IS THE ANSWER 42?

A commenter recently posted the following:

QUOTE:
"Hello,
I'm very happy that I was able to find your blog. For me it's a bit of a treasure, as I lived in S.F. for over a decade and have a fond love for pipe tobacco and local lore. I would like to know if I may ask some questions in regards to tobacco and Drucquers. I had spoke to Mr. Pulvers who owned a shop in S.F. about them but read that you had worked there? Thank you kindly for your time and I look forward to your reply. kind regards
W."
END QUOTE.

When I was in Berkeley I worked at Drucquers for a few years. That's quite a while back, of course, as they haven't been around in over a quarter of a century. Marty Pulvers, owner of Sherlock's Haven, retired in the early two thousands.

[FYI: Benaderets on Sutter Street closed in 1980, Dunhill in Union Square shut down in 1990 0r 91, and Grants went out of business in 2012. Jim Mate's disapeared sometime in the eighties, not sure when.]

There's an old photo of the ferry to San Francisco before the Bay Bridge was built. The entire deck is filled with businessmen going to work. Raincoats, fedoras or similar headgear, newspapers, and pipes. Nowadays that would trigger a huge number of people.
Society would shut down, and earthmothers would riot in the streets.

I'm not sure that as a society we've improved.

Go ahead; ask questions.



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