A sharp tongue of blue flame licks the titanium as a plump glob of wax awaits above, then drips from the tip of the dabber and plops onto the domeless nail’s fading crimson glow, where it’s instantaneously liquefied and vaporized. A sudden burst of smoke is drawn through tiny holes in the nail’s head and into our model’s eager lungs. It’s a ritual that’s repeated time after time at booth after booth within the Prop. 215 area of our Los Angeles Medical Cannabis Cup. There’s nary a seed company, dispensary or retailer in attendance that doesn’t have a dab station set up or an extract entered into the competition—38 solvent-based concentrates in all, nearly maxing out the category and all but eclipsing the nine water-hash entries. Every glass company at the expo has rigs on display, and nearly every clothing company some T-shirt with an oil-based slogan or design. This is the state of the modern cannabis community. This is the dab life.

To many in this up-and-coming generation of young stoners, smoking “flowers” (as weed is now referred to) is fast becoming passé—a quaint custom practiced by hippies, lightweights and the socio-geographically disadvantaged. For hardcore oilheads, “treebasing” has raised their THC tolerance to the point where a joint just doesn’t cut it—they want a quicker, longer and stronger high than mere marijuana can provide. As word of this new way of getting stoned continues to spread and the demand for BHO grows, the market begins to respond: One-hitters are replaced by vapor pens, butane is bought in bulk, and sales of crème brûlée torches skyrocket. Apparently, even major retailers are beginning to get wise.

“I was in Bed Bath & Beyond last week, and they had torches, turkey basters and Pyrex dishes all on display next to each other,” swears Hitman Glass founder Dougie Fresh. “Isn’t that crazy? Either they have some kind of inventory software telling them what items people buy together, or somebody working there knows what’s up!”

But blow torches and butane aren’t the only things in short supply these days.

“Trim is so hard to come by … it’s the most valuable thing right now,” a representative from Cheeba Chews tells me. “We can’t even get trim to make our edibles.”

“Forget trim,” one breeder says. “People are ripping whole growrooms down and just blasting them.”

That’s right: In some circles, pot plants are now regarded as nothing but raw material to be transformed into a variety of waxes, oils and shatters—concentrates that are more potent and profitable, and easier to conceal and consume. As the focus of pot nerds everywhere slowly shifts from botany to chemistry, so shifts the spotlight from growers to the modern-day alchemists known as extract artists, who can transform a pile of leftover leaf into taffy-esque, translucent gold.

The unfortunate slang term that’s arisen for this process is, as mentioned above, blasting—unfortunate because, though it refers to “blasting” the essential oils out of the herb with butane gas, it’s also eerily appropriate in describing the explosive accidents that occur when the process isn’t done safely. But accidents like those are almost unheard of among the pros, who prefer the less dramatic terms “running” or “processing” flowers. These gurus of goo take every precaution, carefully controlling each variable, tweaking temperatures and monitoring pressures to ensure that their final product is exactly what they intended and suitable for consumption by the patients they serve. For them, quality is key, and it begins with the raw material.

“We use what our clients give us, which is typically trim for cost-effectiveness,” says Nikka T, a consummate concentrate maker from Denver. “But we prefer fresh-frozen buds, which we’ve been getting more often recently.”

Frozen buds? That’s right—apparently freezing the weed before processing it prevents contaminates from being extracted by the butane, enabling the savvy concentrate maker to extract more cannabinoids and terpenes and less fats and waxes, as well as less moisture and chlorophyll. In an effort to get the cleanest concentrates possible, many extract artists also “wash” the extract in a secondary solvent (typically alcohol) and then freeze it—a process called winterization. This not only removes any final traces of butane, but also solidifies undesirable components (bio-waste such as lipids, fats and waxes) that are then filtered out before evaporation, thus creating a clearer concentrate known as glass, shatter or snap.

“This is in everybody’s wax,” says Jerett, the cherubic extraction expert from West Coast Cure with the McDabber’s hatpin, as he compares a wad of ugly goop to the amber glass he pulled it from. He drops it onto the nail of the Big Lebowski torch tube on the table in front of us, and an acrid smoke pours forth. “That’s what you’re smoking when you smoke wax,” he adds.

While eliminating these elements technically makes the concentrate purer, some believe that it also eliminates textures, aromas and flavors (via terpenes) that many people find desirable.

“Purity isn’t everything,” says Dan de Sailles of Denver’s Top Shelf Extracts. He has a point—moonshine is purer than Cognac, but which would you rather drink? “Besides, if you’re smoking flowers, you’re already ingesting all of those fats and waxes anyway,” he continues. “So smoking a wax or budder is no more harmful to you than smoking a joint.”

Often, a concentrate’s interesting texture is part of its appeal. For example, the Alien OG “Raw” pictured in “Contact High” on pg. 15: This fluffy, off-white extract, whose consistency resembles Funyuns or cheese puffs, was brewed up using an undisclosed technique by an extract artist who takes his name from that most hated of all Star Wars characters, Jar Jar Binks. If handled, this “Heisenberg hash” quickly disintegrates into a sparkly sand; when heated, its aeration is released and it shrivels like a Shrinky Dink into a tiny worm of wax. Then there’s sha-budder, a full, winterized shatter that’s been placed on low heat, allowing it over time to become budder-like again. Generally speaking, a concentrate’s consistency is just a result of how much moisture it contains. Which is why, when you leave certain extracts out in the air for a while, they begin to goo up—a process known as auto-buddering. Basically, by manipulating the extract in different ways (temperature, moisture, pressure, agitation), the extract artist can produce a variety of textures to appeal to all palates and preferences.

As of yet, there’s still no solid scientific evidence that BHO itself—if made properly—is dangerous to ingest, even if it does contain trace amounts of residual butane. If made improperly, however—using plants containing pesticides or mold, or with inferior-quality butane—there may be legitimate health concerns. Hopefully, as more cannabis labs begin to test for contaminants and solvents (something that Seattle’s Northwest Botanical Analysis, for example, has started doing), these concerns may be addressed by buying from reputable sources.

Other possible health issues that have been raised, such as metal-fume fever (from inhaling trace amounts of metal that may flake off the nail) or cannabinoid hyperemesis (a syndrome characterized by symptoms of nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain), will likely remain unsubstantiated until real clinical studies can be done. In the meantime, to minimize these potential risks, we recommend always seasoning the nail (heating it until glowing red, then cooling it off in water) to burn away any possible impurities before use.

Frankly, the greatest likelihood of injury we’ve encountered so far seems to be from passing out and falling over after doing a dab. Make no mistake—this stuff is potent, and even seasoned stoners have been known to get a bit dizzy after a decent-sized glob. For this reason, we recommend dabbing in a seated position whenever possible or, if you’re in line for a dab at an event, asking the person behind you to be your spotter. You hear that, guys? Be ready to perform a “dab grab” in case the person in front of you faints!

Seriously, though—while the health risks of ingesting BHO may be somewhat exaggerated, the risks involved in making it cannot be overemphasized.

For every master blaster, there are likely dozens of idiots out there who think they can make their own wax with a can of cheap lighter fluid and a piece of PVC pipe, and end up blowing up some hotel room instead—or, worse, their parents’ house. We’ve said it before, and we’ll continue to say it: Blasting should never be done indoors, and never near a flame or any electronic appliance or device that could cause a spark (refrigerators, cell phones, etc.).

Think it won’t happen to you? Think again: Last November, a medical marijuana patient in Portland, OR, was severely burned and blew out a wall of his apartment while attempting to make BHO. In January 2013, a young man in a San Diego hotel sustained life-threatening burns after he caused an explosion that was described by other guests as “like an earthquake.” Two similar incidents happened in February (in Lakewood, CO, and West Hollywood), and another three in March: in Forest Grove, OR; Petaluma, CA; and Edmund, OK (where, owing to the state’s House Bill 1798, which makes it a felony to perform any type of THC extraction and was signed into law in April 2011, the poor perpetrator could now face life in prison). Sadly, these instances have become far too frequent—so much so, in fact, that in the February 7 edition of their Infogram newsletter, FEMA included a section entitled “Hash Oil Explosions Increasing Across U.S.” In it, they instruct first responders and law enforcement on what to look for to distinguish BHO blasts from bomb-making or terrorist activity.

Unfortunately, it’s stories like these that are introducing BHO to the mainstream media—and as one might expect, the results haven’t been good. On March 11, an NBC News affiliate in Grand Junction, CO, ran a feature about the “potent and potentially toxic new form of marijuana” called dabbing. Instead of interviewing experts on the topic—such as one of the many professional extract artists or medical marijuana doctors that have appeared on our dab panels—the producers instead chose to interview a high school girl and the obligatory reformed “pot addict” who claimed that, after smoking marijuana for the first time at age 13, he got “hooked” and proceeded to waste the next 18 years of his life. (You know, unlike everyone else in the world who smokes some weed, gets a snack and then manages to go on with their life.) The report also claimed that dabbing could result in overdoses and increased cases of schizophrenia, which it called a “known potential side effect of marijuana.” Talk about bullshit … as usual, network news prefers to drum up ratings with halftruths and scare tactics aimed at paranoid parents rather than presenting an objective, scientific examination of the issue.

Nevertheless, with news coverage like that, it’s easy to see why pro-pot activists fear that the dab phenomenon—with its seeming “hard drug” overtones—could throw a roadblock in front of the otherwise overwhelming prolegalization wave sweeping the nation. And let’s face it: The PR problem is bound to get worse before it gets better. But if there’s one thing we should’ve learned from the DARE and “Just Say No” campaigns of the 1980s, it’s that scare tactics and misinformation don’t help keep kids off drugs—if anything, they end up doing the opposite. Which means the best formula for ensuring the safety of all would-be dabbers is the same as it is for plain old pot: open dialogue, an honest examination of the facts, establishing quality controls on the product and an age limit on its sale—and all of these aims are better served by legalization and regulation than by prohibition and propaganda.

History teaches us that once a new technology or paradigm arrives, there’s no turning back. When rock’n’roll hit the scene, it was condemned as dangerous and corrupting—and today, it’s as American as apple pie. Dabbing isn’t a fad—it’s a paradigm shift, and rejecting it won’t make it go away. Attempts to stop a new generation of cannabis enthusiasts from dabbing will ultimately prove as futile as trying to stop them from tweeting or texting. Ultimately, all we can do is make sure they have access to the most accurate information and the best-quality concentrates at their disposal so that when they’re old enough, if they choose to dab, they can do so safely and responsibly.

Read the full issue here.

The post From The Vault: Generation Dab (2013) first appeared on High Times.

The post From The Vault: Generation Dab (2013) appeared first on Paradise Found.

This article was originally published in the September 2020 issue of High Times Magazine. Subscribe here!

Contemporary Storytelling

The arrival of film caused the world to change in drastic ways. It created a whole new way to tell stories, giving birth to a new type of fame and talent that has turned into one of the most popular ways to consume entertainment to this day. Film connected people to famous stories of the future with Metropolis, introduced horrific tales in Frankenstein and King Kong, and created fantasy in ground-breaking animation in Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Film is the reason that man was able to witness astronauts walking on the moon (or a fake recording, if you’re one of those people). Human history is saved in vibrant technicolor, black and white, and 4,000K, thanks to the advances of technology. 

There have been so many unique advances in film that we would be remiss without focusing on the topic that is nearest and dearest to our hearts—marijuana. Just as the industry has evolved from its underground, black market roots, so too is that transition documented in the various films that focus on or mention Mary Jane. Here is the evolution of cannabis in film. 

The Devil’s Lettuce

The history of film is rich in facts. The earliest motion pictures first made their appearance around the conclusion of the 19th century. These films varied in length and experimentation, and the art of the silent film officially ended in 1927, when the first film to add sound received the title of “talkie.” Adding music and later, dialogue, to these films took the world by storm. It was only about one decade later that weed made its not-so-sparkling debut in the infamous film, Reefer Madness in 1936. “Drug-crazed abandon” and “Women cry for it—men die for it!” lined the film’s release posters—and the film became the poster child for over 70 years of stoner stereotypes. Featuring illegal underground market sales, underage consumption (and negatively impacted youth), rape, and murder, Reefer Madness created a fictional story that viewers saw as fact. 

It isn’t a secret that cannabis was once used in some early 20th century medicines, but by the time the 1930s hit, the plant was prohibited by over 30 states. By 1937, the United States began its prohibition on cannabis with the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937. With that regulation, which was written by well-known prohibitionist Harry Anslinger, all cannabis (including hemp) became illegal to possess and sell. Reefer Madness set the foundation of expectation for cannabis as a negative act, specifically when it comes to fostering fear in those who had never tried it, and demonizing those who had.

Nearly 20 years later, High School Confidential hits theaters. In 1958, the stoner stereotypes were as strong as ever. The film revolves around an undercover cop who infiltrates high school students to uncover the presence of narcotics. Films that include narcotics usually emphasized as heroin, cocaine, or other harmful Schedule I substances—but in High School Confidential, the main focus is on marijuana. This view of marijuana as a drug is naïve in and of itself, but it successfully perpetuates negative connotations that come with consumption.

It’s a Lifestyle, Man

In 1969, the view of marijuana and the portrayal of drugs matured. Easy Rider is one of the first films to portray a bevy of drug use, which includes but is not limited to cocaine and LSD, and alcohol abuse as well. It follows the story of two motorcyclists delivering cocaine across the border and enjoying the various substances at their disposal. Having been released in the midst of the Vietnam War (which didn’t conclude until 1975) and at the end of the “free love” decade of hippies and rise of cannabis advocates, Easy Rider still perpetuated the idea that only bad people do drugs, as well as highlighted the negative consequences of those actions.

Things begin to change once the 1970s hit. Cannabis became paired with satire and parody in film for the first time with the animated adult film, Fritz the Cat (and coincidentally received the first X rating by the Motion Picture Association of America). It featured Fritz, whose journey mimics the freethinking radical college students of the 1960s. Its mature content included profanity and sex, but most importantly, marijuana use. It was a trailblazer in its time, not just because it satirized the stereotypes of cannabis consumption, but it built the foundation for adult animated entertainment that we see today in the form of shows like The Simpsons, South Park, and Family Guy.

The year 1978 may begin to ring a bell for longtime readers. With the foundation of Fritz the Cat blazing the trail for comedy, up comes along Richard Anthony “Cheech” Marin and Tommy Chong with their debut film, Cheech and Chong: Up In Smoke. The duo made history introducing its characters as banner men of the counterculture that was developing, having worked together for somewhere around 10 years before a movie was released. While it also preserved the stoner stigma (if not strengthening it), Cheech and Chong: Up In Smoke played out the adventure of the stoner buddies beautifully. It gave stoners an anthem to support recreational cannabis use, not to mention an identity they could finally get behind as a culture.

Cheech & Chong’s Up in Smoke and Cheech & Chong’s Next Movie, released in 1980 and 1981 respectively, helped the comedy counterculture identity thrive. Once the 1980s hit, and success was found in the stoner film, other films went into production as well. It was suddenly very popular to portray marijuana consumption as comedic antics. 

Fast Times at Ridgemont High followed closely after Cheech & Chong’s third film, released in 1982. It’s a typical coming-of-age tale of students in high school, one of which is described as both a stoner and a surfer (played by Sean Penn). The stereotypical “stoner” persona really took form in this movie, as well as many others that released in the ’80s. Usually male and still in their youth, the stoner has been notoriously categorized as lazy or a distraction to others—however, this never stops them from having fun and enjoying life in a stress-free and relaxed manner. By 1989, the stoner characters were well established, and were even represented in films without any direct cannabis references. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure plays off this approach to the stoner archetype. Dazed and Confused (1993) follows the same coming-of-age recipe as Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

Broadening the Stereotype

Then in the mid-1990s, the most famous stoner films began to exhibit some diversity. With Friday (1995) and Half-Baked (1998), these films shifted the now-predictable narrative of the life of a stoner, which was typically presented only as white males. Friday featured famous Black actors and showed various types of cannabis consuming personalities. For example, Craig Jones, played by Ice Cube, was an intelligent, serious, relaxed, and yet jobless consumer, while his cousin Smoky, played by Chris Tucker, was a high-energy consumer who was holding down a real job. Later, stoner comedy How High (2001) continued to add Black representation with Method Man and Redman as the lead actors. Then the world was introduced to some Indian and Asian representation of weed humor in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004). This is a small but monumental shift in the stoner meta, which has continued to evolve. 

In 2007, one of the first stoner films to feature a female star (as played by Anna Faris) was seen in Smiley Face. This was just the beginning. Portraying marijuana consumers as anybody, rather than just white males, became a major statement in convincing skeptical non-consumers that medical and recreational cannabis is for everyone. 

But in the 2000s and onward, diversity in stoner comedies was still followed by movies whose main characters fit the traditional stoner that goes back decades in film. Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000), Clerk’s II (2006), Grandma’s Boy (2006) all portrayed an evolving version of the white stoner characters and adventures. In 2007, the film Knocked Up displayed the stereotyped stoner of a man who gets a woman pregnant, but in the end he realizes that having a family means ditching his “bad” habits (marijuana use, among other daily things). Stoner films were beginning to recognize their characters as real people making real decisions, rather than pure stoners having fun on adventures with few consequences. Again, it must be reiterated that the evolution of stoner films has changed at this point, but there is and always will be new renditions of stoner film adventure. 

The Tipping Point

Things began to change drastically following the states that began to legalize recreational cannabis. The first of these are apparent in Colorado and Washington in 2012, followed by Alaska and Oregon in 2014, and so forth. Cannabis was becoming a national topic in the US, and people’s opinion of the herb was changing at a rapid pace. Cannabis in film took a sharp turn, from the stoner film hero to real life heroes instead. One of the first notable cannabis documentaries, entitled Weed, came out in 2013. Featuring CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta, this documentary validated cannabis as medicine, as seen through the life of young Charlotte Figi who was experiencing near-miraculous improvements in her daily seizures by taking medical cannabis oil. Advocates had been crying out for easier access to medical cannabis for the sake of children and adults alike, but it took the recognition of a national health officer to spread the word—ditching the stereotypes completely and recognizing cannabis for its merits, which Gupta witnessed firsthand.

Cannabis has blossomed into being worthy of film festivals in recent years as well. Like all film festivals, it features the unique talents and vision of filmmakers that share cannabis as a common ground. This resulted in a number of short films and full-length films that explored what cannabis is and what it means to smoke cannabis and experience its unique effects. A cannabis film festival was featured in California for a few years. The SPLIFF Film Fest is still happening this year—stuck at home style! The New York City Cannabis Film Festival was active for many years, while the Colorado International Cannabis & Hemp Film Festival has been operating for four years, and the show continues. 

Stoner Comedies Live On

In the last decade, comedy stoner films are still easily recognized and will never cease being made, but the plots at least have been changed. Using a fill-in-the-blank description, comedic stoner films have turned into “What if we make a stoner film but…” Your Highness (2011) fits the bill perfectly, featuring a stoner comedy that takes place in a medieval setting. Want a stoner film with zombies? Enter Bong of the Dead (2011). How about a stoner film where the main character’s teddy bear comes to life, and—wait for it—is also a stoner. We’re looking at you, Ted (2012). 

Reboot films have also been very prevalent within the past two decades or so, and some of the most iconic stoner films aren’t exempt from that. Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (2019) hilariously approaches the idea of characters Jay and Silent Bob losing the rights to their own characters. Just last month, Bill & Ted Face the Music released, completing a Bill & Ted film trilogy.

Beyond the Funny

While the use of cannabis still shows up in a lot of comedies, more recently we’ve seen marijuana films branch out into other genres. Star Leaf (2015) brought us a cannabis-centric horror/sci-fi/thriller movie. The plot involves a war veteran who finds extraterrestrial marijuana that can treat his PTSD. Another shining example of a cannabis film that doesn’t need comedy is The Marijuana Conspiracy (2020), which is categorized as a drama that is based on a true story. Based in 1972, this movie tells the story of women who were isolated for almost 100 days as part of an experiment studying the effects of marijuana.

More recently, we’ve also seen an increase in the variety of documentaries that broaden the stereotype of who the real-life cannabis consumer is. Rolling Papers (2015) is a documentary that delves into the world of pot journalism as it became mainstream with The Cannabist Editor Ricardo Baca as the main character.

Other non-typical consumers who served as main characters in recent documentaries include the nuns in Breaking Habits (2018). Additionally, Weed the People (2018) shares stories about young children who find miraculous healing through medical cannabis. Another film, A Life of Its Own: The Truth About Medical Marijuana (2017), focused on the compelling science and cutting-edge research behind the plant’s medicinal properties. It’s clear that nonfiction education on the plant through film has helped round out the portrayal of cannabis in society. 

Cannabis Cinema is Here to Stay

We’ve come a long way from the hysteric propaganda stoner movies that were born from the days of early film. Films today include cannabis consumers from all walks of life. What can we expect from the next generation of pot in film? Will cinema eventually evolve to portray cannabis consumers in even more favorable and positive ways? All we know is that once movie theaters reopen, we’ll be the first in line for any type of movie that involves weed. Until then, we’re ready to stream whatever is on the queue.

The post A Sign of the Times: The Evolution of Cannabis in Film first appeared on High Times.

The post A Sign of the Times: The Evolution of Cannabis in Film appeared first on Paradise Found.

By Charles Bukowski

Warming up Blue Mongoose on the backstretch before the last race, Larry Peterson noticed that the horse was really rank, almost spooked. Larry had been riding for 15 years and he knew his horses. This one really had a bug up its ass.

Larry tried to let the horse ease out of it, but at post time things weren’t any better. He rode up to the gate ahead of the other horses and found McKelvey. He told McKelvey, “This fucking beast is unfit. I want him scratched.”

“He looks all right to me,” McKelvey answered. Larry knew that McKelvey was one of those stewards who worried that the money the track lost on a scratch was a serious matter. The money loss was negligible, though, because the fools got their money back and bet it on something else.

Larry dismounted and gave the reins to McKelvey: “Get a feel of this skitterish motherfucker! See if you can hold him on the ground!”

McKelvey was a big fat guy, he grabbed the reins. Blue Mongoose bucked, rolled his head. The horse was in a lather.

“You son of a bitch, calm down!” McKelvey yelled at the horse. He yanked at the reins and swung the horse in a circle, then in another and then another.

“McKelvey, you’re only making him worse!”

McKelvey pulled the horse straight and glared at Peterson: “Nothing wrong with him, Larry! Either you mount up or I’m recommending they ground you five racing days for refusing to ride a fit mount!”

“You’re taking the food out of my mouth, McKelvey!”

“Ride or starve, boy!”

“Shit!”

Larry mounted. The crowd, not knowing anything, applauded. Blue Mongoose was the 8 horse. They had the first seven in. Mongoose wouldn’t enter his stall. Several of the gate men pushed at the horse’s rump until they got him in. The beast was quivering and snorting. When they placed the 9 horse into the stall next to him, that did it—Mongoose spooked, he reared high in the gate and dumped Larry loose and backwards, hard into the dirt. It was some bang but he was still conscious. He moved slowly, getting up. Then he walked around, limping, his right leg throbbing. He was dizzy and he had bitten his tongue.

Larry spit out some blood and there was the fat boy standing there looking at him. Larry said, “McKelvey, you son of a bitch, I hate every part of you!”

McKelvey gave the order and then the announcer came on over the public address system: “Ladies and Gentlemen, by order of the stewards, Blue Mongoose is scratched from this race. Your tickets will be refunded…”

Larry walked off the track and down through the tunnel.

A bad day, one third-place finish and four out of the money and one of them had been a 6 to 5 shot. Larry liked to run on or near the pace. Seemed like his agent never got him any early foot horses anymore.

He got to the the locker room, took off his tack. His valet was gone, the fucker had a hot date with a McDonald’s counter girl…

It was nice under the shower. Lance Griffith was a stall or two down—he’d finished second in the feature race with a 16 to 1 shot and was feeling pretty good.

“Hey, Larry!”

“Yeah?”

“Let’s go and get fucked tonight!”

“I’m a married man, Lance—”

“What the hell’s that got to do with it?

I am too!”

“I don’t play it that way—”

“Don’t be a fool, Larry, while we’re riding those horses, our old ladies are riding something else.”

“I don’t look at it that way—”

“You think they sleep with us because we scale in at a hundred fourteen? You’ve got some learning coming your way, man.”

“Listen, I just got thrown by my last mount. I don’t want to listen to a lot of shit.”

“Okay, Larry, okay.”

The right leg had stiffened, and driving in was painful.

Goddamn McKelvey, worried about the track take. That track would be there long after all of them were gone.

He pulled into the drive, got it into the garage, went up the steps to the door, opened it and Karina was on the telephone, all lovely six feet of her. Larry was like most of the other jocks: he liked tall women. Long hair. Class. College education.

“Reena, baby,” he said.

Karina glanced at Larry, waved an arm, mostly to motion him off. She was heavy into the phone.

“Yeah, mom, well, listen…you should take better care of yourself… You need more friends… Oh, I can tell when you’re down… I know your voice intonations… Listen, when are you coming to visit us? Everything’s lovely here… The trees are bearing fruit: tangerines, oranges, lemons… Larry and I love your company!… What? Oh, don’t be foolish! I mean it! Look, here’s Larry!”

Karina glanced at him, forcefully, said in a quiet voice: “Say hello to mama!”

Larry took the phone. “Hello, Stella… How you doing?… That’s good… Oh, I just got in… What? Oh, I’ve been riding… No, no winners today… Tomorrow maybe… Yes, oh, yes, it’s warm out here… Well, look, you be good now… Here’s Karina…”

He handed the phone to his wife. Then he walked across the room and up the stairway. He went into the bathroom and let the hot water run into the tub. The leg was really getting stiff.

Larry walked to the bedroom, took off his shoes and stockings. Then, sitting on the bed, he tried to get out of his pants. The right leg had stiffened. The pain was immense. He could hardly get his pants off. Struggling with it all, he laughed. It was so ridiculous. Then he had the pants off.

The undershirt and shorts were easier. He managed to get up. He took a few steps. The leg held up. He moved toward the bathroom. He got in there, bent over the tub, ran in some cold water and mixed it into the hot with his hand. As he was bent over the tub like that, Karina walked in.

“I think you were a little offhand with mom—”

“Reena, I didn’t mean to be. I just couldn’t think of anything to say—”

“You couldn’t? Well, you could try a little harder. Mother has feelings just like anybody else! That woman has been through a lot, she’s a brave and a wonderful woman.”

Larry stood up, looked at the bathroom wall behind the tub.

“Kid, I’m sure she is—”

“You really don’t mean that, you’re just saying that—”

“Well, hell, I don’t really know your mother.”

Larry managed to climb into the tub. The water seemed about right. He eased himself into the water. That hot water was so good on the leg…

“Well, you should make an effort to know her.”

Karina stood over him, so tall there, staring down at him. All that body. Those graceful legs. Some filly. And she knew how to dress. Style, class. Grooming.

That long hair. Red mixed with gold. And natural. Those green deep eyes. Those eyes that could laugh. And those perfect teeth. Nice nose, nice chin. Neck a bit long. But a good mind. And she knew how to dress. She had on his favorite, the dark blue dress that fit just right.

“I said, ‘You should make an effort to know her’!”

“Reena, I’m really beat—”

“Thinking of yourself. Always thinking of yourself, your goddamned self!”

“Goddamned self?”

“Don’t you think there’s anybody else around? Just you, the great jockey? And lately, the not-so-great jockey!”

“Reena, are you about to have your period?”

“No, are you? Are you about to have your period?”

Karina leaned over the tub, her hands resting on the edge, her gold red hair swirling down.

“Listen, babe, I’m sorry if—”

“Don’t babe me!”

Larry decided to give it up. There was nothing to say. Words would just lead to more ugliness.

Just peeking a bit he saw her smile and he thought, ah, it’s going to get better, the whole thing was some kind of joke.

But it wasn’t that kind of smile.

And then it left. And then he heard her again.

“So, now you’re withdrawing! You don’t want to talk to me!”

Larry splashed some water up under his chin, feeling quite foolish as he did so.

“Look, Reena, let’s forget everything and start all over. Let’s have a drink and ease off. Things aren’t that bad—”

Karina leaned closer. “A drink? A drink, a drink, a drink, a drink. A little drink…That solves everything, doesn’t it?”

“It helps-“

“Can’t you face anything without a drink?”

He knew what she wanted to hear and so he said it: “No.”

Karina reached angrily into the water and splashed a handful into his face: “You asshole! You idiot asshole!”

Her tears were coming. He felt ill in his stomach. He wanted to be anywhere but there. He wanted to be in jail, he wanted to be on skid row, he wanted to be lost in a desert, he wanted to be sucked away by quicksand.

“Just leave me alone,” he said.

Karina leaned closer. She no longer seemed as beautiful. “Leave you alone? Leave you alone? What for? So you can diddle with yourself? So you can play with yourself?”

“Yeah,” said Larry, “that. Let me have that—”

“Oh, oh…my God, that I’d have to end up with this!”

Larry looked at her: “I beg you, just get out of here and leave me alone!”

“Why did I have to marry a miniature man,” she began, “I could have—” and then a flash of roaring red fell upon him, and then darkness, and he grabbed her by the hair and then by the neck and pulled her into the tub with him.

There was the crash and splash of legs, elbows, dress, and she was in there. He was big enough to handle her, and he worked over on top of her as she kicked and flailed—he was used to handling 2,000 pounds of wild meat or whatever the hell those fuckers weighed. He felt his fingers digging into her mouth, her nostrils, against her forehead, and he pushed down hard, hard, and the head went under and he held it there, he held it down there, thinking, she’s silent now, but he couldn’t do it, he let her up, he got out of the tub, ashamed. He grabbed a towel, and put it about himself as Karina just sat there in the tub in her dark blue dress and put both of her hands up to her face and just sat there like that.

Larry felt horrible, demented, more than evil.

He walked into the bedroom, got into a robe. He sat in a chair by the bedroom window. Evening had gone into night. To the east he could see the lights of the city, they looked very peaceful.

Then he heard Karina getting out of the tub. It made a splashing sound. She coughed.

Then he heard her walking. He heard the water dripping as she walked. He felt her walking up behind him. He waited and looked at the lights of the city.

This article was originally published in the July 1983 issue of High Times Magazine.

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By Dakika Esrael

Far far across the valley comes the sound of an almighty procession Zion bound. Chanting chanting Iyabinghi drums yunder and yant the call to redemption, Babylon doomed to fall, Iyudgmant to come through Ivine intervention. Funde dance, Kette skip, Bass yunder, riddims praise Rastafari, the prophesied Anointed One, Jah the Redeemer in his biblical and kingly character. The year is 1930, and revelation of the newly crowned Black King of Ithiopia is proclaimed by the Brethren of Rastafari unto the world as the fulfillmant of biblical prophecies relating to the second coming of Christ on earth in his Ivine lineage.

Realizations of Afrika, specifically Ithiopia, the ancient Kingdom of Afrikanity being the Hola citadel of Jerusalem: Mount Zion to the tribes of Rastafari. Spiritual allegiance was given to the newly crowned King of Ithiopia by the Brethren as the rightful creator and ruler of the physical universe, the Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords manifest in the physical appearance of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I: light and inspiration to the dispossessed mass of suffera Jamaicans of Afrikan ascent reaching for salvation from the depths of slavery and degradation. A glorious king whose coming is to conquer, Negus Tafari Makonnen, godhead to the Movemant of Rastafari, domiciled on the island of Jamaica.

Just prior to and during the 1930s, there were various “witnesses” professing and expounding the belief that H.I.M. was indeed the prophesied King of Israel alluded to in several passages of the Hola Bible.

A cornerstone influence at the foundation of the doctrine was Marcus Mosiah Garvey, the first acknowledged international spokesman of Black Consciousness who foretold the event of the crowning of a Black King in Afrika who would herald the impending redemption of the Black race scattered throughout the world. Garvey is considered a supreme Black Zionist who articulated a philosophy of righteousness for the Black race which was to become a source of deep inspiration and guidance to the emerging Rastafarian consciousness and doctrine of the formative groundations; a John the Baptist prophet of the culture of Rastafari.

At the same time, there were others in agreement with Garvey’s prophecies, and around these first orators was gathered a growing number of followers in the poverty-stricken ghettos of western Kingston and the rural areas of the island. H. Archibald Dunkley (King of Kings Missionary Movement), Joseph Nathaniel Hibbert (Ethiopian Coptic Faith), Leonard Howell of Pinnacle (Ethiopian World Federation) and his deputy Robert Hinds, were all part of eclectic missions that preached the initial doctrines of Rastafari at what is considered the inception of the movemant. Leonard Howell established the communal Ethiopian World Federation in the Sligoville area of St. Catherine, known as Pinnacle, and it is partly through these portals that the growing awareness of Rastafari and Selassie began to spread into the colonial society of the ’30s and ’40s.

Communities sprung up in the poorest tin and board ghettos of western Kingston; the notorious Dungle, Back 0′ Wall, Shanty Town, Moonlight City and up in the Wareika Hills overlooking the city of Kingston. From these humble beginnings the Rastafari Movemant has risen and spread its cultural consciousness through other West Indian Islands, into parts of the United States of America and Canada, into the United Kingdom and certain areas of Europe; to Afrika itself and other regions of the world just becoming acquainted with the vision of Rastafari, Jamaica, Selassie I and Afrika as a redemptive reality in the world today. Ongoing manifestations of the Spirit of I & I, the evolution of a practical “living way of life” based on the essentially revolutionary Christian doctrine of peace and love and the brotherhood of man existing in the “here and now” and not in some future or in an unseen “afterlife”; the reality of Zion upon this our one earth.

Picture colonial Jamaica of the 1930s, an axis of 400 years of exploitation of the masses in the name of the “motherland” England, a Crown colony maintained by the then British ruling class. Social rituals founded upon Anglo-Saxon ethics of church, state, morality, education and finance (social or otherwise) there on the island as in other colonies were nothing more than Britain removed to the Caribbean, “chips off the old block.”

Colonial society by then was socially and financially ordered according to “class and station” of White, Chinese, Syrian, Black, Jewish, Indian and Creole, down to the rock-bottom dispossession of the Black suffera masses. Thus it was upon the poor Black psyche that the initial outpourings of the spirit of Rastafari was accepted and taken to heart; it offered salvation to those whose lot was little better than nothing—poverty in the extreme with little or no hope of change for the better.

Theirs is to be the apocalyptical Exodus and Movemant of Jah people from all Babylonian Empires and the return to each man’s vine and fig from where the ancestors were taken and cast in the West into slavery. Micah 4:4: “But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid.”

Rastafari transcends life in the spirit of a Jah-inspired life, setting aside all limitations. I & I walk in the knowledge of the temple as witness to the love that the “I am that I am” bears unto his children.

Rasta is not concerned with the insanities perpetuated in the name of Christ and the fallen sinful nature of man. He lives within the tribulation of these times yet his “cloth” is washed pure in the rivers of salvation.

Rev. 7:13-14: “And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

“And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

Rastafari is love of one and all; do unto others as I & I would have others do unto I & I. The more immediate, open and conscious I & I live, the more I & I experience the life-giving spirit of Christ dwelling within. Rasta knows through the 5×5 God-given faculties that life is a supreme gift to the universal earth functioning as a sacred bond with I Faada, the almighty and living Jah.

Rastafari defends the belief of the Black Christ of the ancient Solomonic house of Ethiopia, the supreme Adonai and creator of Heaven and Earth as the sole and true spiritual ruler of the creation manifested as the Hola One of Israel. Knowledge of the origins through the Black Christ of Rastafari stretching from antiquity and the union of King Solomon and Queen Makeda of Sheba whose son, Menelik I, established the first divine Solomonic throne in Ethiopia centuries ago. Black historical facts, hidden, denied and desecrated throughout time, now to be established through the awareness of historical fact and reality.

This I-sense (essence/inner sense) for Rastafari is an I-sense of natural intuitive intelligence, it involves full use of the 5×5 I-senses of the physical temple being attuned to the spirit to receive ongoing cycles of creative energy. A living sea of awareness, both inner I of the Irit, and outer I of the material world.

Let all hearts, open and receptive to the uprising of Rastafari, come and take rest in the gardens of truth; the rebirth of those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. Perhaps then truth shall once again prosper as Jah knoweth and liveth.

This article was originally published in the April 1983 issue of High Times Magazine.

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By Craig Stevens

Illegal drugs and their transport are constantly evolving. Cocaine and weed shipments have been entering the United States from Central and South America via a range of methods, with seagoing craft being one of the most popular. First there were fishing boats, then “go-fasts” (speedboats mounted with multiple engines). Once these started succumbing to improved detection, drug cartels developed the semi-submersible “narco sub”—which is now making way for the full-scale submarine.

In 2010, authorities in Ecuador announced that they had seized an actual submarine designed for smuggling drugs. “It is the first fully functional, completely submersible submarine for transoceanic voyages that we have ever found,” said Jay Bergman, the Andean regional director for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, speaking to the Associated Press.

According to reports, the captured sub was 33 meters long, could accommodate a crew of five or six, and was equipped with twin-screw diesel-electric propulsion, periscopes and even air conditioning. The DEA said the vessel could have carried up to 10 tons of coke.

The sub was found at a secret “shipyard” facility on a jungle river in Ecuador not far from the Colombian border. The shipyard boasted accommodations for more than 50 people, yet only one person was arrested by Ecuadoran soldiers and police, who were acting on intelligence provided by the DEA.

These days, cartels and drug runners are reportedly shelling out millions of dollars to build these types of complex vessels, recruiting highly skilled engineers who are usually ex-military. Still, the hefty price tag and lengthy construction time remain a drawback—so while the relentless ingenuity and innovation of the drug cartels suggest that full-scale submarines are already in use (or will be soon), the good old semi-submersible still dominates the trade. Costing less than half the price of a real sub, these vessels can be abandoned or sunk with ease if caught.

In use since the late 1990s, the firstgeneration narco sub is simply a semisubmersible boat with an all-enclosing cap on top. Fitted with ordinary marine engines, it is able to avoid radar detection because only a small part of the boat’s structure rides above the surface. Air intakes and a periscope fitted with simple cameras for below-deck navigation are the only parts of these vessels exposed above the waterline. As a result, aerial surveillance is generally the sole means to detect them.

Assorted DEA reports claim that Colombian drug cartels have at least 40 of these custom-built subs, while Mexican cartels have even more. Usually made of fiberglass and powered by a 300to 350-horsepower diesel engine, these narco subs are manned by a crew of three or four and can transport thousands of pounds of cargo; indeed, it’s been estimated that the average 60-foot (18-meter) sub can carry several tons of cocaine.

Smugglers’ Blues

The idea that there are cocaine smugglers out there operating radar-eluding submarines full of contraband might lead one to believe that the drug trade has entered a new era of James Bondlike technological proficiency, but there is nothing romantic (or even high-tech) about the job. In fact, the poor souls manning these vessels are often little more than virtual slaves who have been sent on a suicide mission by the crime syndicate in question in order to work off a debt or some other grievance. The crew members also have to deal with the risk of malfunctioning machinery, toxic fumes and the possibility of sinking, in addition to the obvious danger of being caught by the authorities.

On the upside, should their journey be successful, crew members can settle their beef with the crime gang and make as much as $1,500 for two days’ work. That may seem like a paltry amount considering the dangers involved, but for the average Central American with few prospects and an average wage of $10 a day (at the high end), it’s a princely sum.

These subs have a range of approximately 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers), but a typical voyage takes around 20 to 30 hours due to the relatively slow speed of the craft (11 miles or 18 km per hour). Further delays are common due to frequent stops to let the engines cool and the diesel fumes dissipate, and also to evade pursuit. The average sub has a tiny internal area, and the conditions inside are poor. Since they’re generally little more than enclosed cigarette boats, the crew members must remain seated throughout the trip, crawling from one end of the sub to the other to check the engines or use the toilet. They usually strip down to their underwear to endure the heat inside these vessels, which can exceed 100°F. The overpowering smell of diesel fuel and overflowing bucket toilets are also a constant presence.

Perched on the ramshackle floor of the sub, the captain usually has no view of the seas he’s navigating apart from the crude periscope that utilizes store-bought video cameras and plastic piping, with the resulting images visible on screens inside the sub. As a result, the captain and crew communicate constantly by radio or satellite phone with their guides on land, and must remain vigilant throughout the entire nerve-wracking journey to avoid the kinds of mistakes that can lead to being detected.

If Not for the Courage of the Fearless Crew…

So what’s it like to risk one’s life as the crew member of a narco sub? High Times interviewed three such individuals working for a Colombia-based gang that sends subs to various points in Central America on a weekly basis. (Their names have been changed to protect these persons and their families.)

A crew captain with nearly a dozen runs under his belt, Jean Paul, 42, a French-born former naval officer, is a rare veteran of the narco-sub trade. He left the military more than six years ago and entered into several real-estate developments in Costa Rica. When his multimillion-dollar investments tanked due to the recession, some acquaintances hooked him up with the sub operators, giving him a way to dig himself out from a mountain of debt by applying his nautical experience.

Jean Paul says he is now debt-free and actually considering further property investments after just two years in the business. He says that nowadays he’s more valuable to his employers recruiting crew members and engineers than he is piloting the vessels, which means he can avoid the most serious risks.

“It’s a very dangerous game and generally the domain of the desperate,” Jean Paul relates. “I was on two runs where we had to jettison the craft and sink it. One occasion saw the vessel taking on water, and another was put down after the Coast Guard began closing in.”

Sinking a sub involves opening a number of portholes to let the water in. “Then it’s a matter of offloading as many bales of cargo as possible and getting out.” On this particular occasion, Jean Paul and his two crewmates managed to swim ashore on the Guatemalan coast without further incident. They had started the journey in Colombia.

Needless to say, getting murdered by your employer is often the reward for losing a load or bungling a trip. Jean Paul says he’s witnessed at least 10 people being killed, usually crew members or cartel employees who were shot due to incompetence or betrayal. “Funny, I’ve never seen anyone drown,” he adds. “It’s always man-on-man stuff.”

Despite this, Jean Paul says he’s more concerned by the other unpleasant aspects of the job. “Diesel fumes can kill you too, and the stench of another guy’s shit for two days isn’t nice either. Both are usually worse than the prospect of a boat sinking.”

Another person I spoke with is 33-year-old José, who was introduced via a mutual friend in El Salvador. A fisherman by trade, José was born in Guatemala and started his narco career after several bad fishing seasons forced him to find work as a runner for a cartel. His first job was collecting bales of weed or coke dumped by subs and boats offshore.

José reveals: “Many fishing boats in the region haven’t fished in years. They just collect bales, but keep their nets on deck to look legitimate.” He says he would like to return to fishing one day, but for now the money is very good, and he’s got an ailing mother and four children to care for. “There is no way I could make $1,500 for two days’ work any other way,” he says regarding his current employment as a narco sub crew member.

The third person I spoke with, 22-year-old Manuel, was recruited to the narco business at an early age in his Salvadoran village. Since the age of 13, he has worked a variety of jobs, but much like José, he never dreamed he would earn the kind of money that he does now for a two-day sub run.

Typical of the businesslike attitude shared by his colleagues, Manuel insists that smuggling narcotics is not necessarily an evil trade. “Gringos have a huge hunger for the cargo, and they always will,” he says. “This business is very important for my people; many of them would not have food or shelter without it. It’s been a savior.”

This article was originally published in the October 2013 issue of High Times Magazine.

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Growing up in Hawaiʻi, Davin Carvalho was always drawn to the outdoors. He and his friends would skateboard, surf, and explore Oʻahu’s west side, enjoying the warm sun, breezy tradewinds, and cool waters around Mākaha Beach. As he grew older, he sought new hobbies that would keep him outside, and eventually discovered gardening. Today, Carvalho is known for his cannabonsai trees, which possess a Zen-like aesthetic and offer an enlightened high through the flower that they provide.

Carvalho’s journey as a gardener started early, when he began growing kalo as a kid. Kalo, or taro in Hawaiian, is a root vegetable that is inextricably linked to Hawaiian culture. According to mythology, the kalo plant represents the original ancestor and elder brother of all Hawaiians. For Carvalho, who is indigenous, growing kalo bound him to his familial roots. With around 100 plants in his garden, he could happily spend over an hour watering, fertilizing, and pruning on a daily basis.

For reasons unknown, in late 2020 Carvalho began to experience debilitating panic attacks. After two months of agony and countless emergency room visits, he discovered that gardening was a tool he could use to manage his anxiety. A friend sent him some traditional bonsai videos, which were relaxing and educational at the same time. Before long, Carvalho bought a couple ficus and juniper trees and began to seriously study Chinese and Japanese bonsai as a form of therapy.

During that same period, Carvalho decided to apply for official documentation with Hawaiʻi’s Medical Cannabis Registry, allowing him to grow marijuana for personal use. After realizing that traditional bonsai requires decades of devotion, he decided to adapt bonsai techniques to pakalolo which allowed him to grow beautiful, medicinal plants in a shorter period of time.

Through research on the topic, Carvalho learned that the bonsai “effect” comes as a result of training a plant. In the world of cannabis, training is nothing new. It’s common practice for growers to train plants for a higher yield and denser buds. By gently manipulating branches or tilting the pot the plant is in, Carvalho can create the bonsai effect as a result.

“My objective when I’m training my plants is to make it look like a replica of a full-size tree,” Carvalho said. “I try to think, ‘How many branches do I want? What do I want the canopy shape to look like? Do I want it to be a taller tree, a shorter tree? A bushier tree or a lankier tree?’ I keep all that in mind.”

Although he does not necessarily speak to his plants, Carvalho spends a lot of time in close proximity to them. Doing so promotes the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, with both parties benefiting in the process. By providing for his plants and helping them thrive, he hopes that they will return the favor.

“Gardening itself is a language. I might not speak verbally to them, but there is nonverbal communication with the plants in my garden and myself,” Carvalho said. “It’s a constant sending and receiving of messages in order for us to achieve understanding and reach a common goal, which is for the plants to flower and produce beautiful buds.”

In his most recent run, Carvalho incorporated rose quartz and amethyst, a crystal that is said to promote calmness and relaxation. When preparing for a new harvest, he is intentional about the overall aesthetics the cannabonsai will have, from top to bottom of the plant.

“I’ve done a little bit of research, but I’m definitely no expert. I wanted to make sure that if I was gonna use crystals, I wanted to know which combinations of crystals can go together,” Carvalho said.

When it comes to cultivating a successful cannabonsai tree, genetics play a huge role. To capture the bonsai aesthetic, Carvalho grows indica-leaning strains as they are shorter, bushier, and have tighter internodal spacing than sativa-leaning strains.

After three years of research and experimentation, Carvalho believes that each cannabonsai run has improved from the previous one. As much as gardening is an outlet to relax, it also provides a challenge that keeps him wanting more. No matter how much knowledge and experience he gains while growing, there are inevitably hurdles that humble and teach him along the way.

“If it was as easy as putting a seed in the ground and watering it, it wouldn’t be as fulfilling to me,” Carvalho said. “Anybody could do that. But to really have the commitment, dedication, passion, and drive, that’s what really gets me. I like something that’s not so easy to obtain but is something that if I work hard at it, I can either get it, or get something close to it and have something that I am happy with.”

This article was originally published in the June 2024 issue of High Times Magazine.

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By A. Craig Copetas and Gary Putka

Khat: the cocaine of Africa—the mint green leaf of the shrub Catha edulis—is a way of life in the new nation of Djibouti and the ancient land of Yemen. Grown on large farms resembling old-world tea plantations in Ethiopia’s rainy and embattled southeastern Harrar Province, its rough, bushy plant also thrives in the cool mountains of Yemen, where glossy-eyed Arabs ruminate its invigorating leaf like so many campesinos chewing coca.

After cultivation and harvest, branches of leaves are rushed to Diredawa, Ethiopia’s civil-war-torn transportation hub, for the night flight to clients across the Djibouti frontier. In Yemen the precious crop comes down from the mountains the quickest way possible, for the khat leaf is perishable and must remain fresh or lose its potency. It’s efficacy after cutting lasts for roughly 24 hours, and then only if the leaves are kept moist.

Not even the Somali-led insurgency in southeast Ethiopia has interrupted the rapid transshipment from Diredawa to Djibouti. The khat run has been a twice-daily affair on Ethiopian Airlines. It is so lucrative that African observers are confident it will continue unhindered even if the Somalians win the siege of Diredawa. Meanwhile, the cargo is increasing daily and stands presently at eight tons a day. When khat arrives in Djibouti, the normally listless tropical port explodes into a bustling metropolis.

By late morning, motorbikes, trucks and cars carrying wholesale traders make the three-mile speedway dash to the airport to buy up the natural stimulant by the bag as soon as it is offloaded.

Although khat has been illegal in Djibouti ever since the country gained its independence in 1976, the newly-vested authorities have followed the colonial French example of looking the other way. Indeed, using the tactics employed by the Americans in Vietnam, France tacitly encouraged the chewing to keep the natives quiet. In the century of French occupation, the use of khat in the former territory of the Afars and Issas grew from an occasional diversion for a few Issas tribesmen to a national pastime for the male population.

Today French soldiers are on hand at Djibouti’s airport to help the importers carry away the prize goods for street auction. Buyers flock around the sunsheltered stalls to bid for bags. In less than 20 minutes the airport is empty again, as buyers rush back to town. The first to return is thought to have the freshest load to offer retailers, who sell khat from mini-stands or stalls throughout the city.

Women, according to tradition, abstain from chewing khat because they don’t like the taste. Men of all ages start their daily dreams at noon, after the airport rush, when the stuff is readily available on the street.

The khat habit puts some families in a bind, as a bunch costs nine French francs ($2), a third of a day’s wages for most laborers. There are many unemployed in the new nation, but the chewing tradition hasn’t changed, so such purchases impose a hardship on the poor families who make up most of the khat-consuming population in the tiny republic.

In turn, khat provides a relief for the unemployed, helping them forget their troubles. To sit all afternoon chewing khat until the sun goes down at dinnertime is as common in Djibouti as decadent café life in Paris.

Chewing takes place only after the user selects the good leaves and casts off the undesirable ones with the stems. As with coca, the mastication process slowly takes place as the wad of leaves is alternately chomped and swished around until it dissolves and a new supply is needed. Most chewers prefer to use only one cheek for their khat, causing a sort of national epidemic of “hamster” facial malformations. Khat also colors teeth a yellowish green.

Coca-Cola or Pepsi is sipped along with the hr outage, for the combination of caffeine and khat makes an exciting high. In addition, users like to smoke contraband American cigarettes with their afternoons of fun and forgetting.

Khat has been classified by the French Narcotics Bureau in the B category (marijuana has the same classification), meaning that possession can be subject to fine or jail. The stimulant is legal in the United States, but climatic conditions in most of the country do not favor its cultivation. As no formal studies of khat have ever been made, long-term effects of its use are not known.

The new government in Djibouti, under President Hassan Gouled, has hinted that it would take measures against the khat traffic. Government ministers, however, have had their own special loads of leaf flown to them at conferences in other parts of Africa and Europe.

Just across the border in Ethiopia, growers are happy their produce is still a cherished item in Djibouti, for without the foreign buyers they would be hard-put to find a new market. Only a small amount is chewed in Ethiopia, and the government is not too happy about the profitable crop. Peasants devote huge acreages to khat, depleting land needed for vital food crops.

In the past, fresh leaves were transported by train, but a group of rebels blew up a bridge on the strategic railway between Djibouti and Ethiopia in June 1977, and the line has not been repaired. So now the air run is the only practical route to convey fresh khat to Djibouti. Nomads sometimes traverse the desert border by night in illegal camel caravans that arrive the next morning with small loads.

Last year Ethiopia exported 1,400 tons of khat by air, which represents more than a quarter of Djibouti’s foreign agricultural imports, listed at 5,400 tons annually. No one knows how many tons of leaf reach the new republic clandestinely.

The khat scene in the Yemeni capital of Sana is similar to Djibouti’s, but with several picturesque and debilitating differences. Unlike Djibouti, Sana has special khat houses, seedy cafés or inns found off the sidewalk, where users may take their daily doses while puffing on water pipes and drinking cola for more soothing kicks. You can buy khat over the counter in these funduks and even chew all night with lodgings at your disposal for the total lull.

The situation is more intense in Sana because khat chewing has engulfed the town with funduks, enticing users to so cialize with other chewers and communi cate with the madhar (water pipe) that replaces the American cigarette used in Djibouti. The inns encourage more inten sive and numerous uses of khat, but the biggest reason why users outnumber their kind in lJjibouti is that a bunch of leaves costs about half as much. Yemen, directly across the straits of Bab a! Mandeb from Ethiopia and Djibouti, grows its own khat bushes in a similar climate, but there is no foreign commerce in the leaf.

The bushes grow in the mountains where the famous mocha coffee once thrived. But the coffee is slowly disappearing because Yemeni farmers have decided to concentrate on the profitable, easy-to-care-for khat, planting seedlings as soon as a row is plowed.

Because khat can be cut easily and is sold quickly on a daily basis, business is booming. As soon as the crops are cut. baskets come down from the mountains, sometimes in cars, jeeps or trucks, sometimes on muleback, to be sold in the open market and at street stalls or in specialty shops that sell nothing else. Farmers usually deliver the crop directly, and they must pay a fixed “khat tax.” according to the weight of a load entering Sana.

As in Djibouti, it’s a mad rush to town before noon to catch the first customers with the freshest batches, wrapped in husks to keep them moist. Yemenis stop work promptly at 12:00. rush to the nearest market and buy their daily needs. The stalls and shops are only open for 12 to 14 hours for the quick sales of leaves cut in fields early that morning.

Khat time in Yemen is midday to midnight. People rush home to chew their troubles away or share them at the local funduk. Because of this tradition, nothing is open after noon, and even offices close down until the following morning.

Everyone chews—workers, policemen, soldiers, bureaucrats and merchants. In Sana there is even a minority of women who indulge, a rare instance of nondiscrimination in the sexist Arab world. The government that came to power in 1974 would like Yemenis to kick the habit and transform plantations back to fruit and coffee crops, something which may be physically impossible to do because the land has been ravaged by so many years of khat growing.

Khat was once a social problem for the neighboring People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen (South Yemen), the only Marxist Arab state, but the government outlawed it. However, users in South Yemen so far have had no need to fear any legal reprisals. Although khat is forbidden there, it is tolerated.

In northern Somalia, which has a climate like neighboring Ethiopia, some khat is grown but there are few chewers. Djibouti, Yemen and Ethiopia are the only countries in the world where significant amounts of khat are consumed, posing a sociological problem for the Horn of Africa, now in the throes of violent military problems. As the military situation worsens, some top officials are pleased to ignore the favorite pastime of euphoric citizens, and an increasing number are glad to join them for the traditional, allday high.

Read the full issue here.

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American Cancer Society

Cancer is a beast that comes in many forms and often requires multiple strategies to overcome, including medical cannabis. The American Cancer Society (ACS) has supported medical cannabis research since the 1990s. The organization officially supported California’s Senate Bill 535 in 1997, for instance, which focused on medical cannabis research. SB 535 was controversial but established a $1 million state research program at the University of California to determine the efficacy of medical cannabis for treating AIDS-related wasting syndrome, glaucoma, and cancer. Currently, the ACS does not take an official stance when it comes to cannabis legislation.

American Nurses Association

In June 2003, the American Nurses Association (ANA) issued a resolution saying that the organization aims to “support the right of patients to have safe access to therapeutic marijuana/cannabis under appropriate prescriber supervision.” The organization added that the needless criminalization of cannabis creates a situation that makes it harder for patients who rely on medical cannabis. In 2006 the American Cannabis Nurses Association was created, and gradually helped the ANA warm up to the idea of medical cannabis. In 2023, the ANA went further and officially recognized cannabis nursing as a specialty nursing practice within the organization.

American Osteopathic Association

The field of osteopathic medicine often involves many types of alternative therapies as they relate to our overall health and well-being. In 2011, the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) issued a resolution saying that the organization supports “well-controlled clinical studies on the use of marijuana and related cannabinoids for patients who have significant medical conditions.” As recently as 2018, the AOA reiterated its stance, announcing that it officially supports the review of the classification of cannabis at the federal level as it currently falls under Schedule I, in order to facilitate advancement research for health purposes.

Health Canada

Health Canada, a federal institution relatively similar to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, has been involved in Canada’s medical cannabis industry for decades, showing support early on amid the country’s path to legalization. Former Health Canada spokesman Dann Michols told the Ottawa Citizen in 1997 that there is no difference between cannabis and other useful medicines such as morphine and aspirin, which were originally derived from plants. Health Canada has been heavily involved in regulating medical cannabis in Canada for over 20 years. For instance, Health Canada employs a rigorous tracking system in an attempt to thwart illegal cannabis operations.

National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine (IOM)

Researchers associated with the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine (IOM) published a piece in the National Academy Press in 1999 called “Marijuana as Medicine: Assessing the Science Base.” In it, they wrote that “scientific data indicate the potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation.” They also recognized the fewer harms of cannabis compared to drugs like opioids, writing that “the adverse effects of marijuana use are within the range of effects tolerated for other medications.”

This article was originally published in the June 2024 issue of High Times Magazine.

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On an overcast Tuesday evening at the end of September, hundreds of Amy Sedaris fans stood in line outside the Union Square Travel Agency—the third legal cannabis dispensary to open in Manhattan—for a chance to meet Sedaris, whose resume includes roles in Strangers with Candy, BoJack Horseman, and The Mandalorian. Fans braved the clouds and light rain in a line that stretched around the block, to purchase their cannabis from the dispensary’s first celebrity guest “travel agent,”—what the store calls their budtenders.

The Union Square Travel Agency, opened in February 2023, and is proud to be a BIPOC-founded company in partnership with The Doe Fund. The Doe Fund is a non-profit institution that has helped nearly 30,000 people of color, low-wage workers, and people who have experienced homelessness or incarceration achieve upward mobility by providing housing and combining it with paid work, career training, and other supportive services.

Sedaris said she was excited to do a guest shift at the dispensary in large part because of the shop’s partnership with The Doe Fund.

“The money goes to a good cause,” Sedaris said. “Something good is coming out of it. At least I know that this place is safe. It’s New York-grown. It goes to a good cause. And it’s in my neighborhood.”

John McDonald, the executive vice president of The Doe Fund and son of its founder, George T. McDonald, told High Times that his father anticipated a future involvement in cannabis.

“My father actually helped [Gov. Andrew] Cuomo write the legislation and he always predicted that there would be a dispensary, that we would run a dispensary, and I thought he was crazy,” McDonald said. “But it turned out that he was right. He passed on two years ago, unfortunately, but he was behind all this. And the way that they wrote the legislation was supposed to be that the people impacted negatively, by incarceration, were going to profit from the sales of the cannabis.” 

When asked if he was satisfied with that aspect of New York’s legal program, McDonald expressed promise in the partnership.

“It’s going great for us,” McDonald said. “I think it’s a great idea. The rollout’s been slow but I just think [that’s] because the folks that got the licenses didn’t necessarily have the means to be able to put it in production. And they didn’t necessarily have the loans. You know it’s a very hard business when you think about what it takes to be successful in this. So we were lucky to be able to partner, a public-private partnership, where we could collaborate and we share half of the proceeds that go to people in our program.”

Union Square Travel Agency CEO Paul Yau said what attracted him specifically to work with The Doe Fund was their prior long-standing relationship.

“We’ve had a relationship through one of our advisors, with The Doe Fund for decades, so it was a natural fit,” Yau said. “And we’d actually partnered with them before the CAURD (Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary) licensing program came out. So when the CAURD program came out [requiring the first NY cannabis businesses to be owned by justice-involved individuals] we just pivoted that relationship. So we always wanted to do something with The Doe Fund in cannabis. We just never knew it was going to be in such a big way.”

McDonald said the partnership with the Union Square Travel Agency has been beneficial. 

“We’re a $70 million dollar company, so say we get $3 million a year from this, or whatever it is, it’s a small part of our budget, but a very needed and very helpful part of it,” McDonald said.

“It’s unrestricted money but we try to put it in the pockets of the guys affected by this. But this is really a forward way to think. It helps lift all boats instead of one boat.”

With a design aesthetic resembling a cross between an Apple Store and a mid-20th century airport terminal, Yau is proud of what his store has been able to accomplish so far and looks forward to the industry growing.

“I think more stores are actually great for the industry,” Yau said. “There’s still so many illicit stores here, more legal stores just means more legal market growth. We feel very good about where we are. We have a beautiful store. And with 40 hours of off-site classroom training and continuing education from brand presentations at least two to three times per week, we probably have the most educated budtenders in the market. It helps them to engage with the customers. And proximity to public transit with Union Square right there, all helps to retain customers.”

But one demographic where customer growth could be improved is with women, who are underrepresented amongst the in-store shoppers at many dispensaries, and Yau hopes that the event with Sedaris could help counter that trend.

“We’re really in the first innings of New York cannabis and the majority of our customers are male,” he said. “And so what we’ve really wanted to do was try to activate more female customers and Amy’s perfect for that.”

Sedaris said she started reading High Times decades ago, giving her the experience necessary to be a budtender at the travel agency.

“I’m a sativa person,” Sedaris said. “I smoke. I’ll do edibles but I don’t like to take too many—I’m afraid of the dosage. So I prefer smoking it and rolling my own joints.” 

One of her favorite things to do while high was come up with ideas with her brother, humor writer David Sedaris.

“We would come up with these plays together and he would take notes,” Sedaris said. “But he never wrote high. He doesn’t get high anymore and I really miss that because when the two of us were high together, man, nothing made me laugh harder than that. I like getting high and laughing really hard. Getting high with someone funny? God, there’s nothing better.”

And what would her most famous characters think about Sedaris doing a shift as a guest travel agent? She quickly replied, “They all get high. All my characters get high.”

This article was originally published in the January 2024 issue of High Times Magazine.

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Most of the time, when we hear someone talk about cannabis genetics, the first thing that comes to mind is a pack of seeds. But it goes a lot deeper than that, and as cannabis continues to get more and more normalized across America, scientists are beginning to dive even further into the genetic traits that make the heat the heat.

We sat down with LeafWorks to hear the latest in cannabis genomics and how they’re using science to create value for the industry. Ph.D.s Eleanor Kuntz and Kerin Law originally founded the company on the eve of California’s Proposition 64 vote that legalized cannabis for adult use in the Golden State. Kuntz brought the market experience from her work with natural product companies with a global footprint, while Law had just finished her Ph.D. in developing next-generation sequencing methodologies that would harness the power of the tech at more affordable rates.

According to LeafWorks, its primary concern at the moment is cracking the genetic code of cannabis to offer a ton of DNA-based services regarding what plants are being bought, sold, bred, and grown. As they chase this dream, a huge backbone for continuing toward that goal has been the company’s cannabis plant sex tests, which can identify male plants early in the growing cycle.

“I think it’s kind of always been on our radar, but it made sense to do something about it,” Kuntz said of the opportunities at the crossroads of cannabis and DNA testing. “In 2016, when we formed LeafWorks, it was really a more abstract concept at the time where we were looking at it more explicitly through the lens of natural products.”

Kuntz pointed out how big identity is in natural foods markets. She used the metaphor of how irritated someone would be if they ordered green tea and got echinacea instead in comparison to cannabis that’s completely mislabeled.

The Sex Test

LeafWorks was one of the first companies to sequence the male and female genomes of the cannabis plant. This led to the company offering the first plant sexing test on the market.

“That was really what’s been our bread and butter test for us,” Law told High Times. “And we focused on cannabis because, unlike a lot of these other major crops, there’s no infrastructure, no one to help people get ready to go. And so we built that for the cannabis industry, starting with the most fundamental issue as soon as seedlings pop up. Is this a boy or a girl? And then we’ve developed it outward.”

With the sex test laying the foundation, they expanded further into pathogen identification and identity services. Law argued there are lots of different aspects of the cannabis industry that will benefit from genetic identification. That could mean proving something is that phenotype that dumps a lot of hash or confirming that a clone’s identity is what you’re being promised before buying it.

Pathogens are also a massive issue in the cannabis industry. Whole nurseries have collapsed after grows were infected, and others have hit the brink but survived after unknowingly spreading pathogens. So, clean plants are a big deal if you’re trying to keep the boat afloat.

Hop Latent Viroid Helps Pay The Bills

Kuntz argued that we’re a lot further along than the days when you could sell anything.

“The more refined your market gets, and the more saturated your market gets, the more quality and efficiencies within your own operation become important to you,” Kuntz said, noting how fundamental clean plants are to everything else being a success. “It’s really important to have clean plants because they survive better and they produce higher quality when you’re looking at the chemistry of the higher-quality product. And so I think there’s been a lot more attention and just a lot more knowledge about some of the detrimental effects of the pests and pathogens.”

After LeafWorks’s sex tests, checking plants for hop latent viroid disease and other pathogens is the company’s most common service. The symptoms of hop latent viroid are devastating to a commercial crop. They include shorter internodal spacing, smaller leaves, stunting, malformation, reduced vigor, lower water intake, reduced flower mass, and fewer trichomes.

Law said that at first, people tend to be hesitant to spend the money to get the hop latent viroid test, but some of LeafWorks’s steadiest customers have been people who didn’t test their moms and ended up battling hop latent for a season.

“Since then, we have very steady customers who realize that early and consistent testing really pays out in the end because otherwise, you lose such a high percentage of your yield,” Law said.

The pair estimated that roughly 80% of the growers they work with have come across plants with hop latent viroid. Kuntz described the situation as pretty bad everywhere.

When people first started testing for hop latent viroid disease in the mid-2010s, it was a costly process. The earliest forms of testing would cost thousands of dollars to check an individual plant. LeafWorks’s pathogen test initially only cost $50 bucks when it was first launched. In the years since the economics of scale has allowed the company to cut that price in half to $25.

“More testing makes it easier to lower costs. And I think it’s also important with the hop latent to make it at a price point where people can do the testing appropriately,” Kuntz said.

Kuntz explained the issue with a latent pathogen is that you can test a single plant and still not identify the disease because you have to test the tissue that the virus is in, and the test sample may not contain it. And so if it is latent in the plant, you can test an aerial part of the plant (or any part that is above ground, such as stems, leaves, or flowers), and the tests can still come back as healthy because that particular tissue doesn’t have the virus in it.

“But then as soon as you flip the lights or you stress the plants out, you overwater, you underwater it too much, UV, whatever it is, then all of a sudden the viroid explodes and moves through the plant,” Kuntz explained. “And then you can catch it more easily in all the tissue types. So I think it’s important to keep that price at a point where people can recurrently test their moms, especially so they can really know what’s going on with them.”

When people think of laboratory testing and cannabis, they usually fall into two groups of thought. The first is the safety aspect of ensuring no heavy metals or pesticides. The second is understanding what’s in the plant and is less safety-oriented but more focused on how much THC or terpenes are contained within. We asked the founders what they think people overlook the most regarding cannabis lab testing. Law believes people are yet to truly embrace the value of sex testing even though it’s a big money space for the company. Law argues the upfront costs could save growers 20% on operational costs.

The Ghosts of Cannabis DNA Past

One thing that held back cannabis DNA testing with growers occurred in 2019 when one company took private genetics from OG growers and promised them they would provide DNA markers to help protect their life’s work in the industry to come. The company ended up using the cuts to try and breed their own super strains, and as you can imagine, it left a horrible taste in people’s mouths.

Another problem was knowing if the material that a testing company got was vetted. A person could give them anything and then claim to have the genetic markers for whatever strain they wanted.

We asked the LeafWorks founders if those testing flaws have impacted what they’re trying to do.

“Yeah, and you have the problem of false negatives and false positives, right? So things that are the same are called different things, and things that are different are called the same thing,” Kuntz said. “That doesn’t serve anyone, and it actually acts to erode the value of the immense amount of breeding work and specialization.”

Kuntz further emphasized that she doesn’t think those past events hurt LeafWorks.

“I think what you have to do is you have to actually interface with the community itself,” Kuntz said. “You can’t come from a top-down approach, and I think we’ve learned this in agriculture. That’s never how you do anything.”

The Canndor Herbarium

Our conversation moved on to discuss how far out we are from actually being able to test any cannabis material and have a deep genetic understanding of precisely what it is.

LeafWorks recently received funding from the state of California to lay the groundwork for more in-depth genetic testing. They are working with Cal Poly Humboldt and the Origins Council on the Canndor Herbarium, a project that seeks to preserve the records of cannabis plants.

“It’s really focusing on community-led research, and whereby legacy communities are bringing forward these important plants in our community. These are the definitions and the boundaries of these plants,” Kuntz said. “These are the breeding histories, and then we’re doing the work to do the botanical portions of those definitions so that the community itself can codify those naming systems.”

Kuntz hopes that the Canndor Herbarium will help get the industry to a place where if you go into a store and buy something with a name attached to it, you always get the thing you’re expecting with the name on the container. Kuntz argued that if someone bought a bottle of merlot and a white wine came out, they would be frustrated.

We asked about the agricultural variability aspect of cannabis. Sometimes the same things just don’t turn out the same for a variety of reasons. Kuntz responded with another question: What if the variability is that the plants were never the same?

“The problem is if you have two more moving targets, how can you assess quality? Is it the fact that it’s the same thing and it’s cultivated differently? So that’s why they’ve got differences. Or is it that they’re not the same thing at all? So they’re never going to be able to get to the same point no matter how consistent the cultivation is in regards to location, inputs, whatever,” Kuntz said.

Kuntz went on to argue that variability in biology is what makes specific years or vintage wine more impressive, more expensive, and more sought after long term. She thinks the same will be true with cannabis. There will be specific years for certain cultivars, especially with products that can be stored for longer periods, like hash, that will be more highly sought after and more expensive because it was a particularly good year for specific regions.

Those following the space can expect to see LeafWorks continue to be at the cutting edge of cannabis and DNA.

This article was originally published in the February 2024 issue of High Times Magazine.

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