Lit Up

"Do either of you smoke?" asked our waitress.

Seemed like a strange question as we sat in the Irish Pub in Holland, having a celebratory late night snack, due to Kim wrapping up another master's class. "No we don't."

"Well,.. I thought I should ask because in about ten minutes this whole place goes from smokeless to smoking," as her words hung in the air, I tried to recall state laws.

Before I could grasp the slightest jurisprudence thought rattling in my brain, a gal walked by our table carrying two packs of cigarettes in each hand. I found it odd that she was taking her smoking to such a serious level. As I turned around to view the rest of the room to see if anyone else was preparing to vacate as fast as we were, I glanced at the tab

le directly behind me and the guys who had been chatting over a couple pints were now flicking lighters, as two packs of cigarettes sat in front of them. Moments later, a waitress careened through room between the tables doling out ash trays like a blackjack dealer in a casino. It was as if a switch had flipped and we were just waiting to hear the voice of Rod Sterling drift through the air, Your next stop ... the Twilight Zone.

"People must REALLY be intense with smoking around here," I threw out my observation to the waitress.

"Oh no," she said, "if you did smoke you could get two packs of cigarettes for free by just letting them scan your ID. It's a promotional thing every week."