The Clever Shark

Earlier today I was reminded that I hadn’t written a follow-up on my Eclipse trial since Tuesday, so it is high time indeed that I wrote the final article on this. I’ve been putting a lot of work both in the office and on the photo site (feel free to check it out, the link is on the right side of the page), and in my world “time flies when you’re coding.”

To recap…

It has now been 10 days since I decided to change the brand of cigarettes I smoke. I used to be a pack-a-day “full-flavor” (they should really just call it “full-strength”) cigarette smoker, and had (I think) signed up for smoker information on an RJR site, so in January 28th I received an advert and discount coupon for RJR’s new Eclipse cigarette. At that point I decided to smoke these for a 7-day trial period — nothing official or funded by RJR, by the way — and report on what those cigarettes were like from the point of view of a habitual smoker.

At this point I feel confident that I can make certain observations about this cigarette which will be useful to smokers considering switching.

From the onset I should mention that I have decided to stick with these new cigarettes. It’s not every day that you see a smoker switch brands, but this is really something different.

Taste and smell

The taste of this cigarette is really something one must get used to. This cigarette has very little taste, when compared to a regular brand. This is largely due to the Eclipse primarily heating, and not burning, tobacco. The taste is hard to describe. It’s a slightly more “humid” taste, and it tends to change as the is smoked — it’s fuller at the beginning, then fades gradually, and when the cigarette is finished it is faintly redolent of inhaling from an unlit tobacco pipe. Because it doesn’t burn, that taste is the signal that the cigarette is done.

The chief advantage here is that Eclipse really doesn’t smell, compared to full-strength cigarettes. Unscientific as it may sound, my apartment smells a lot better since I made the switch, as do my clothes (and, probably, my breath). This is certainly due to it not producing ashes.

All in all I think the Eclipse is an improvement over my former brand in terms of taste and smell, and while it did take some getting-used-to, I think it would be equally hard for me to go back to a normal smoke at this point.

Strength of the Eclipse

The Eclipse is a low-nicotine, low-tar cigarette. Unfortunately the pack doesn’t show the tar/nic numbers, so this can take you by surprise (it certainly surprised me). If you’re switching from a full-strength cigarette you will definitely notice some discomfort for the first couple of days. This could lead some to smoke more, but it didn’t do so in my case — I started the trial during the work week, and there are limited opportunities for me to go out and smoke then anyway.

Lung irritation

I have noticed that Eclipse causes considerably less irritation of the lungs than other cigarettes. This manifests itself in no coughing or wheezing in the morning due to cigarette smoke (although I am getting over a chest cold just now). The smoke produced by Eclipse is considerably less dense and more humid than regular cigarette smoke, and that is probably why. Note that I’m not implying that this is a healthier smoke, just that it’s a lot more pleasant from the “lung irritation” standpoint.

How it’s smoked

By and large the Eclipse is smoked like any other cigarette, except for some aspects. First, it can be rather hard to light sometimes and require re-lighting in the initial stage. This can be really annoying to certain people.

Also the Eclipse will burn in a certain amount of time (I haven’t measured), whereas with regular cigarettes people tend to smoke them more or less quickly depending on their own puffing patterns.

There is also the fact that only the Eclipse’s tip burns, while the rest appears intact (although it does get warm). This gets you a few funny looks, but that’s about it; you get used to it rather quickly. Putting what seems to be a whole cigarette in the ashtray does feel a bit off at first.

Availability

This is the bit that worries me about Eclipse. It’s already been put on the market and withdrawn, more than once. Granted, it is said to have been greatly improved since then, but it is a cause for concern that they might disappear from the market once again.

It is also not available everywhere normal cigarettes can be purchased. So far I’ve noticed that the safest bet is to look for them at drugstores, since smaller establishments usually don’t carry them.

Overall conclusion

I am feeling quite positive about this cigarette, which represents what is probably the biggest advance in smoking since the filter. Granted, it does require some adjustment on the part of a regular cigarette smoker, but in the end I think it is well worth a try for smokers who are looking for something new.

Apparently the era of free speech is over for America. Apparently if you’re against the war you’re a terrorist.

Kerry never granted favors in exchange for political donations? CNN seems skeptical. Good thing that Kerry is the candidate who will chase “special interests” right out of Washington!

Rules for being a Republican! (via Metafilter) You’ve always wondered, well, now you know.

CleverShark.com photo site now greatly improved! Now with bookmarkable, more friendly URLs and 90% better navigation!

It’s official: the feds will spend untold amounts to investigate Janet’s boobie. From all the brouhaha around here you’d think Americans have never seen a breast before.

A whole day later, America continues freaking out about seeing Janet Jackson’s partially-covered boobie. Reaction from most of the rest of the world: “It’s a tit. Haven’t you ever seen one of those before? Chill out!”

There are some who may wonder if I’ve forgotten about these articles. Let me assure you that I have not. In fact there are two good reasons why I haven’t written in the past couple of days:

1. I’ve been ill! I was busy being miserable at home all weekend with a sore throat and sinus congestion. Constant intake of decongestants made me unable to maintain a train of thought for more than a few minutes. I therefore watched TV all weekend.
2. Despite my enduring with the cigarette trial, there has been precious little to report.

Seriously, I have very few further observations to make aside from what I have put forward already.

Lung irritation

I have smoked for 18 years, with very few days being excepted from that period of time, so there have been many a day when I have smoked despite being taken by illness. I definitely know how it feels to wake up with a congested head as well as having some wheezing due to smoking cigarettes while the illness was in effect.

I have to say, in support of previous observation, that I continue feeling very little in the way of additional irritation and chest congestion since beginning the Eclipse trial. Seriously, it’s like day and night. I hate sounding like a cheerleader (especially for the optimal “large faceless corporations”) but this cigarette is a marked improvement over the ordinary ones. Well done on that score.

Having the odd regular smoke

On Friday I did bum two regular cigarettes from a friend when I had run out of mine. I can’t really report scientifically on whether those two were markedly different in terms of taste or effect as I was also drinking at the time. However I decided to repeat that episode on Sunday when sober (although I had only a single Marlboro red at that time).

First, I was struck by the taste. It was not unlike the taste of one’s first cigarette after having quit for some time. However that sensation goes away after the second puff.

Second, I did notice that the smoke itself was markedly harsher than what I am now used to. This was in keeping with my expectations.

Third, I also noticed that the taste and smell of the regular cigarette lingered around, almost like I was no longer used to that. I expected that effect as well.

What did surprise me was that I did not get a “head rush”, despite the Marlboro being markedly stronger in terms of both tar and nicotine. I’m not sure why that is — usually when you “switch up” from one cigarette to a stronger one some effect can be felt, but not in this case.

In any case I didn’t personally feel much inclination to go back to the stronger cigarette. Apparently this happens fairly often in scientific tests. I do see a potential for switching in the fact that Eclipse isn’t available in nearly as many shops as ordinary cigarettes, but since I live in an area with many retailers I doubt that I will be unable to obtain more.

Preliminary (?) conclusions

So far so good, I guess. As you can see this trial is pretty uneventful, and I have taken the decision, for now at least, to stick with the new brand, which is something unusual for us smokers, who tend to be a pretty fiercely loyal bunch. I just think that this brand is, overall, worth making an adjustment not because it’s a lot like my old brand, but much to the contrary, because it’s very different. I’ll be making at least one more entry on the subject, probably Thursday, which will be after the 7-day self-imposed trial.

US Sacrificing liberty for make-believe security? As a non-citizen but legal (temporary) resident I find this more than a little scary. If I don’t update my site for more than 2 weeks you can put me down as “vacationing in Gitmo” I guess.

You know those sites that turn a long URL into a short one? This one does the opposite! From the Institute of Useless Technologies.