Leaving the Land of E Cannabis Unum

Remember 'Rocky Mountain High' by John Denver?  Yup, me too.  It was my favorite John Denver song,  just ahead of 'Calypso' and 'Take me Home Country Roads'.  For those who don't remember or just want to wax nostalgically  check out the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOB4VdlkzO4

Anyway, I was really on a roll flying through the small town of Ridgeway, CO on my way from Telluride to Montrose when I took a double take on the following sign:

It wasn't the RE/MAX sign that caused the double take.  "What the deuce?" I thought.  "Is that sign what I think it is?"  I hate to slow down when I'm really on a roll and I actually kept going for a bit when I thought "I really need to check this out.  Is this for real?"  I looked over to my right and saw this sign in the window:

I chuckled to myself and remembered "Oh, yeah.  I guess it's legal to buy marijuana in Colorado now.  Much as I want to keep rolling, I gotta check this out."

I slowed down and turned around and parked my bike next to the shop door.

The shop was actually a nice place.  Very clean, almost like going to a nice upscale spice shop / pharmacy / microbrewery / restaurant...hmmmm I'm not exactly sure what.

Anyway, I opened the door to the establishment and wound up in a small foyer with a wall to my right with a small opening about head height that was 1 ft by 1 ft. and a closed door to the left of the opening.

I poked my head in the opening and saw a glass counter similar to one that would be used to sell hard pack ice cream except instead of buckets of 'blue moon' or 'chocolate chip cookie dough' there were jars of marijuana buds neatly arranged and sorted.  Also, there was a blackboard with a bunch of stuff written on the board listing the specials or the different kinds of marijuana somewhat similar to listing a bunch of different kinds of beers like 'New Holland Dragon's Milk' or 'Daisy Cutter Pale Ale' or 'AleSmith Horny Devil' or 'Urban Chestnut Schnickelfritz' or 'Capital Autumnal Fire Doppelbock' or...you get the idea.

Marijuana bud like in the jars

I had my biking gear on and had 'tourist/gawker' written all over me.

"Hello, sir.  May I have a picture ID?" said the man behind the counter as he peered through the tiny window at me.

Uh...yikes...I'm on my bike.  I don't have an ID on me.  

"Well, I just came in on my bike (most guys coming in this place are on motorcycles as opposed to bicycles) and I don't have an ID on me.  I am 60 years old though if that helps."

"Sorry sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."  I tiptoed and poked my head in the little window.  "Well, I was just curious..."

"Sir...legally you can't even look inside the window without a valid picture ID.  I'm afraid I am going to have to ask you to leave!"

Yikes!  They really are strict about enforcing the law.  "Sorry," I said, "I'll leave right away." and went outside.  In a way, I was impressed that they would adhere to the law so strictly.  Either that, or he knew a gawker when he saw one and didn't want to waste his time on me.

 I waited outside for a bit and a pretty big guy decked out like a respectable Hell's Angel came out carrying a little designer boutique paper bag between his first 2 fingers and his thumb, pinky in the air.

"Excuse me, sir.  May I ask you some questions?"

"Of course!", said the respectable Hell's Angel.  (Turns out he's not a Hell's Angel and in fact is a retired successful businessman with an orange Harley Davidson that is one sweet ride.)

"Uh, how do you go about purchasing..."

"Marijuana?", he said.  "Well, the first thing they ask you is...'Is it for medicinal purposes or do you want to get high?'"  I was impressed how candid this conversation was going.  It turns out that he has to take 1 vicodin pill every day for his back.  He was hoping a marijuana substitute would work for him.

"The shop guy said 'Here's the stuff you need'" and went on to say "'Take a couple of puffs of this and it will be the equivalent of 1 vicodin pill.  Now if you just want to use it for recreational purposes you'd want this' and pointed to another jar".

We talked for a little while about the legal aspects of buying marijuana and the potency of the new products but as we talked we found we spent more time talking about kids and grandkids and the retired life when another guy came barreling out of the shop and said "Wow! I can't believe this!  It's totally legal!", holding up his little boutique bag.  I think both of us knew he was more into the 'recreational' aspect of the drug and we all laughed.

It is clear that the industry wants to associate itself to the medical / pharmacy aspect of the drug even though much of the product is for recreational use.  Almost all of the shops advertise a green cross...just like the Red Cross sign except the color of the cross is green.

Here's the short course on legalized marijuana in Colorado.  You must be 21 years old to purchase legalized marijuana.  Residents can purchase up to 1 ounce of product, non-residents up to a quarter of an ounce at any given time.  Also, residents can grow up to 6 plants for personal consumption.

The pot grown these days is nowhere near like the grass Grandpa and Grandma smoked back in the 60's, it's about 20 times more potent.  Also, the THC content is known and standardized in the shops.  Generally, it is suggested to take one or two puffs, wait a few minutes, and see how the product affects you.  If the effect is not to the desired level, take 2 more puffs.  Any more puffs after that, you're on your own.

You don't have to smoke to consume the product.  There are a lot of other ways to consume marijuana in the shops, including pot designed to be baked in the form of cookies and brownies, and THC edibles such as gummi bears.  The sellers of the legal product are very knowledgeable about the effect of what they sell and give advice on how best to ingest the product safely...no different than what a pharmacist would tell you.  For example, the edibles take up to a half and hour or so to produce the desired effect and the effect lasts longer than if inhaled.

There are a lot of pro's and con's to legalized marijuana.  For example, in the first year of legalization, the state of Colorado gained tax revenue of over 76 million dollars.  All of the legally sold products sold are highly regulated and standardized for THC content, and identification of who can purchase the product is very strict.

On the downside, apparently product is still getting into the hands of minors, probably similar to the same problems associated with alcohol.  It happens with the clause in the law that allows residents to raise 6 plants for personal consumption.  Apparently, it is very difficult to enforce that part of the law and generally law enforcement doesn't even try.  Since the shop marijuana tends to be pretty expensive (taxed at 31%) most native Coloradans who participate 'grow their own' and sell to their friends which is illegal but difficult to enforce.  Also, the potency of the product raised 'home grown' is not always known.

Law enforcement is mixed on the subject.  Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) support the legalization claiming that legalization frees up police resources to tackle violent crime and reduce the police/community tension in minority communities due to excessive enforcement of minor drug infractions.  However, Nebraska and Oklahoma are in the process of suing Colorado in the U.S. Supreme Court for the legalization of marijuana claiming "the state of Colorado has created a dangerous gap in the federal drug control system".

Like all legalized drugs, the real conundrum comes down to personal freedom vs social responsibility.

What are your thoughts on the legalization of marijuana and THC products?

If you are conservative on the subject, put your headphones on and follow this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyY-6oh0Ow8

I think you'll find it amusing...Y'all come back now, y'hear!

If you are liberal on the subject, put your headphones on and follow this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZk9CmJIDLQ

I can dig it, he can dig it, she can dig it, we can dig it, they can dig it, you can dig it, Oh let's dig it!

Can you dig it, baby?

And as for Rocky Mountain High...well, there's no problem with friends around the campfire in Colorado any more, that's for sure.