Saskboy. They should have to smoke in the hazmat suit, and then go through some sort of desmellifier before entering the work environment again. Of course, being an ex smoker, I feel rather strongly about it.