I'm Back! Kinda... What happened while I was gone!?

[Hiroshiro]

Hey Everyone, man, I've been out of the game so long.
I ended up having a tumor grow out of my forehead and messed with my every day. I'm feeling better now but still with said tumor.
I decided to jump back into the pool but discovered that the pool is empty! What did I miss?
All my usual spots informed me habanos are basically non existent currently. That's so wild, I was there during the last boom and too young for the shortage, but this level of shortage and quality drop was totally unexpected. How's everyone dealing with it? I saw some people try new world cigars for the first time, even I'm thinking of giving them a shot, just not too knowledgeable on them.
I did score some nice things recently, managed to get two Davidoff Briefcases with Humidors, I'll post some pictures of a custom tray I made for one of them and then I'm doing a semi humidor for the other. One is foam and one is cedar. I think they will turn out great at the end, I did my best with the measurements.
Well Cheers to everyone, I see the FOH crew is still kicking which is good to see.
To Rob, Ken and the rest, glad everyone is ok

[rondogg]

That's a baller suitcase we all wish we had! And welcome back - glad to know no health scares.

[rcarlson]

You're catching up on the pinnacle of an industry Goliath collapse. So stupid.   

[Hiroshiro]

6 hours ago, rcarlson said:

You're catching up on the pinnacle of an industry Goliath collapse. So stupid.   

Yea I also saw the Scammers are getting out of control too. So wild

[El Presidente]

7 hours ago, Hiroshiro said:

All my usual spots informed me habanos are basically non existent currently. That's so wild, I was there during the last boom and too young for the shortage, but this level of shortage and quality drop was totally unexpected. How's everyone dealing with it? I saw some people try new world cigars for the first time, even I'm thinking of giving them a shot, just not too knowledgeable on them.

Welcome back David!

Plenty of information on the forum as to the shennanigans of Cuban supply and production since 2021. It is indeed a shame. Quality has remained constant (Cuban standard), however supply is down approximately 60% since 2019. FOH has been relatively lucky (thanks to PCC) by global supply standards. 

We have certainly evolved with out own lines as a matter of opportunity, necessity and ...well...entrepreneurial hard headedness. 

Many here and around the world have found themselves unwanted guests to a HSA party. We started a new party 

[Glass Half Full]

Hi Hiroshiro!  Glad to hear you are well and enjoying life.  

Your OP reminded me of this piece about a group who were "off the grid" in March 2020, on the Colorado River trip through the Grand Canyon.  Anyone who's been on that trip (or any extended "through-camping" or "walk-about" that has you away from all contact with the outside world) will recall the odd, feeling upon re-entry to the world.  ...Plus the fact that folks you then encounter will have some fun at your expense, telling wild stories about what happened while you were away  

Thought you'd enjoy it too -- sounds like your re-entry into CC world! 

For those who'd prefer to a "cut to the chase," here's a vignette from that piece, but it helps to imagine you've been off the grid for 2 weeks in March 2020...

"...After they got out of the river on Saturday, the group packed up their rafts and gear quietly and got in their vans to drive out. Purposely, they kept the radio off, wanting to extend the blissful ignorance of the trip a little bit longer. Ninety minutes later, they picked up a cell signal. That’s when the texts poured in.

“The first one was from my mom,” Mr. Thomas said. “It was like, ‘You need to text me the second you get this. The world is going crazy.’ She’s immunocompromised so I was definitely worried.”

Another rafter’s family texted that the supermarket shelves in California were bare and urged the group to stock up on rice, beans, dog food and toilet paper. “We’re sitting here trying to piece the world together,” Mr. Thomas said. “What does a toilet paper shortage mean? Why are they out of toilet paper?”

“It was this feeling of disbelief,” Ms. Knaack added. “It’s like, ‘How’d we go from paradise to hoarding rice and beans?’” Another rafter searched Amazon by phone for toilet paper and saw that it wasn’t available. “That was a moment where it felt pretty real,” she said."

 

They Went Off the Grid - NYT - 17 Mar 2020.docx.pdf