"Luckily, I found someone to bum a cigarette from and could spend my money on food," she says.

Mathes, who smokes a pack a day, says he knows he is physically addicted to smoking.

"I once took a cigarette break from sleeping," he says.

Sheridan says he was smoking two packs--approximately 40 cigarettes--a day in the fall.

"It's a cool, glamourous act that became part of my oral fixation habits," he says.

An Officially Recognized Smoking Club

The newest student organization on campus, the Harvard Cigar Club, gives legitimacy to the enjoyment of nicotine addiction. Co-founded by Hector A. Vega '98 and David S. Tang '98 and advised by Plummer Professor of Christian Morals and Minister in the Memorial Church Peter J. Gomes, the organization aims to learn about and to socialize with cigars, according to Vega.

Vega says the first event will be held at Gomes' house, which is located behind Memorial Hall and officially called Sparks House.

"It will be a social-type event centered around how cigars are made, what our favorite kinds are, and how they differ," he says. "It will be a time to get together and share cigars."

Vega says three people showed up to the organization's first meeting, held last Tuesday, and that about 15 to 20 people have indicated interest in the club. All of them are male.

"With women, cigars tend to be more of a chic thing rather than a passion," he says.

Vega says most people who smoke cigars do not inhale and therefore do not subject themselves to lung cancer.

But according to Rosenthal, even though cigar smokers do not inhale, they are at risk for throat, lip and mouth cancer.

Vega says this information will not hinder the habits of Harvard Cigar Club members.

"We all go into it realizing that there is some risk, so by choosing to smoke, we have chosen to take that risk," he says. "We are beyond focusing on that."