There was a pipe show in Kansas City last weekend, which is prime beef country. What was I craving? Long John Silvers. Coming from Indiana, where Long John Silvers' are everywhere, I could get it any time I pleased. After moving to Myrtle Beach in 2005 and noticing that there wasn't even one in the entire state (the nearest one is about four hours away), I crave it. Constantly bombarded with "Adam, you are nuts" by my co-workers and other friends because I live two miles from an ocean full of fish of many different varieties, I ignore all of the eye rolling. After being picked up at the airport by friendly locals from the pipe club, they understood my crave, but suggested we get -- you know -- Kansas City barbecue. Burnt ends and ribs filled me to my ears (twice last Friday). Understanding my quirky desire for the 'good stuff', the wife of a club member surprised me with five pieces of fish and sauces. My intoxicating (mentally and nearly physically) lunch on Saturday was frowned upon by my good friend Jeff Gracik, who kindly addressed that he thought I passed gas. Are you kidding me? The Yankee Candle company should have Long John Silvers and Kansas City burnt-end candles as far as I'm concerned.

There was a large variety of pipes at the show, including quite a few from American carvers. Lucky for all of you, we managed to bring some back for future updates. Ted and Kaye represented Smokingpipes in Kansas (or what is Missouri?). A veteran of Richmond, Chicago, and Raliegh, Ted was on his game. Both of us, and many customers, were thrilled (but not surprised) that Kaye did such a fantastic job at her first pipe show. She is one of the best in our team and countless customers shared their admiration for her kindness and enthusiasm working face to face on the show floor.

We have pipes from PS Studio, Radice, Johs, Savinelli, Peterson, and Vauen today. From Brigham, we have pipes as well as Humidification Jars. These little plastic jars are filled with crystals that swell with humidification fluid that you can either place in your cigar humidor or enclosed plastic container where you might store pipe tobaccos to prevent them from drying out.

Adam Davidson: Quality Control & Pipe Inspector