I don't know how I'm going to explain to my future children that I used to have to drive across the city and hide behind a 7-11 in order to buy weed.
Legalization brought a significant paradimg shift in how we see pot as a culture. Clearly the laws hadn't stopped this plant from being consumed before! But now the door is open for many people who had never considered using marijuana before. From medicinal to recreational use, there's never been a better time for curious newcomers to the wild world of terpenes and THC. It really is a blessing. I remember what being introduced to weed could feel like.
It could feel like an ounce of bud being dumped into a frying pan to make cannabutter, with the resulting cookies flooring anybody who ate them.
It could feel like your friend offering you a bong rip that has you staring at your hands and thinking "I don't think I could handle being out in public right now."
It could feel like somebody just handed you an alien glass contraption with instructions to set one end on fire and breathe in.
I am honestly grateful that people can instead walk in to a shop and get the entire lowdown. What to do, what to expect, what you need to know before bringing home a wild time in a plastic container. I see people who can't smoke using edibles to relax at the end of long weeks. I see coworkers and friends using CBD oil in vape pens to help them deal with insomnia, anxiety, or even IBS. I see folks growing their own weed and managing some impressive harvests. I see fathers talk about the weed that their now grown children are growing, while we laugh about how they used to take our bongs away whenever we were caught.
Ultimately, legalization has proven that marijuana is more than an innocuous drug, it is a powerful alternative to drinking if you feel like getting a little altered on a Friday night. It is a useful tool for dealing with mental and physical ailments. It is more than capable of making you feel like you're really in the game that you're playing, and it can also be a beautiful accent to how you relax after a long day of work.
It does make you hungry though, so let me give you a super easy recipe for when the munchies kick in.
End-of-the-Month Brie Soup
1 Brie wheel, not too big. Anything from the cheese aisle at the grocery store will do
- 1 Clove of Garlic
- 3-4 Tomatoes
- Literally any other vegetables that you've got
- Mustard
- Salt
- Pepper
- Dill weed - Nutmeg
- Olive oil
Preheat oven to 400°F
Peel your garlic and slice neatly in half
Get a casserole dish. Place your Brie wheel in the center, then surround it with your garlic halves and chopped vegetables. Drizzle olive oil on tip and season with salt, pepper, pinches of nutmeg and a little mustard (trust me.)
Bake at 400° for 30 minutes, or until the edges of your tomatoes begin to blacken.
Pull out of the oven and put all of the above directly into a food processor from the casserole dish. Empty the contents into a pot with the heat set to low.
Boom. You've got a fancy restaurant soup that is cheesy, garlic-y, thick and delicious. Sprinkle a little garnish of diced dill and serve hot.
And, of course, enjoy stoned.
Mary-Jane