To have a fag in my garden if I want to?

[WomanInChains]

I only smoke in my garden, never in the street or anywhere else. A footpath runs along the side of it adjoining a woodland area. Footpath is a short cut to supermarket, doctors, hairdressers. I smoke in the alleyway at the side of my garden which runs adjacent with the footpath.

I am getting sick of random people making loud comments when they pass by my fence like 'that stink is disgusting, ohh someone's smoking eurgghh' and etc.

WIBU to shout over to the next person to fuck off away from my fence if it bothers them rather than pausing and making comments?

TheWinterofOurDiscountTentsMk2

A lot of non smokers will never be happy until smoking is banned completely

Yep, I cannot wait. It's only a matter of time before I can go for a lunchtime walk and not develop an asthma attack because someone walking in front of me is fagging like their life depends on it.

It's not the smell that bothers me, although that is absolutely rank. It's the NOT BEING ABLE TO BREATHE part that bothers me

No you couldn't. Is alcohol filthy? No. Do people leave the ends of pints all over the street? Is it anti-social or is it actually very social? Alcohol has definite benefits. Poor analogy, try again

Filthy - try going to some of the places in London where people typically go on a night out. The next day look at the vomit, piss and shit (yes I've seen human shit on the pavement) that's the result of a night out drinking.
Anti-social - Well, for a start my neighbours keeping me awake till 4am with their drunken karaoke, that's not anti-social? People getting into drunken fights etc. I could go on.

Drink drivers, DV, costs to the NHS for treating addiction and illness caused by alcohol, actually I think alcohol is a perfectly good analogy.

People are far too picky, not their business what you do and it doesn't smell that bad. Plenty worse smells!

That's subjective though isn't it?

Their obesity, eating habits have no affect on your life
Ha! Passive obesity - that's my new excuse! I

OP - I think the real problem is that you aren't strictly speaking smoking in your garden but on a public footpath/alleyway - TBF I think the commenters have a point. Why don't you just smoke in your garden?

The obese/maccyds comparison is flawed even if you move down to the 'it costs the nhs money which affects me' argument. Wtf do you think smoking does? Does that not cost?

Yes, it will be the narrow path leading from the side to the back of the house, probably.

Still, it's not the same as the garden and people walking past will get more smoke than if OP smoked in the garden.

So, you're not bothering your neighbours, but bothering passers by. And they return the favour with comments.

I might say things like this if I was walking along with a young child. Drip feeding a message! Maybe that's what's happening and the comment might not be aimed at you although I appreciate it sounds like a dig - but they're not saying you're disgusting, only that smoking is! Absolutely your right to smoke in your own place though.

Well you are polluting air in public space. Its gross. I can see that you are trying to be considerate but clearly your garden isn't big enough for you to smoke in without affecting other people. Either:
A) get a bigger garden
B) smoke inside your house
C) suck it up and deal with the comments.

Sorry - I'm fairly certain I must have missed this upthread, but are people just commenting as they wander past without actually seeing you and realising it's you who's smoking? (which would be fine, they're completely entitled to do so); or saying it to you (I agree would be pretty rude)?

My Dad sat on a Committee with some other men who met 3-4 times a year. There were a few cigarettes and baccy smokers amongst them. One man proposed that all meetings should be at his place cos "the parking was better"
So, 3-4 times a year they all met at Buck House
Lots of ashtrays etc. about there, tho 'wifey' didn't like her OH smoking so he'd stopped.
I still keep some of Dad's smoking stuff around and, hey!, although a non-smoker myself, when my smoking friend visits, I invite her to smoke while she quaffs her whatever.
As a norm for social behaviour If it's good enough for Madge, it's good enough for me.

Get a bigger garden??

I'm a smoker. I never litter and, when I'm outside the pub lots of people come up to me and say how nice it smells.

Storm4, yes, I used to walk through the streets coming to/from the clubs and pubs (not London) in order to get to work each morning. Vomit on the streets and splattered up shop windows and smashed bottles everywhere. And as a PP noted, groups of drinkers getting lairy is quite off-putting when you have to walk through them by yourself.

You have a right to smoke in your garden.

The people that I find irritating are the ones in every doorway (even outside hospitals next to the no smoking sign) - I have severe asthma and smoke really does start me wheezing so I often cover my mouth when I walk past smokers. I have some odd comments when I do that so I try to be discrete and not make eye contact but really my asthma is life threatening at times. I think smokers don't always realise how it affects others or how bad it actually smells to non smokers.

YANBU to smoke there, but YABU to get annoyed at peoples comments. Freedom works both ways.

Drink drivers, DV, costs to the NHS for treating addiction and illness caused by alcohol, actually I think alcohol is a perfectly good analogy

All of those are the result of excessive alcohol right? So the average person who knows when to stop causes absolutely no issue to anyone. The average smoker does.

Last time I looked smoking outside was perfectly legal. Tobacco fascism is reaching ridiculous levels now. I say this as a former smoker.

It's the walkway along the side of the house which we call the alley, sorry for it not being clear! It's wide enough that smoke's in way blowing over any ones face, I hear comments bloody every day.

Thinking of putting a sign up on the fence now. 'Yes I'm smoking, it's legal and its not affecting you so move away, twats!'

smoke's in no way

Think we need a diagram, OP!

Suggestions:

1. Give up (then you'll never feel on edge about it again and the comments will stop)
2. Smoke further away from the alleyway
3. Decide not to care about comments

Last time I looked smoking outside was perfectly legal

And so is having an opinion on it, which can also be expressed outside.

OP, sorry I do think YABU. You have every right to smoke where you do, but people smelling it have every right to comment.

If every (or most) people who are passing by are complaining/ voicing their opinions then it must be having an impact on them (wafting in their faces as they walk though it).
If it was just one or two passers by that mentioned then I'd probably say they were being a bit extreme, but as you are hearing this repeatedly then that suggests it's having a bigger impact than you realise.

Aviator - love it!

Those of you who would like smoking to be illegal might think about where the treasury might look to fill the tax deficit. Smoking revenue exceeds the cost to the NHS for treating smoking related diseases.

Those of you who would like smoking to be illegal might think about where the treasury might look to fill the tax deficit

I'm not fussed about it being illegal. I think it should be banned everywhere but your own home.