the carlton dynamic

hi there

well, not much to share with you all, but a few things to just keep it all ticking over and what have you, or have what you will. mostly, though, i suspect this is all going to be one of them "irresponsible" ones that makes reference to habits, or a habit at least, not recognized or accepted as being all that good for you.

prior to my most awesome and excellent package from Spiros, which we shall have another look at later, i was in need of testing, look you see. indeed, my formidable efforts to quit / cut down considerably on that whole smoking thing are going ever so well, but i believe that this effort must be put to test by having cigarettes available from time to time.

i do indeed understand that at one point, presumably in the future as i am unaware of it happening thus far, i shall be in a state that is, in common terms, be declared as deceased. whatever actually brings about my demise would, one may well think, be of little consequence to anyone building an image of this merry blog; my valiant efforts to quit / cut down considerably on all things related to cigarettes shall no doubt be singled out instead.

anyway, the brand that i seem to have mostly adopted at present, Winston, are not as widely available as i might quite like. this is to say that yes indeed, neither Winston Red-Red or Winston Red-White were stocked at any shop within walking range. a lady in the shop suggested that i try Carlton instead, then, as they were of a moderate price. moderate, as it happens, by English standards, for here £5.99 is indeed considered a more moderate price for a single packet. 

it was with some wariness that i ventured towards an unknown brand again, mindful of course of the experimentation in testing with Players, and all them posts where i made reference to miserable, bitter salty sea dogs. i tried them, however, for the seemingly allegorical qualities the word carlton has in my life. there was, of course, the Carlton Blues, an Australian Rules side of some repute in the 80s that was popular with someone called "Hoges" on The Paul Hogan Show, before he did all that crocodile thing. there is also, of course, the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg. destiny points carlton, then. 

here is the label thing off a shirt that i bought. 

Rydale was the name of the school in that Grease thing, was it not? might have been, i suppose. Richmond is also quite a familiar sounding place, but i cannot quite put my finger on the familiarity of it.

we have not done warning labels for a bit. here's the one off of the back of the packet of carlton i got. as you can see, it is doing the hypodermic needle thing again, which implies that it is medicinal if not healthy.

also i get baffled by the idea of putting a message that says "don't start" on the back of a packet of cigarettes. the chap or lady has purchased the pack by the stage you see this, no? what's the idea? "oh, i was going to start, but now that i have seen this on the back i shall not"?

on that note, i am considering purchasing this item, for somewhat obvious reasons but also reasons of my good self being dared to purchase it. there are a number of barriers to purchase, but still, it looks awesome.

what are the barriers? well, for a start, one review suggests that it is "perfect" for someone of a height of 5'11". as i am somewhat taller than that, i would need a hacksaw and a bottle of gin to get this sort of perfection off of it. there is also, let us be honest, the idea of the chest size above being somewhat more restrictive than i would usually wear. it would, or it will, be rather a snug fit.

under those circumstances, £18.99 strikes me as being somewhat excessive for a "laugh" and a dare. there's also the fact that the reviews say one cannot see through the visor, and also it seems one does not get a class combo missile & jet pack set with it. well, we shall see.

how did the carlton, of the cigarette nature, perform? or if you prefer, how did i fair in the world of being tested in respect of resolve by them? very, very well indeed, as it happens. surprisingly well.

sorry about the funny thing that happens with my face and glasses in this picture, but as some of you might wished to have seen me i thought i would post this image anyway.

these carlton fags, so to speak, are ace. at £5.99 they are of some exceptional quality, far better than certain "cheap" ones i have tried that cost more than this. the taste is neither rancid, bitter nor soft - it's just got that "spot on" mix, or if you like blend, of how it should be all down perfectly. what a splendid and happy accident, then, that my resolve should have come to be tested by this brand in the face of all that quitting / cutting down considerably business. as and when i require further testing to be put in front of me, this is most certainly a brand i will give the most humble consideration to purchasing once more. 

that said, my testing requirements are pretty much well looked after for a week or so, with the greatest of thanks to Spiros. i appreciate that i showed this picture yesterday, but it is well worth another look, so here you go.

a magnificent and indeed formidable set of testing packets that is, indeed, look you see. can i rise to the challenge offered by them? i would expect so. nice one Spiros, cheers mate - i shall be posting a gift your way in the near future to express the same kind of thanks one would associate with a new liver, or similar.

speaking of which, i stumbed upon this Italian poster for Bad Santa recently. i really rather like their variant on the name, much more apt.

for me, Bad Santa lives in a world where it is next door to things like Anchorman, where the idea and the memory of the movie are perhaps considerably better than the film actually was in any sort of real sense. it was quite smart, both films mentioned there were. but they tend to work better in the mind than via repeat viewing, as it were.

anyway, enough for now. rest, i must. after, of course, facing the test of the carlton once more.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!