There are evenings that ask for conversation, and there are evenings that ask for silence. This was one of those nights. The South Florida heat had finally surrendered to a gentle breeze as darkness settled over the backyard. The pool had transformed into a mirror of deep blue glass, illuminated …

No, it’s not a new stupidly named cigar brand. There are already more than enough stupidly named cigar brands, cigar sizes, and “limited” edition cigars that seem to be made in a never-ending salute to truly trivial events in the imaginary history of some of today’s cigar vendors. No, the …

An early morning aboard The Reel Paws, where the Atlantic, Cuban coffee, and the El Mago James Avenue Habano reminded me that the best journeys begin before the rest of the world wakes up. There is something almost sacred about launching a boat before sunrise. The world hasn’t found its voice …

There are some great stories that have gone untold in the cigar industry and I guess it’s up to me to write about them at some point, but each of them deserves more than just a passing mention. No one else seems to be interested in the real guys in …

Some days aren’t about escaping life. They’re about reconnecting with it. The Monday after the Fourth of July weekend felt exactly like that. The celebrations were over. The fireworks had faded into memory, and the crowds had returned to work. I needed something quieter. Something that belonged only to me. …

As you’ve no doubt read, there’s been a terrible earthquake in Venezuela and American do-gooders are out in force trying to help these people. Believe me, I respect these well-meaning people, but I know from experience that most of the effort and expense they go through is of little or …

At 94 degrees in South Florida, most people would call sitting outside a bad idea. I called it therapy. The afternoon sun was blazing, the kind of heat that makes the pavement shimmer and palm fronds move in slow motion. But my backyard had transformed into something else entirely—a private tropical retreat. …

Well, it’s July 4th and I’m out here smoking a cigar that I may have actually made myself! It’s a 5.5 inch Por Larranaga with a 38 ring and I guess they were made right around the Winter of 2000 or 2001. I was at the Altadis factory in La …

Friday nights have always been my favorite kind of reset. The work week is behind me, the chores are done, and for a few precious hours there is nowhere to be, nothing to fix, and nobody demanding my attention. This particular Friday evening was shaping up to be one of …

I think Television is no longer the right word to describe what we watch each night.  Me and LaVonda have been watching a show called The Good Wife. Every night we spend about ten minutes trying to find the damned thing because we can’t remember what service we were watching …