It's a strange bit of business, falling into this new world of cannabis after being away from it for so long. I know that the game has changed, that the world of pot is so open, so business like, so plain freaking normal now that no one really seems to give it a thought. When I think of what my pals and I had to go through just to secure a cheap baggie of Mexican swag back in the day makes being able to walk into a dispensary and just look at the wide variety of jars full of flowers for sale a mind blowing experience in itself.
Just the change in nomenclature alone is fantastic . "Flowers". Goodness. What a place! To look at a dispensary shelf and see the wide variety of products available to me just because I live in Colorado, just because I am over 21, sometimes stupefies me more than the product consumed. I think that's what really trips me up more than anything, this freedom to peruse the shelves openly. I find it completely awesome that instead of having to hunt down the man for a bag of grass I can walk into not just one but four or five different recreational shops, all within a few blocks of each other, and with just an ID card in hand take a gander at the stock.
All of this goes beyond anything I could have ever imagined even ten years ago, this freedom, this ability, to be able to walk out a place of business with a bag full of treats and not even have to look over my shoulder even once. Do you remember the skulking, the paranoia, the fear of the bust that accompanied even the simplest of drug purchases? Now I can go home with my latest bag of goodies and leave that pounding heart for other things, like climbing hills or making love. I can find my vaporizer, my bowl, my pen, and fire them up, one or all, and not have to worry about the door being kicked in. What a concept! What a joy! Such release!
My bigger concern these days is having to look like such a pussy cat in front of the budtenders when kicking around choices of what to buy. Those gracious budtenders, always so helpful, always seem keen to let us white haired gents know what the levels of THC and CBD are in the flowers and products displayed. A good thing, I think, as many folks my age really don't know what they are getting into when they start shopping for grass in today's market.
So do a bit of research before you go. It feels satisfying to walk into a shop with knowledge under my belt and know what to ask for, rather than just being lead to any such thing the salesperson has to pitch that day. It pays to jump online before you go, to cruise the internet, look at Leafly or Weed Map and get a bit of information about the current state of cannabis before you set down your hard earned dollars on dope that just might ruin your night of you are not careful. I was surprised at the strength and power of the plant when I got back into smoking after my long sojourn. I was pleased with the variety of choices, with the joy of the high, at deepness of the stone but was not always pleased at being waylaid, at being knocked down by the incredibly strong kick of super high THC strains. So, study, let the buyer beware, all that. Let it be a happy high, a lovely stone, a fine time.
One of the discoveries that made wandering back into grass so fine was finding out about the joys of CBD. It was very liberating to learn about all the other cannabinoids in the plant other than THC that are there to aid you in your quest to be pain free, to help you balance your high, to help your body open up to the goodness of the plant. It is one thing for the boys in the back to conjure up a strain that takes you places beyond your wildest imaginings, it is another to place in the hands of a novice a joint that just might be the one that takes you to that place that is one toke over the line.
Those four finger bags of Mexican and Colombian we dug into in our youth were grand because they made you laugh, made your appetite a monstrous thing, made the world a place of awe and wonder to wander around in. Now that I have strains in mind that can mimic that kind of old school ganja joy I look forward to my excursions to the dispensaries. These days I go in armed with knowledge that frees me up, that allows me to ask about THC levels and terpines and such and puts me on par with the budtender. I know that it's okay to be a lightweight and to not worry about being a heavy head. I like my dope and I like it THC-light. Does that make me an old fogey or just a sensible man? I like to think "sensible".
For once that bowl is sparked and the high undertaken I like to put on my tunes, raid the fridge, make love to my lady and sleep the sleep of the righteous. Not cower on the floor of the bathroom waiting for the sun to come up and the high to wear off. Sheesh. A high is supposed to be a good time. Remember that.
Yep, it's been so fine to find my way back to mota again. Never again will I go without it. Never again will I undergo the fear, Always I will rejoice in it's goodness and never take for granted the hard work and sacrifice it took, it still takes, to make those delightful tokes fearless ones.
Salud!
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