Slow and steady wins the race.   I know it can be aggravating, but then you seem to know what you can and cannot handle - as well as your back.  Enjoy the rest.

you seem to know what you can and cannot handle - as well as your back. Enjoy the rest.

Ditto,  I second what he says.   Your whole article speaks of how well you know yourself and what's best for you.  Good!

BTW, my son went to a Smoke Shop yesterday and I saw some really neat pipe stands,  and a Meershen?  is that spelled right?  don't think so.  Anyway the cashier told me about them and how they take on a neat appearance if one uses a cloth on the pipe when it's smoked....cool!  One pipe stand was a horse's head,  the other was an Indian headdress.

Thanks.

I don't want to push the back too hard too fast and wind up on the sidelines again even though going easy is against my nature (probably why my body is falling apart at the tender age of 45 )

Meerschaums are about all I smoke now.

Forget the silliness about holding it with a cloth or a velvet glove or any of that other nonsense. The only people who worry about such things are the truly nutty collectors trying to get a perfectly colored pipe. The skin oils do alter the coloring but I think it just makes them more unique and interesting. You should always make sure your hands are clean when handling them though.

The best things about them are that:

a) they need no breaking in at all

they are carved in so many wonderful designs and each one is truly one of a kind as they are all hand carved

c) they are the coolest, best smoking pipes in the world. Tobacco smoked in a briar pipe tastes nothing like the same tobacco smoked in a meer.

I have a nice little collection of meers and intend to add more when I can afford to do so.

There are two places in the world where the material comes from, a place in Turkey, and a place in Africa. You can tell the ones from Africa as they are typically glazed. This is because the material is of a lower quality. Always buy the nice, white Turkish ones. Those Turkish carvers are masters.

Definitely take your time and don't over do things.  As much as it may suck to have to take a little longer, you know you really don't want to be laid up again or having more difficulty with the back.  Give yourself those breaks.  Heck, watch the TV during the breaks, listen to the radio some maybe, or as you said, knit some.  Just give yourself enough of a break to let things keep on the healing track.

Thanks, that's my thinking exactly.

Yeah, I concur, take it easy, like you plan and relax and knit! Have a good evening...at least I hope you are since it's so late!

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Sometimes the fastest way to get there is to stop for the night. Be well, Mason...