Communities can exist in almost any place – even in the alleys behind businesses where people smoke cigarettes. Smoking is, of course, very bad for you. And no smoker is deceiving themselves that they are engaging in a sort of healthy social behavior.
If you smoke, you are required by law to smoke outside and at least 25 feet away from a door. The places where you are allowed to smoke have become de facto community spaces where you might run into colleagues or see someone new for the first time. There’s happenstance meetings, coincidental conversations, and opportunities to interact with people from different walks of life who are smoking in the same space as you.
There’s also stigma and people who might walk by coughing or waving their hand in front of their face.
But, for those who smoke and even for some people who don’t, taking a break from work or heading outside at a bar is a way to make a connection, even if it’s just for a moment.
