September has come and gone, and October is knocking down the door. Thompson's Cigar Artisan's was a mix of hits and misses, and as much as we want to remember the good times and the excellent cigars gathered at the event, it's the rain overflowing the tent's floor and the agonizing heat that keep coming to mind when we remember it. And all those people ripping up coupons and putting them together in a numeric order before starting the scavenger hunt... I hope the organizers learn from their mistakes and we'll bring us a next year the kind of show we should get for the money we paid. Last week in September presented us with four events in one day, sort of a new record as far as I can remember, and making us wonder: Was this just a bizarre coincidence or are we getting forced to pick and choose which cigars we are going to try and which shops we will visit? I sure hope is the latter! As it is, it's not easy to get people to participate in the events just to taste a fine cigar, which is why the cigar shops are motivated to up the ante with beautiful hostesses and fine libations. Is there something wrong with that? To a casual observant the answer is no, but there is a price to be paid, and I'll go into that in my next blog.