Alas, Stilly, you and your brother did indeed stink of cigarettes when you lived with your Mum. If even a table still carries the odour, just imagine what was in your clothes.

On the other hand, smokers were in the majority back then, so most of your friends and acquaintances were the same.

When people talk glibly about how they wish they could turn back time and go back to how it was when they were young, I always want to yell, "No way!" The ever-present evidence of wide-spread tobacco addiction -- yuck!

Of all the nasty substances I had to clear away and clean up in my hospital days, the only one I truly loathed and resented was ashtray contents.