Juul V.S. The Rest of the Vaping Community

        The other night, I was tagged in an anti-Juul post. It was a lawfirm offering services to parents wishing to sue Juul for providing their children with nicotine products. The post sounds great for those who hate the concept of a company that has previously been on blast for accused marketing to younger crowds. However, all these attacks on the company are causing a major problem for the rest of the vaping community.


        Let me start this whole post off by explaining how vapers feel about this company:

• Juul popped up out of seemingly nowhere claiming to be the best way to get people off of tobacco products.
• Then they sold their company to a parent company of a major tobacco distributor.

   This doesn't make sense. I have sworn to never give anymore of my money to a company that knowingly puts dangerous and disgusting chemicals into a product they will be massively distributing across the globe. Don't they want their customers to live long enough to purchase more of their product? Why would I trust them to continuously produce a product that was created to make their other products obsolete? Hmmm....


via GIPHY

• The company is constantly creating problems for vape shops (that are usually owned and operated by small business owners).
• Proven fact: Juul has baited and condemned multiple shops under the guise of "not checking ID" and even "not recommending Juul over other products".

   I wish I was kidding, but being apart of numerous vape groups on social media, I see first hand accounts of Juul representatives playing the role of a "secret shopper". They go in and ask about Juul products or say something like "I am trying to quit cigarettes. What do you suggest?" Either way (even if, as it was in one case, the customer looks two steps away from retirement) if the shop in question does not immediately ask for I.D. (law says check if they appear over 21 most shops say over 30), the company is blacklisted from carrying Juul (ooh scary). Same thing happens if they recommend the Renova ZERO rather than immediately kissing up to an overpriced product.

via GIPHY

• The devices comes with disposable, pre-filled cartridges. 
• These cartridges are usually disposed of in the same fashion that cigarette butts are..... on the ground.                                          

       Beyond the litter these cartridges cause, the cost for the customer is outrageous! The device is usually sold in convenience stores for around $50. Then the pods (which are one time use only) come in a four pack for around $20. Makes you wonder how much they are charging wholesale price for the stores carrying their product. Depending on how much you use it, that pack might not even last a week. Considering each cartridge holds less than 1ml of liquid, you are better off getting a refillable pod instead.

via GIPHY

So what is the answer conscientious vapers came up with?

THE REFILLABLE POD SYSTEM!

{Left to Right: Smok Rolo Badge, Vapeccino Stick, Renova ZERO}

     These devices are refillable with an array of flavors to choose from. Nic salt is the most commonly used liquid with pods, however regular vape liquid can be used if high nicotine isn't needed. They come in multiple different shapes, sizes, and colors. Most of the pod devices are small enough for what we call "stealth vaping" (tiny clouds and easier to hide for people at work). Refillable pod devices are a great way to get off cigarettes and cost much less than a Juul in the long run. Just bought my husband a Uwell Caliburn, it's a stick shaped refillable pod, with terrific flavor, and crazy long battery life! Refillables are totally the way to go.


via GIPHY


CONCLUDING....

      No one in the vaping community wants people (let alone minors) to become addicted to nicotine. That's the reason most e-liquids are available without it. Although, it's becoming apparent that nicotine may not be as dangerous as we thought. In fact, some studies are comparing it to caffeine and those types of addictions. I would love to know which of the other 7,000 chemicals in cigarettes I may have been addicted to. That's the biggest reason that vaping isn't a demon that needs vanquished! Above the gum and patches, vaping is the singularly best way to get off of cigarettes. Even people who chew tobacco are finding a way out with these devices.
      There is more to vaping, however, than just getting off tobacco. The whole process can be a fun hobby for some adults. I, personally, love the big clouds to play with and amazing flavors I get from my vape. This community has full competitions for the devices being created. People like to make their own juice and some even make their own mods! I really believe that the hobby is what gets minors curious. Adults are having fun, so it must be cool. The same way teens think drinking alcohol is the coolest thing ever. Teens are just eager to be adults!
      Start teaching them how to pay bills and file taxes and maybe they will slow down a little.


via GIPHY

Back on topic... 

      While I openly display my own distaste for the Juul product and company, I hate to see any brand becoming the blame for child use. Most parents I know do the best they can to keep their children away from nicotine products, but the truth is it only takes one parent to give in or not care. If one teenager in a school has a way to get Juul or any other nicotine product, then the rest of the minors that come in contact with that kid are susceptible to that peer pressure. Much in the same way we were getting cigarettes as young as middle school age, and generations before mine were even younger. If each parent does everything they can to educate their children on the law and the dangers of peer pressure, well they could easily stop a lot of different things from getting into these minors' hands. Demonizing a product that is meant as a therapy to reduce tobacco consumption is harmful to the whole community.

     Now that we have this topic out of the way, I think we are due for some product reviews.
If you have any suggestions or requests, you can leave me a comment or head over to my Facebook page ( @thecloudmermaid ) and let me know there. Who knows, maybe you even make me feel special and hit the like button.



via GIPHY

   

The Dreaded First Post: A Testimonial

   Starting a blog really has to do just that, START. Somewhere. Anywhere. Find a sentence without too many cliches and just go. Unfortunately, this blog will have all the cliches and all the puns. Sorry, not that sorry. My name is Oddysey, has been since I was about twelve years old and couldn't stand going by my original name (No, I won't tell. It's a secret!) 


via GIPHY

   Currently, I manage a vape shop and have too much free time on my hands. That's not entirely true, but I have always wanted to start a blog. With so many opinions and thoughts going through my head on a daily basis, this venture should make all my previous English teachers and professors cringe just a little bit. I must apologize in advance, I do NOT intend on constantly having proper grammar in this medium. I can, however, promise mostly proper grammar and plenty of tangents. You're welcome...

   As far as the vape shop comment goes, I started vaping in 2013 and almost immediately went right back to cigarettes. My closest friend at the time took me to a local shop to get me away from the lung killers and bought me an Aspire kit (no idea which one) with an internal tank. While the guy who helped me pick it out and set it up was really sweet, I was beyond clueless about what we had bought or how it even worked. All I was certain of was that the device was SUPER CUTE and at some point I was going to have to change something they had called a "coil". Once I tasted the burn and attempted what seemed like a full heart transplant, I was already giving up. Trying to figure it out on my own had me needing a cigarette. 

via GIPHY

    FAST FORWARD a few years (like 4 months ago), at this point in my life I have found the man I plan to marry and had begun building, with him, the life we wanted to live. A conversation was had that I did not want to hear. It was time to quit smoking. We had already tried the "cold turkey" approach which had us begging each other to just go buy a pack. Just one more pack. This time it had to be for good. My fiance suggested we vape. 

    WHAT?!?! He wanted me to try and figure that thing out again? With all the little parts that need changed and the dangers everyone was talking about! I let him buy me an Innokin Coolfire mini. Of course, he knew more than I did. Still, I had to know what I was doing this time and began my research. 


via GIPHY

This is what I found and have learned the past few months:

The health benefits totally outweigh the frustrations. 

 With over 7,000 chemicals in ONE cancer stick, there are generally only FOUR in e-liquid. The worst chemical being NICOTINE. That fact is why we call vaping HARM REDUCTION THERAPY. Sure there is still harm in putting nicotine in your body, but multiple studies show that vaping is 95% less harmful than smoking cigarettes. 

The cost of vaping is much cheaper than being a pack or two a day smoker.

   If you have ever heard the phrase, "Cheaper in the long-run", that's vaping. The average cost of a carton of cigarettes where I live is about $50. My fiance and I could go through one in a week. That's $200 a month. Now the average vape set-up in my area is $100. Add on your liquid ($20/bottle) and a pack of coils (another $20/ 3-5 pack). Realistically, you are looking at about $250 for the first month of vaping. BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! (I warned you about cliches) That set up, if treated right with proper battery care and minimal clumsiness, could last you months or even years. That brings your monthly vape cost down to about $50-$100 a month. So that's HALF if not more than half the price of being a pack or more a day smoker.

   Those two points alone were enough for me to put away the "ashtray smell". Still I wanted to know how it all worked. What exactly is a coil? How do mods blow-up in people's pockets? Why is everyone so deathly afraid of something that really should be praised?

  { Originally, I had planned on including all of that information in this post, but the fruits of the labor I put in really deserve a separate post with diagrams and pictures. Maybe a gif or five.}

via GIPHY

   The most important thing I learned (besides what the hell I was doing) was how much of a waste of time and money the Juul device had become. It was being sold at every gas station. It was constantly in everyone's mouths because of how often they caused trouble with the FDA and schools. The worst part was the cost of the stupid little pre-filled cartridges. 

  Let me just add a side note here. If you have a Juul and love it, I'm happy for you. Really I am. Just know you are still giving your money to a tobacco company. 

  In case you live under a rock with the other starfish, Juul was bought out by Altria. If that doesn't spell it out, Altria owns Phillip Morris. I'm sorry that's not specific enough. THEY MAKE THEM THERE COWBOY KILLERS [said in perfect southern twang]. Marlboro. The cigarette that had me stuck in an endless loop of trying to quit and coming right back to committing long-term suicide. 

   If all that drama wasn't the be all end all, the cost had my head spinning. Again if the long-term cost is cheaper than the right now cost, spend the big bucks now and DON'T regret it later. 

Along my research journey I found many reviewers and advocates for vaping that gave me much more knowledge and longing for a hand out of the cancer hole. I will most definitely be giving them shout-outs and credit in later posts. As far as what I'm vaping now, I have a pretty cool sub-ohm set up.

This is the GeekVape Aegis Legend with the Fireluke Mesh purple resin with an acrylic expansion. So, in other words, this is my abuse resistant mod.

Feel free to attempt to find me on Facebook if you haven't already. I will also be creating a few other social media profiles for this blog and will be adding those at a later time. If you have made it all the way through my first post without leaving, congratulations! Give yourself a pat on the head and keep coming back for more.