Another bonus was the new spirit of camaraderie that sprang up among colleagues, as we met on the terrace and exchanged gossip and ideas over a cigarette while soaking up a bit of winter sunshine from October to March. Those impromptu terrace smoking sessions, in fact, turned out to be far more effective as "bonding" and "team-building" exercises than the expensive (and absurd) ones that MNCs send their executives on, where they’re all roped together as they climb a perilous rock face.
But those happy days are over now. With temperatures crossing 40 degrees C, the terrace is deserted. Going down to the street level is not an option—there’s a crowded parking lot there which is not exactly conducive to a relaxing smoke or a conversation. Now, we smokers have really got nowhere to go. So if you find a bit of the old spark missing in Outlook’s summer issues, blame it on Dr Ramadoss. As the old saying goes, there’s no fire without a smoke....
