From Timothy

Hey Phil,

I wanted to thank you for helping me find a better way and share my story with you.

Cigarettes – I’m originally from northern california and started smoking around 16. It was irregular, until I turned 19 and started drinking more regularly. Then I was a few cigarettes a day, or half-pack a night smoker (when I was drinking). That continued until I was 26 with several attempts to quit smoking (cold turkey) which usually lasted 3-6 months.

Vaping – After college, I quit smoking with the help of Blu E-Cigs. It was “cool” at first, but after about a month it was just a way to quit smoking. I quit Blu after about 3 months because it was such a pain in the ass (swapping batteries, charging different devices, etc). It was easy to quit at that time as I was living in an area in Utah where smoking wasnt very prevalent. Plus life was going good – generally stress free. I also MOSTLY quit drinking (not on any kind of ‘wagon’ but definitely not weekly binges).
Fast forward a year of being tobacco free and my wife and I decided to make the move to Texas, to be closer to her family, after having our son. We moved in with her folks last August while we sold the house in Utah, and while we looked in Texas. We both continued to work for the companies we were working with in Utah, but from home. EVERYONE smokes in Texas, including her parents (though not in the house). My cravings fired up BIG TIME being at their house 24/7 and the stresses of moving and living with inlaws (they were great, but its always stressful living with someone else at their place). I still had my blu, but I knew it wouldnt cut it. I started the hunt for “Better than Blu.” I found your site and watched a dozen relevant videos in the >$100 range 🙂 after seeing what everything was about and SEVERAL DAYS of research, I finally ordered a Joyetech Ego-T passthrough 1300mAh with a few Evod tanks and a Vivi Nova. I LOVED IT! Soon after I bought a Vision Spinner 900mAh and those two setups last me several months. I was mostly using AVEJuice, though later tried some TexasSelectVapor juice, and found a few flavors I enjoyed (mmm FIREBALL).
The end of January I upgraded to a SiD, with a Fogger v3, a KFL+ clone, and Trident RDA clone (couldn’t afford the authentics). I checked reviews from you, GrimmGreen, and RipTrippers. I really enjoy rebuilding! I’m mostly doing standard 28ga micro coils, though i bought some 32ga kanthal by accident, so I’ve tried some twisted wire… nothing to write home about. I also picked up about $100 of liquid from MTBakerVapor as everyone on ECF loves it, and my wife hated the tobacco/coffee flavors I was getting from AVEJuice.
I’m 28 and vaping 6mg nic. I’m soon going to step that down to zero as I love the flavors, the hobby and the community. I’ve also lost 10 lbs over the last few months because I’m not snacking all day and just generally eating healthier.

Nothing spectacular, but thats my story.
Thank you again for doing awesome reviews.
I hope to throw some Vape Conventions in the future here in Texas (thinking of doing 3, Austin, Houston, Dallas), but I’ll let you know. I hope you can make it, but I know you already do so much. So no worries if you cant! If you have any advice or direction on event planning I’d love to hear it, but again, I know you are extremely busy.

Thank you again for your great support for this community,
TJ