If you love cigars--if you're a true cigar aficionado--you probably wonder, every now and again, what life is like for the hard-working folks who grow the tobacco for your favorite cigars Well, if it's premium cigars you like to smoke--perhaps by the box, perhaps one by one in a premium cigar sampler--then the first thing to know is that your cigar is made by people from all over the world

Even the most solicitous and devoted cigar aficionado occasionally runs into a little trouble Taste spoliation; a cigar humidor dial gone wonky; an infestation of tobacco beetles; mold; even the occasionally badly-made cigar from a generally reliable premium cigar factory--any and all of these little mishaps can blight the cigar stashes of even very careful and attentive premium cigar smokers

If you love cigars--if you're a true cigar aficionado--you probably deal with the Vacation Conundrum at about this time every year What's the vacation conundrum

In times like these, even the most hardened urban dwellers take another look at the pleasures and profits of gardening After all, with supermarket prices going up, farmers going under, and the economy going tipsy, it's tempting to seed that sideyard, rent a plot from the city, or even "claim" a bit of underused urban ground where no one will notice a tomato plant or two

One of the worlds largest and most valuable jewel collections, the Imperial Crown Jewels of Persia, or Crown Jewels of Iran, consists of a mind-boggling number of treasures On display at the Museum of The Treasury of National Iranian Jewels in Tehran, Iran, the collection ranges from breathtaking tiaras to jewel-studded swords to princely thrones, and much more

For many of us, casino gambling and cigar smoking go together like Frank and Bing Generations of first-time Vegas visitors have enhanced their experience via frequent applications of cigar smoke, just like those iconic Rat Packers of yesteryear with their impeccable suits, suave manner, and constantly-replenished supplies of alcohol and tobacco

The 1990s were the best of times—and the worst of times—for the premium cigar industry On the one hand, the previously near-moribund pastime suddenly experienced huge growth in profits, garnered new publicity, and racked up all sorts of hipness points as a stressed-out workforce turned to cigars for that little touch of luxury that makes a day complete

Downhill skiing requires a combination of athleticism, leisure, privilege, and the devil-may-care attitude that allows participants to enjoy the thrill of, essentially, falling down a steep snow-covered mountain, over and over again It's not a sport for the faint at heart

Camping—it's a brute necessity, and one of the most refined and civilized of pleasures Our remote ancestors would never have survived and evolved without the ability to build strong and protective shelters in the wild—the wiliness and courage to gather or track down their food—and, perhaps most of all, the resourcefulness to entertain themselves and each other in the infinitely long evenings before civilization

To cigar smokers, Nicaragua is already legendary Through regime change, social upheaval, and revolution, this Latin American nation has produced some of the world's finest tobacco

We all know about the important role that guns play in American recreation Consider such facts as the profusion of hunting magazines available on any newsstand; the huge number of duck blinds that can be seen in any woods; the fact that every town and hamlet has its driving range; the size and power of the NRA (National Rifle Association); or the wide availability of gun-safety classes to American youth

Boating is perhaps the most romantic of all sports, with its aura of long days on deck, of old sea salts' talk, of rope-related knowhow and words like "keelhaul" and "stern," its echoes of Melville and Popeye and of Robert Shaw's character in the movie Jaws ("I'll get the shark fer yeh, Chiefie