Is cannabis the key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic?

dgomag.com February 2022 DGO: Weed did it first. D G O Is cannabis the key to ending the COVID-19pandemic?

WEED DID IT FIRST DGOMAG.COM Editor: Angelica Leicht – aleicht@bcimedia.com SalES: sales@dgomag.com@dgomag [Dispensary of the Month] [Product Guide][Aska Pothead] [Weed[DispensaryReviews][Film] Listings]

DGO EditorSTAFFMagazine Angelica 375-4551aleicht@bcimedia.comLeicht Design/layout Ryan rbrown@bcimedia.comBrown Contributors Erin MattAmandaMeganBrandtBiancoPushClark Reader Services 375-4570 Interim ExecutiveChiefOfficer Carrie Cass Director Multi-Mediaof Sales Jamie Opalenik 4-5. Weed news and 6-8.updates Obscure weed films to binge right now 9-13. listings27.potheads22-25.21.20.strain19.review18.endingIs14.scheduleSnowdownfor2022Coverstory:cannabisthekeytothepandemic?ProhibitionHerbTheGreenHousereviewEdiblereviewSinserereviewAskacoupleofDispensary /d@dgo_mag gomag @dgdgomag/do_mag gomag Volume 5 Number 40 February 2022 What’s inside ON COVERTHE Cannabis’ role in fight ing back COVID-19 Cover art:Matt Clark (illustration) Ryan Brown (design and layout) Tell us what you think! Got something on your mind? Have a joke or a story idea or just something that the world needs to know? Send everything to editor@dgomag.com 22 More questions answered from your friendly neighborhood DGO potheads From what it’s like to step into a dispensary to how weed can be a tricky, tricky little beast, here are your questions about pot for our in-house potheads. 6 Obscure stoner films to add to your streaming rotation When it comes to the essential stoner films, we all know what the top choic es are. Ask any cannabis enthusiast and they’ll tell you that any Cheech and Chong film, and movies like “Friday,” “Jay and Silent Bob,” “Clerks,” or even “Soul Plane” belong in the stoner film canon. But what about the more obscure options? 14 How weed could help end the never-ending pandemic Is cannabis the key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic? The research sure appears to be promising, anyway. DGO Magazine is published by Ballantine Communica tions Inc., P.O. Drawer A, Durango, CO 81302 DGO is a free monthly publication distributed by Ballantine Communications Inc., and is available for one copy per person. Taking more than five copies of an edition from a distribution location is illegal and is punishable by law according to Colorado Revised Statute 18-9-314. Beware the Jabber wocky strain, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! (And the weed! The strain that gets you stoned! And more stoned! And so stoned!) Beware, Durango)(fromJabberwockytheGreenHouse DGO Pufnstuf for DGO Mag February 2022 | 3

“Rarely does an industry produce over $1.2 billion in revenue in its first year. This number shows that the legalization of cannabis is something Arizonans be lieve strongly in and the many benefits it contributes to the state’s economy,” said Samuel Richard, the Executive Director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association (ADA).The Department of Revenue offered a breakdown of the sales data, which re vealed that recreational adult-use pot in Arizona raked in about $528,001,278 in revenue, while medical cannabis gener ated $703,803,194 in 2021.

And, according to Marijuana Policy Project Policy Director Karen O’Keefe, Colorado’s cannabis industry is more consistent. That leads to a steady flow of funds for the state. “When you have that kind of funding, economists say you have what’s called a multiplier effect, where you not only have the initial investment in the stores, the jobs and the tax revenue, but then that money is in people’s pockets who spend it again,” O’Keefe told Westword. “So it’s as if each dollar is two or three dollars, which is the way economists usually look at it.”

A billion-dollar biz in AZ Well, friends. It looks like we have some competition in the cannabis space, as weed is now a billion-dollar business in Arizona. According to figures released by Arizona’s Department of Revenue, the state’s medical and recreational cannabis sales combined to generate more than $1.23 billion in revenue last year.

Per the data, the state of Arizona raked in $60,299,191 in adult-use sales in November 2021, making it the high est-grossing month for recreational pot. That was the only month in 2021 that saw recreational sales top $60 million in theAnd,state.there’s more. According to the report, April was the top month for medical cannabis in Arizona, with $72,944,477 generated between medi cal and recreational sales. But those are just the sales numbers. When it comes to weed taxes, the state raked in $196,447,570 on the combined sales for medical and recreational canna bis last year — not including December, as that month’s sales data is still incom

February 2022 | 4 New records have been set for Colorado cannabis All hail the pothead state of Colorado, which just set a record for the amount of weed-related revenue in 2021. The Colorado Department of Revenue announced in early January that the state had managed to rake in a new re cord for the total annual cannabis sales in 2021.“New record alert! In 2021, Colorado collected over $423 million in revenue from marijuana sales (compared to the previous record of over $387 million in 2020). Colorado also surpassed $2B in tax and fee revenue and $12B in mari juana sales to date,” the agency posted to its social media pages. And, according to a monthly press release for December 2021, tax and fee revenue reached $30,609,563 — with a total of $423,486,053 between January and December 2021. That means Colorado has raked in about $2,018,933,005 in weed taxes and fees since February 2014. Y’all really love your weed, huh But that’s not all! The latest data also revealed that $158,462,549 in taxes and fees was collected in November—with a total of $2,060,952,959 between Janu ary and November 2021. What that means is that from the time that legal cannabis sales began in January 2014 until now, the state has collected a total of $12,039,747,032 in weed taxes and fees. We’re rolling in that good-good dough. These figures are based off of the state sales tax of 2.9%, cannabis retail sales tax of 15%, and retail cannabis excise tax of 15%. What’s interesting, though, is that the sales data from October, November, and December of 2021 show that sales decreased, according to the report. And, both cannabis sales and prices dropped in tandem.Perthereport, the price of smoke able flower per pound dropped by 28% during the last three months of 2021 — or from $1,316 to $948, according to Denver Westword. For comparison’s sake, the price per pound at the end of 2020 was $1,721 on average.And,what’s even more interesting is that while Colorado has set new records, they’re nothing compared to what has happened in the legal states of Washing ton and California. The state of Washington has collect ed $3 billion in taxes and fees since the legal market opened for business, and California has collected $3.1 billion in tax revenue. As such, Colorado’s newly achieved $2 billion pales in comparison. Part of the cause for the discrepancy is the fact that Washington’s sales tax is as high as 46% in certain regions, and California’s sales tax is as high as 38% — so both states are raking in a huge amount of tax money based on the high tax rate alone. On the other hand, Colo rado’s tax percent is the third-highest in the country — but it’s not nearly as high as those other two states.

Weed news from around the globe

Wondering what’s going on with the state of cannabis? We have the answers for ya.

“Some of the more recently taxed states are focusing on specifically investing a good chunk of the revenue in communities that have borne the brunt of marijuana prohibition and that have had disproportionate marijuana arrests,” O’Keefe said. “You’ll just continue to see more tax revenue, more people working in the cannabis industry, operating can nabis businesses.”

O’Keefe also noted that this longterm investing has led to the creation of 40,000 jobs and over 1,000 Colorado businesses — both of which have had a massive positive impact on the state.

“This is an effort to start small and grow rather than start big and reduce,” Yancey said. The Mississippi House-passed bill also “puts the entirety of the program under the Mississippi State Department of Health,” according to the Clarion Ledger, whereas the Senate version tasked the Department of Agriculture and Com merce to oversee “the licensing, inspec tion and oversight of cannabis culti vation facilities, processing facilities, transportation and cannabis disposal entities in the state.”

Almost 70% of Mississippi voters voted to pass a proposal in 2020 to legalize medical cannabis for patients in the state suffering from a host of condi tions, including cancer, epilepsy or other seizures, Parkinson’s disease, Hunting ton’s disease, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis. But while voters are in favor of med ical legalization, the pathway to legal weed has been troubled. Last year, the Mississippi Supreme Court struck down the ballot initiative, citing a technicality that rendered it unconstitutional. In the wake of that ruling, state law makers sought to replace the initiative with a new medical marijuana law, but that too has been plagued by delays. With the regular session now under way, the bill returns to the Senate ––but whether or not this current iteration of the initiative survives the conserva tive lawmakers in this state is anyone’s guess. Texas (or the cool part of it, anyway) may be going decrim The capital city of Austin, Texas may soon be on its way to earmarking its spot as the most liberal city in the state. And by that we mean a green light has been given to a cannabis decriminaliza tion initiative that is now set to appear in an upcoming ballot. In mid-January,Austin City Council voted to allow a ballot initiative known as the “Austin Freedom Act of 2021” to be included as part of an upcoming special election. This Act would stop local law enforcement from convicting residents of low-level cannabis offenses, and would also prohibit “no knock” war rants by police — both of which would be big changes for this metro area.

“It’s official! Austin will hold an elec tion May 7, 2022 on the Austin Freedom Act. Voters will be able to pass a new city law that (1) ends enforcement of marijuana possession and (2) bans dan gerous ‘no knock’ warrants. Thank you to everyone who got us this far—now let’s win!” the organization wrote on Twitter. The Austin Police Department first announced the end of cannabis convic tions back in 2020, stating that citations would only be given “unless there is an immediate threat to a person’s safety or doing so is part of the investigation of a high priority, felony-level narcotics case or the investigation of a violent felony,” perWhatKVUE.the Austin Freedom Act of 2021 does is it makes decriminalization official, stating that if passed by voters, Class A or Class B possession offenses would not be issued by law enforcement unless the situation involves a high priority “felony level narcotics case” or “investigation of a violent felony.” If passed, the Act would also put an end to “no knock” warrants, which means that Austin police officers may not request, execute, or participate in the execution of any search warrant that does not require the officer to knock and announce their presence and wait at least 15 seconds prior to execution.”

A family affair We all know and love filmmaker Kevin Smith, who brought us classic stoner films like “Clerks” and the Jay and Silent Bob movies we’ve come to know and love. And now Smith is bringing us a heartwarming story about two familial stoners who happen to run into each other while buying bud at a local dispensary. But wait, this one isn’t a film. It’s real life.Smith, 51, ran into his daughter, actress Harley Quinn Smith, 22, during a random visit to iLyfted cannabis dis pensary in Studio City, California, earlier this month. Per the Irish Examiner, the filmmaker was pretty proud to run into his daugh ter at the same dispensary.

Per the ledger, Yancey considers the number “just a starting point, and he expects the legislature to increase the amount of marijuana a person can pur chase each month in future years.”

The initiative was the brainchild of Ground Game Texas (GGT). “Thanks to the tireless efforts of the on-the-ground organizers from Ground Game Texas and partner organizations, Austin residents will soon have the ability to make lasting change to our antiquated and racist criminal justice laws,” said Ground Game Texas Political Director Mike Siegel. “With successful campaigns like these, Ground Game Texas will continue to empower and excite communities around progressive change—and deliver for the marginal ized communities that too often get left behind.”Thegroup collected 33,332 signa tures, although state law only requires 20,000 verified signatures.

“When you’re at the weed store and you run into your kid,” Smith posted on his Instagram account. “Since Harley Quinn Smith got her own house, there have been moments when I ran into the kid by chance out in public. And tonight, after I ran into my only begotten daugh ter at the weed store, I was like ‘Some one raised that kid right’.” Harley Quinn replied to the post, saying, “It was a surprise but also not a surprise at all.”

Harley Quinn is currently working on a series with her father, but there aren’t many details available on the project. “It’s such a cool gift to be able to work with somebody you’re related to,” Harley Quinn told E! News in June. “We have pretty similar minds, so it’s kind of like you’re shooting with another version of yourself. It’s so much fun and we’re working on another thing togeth er now which has been, in my opinion, the most fun yet, and I can’t wait for us to be able to share with the world what that“We’veis.” been writing together which is so much fun because that’s make pre tend, right? Like I used to make pretend with her when she was a kid,” Kevin said. “Now she’s an adult and you rarely get to do that. But in this way we can, be cause it’s the same thing, you sit around going, ‘What if they did this, what if this happened, what if this happened?’ So you get to play again, which is a rare gift for a parent now.”

February 2022 | 5 plete.According to the Arizona Depart ment of Revenue, “there is a transaction privilege tax (TPT) rate and an excise tax (16%) on the retail sales” of adult-use recreational cannabis in the state. Weed was legalized in Arizona in 2020 when 60% of voters approved Proposition 207, a ballot initiative that legalized recreational pot use in the state. Arizona was one of four states in 2020 in which voters approved legaliza tion measures at the ballot. The other states that legalized cannabis during election time that year were Montana, South Dakota, and New Jersey. Given the state’s very recent rec reational legalization, those numbers aren’t looking too shabby. Just one year into legalization, Arizona has raked in over a billion dollars in tax revenue for the state. Pretty cool to see, eh? Is Mississippi on its way to legal medical weed? Many of the southern states have been extremely anti-cannabis for as long as we can remember, and that’s as true of Mississippi as it is for Texas, Georgia, or ButLouisiana.thatmay be changing for Missis sippi at some point in the near future. There has been a long, drawn-out battle surrounding a medical cannabis bill in Mississippi — but it reached a major breakthrough in early January when members of the state House passed the legislation with overwhelming support. The bill was passed by the state House with a vote of 104-14, accord ing to the Associated Press. Members of the state Senate passed the bill the previous week with a vote of 46-5, “but the House made some changes,” and now senators will need to either accept those changes or bring the legislation to the negotiating table. “This bill has been vetted probably more than any bill in my history for sure,” Republican state House Repre sentative Lee Yancey told The Clarion Ledger.Yancey, the chair of the state House Drug Policy Committee, has worked closely with GOP state Senator Kevin Blackwell on the legislation. Earlier this month, Blackwell filed a 445-page bill that was referred to the Senate Public Health and Welfare Com mittee for Accordingreview.tothe Clarion Ledger, Yancey “made three changes” to the bill, the most notable regarding the amount of cannabis a patient can procure. Black well’s bill permitted patients to pur chase up to 3.5 grams of cannabis per day, but Yancey’s version allows for only 3 ounces to be purchased at a time. A patient “can still purchase 3.5 grams of marijuana at a time, but only six times a week,” per the Ledger. Whether or not that will be enough to placate the governor, who has said that he would prefer the limit to be lowered to 2.7 grams, remains to be seen.

watch this film while sober. This film is only tolerable if you smoke a little some thin’ somethin’ while watching it. Or a lot of somethin’ somethin. And, if you’re stoned, it can actually be quite entertaining. That’s because there’s a little bit of everything thrown into the mix. You’ll get some weird musi cal scenes, some jokes, and a very weak plotline that will still make sense if you miss a little (or a lot). What more could a stoner ask for? OK, maybe you could ask for a lot more. This film is honestly pretty bad, but it’s also very good when you’re stoned, which is why we love it. So maybe it’s best that you watch this one with your chatty stoner friends. They’ll distract you JUST enough that it’s funny when you tune in to Snoop’s antics.

12 obscure films to add to your stoner film list

When it comes to the essential stoner films, we all know what the top choices are. Ask any cannabis enthusiast and they’ll tell you that any Cheech and Chong film, and movies like “Friday,” “Jay and Silent Bob,” “Clerks,” or even “Soul Plane” belong in the stoner film canon. These films are not exactly a hidden stoner secret by any means. But what happens when you grow weary of watching Harold and Kumar try to track down their missing car? What do you watch when the phrase, “You got knocked the fuck out!” no longer drives the belly laughs it once did? What is a stoner to do then? Well, when that happens, it’s time to dig out the more obscure stoner films, of course. These films may not have been top of mind when you created the long list of stoner movies currently on rota tion in your Netflix queue, but perhaps they should have been. After all, variety is the spice of life, and when you add in the less common stoner flicks, like “The Package,” you’ll never run out of movies to binge while you’re blazed. To help get you started here are 12 obscure stoner films you need to watch during your next cannabis-fueld film binge.

#5. The Package What to smoke: Giggle weed. You’ll want giggle weed. Looking for a somewhat terrible but totally entertaining black comedy? Good, good. Sounds like you’re looking for “The Package, a film about five friends-slashcrushes-slash-people — three dudes,

Tired of having the same old stoner movies on rotation? These 12 weird and wonderfully wacky films will earn you big kudos from your blazed-face friends during your next movie night.

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#3. 2001: A Space Odyssey What to smoke: A hybrid that keeps your brain focused juuuuuust enough that you can process Kubrick’s insanity If you aren’t familiar with “2001: A Space Odyssey,” are you even a stoner? This film by the man himself, Stanley Kubrick, is one for the stoner books. You almost certainly have at least one friend who swears by it. Just ask around. But if you happen to be living in your own little world and have never ven tured into watching this film, stoned or otherwise, here’s the gist, according to IMDB: “The Monoliths push humanity to reach for the stars; after their discovery in Africa generations ago, the mysterious objects lead mankind on an awesome journey to Jupiter, with the help of H.A.L. 9000: the world’s greatest supercom puter.”That brief couple of sentences can’t possibly do the film justice, of course. What you need to know about this film is that it’s a total and complete mind fuck — and it gives you plenty of food for thought — so you need to be capable of rational thought (but must also be stoned) when you watch it. The rest will fall into place.

#4. WhatInterstellartosmoke:Your call! Dealer’s choice!OK,so let’s say you’re not ready to be mind-blown like you would be if you watched “2001: A Space Odyssey” while high off your gourd. That’s fair. Maybe you know what you’re playing with — and just don’t want to get that mind-melted on a Saturday. Well, you may want to opt for an “Interstellar” bingeThat’sinstead.because this film is a little dumb, but a lot easier to grasp when your head is high up in the clouds. Rather than being a trippy A.I.-filled journey into space and time, we’re dealing with a little bit of much Matthew McConnaughey and a whole lot of cosmology. In this film, McConnaughey, who is a gotdang national treasure, opts to throw himself into a wormhole in anattempt to find another planet when life on Earth goes haywire. You’ll still get talk of black holes, tesseracts, and a bunch of other space nerd stuff like you would with “2001: A Space Odyssey,” but you won’t have the potential to be sucked into the black pit of existential despair that comes with every Kubrick film ever recorded. So that’s a win.

#1. WhatAkiratosmoke: You’re going to need a clear-headed sativa for this one. “Akira,” a film based on the beloved 1982 manga, is an excellent option to binge while stoned. Set in a dystopian future of 2019, this film revolves around a secret military project that gives a biker gang member incredible telekinetic abilities. This, in turn, endangers all of Neo-Tokyo.Ifthisplotline sounds a little compli cated and out there, well, it is. And that’s why we love it. Akira is quite possibly the best example of how, when done correctly, it is possible to translate com plicated source material from manga (or any other source) to the screen. This film takes you across a fantasti cal post-apocalyptic cyberpunk world, exploring deep and foreboding concepts like nuclear war and the strong grip of the military-industrial complex. And, it somehow does so without teetering on the edge of being preachy or in your face.

Even better, though, is the fact that each frame is as brilliant as the one before it. And, it’s even better when you’re stoned, as the subtle nuances of the animated film come alive when your head is swimming with good ol’ THC.

#2. Mac & Devin Go to High School What to smoke: In honor of Snoop Dogg, you’re going to want a heavy indica, duhNot familiar with “Mac & Devin Go to High School”? Well, while this film isn’t as commonly cited as epic stoner material in the way that other films like “How High” are, it probably should be. After all, it has two epic stoner leads: Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa. The plotline of Mac & Devin is pretty simple, which is why it’s OK to go with an indica for this one. You don’t need to use your brainpower to follow along. So, here’s the gist. Snoop and Whiz are two high school students (in HIGH school, get it?), and Snoop Dogg must graduate — OR ELSE. To make that hap pen, Wiz Khalifa has to help out ol’ Snip Dogg while he’s also struggling to write his valedictorian speech. Before we go any further in our pro motion of this film, let me be clear about something: You should not attempt to

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Sean, Jeremy, and Donnie — and two chicks — Becky and Sarah —who are on a camping trip. Thrilling, right? Just wait. So these homies are camp ing in a booze-filled environment and everything is all fun and raunchy and dumb. BUT THEN someone loses an organ. Whoops! That, of course, causes chaos to ensue as everyone looks for this missing body part — which, by the way, has to be found within a 12-hour window so it can be reattached. It’s a mix of absurdity and stupidity and horror as the wolf pack of drunken morons try and fail to get to the missing schlong-a-dong-dong — and if you’re stoned, you’ll think it’s the best thing since sliced, pun intended, bread. If you’re sober, though? Well, in that case, you should enter this film at your own risk. We wouldn’t try it, but you do you, boo. #6. WhatCheftosmoke: You wanna get hun gry? An indica. Listen. If you aren’t aware of what an actual American treasure Jon Favreau is, were you even around for “Swingers”? And, he’s at it again in “Chef,” as Favreau — who plays Carl Casper — quits a cushy job at an L.A. restaurant to open a food truck with his best friend and son. Sounds a little boring, right? Wrong. This film is not just Favreau playing a chef at a food truck. He’s also a human who’s stuck balancing a love triangle with the characters played by Scarlett Johansson and Sofia Vergara — and it’s a little spicy, if we do say so ourselves. Now, we’re not saying “Chef” rein vents the feel-good love triangle wheel, but this predictable film is still filled with delicious shots of amazing food, and requires absolutely no brain power to absorb the plotline. As such, it’s kinda great. You can toss it on while stoned, get yourself some entertainment, and then fall asleep dreaming of all of the delicacies from the film. In other words, the plot won’t keep you up at night while questioning your life, but the food imagery will — and that’s enough to sell us on this film. #7. WhatMoonwalkerstosmoke: A dreamy indica We’ll just warn you right now that “Moonwalkers” is a relatively trippy and slightly insane stoner film, but that’s also why it can be highly entertaining when you’re blazed. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, here’s the deal with it. So, this film is set in 1969 and is about an agent, Tom Kidman, an unstable, hard-assed Vietnam vet who is tasked with find ing Stanley Kubrick. The goal is to pay Kubrick a hefty sum of money and film a fake moon landing as a cover-up in case the Apollo 11 mission goes wrong. In a bid to track down Kubrick, Kid man meets up with Johnny, a struggling musician who is dealing with some big money issues and a few loan sharks. Johnny tells Kidman he’ll arrange a meeting with Kubrick, but alas, that does not happen (as you may have guessed). Instead of producing Kubrick, Johnny has his stoner roommate act as a Kubrick imposter instead in order to get his hands on the money from Kidman. As you may have guessed, things go a bit haywire thanks to all the lies and impostering and whatnot, and there’s a so-called loan shark named Iron Monger that’s eventually added to the mix. It’s basically everything you’d want from a stoner film, from Kidman’s trippy, odd, and slightly frustrating character to all of the hilarity that ensues as the odd couple track down Kubrick — or faux Kubrick — or whomever else they’re tracking down.

#9.

#8. Bad Times at the El WhatRoyaletosmoke: More giggle weed! If you’re looking for a flat-out fun stoner movie, “Bad Times at the Royale” is it. This mystery thriller, set in the 1970s, follows seven strangers who check in at the El Royale Hotel, a deserted old hotel that’s staffed by a single desk clerk. And, as you may have guessed by the fact that this is a mystery thriller, some of those guests are not who they appear to be — and some have nefarious reasons for checking into the hotel begin with. Each guest is hiding their own secret, and things emerge as they cross paths at the rundown hotel — which, of course, has its own dark past. You can think of it as a Tarantino-es que ride through a mystery thriller, but it’s a whole lot more fun than some of Tarantino’s darker films. You’ll dig it. Especially if you’re blazed. Now, this film isn’t particularly old or obscure, mind you — it first hit the box office in 2018 — but when it did, it flopped bigtime, and that’s a bummer. It’s completely underrated. And, as a stoner film, it’s basically kind of perfect. You’ll get plenty of entertain ment from the cast, which includes Jeff Bridges, Chris Hemsworth, Jon Hamm, Dakota Johnson and Cynthia Erivo — and while the plot may seem familiar at times, it’s a good familiar … the type of familiar that only a well-written stoner film can be. Showgirls

What to smoke: ANY THINGOK,OK. The terri ble-yet-brilliant film known as “Showgirls” may not be obscure, but it’s not exactly a film you’d think of when you picture stoner films, so it counts for this list. Now, why exactly do we think you should watch Nomi Malone try to rock a pole in a strip club while you’re stoned? Because you should. You just should. What makes “Showgirls” a great stoner film is that it’s equal parts puzzling, entertaining, and flat-out absurd. We’re not sure if it’s an erotic thriller, a come dy, a dance flick, satire, or something even further out in left field. It’s confusing and it’s great. But let’s say you aren’t familiar with this iconic film. Well, here’s the plot. Elizabeth Berkeley, who played the uptight Jesse character on Saved By the Bell (“I’m so excited! I’m so …. scared.” ) is the lead character, Nomi Malone, who heads to Vegas to pursue her dreams of becoming the main danc er is a very escandaloso dance show called Goddess. This Vegas dance show involves a lot of nudity, a lot of weird chaos a la Mad Max, and very little coherent plot line. Anyway, enough about the show Nomi is going after. It’s an afterthought, really. The true sauce in this film comes from what happens outside of the dance show — which includes some very bun gled lap dances performed by our very own showgirl herself. You get the gist. Now, let us make it clear that this film isn’t even sort of good, but it’s a great film to watch when you’re stoned. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry (you won’t cry), and you’ll cringe as you watch Nomi fumble everything that should otherwise be sexy about a showgirl. So, blaze up a bowl and switch this bad boy on. If you’re anything like us, you’ll think it’s great. It’s just so freaking great. But only if you’re blazed. #10. Brick What to smoke: Maybe stick to the sativas with this one? If you’re looking for an obscure stoner film, “Brick” is it. We haven’t seen much about this movie in the mainstream, but that’s OK. It can be our stoner secret.

#12. O Brother Where Art WhatThou?tosmoke: WWGCS? (What would George Clooney smoke?) If you took a nose dive into the world of The Soggy Bottom Boys back when this film first emerged in 2000, you know how brilliant this film can be. And, what’s more is that it can be even better when stoned.After all, who wouldn’t love some harmonizing and some entertainment from a film set in De pression-era Mississippi when they’re blazed? Nobody, that’s who. This film is part classic novel, part caper film, and it’s absolutely the bees knees whether you’re stone-cold sober or stoned. But, since we’re basically always stoned, we go with the latter for an epic time. Not familiar with “O Brother Where Art Thou?” Well, silly you. Here’s the plot.So, this film follows three convicts — Everett, Pete, and Delmar — as they break free from their chain gang and go on the run in search of the treasure Everett stashed before he got locked up (...they won’t let him out, sung in the voice of Akon). On the way to find said treasure, they cross paths with a young bluesman named Tommy. This leads to them accidentally recording a hit single because, well, why not? They also man age to embarrass the KKK, lose Pete in the mix, and gain a new member of the group (of the non-human kind). And yes, they eventually find the treasure, but is it the one they were looking for? Eh, you know it Whileain’t.perhaps not terribly obscure, “O Brother Where Art Thou” isn’t exact ly the type of film that comes to mind when one is thinking of putting together a stoner movie list, but it should be. It’s perfect for a smoke session film fest in your living room, and if you haven’t added it to your Netflix queue yet, what are you even doing with your life?

As Rian Johnson’s first directorial effort, this film is a special one. It follows teenage loner Brendan — who is played by freaking Joseph Gordon-Levitt — as he works to investigate what happened to his missing ex-girlfriend. As Brendan works to find said ex, he is plunged into a seedy underworld filled with high school crime — and it’s just an epic ride from there. (We won’t spoil it for you.)

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There’s a lot to unpack with this gritty mystery film, but what’s super cool about it outside of sir Gordon-Levitt’s lead is that the filmmaker’s now distinct visuals truly flourish under the weight of the narrative. It’s a wild ride, both visually and emotionally, and there is nobody more compelling who could have taken the lead. And, while this film holds plenty of water while sober, it’s even better when you’re stoned. Johnson’s visuals come to life even more when your head is buzz ing with bud, and you’ll be suckered into the absorbing detective story before you know it. #11. Who Framed Roger WhatRabbit?tosmoke: The most indica of all indicas to ever indica You got us. “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” is not really an obscure film unless you’re under the age of 25. After all, if you aren’t familiar with this 1988 cartoon-meets-real-life film, what kind of stoner even are you? Probably a young one. But even if Roger and Co. aren’t obscure, this film is still worth a spot on this list because it’s a great stoner movie and you’ll love it. Anywho, here’s the plot line for any young’n who needs it: This film takes place in a 1947 Hollywood, which is a world where cartoons live along side real-life humans. In said world, a toon-hating detective is the only hope for a cartoon rabbit — i.e. Roger Rabbit — who needs to prove his innocence after he is accused of murder. Oh, and there’s also a sexy rabbit lounge singer, some crazy cartoon antics, and a lot of creative and artistic flair to this film — which is just one part of why we love it. But that love turns into lust when you watch the film while stoned. Everything about this gonzo concept tends to pop with a little help from cannabis, from Jessica Rabbit’s sultry tunes to Roger’s over-the-top mannerisms. It’s easy to get immersed in this Rob ert Zemeckis film, and we highly suggest you do so the next time you toke up a bowl or six. You can thank us later for the suggestion.

— Angelica Leicht

Wed, Jan 26: Sports Trivia at Cuckoo’s Chicken House at 7:30 pm. How many

Your official events guide for Snowdown 2022 for some very fun, very sanctioned trouble to get into for Snowdown this year? These events are where it’s at.

Looking

Wed, Jan 26: Annual Snowdown Bartenders Contest at Starlight Lounge at 4:00 pm. The official Snowdown 2022 Cocktail is chosen during this traditional event. Now in its 43rd year since this celebration started! All cocktails will be judged on presentation and taste. You don’t have to be a bartender to enter, but you must be 21+.

Wed, Jan 26: Wizardly Lego Footslog at the 11th Street Station starting at 4:00 pm. Compete in a timed trial race to prove who has the strongest foot in all the land! All you wizards and magicians will race/walk/crawl across a medley of lego pieces, barefoot for the chance to win prizes! Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: Scotch Doubles Billiards at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 6:00 pm. Teams of two will play headto-head in this double elimination 8-ball tournament alternating shots after every made ball. Cash prizes will be awarded. MUST be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: Magical Pinball Tour nament at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 6:00 pm. This is an official sanctioned International Pinball Flipper Association Pinball Tournament. All player levels welcome. Wed, Jan 26 - Thurs, Jan 27: Magical Musical Mystery Tour at Fur Trappers Steakhouse and Bar at 6:00 pm. This is Snowdown’s oldest music trivia contest. From Top 40 hits and heavy metal to classic Broadway show tunes. Finals will be helf on Thursday. Must be 21+.

Wed, Jan 26: Ping Pong Tournament at Starlight Lounge at 6:00 pm. A sleight of hand, a bit of trickery and a talisman in your pocket might give you a bit of power, MAGIC POWER! Bring your cosmic self to the Starlight and play ping pong! Single elimination, regulation ping pong. Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: Bedazzled Butt Darts at 11th Street Station at 7:00 pm. A warped Snowdown event based on the classic party game “Quarters.” Teams of 4 will compete for the coveted Golden Ass Trophy! Limited to 12 teams battling tournament style! Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: The Mysto Really Big Magic Show at the Animas City Theatre at 7:30 pm. Mysto the Magi will take you on a vaudeville journey with little play-lets, mystery, secrets messages, and group participation in a full 90-min ute show with lots of fun, laughter, and illusion. Doors open at 6:30 PM, Show at 7:30 PM. All Ages - from 3 to 93!

Snowdown events for Wednesday, January 26 Wed, Jan 26: The Gathering Tourna ment at Joel’s Bar starting at 11:00 am. Bar tab prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. Wed, Jan 26 - Fri, Jan 28: Snowdown Scavenger Hunt Sign Up at The Billy Goat Saloon from 12:00 noon - 8:00 pm. Scour the country and find as many of the 100 items you can. Adults only. Wed, Jan 26: Keg Cap and Frisbee Golf at the Balcony Bar & Grill at 2:00 pm. Test your mastery at using keg caps as frisbees! Three chances with a prize for each win. You’ll be tossing keg caps as frisbees into a goal. Costumes bring good luck! Adults only.

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Thu, Jan 27: Snowdown Jr King and Queen Contest at Best Western Rio Grande at 4:30 pm.. This is one for the 7-to-10-year-olds from Durango grade schools! Winning royalty will ride in the Snowdown Light Parade Friday night! All ages are welcome to attend the final selection of Snowdown’s Junior King and Queen competition at the Best Western Rio Grande Inn to cheer for their schools’ selection.

Thu, Jan 27: 30th Annual La Plata Open Space Conservancy’s Craft Spirits & Wine Tasting at Outdoorsy - 934 Main at 4:30 pm. Hosted by La Plata Open Space Conservancy. Join La Plata Open Space Conservancy for a magical night celebrating 30 years! This Snowdown tradition features a silent auction, deli cious food, wine and cocktail tastings, all to support our work to conserve land, water and your Southwest Colorado way of life. Take a look into your Crystal Ball to see what a wonderful differ ence we can make in this area’s future! Tickets and more details can be found at www.lposc.org. Must be 21+.

GREAT STRAIN SELECTION • HASH

Thu, Jan 27: Giant Jenga at Starlight Lounge starting at 5:30 pm. Just like tabletop Jenga, but Hagrid style! Must beThu,21+.Jan 27: Magical Mystery Mock tail Tour at The Hive starting at 5:30 pm. A non-alcoholic pub crawl celebrating local mocktails and alcohol-free menus. Begin the tour at The Hive where you will collect your drink tokens and em bark on the adventure. Journey through downtown Durango and visit 11th Street Station, El Moro and Durango

Thu, Jan 27: Wheel Derby at The Balcony Bar & Grill starting at 2:00 pm. No magic tricks or hocus pocus. Each contestant does a timed lap around the balcony on a Big Wheel! Must be 18+.

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Thu, Jan 27: Boozin’ Beacons at Eolus starting at 5:00 pm. This a rollicking collision of libations and life-saving skills incorporating teamwork, knowledge of the downtown bar scene and skills with Avalanche Beacons. Teams are sent out across Durango. Games begin at Eolus where all teams are to return by 7 PM. Proceeds benefit Friends of the San Juans and Snowdown! Limited to 10 teams of 3-4 people. BYO Beacon and camera phone. Must be 21+.

CONCENTRATE • EDIBLES •

Let’s have a magical 2022! Thanks for making us #1 in 2021! & SEED APPAREL • MJ LITERATURE & CONSULTING • ATM ON SITE Grandview Location Bodo Park Location Cor tez Location The Alter native Resource (Durango) (Durango) RECREATIONAL ONLY 9am - 8pm 37 County Road 232 (970) 426-4381 MED 9am - 6:45pm / REC 9am - 8pm 72 Suttle Street Units F & G (970) 259-3674 MED & REC 9am - 8pm 1104 E. Main St. Cortez, CO 81321 (970) 426-4381 dimples does the average golf ball have? 336! Test your sports knowledge at Durango’s home for sports! Teams up to 6 people. Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: Lip Sync Contenst at El Rancho Tavern at 8:00 pm. Give some lip service to this lip sync contest and bewitch the audience with your daz zling performance! Solo or Group Acts, judging based on Best Performance and Crowd Favorite! Dance Party to follow! Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: 43rd Annual Snowdown Jokedown at Derailed Pour House at 9:00 pm. Why did the unicorn cross the road? Because it wanted to see its neighbors! An annual tradition for 43 years in this same location begins with 3-minute best stand-up comedy or best joke telling for cash prizes and fabulous trophies! Must be 21+.

• CLONES PIPES • SMOKING ACCESSORIES •

Wed, Jan 26: Klackers Tournament at Derailed Pour House at 9:00 pm. Abracadabra, clickety-clack, Klackers, Klackers for all you enchanters! See what we did there? Must be 21+. Wed, Jan 26: Snowdown Throwdown DJ/MC Battle at Derailed Pour House at 10:30 pm. Are you the best DJ? Are you the best MC? Join this contest to see who is the most fantastical in Durango! Must be 21+. Snowdown events for Thursday, January 27 Thu, Jan 27: Hogwarts House Potion Contests at the Joel’s Bar starting at 11:00 am. Come on down and show us your best margarita recipe. Bring in the magical ingredients that we wouldn’t have and we’ll provide the alcohol. This will be a two-part event. Come in between 11 AM to 4 PM and conjure up your cocktail. Must be 21+.

Thu, Jan 27: Hot Wing Eating Contest at Animas City Theatre starting at 4:00 pm. Hosted by Cuckoo’s Chicken House. Hot wings, and we mean HOT! Can you handle the heat without melting??? Or is the heat just an illusion??? Drop by Cuckoo’s for a full set of rules and to sign up as early as Jan 19. Limited to first 20 entries. Must be 18+. Thu, Jan 27: Name That Tune at 8th Avenue Tavern at 4:00 pm. Snippets of songs will be played for participants. The goal is to write the name of the song and the artist of said song after 2-10 seconds of song play. Every fourth song or so participants will be asked to also include the year the song came out. Each correct answer gets you one point. Most points by the end wins! You can play alone or with a group. Please no answer sharing and no use of phones to retrieve answers! Unless you are clairvoyant or the answer appears in an apparition, you are on your own. Let’s listen to some music! Must be 21+. Thu, Jan 27: Rock, Paper, Scissors at Starlight Lounge at 4:00 pm. Also known as Rochambeau which has a nice super stitious ring to it. Must be 21+.

Thu, Jan 27: Yule Ball Dance Party at Durango Dance starting at 5:00 pm. You’re cordially invited to a Magical Yule Ball. This family-friendly dance party event is open to Witches, Wizards and Muggles of all ages with rooms dedicat ed to each age group. Masks required.

Thu, Jan 27: Quidditch Tournament at The Hive starting at 5:00 pm. Find the snitch in a game of quidditch at The Hive downtown skate park at 1150 Main. All ages welcome to participate, but please establish teams of 3 and register prior to event! Keep all Dementors at bay!

Thurs, Jan 27: Science is Magic Trivia Night at Powerhouse Science Center at 6:30 pm. Science is magic!!! Join us at The Powerhouse for four rounds of triv ia questions, always including a science round and music round. Teams of five eligible for prizes. All ages welcome.

Thurs, Jan 27: Snow Job Blow Job at Starlight Lounge at 7:00 pm. The 1st person to blow an object across a table using a straw wins. No magic spells. No supernatural powers. Must be 21+.

Thurs, Jan 27: Pick Up Line Contest at Animas City Theatre at 8:00 pm. Do you have your sights set on a sexy sorcerer? Do you have a good one liner or two you think will increase your chances of getting lucky? Test your best pickup lines before a live audience! A panel of knowledgeable judges will determine if you’ve got what it takes to seal the deal. Must be Thurs,21+.Jan27: Drag Race & Fashion Show at El Rancho Tavern at 8:00 pm. Come strut your stuff and dress in your most bewitching Queen or King of the Drag! Join us at the El Rancho Tavern with Dance Party to follow! Must be 21+.Thurs, Jan 27: Flippity Floppity Cup at Starlight Lounge at 8:30 pm. Flip cups over on to its bottom. Merlin and David Copperfield are disqualified! Must be 21+.Thurs, Jan 27: Snowdown Getdown Dance Party at Starlight Lounge at 20:00 pm. Winner of the DJ battle from the night before plays. Must be 21+.

Thurs, Jan 27: Tallywhacker at Carver Brewing Company at 6:00 pm. Bring your razzle and your dazzle. This hilarious river game will have your belly laughing and your hips swinging! Let us judge your Tallywhacker proficiency with our brew pub version. No outside food or drink please. Must be 18+.

Thurs, Jan 27: Beer Pong at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 6:00 pm. Teams of two will square off in this double elimination tournament played with traditional beer pong rules. This is a 64-team bracket and teams should sign up early, this event fills up! Must be 21+.

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Snowdown events for

Thu, Jan 27: Karaoke Competition at 8th Avenue Tavern at 10:00 pm. Com petitors will be scored on their vocal skills, their knowledge of the song and their presentation of the performance. Highest score wins! There will be a sing-off to settle any ties. Come in and sing your enchanted hearts out! Must be 21+.

Friday, January 28 Fri, Jan 28: ACW Knights Armored Combat at Steamworks Brewing Com pany starting at 12:00 noon. Real steel armored combat between ACW insured fighters! The Armored Combat World wide (ACW) is a sports league that organizes competitive matches between medieval armored combat teams. Catch this unique spectacle for their first time in Durango! Fri, Jan 28: Snowdown Senior Bingo at La Plata County Senior Center at 1:00 pm. This is a great opportunity to check out your local marvelously magical La Plata County Senior Center! Did you know the Senior Center offers Zumba, Line dancing, TOPS, a library, a thrift store, a computer room and lots of other activities! There are so many resources for you sorcerous seniors. Come play with us! Must be 60+. Fri, Jan 28: Kan Jam at Balcony Bar & Grill at 1:00 pm. Bring all your magic powers into play to throw a fantasy frisbee into a charmed can. Must sign up as a team and be 18+. Fri, Jan 28: Kids Coloring Contest in the Kroegers Ace Hardware parking lot from 2:00 pm. Come conjure crayon magic by coloring unicorns, dragons or your own magical creations! The contest will be divided into three age groups; (1-5 years old, 6-10 years old, 11-15 years old). The wizarding winner in each group will receive a $100 toy shopping spree ($100 Ace gift card)! Fri, Jan 28: Super Sorcerously Sexy Car Wash at the 11th Street Station at 2:00 pm. Your job is to shine and sparkle while you sparkle and shine! Use your magic and put us under a spell with your sexy wizardly or witchy ensemble, get ting all soapy and sudsy while washing a classic car for one minute. Must be 21+.

Fri, Jan 28: Button Making at the Du rango Public Library at 3:30 pm. Dream up some extra enchanted bling before the parade! Join us to make your very own magical, mystical button. All ages welcome.Fri,Jan 28: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Science at the Powerhouse Science Center at 3:30 pm. Dress up as your favorite witch or wizard and take a trip to Hogwarts with your family! Let the “sorting hat” choose which house you belong to, decorate your wand for the light parade and find the science be hind magic at this all-ages event. FREE pizza and snacks for all attendees! All ages welcome.

Fri, Jan 28: Chili Cook Off at the Snowdown Space at 965 Main from 3:30 to 4:30 pm. Be the Magician in your group and score early tickets! You can avoid long lines standing in the bitter cold waiting and wanting and smelling deliciousness with the commoners that didn’t think to purchase early. No Siri Bob! My crystal ball tells me that will NOT be you! You are magical, you are a magician, you bought your tickets early! THEN you went to the Snowdown Light Parade, where you confidently patted your left pocket, Chili, yes…I’m ready for you like a tortilla is ready for cheese. Like a horn to a unicorn, like the ocean to the sea…oh, I’m ready for you Mas ters of the Chili cauldrons! I bought my tickets early. All is well in the land.

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Fri, Jan 28: Drink Up Relay at the Fired Up Pizzeria at 3:00 pm. Bring your Team of 4 People to play in Drinking Re lay Games and show your skills! Teams will participate in different games chal lenging their speed, smarts, and sorcery, making their way through a bracket to see who ends up on top! All four players must participate in every game. Space is limited! Teams MUST be signed up by 2 PM the day of the event. Event Entry is FREE but participants pay for beer pitchers. Must be 21+.

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Sat, Jan 29: How Well Do You Know Y(our) Wine? at the Four Leaves Winery from 12:00 noon to 7 pm. Come in anytime between 12 Noon and 7 PM and receive 4 samples of wine. If you can correctly identify 3 of the 4 samples using our description menu, you win a coupon for a FREE glass of wine. If you can correctly identify all 4, you will win a FREE bottle of wine! Must be 21+.

Sat, Jan 29: Bucket Beer Pong at the Starlight Lounge at 3:30 pm. It’s beer dribbling at it finest! Traditional beer pong with a magical twist using buckets and basketballs. Sat, Jan 29: Nintendo 64 Mario Kart at the Starlight Lounge at 6:00 pm. Use those tricky gaming skills that you have spent far too long perfecting. This is video gaming at it’s finest. Must be 21+.

Sat, Jan 29: 9 Ball Tournament at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 10:00 am. If you’re a billiards fanatic looking for a challenge, look no further! Test your supernatural skills in this riveting game of classic billiards. It may take some stardust to be the 9 ball wizard! Now in it’s 25th year! Double elimina tion 64 player bracket. Sat, Jan 29: Cornhole Tournament at the Durango Legion at 1:00 pm. Bring your glittery self to this brilliant game. Cornhole (aka bags, sack toss, or bean bag toss) is a lawn game in which players take turns throwing 16 ounce bags of corn kernels at a raised platform (board) with a hole in the far end. A bag in the hole scores 3 points, while one on the board scores 1 point. Play continues un til a team or player reaches or exceeds the score of 21. Sat, Jan 29: Chili Cook Off at the La Plata County Fairgrounds from 12:00 noon to 2 pm. Calling all alchemists! Time to dust off that cauldron for the annual chili cook off. Bring your hunger and your sense of adventure to enjoy samples of red and green chili, salsas and vegetarian chili. Sat, Jan 29: Outlaw Josie Pete’s Golf Tournament at the Main Mall Commons from 12:00 noon. Each hole is located in a different downtown establishment. If your entry has been chosen, meet at 11:30 AM at The Main Mall, wearing your best magical mystical attire. Bring your own putter and golf ball.

Snowdown events for Saturday, January 29 Sat, Jan 29: Bring Your Partner Foosball at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 9:30 am. Who needs outdoor sports in the middle of winter when we can play in the comfort of a bar where there’s beer. This is the only foosball tournament and it’s bring your own partner. 32 teams will compete, double elimination until the final team wins! Must be 21+.

February 2022 |

Fri, Jan 28: Carpet Ride at the Starlight Lounge at 5:00 pm. Calling all Aladdin’s! Come with us and take a Magic Carpet ride! Sit on a magic carpet and scoot or fly across the floor to the finish line. Must be 21+.

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Sat, Jan 29: Snowdown Kids Snow Games at Folsom Park at 10:00 am. This super silly SNOWDOWN event is now entertaining a second generation of spirited kiddos! No magic tricks here, just a magical time of fun games! This one is for the whimsical children from 3 years old up to 5th graders!

Sat, Jan 29: Best Chest in the West at the Starlight Lounge at 9:30 pm. Guys and gals! If you’re chest-worthy and want to ‘rack’ up some prizes, hit us with your best shot and show us what you’ve got! Best chest wins, man or woman. Must be 21+. Snowdown events for Sunday, January 30 Sun, Jan 30: Church Mystics at First Presbyterian Church of Durango start ing at 10 am. Come join us for a worship service focusing on the mystical tradi tion. We’ll journey through a contempla tive worship service, and afterward have conversation over coffee on the Chris tian Mystic Tradition. Rev. Beau Smith is currently pursuing doctoral studies in Spiritual Direction and Formation with an emphasis on the contemplative and mystic tradition and would love to share some of that journey with you! All ages welcome.Sun,Jan 30: Magic 8 Ball Billiards Tournament at The Garage Billiards & Music Hall at 10 am. Is that a magic wand in your hand or a pool cue? Dou ble elimination tournament with up to 32 magical mystical players! Come see if the 8 ball is in your favor. Must be 21+.

Fri, Jan 28: Snowdown Light Parade at the Starlight Lounge at 6:00 pm. Hosted by Purgatory Resort. Join the Magical Mystical beings on the streets for the SNOWDOWN Light Parade. It’s Durango’s only nighttime parade where light-bedecked floats create a dazzling delight in Durango’s most spectacular and entertaining procession along Main Avenue. Miracles will abound while wiz ards, witches, fairies, magicians and all things mystical show their supernatural creativity on lighted floats. Floats com pete for trophies in 10 divisions with special emphasis on lights and theme.

Angelica Leicht DGO EDITOR

New research is being done into how certain cannabinoids can fight back against the virus. If researchers are right, here’s how cannabis may spell the end for the pandemic. were clearing up, and while people were still sick, the widespread availability of the vaccine made things feel hopeful once again. That all came to an end over the last month or so, though, when omicron, a new strain of COVID that spreads like wildfire comeconsequenceswhoit’sAnd,lastbydroves,stilldying.PeoplestillhospitalsAswithclimbedagain,andhopefulhold.communities,throughouttookWewentfromtofrustratedscaredonceasnumberssky-highlittlewarning.oflateJanuary,wereoverwhelmed.werestillNurseswerequittinginworndowntheeventsofthecoupleofyears.thistimearound,notjusttheadultsarefacingseverethatcanwithcatchingthe virus. Children are now being hospi talized at higher rates with se vere COVID-related illnesses. So, what can be done? How do we dig ourselves out of this terrible hole — one that, as of late January 2022, had caused over 5,617,590 Americans to die? was tough to casesdropping,bersdemic.cameofthat2021,middlethough.seemedpointTheremanyhownocombat,mattercarefulofuswere.wasawhenthingslessdire,TowardtheandendofitappearedwemaybeoutthefirewhenittothepanNum-were

While smok ing weed isn’t likely to keep you from con tracting the novel coronavirus, new research into can nabis shows that the plant could be a promising weapon in the fight against the accordingetratingcausespreventedthatscreeningduringkey.—twoInvirus.particular,cannabiscompounds—cannabigerolicacid,orCBGA,andcannabidiolicacid,orCBDAcouldbetheResearchersfromOregonStateUniversityrecentlyfoundachemicaleffortCBDAandCBGAthevirusthatCOVID-19frompenhealthyhumancells,tostudydatapublished in the Journal of Nature Products. As part of the study, researchers noted that both CBDA and CBGA bound to spike proteins that are found on the virus — which worked

Is cannabis the key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic?

Well, it turns out that can nabis — or rather cannabis compounds — may be key. Howcouldcannabisplaya role in ending pandemicthe

To say the last couple of years have been tragic would be an understate ment. The COVID-19 pandemic has been ravaging our nation — and countries across the globe — for nearly two years now. And, with the massive uptick in omicron cases over the last few months, it appears there is no clear end in Thingssight. didn’t always feel this heavy, though. At the start of the COVID-19 pan demic, many of us thought we’d have the spread under control within a few weeks. After all, if we just stayed home, remained socially distant, and only ventured out when absolutely nec essary, we’d be out of this mess in no time flat. How hard could it be, right? My, how nai ve — and hopeful — we were. Getting the viral spread un der control proved to be a lot more of a task than orig inally anticipated — and for numerous reasons. Between the ease in which COVID spread, the ability of the virus to remain asymptom atic in certain people, and the rampant misinformation campaigns, the pandemic

While these new CBD studies are promising, it’s important to note that this new study data does not indicate that we will soon be replacing the vaccines and booster shots with CBD tinctures and big old sacks of weed. While it would be awesome if that were the case, what this research likely indicates is that cannabis derivatives — and CBD in particular — may be a supplemental tool instead. In other words, if research continues to prove that it’s of use in the battle against COVID, CBDA and CBGA would likely be used in conjunction with traditional methods, like vaccines, to help end the pandemic.Thereis also no evidence that the psychoactive cannabinoid tetrahy drocannabinol, or THC, plays a role in fighting against COVID. So while smoking an ounce of weed a week may be fun, there is no proof that it will have any real effect on the likelihood of COVID-19 virus transmission — or the subsequent effects of the virus.

to block a step that the pathogen uses to infect people. In the study, these compounds were able to bind to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Once bound, the compounds prevented the virus from entering the cells that typically line internal organs and skin — which is the route the pathogen process uses to infect humans with COVID-19.

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That said, it’s important to note that the lack of evidence regarding THC doesn’t actually mean that THC has no

What that means is that — in theory — if CBGA and CBDA are taken in the right manner, and in the right amount, they could help to lessen the effects of the COVID-19 virus in people who are infected. Given that millions of Americans have already succumbed to the effects of the virus, this could be game-changing — and life-changing, too.“That means cell entry inhibitors, like the acids from hemp, could be used to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection and also to shorten infections by preventing virus particles from infecting human cells. They bind to the spike proteins so those proteins can’t bind to the ACE2 enzyme, which is abundant on the outer membrane of endothelial cells in the lungs and other organs,” Richard van Breemen, a scientist with Ore gon State’s Global Hemp Innovation Center, College of Pharmacy, and Linus Pauling Institute, said in a statement. And, what’s more is that both can nabis compounds — CBDA and CBDG — were found to be equally effective against the SARS-CoV-2 alpha and beta variants.That’s not the only promising lead that researchers have found regarding cannabis’ role in fighting the pandemic, either.Arecent research study published in the Science Advances journal, Univer sity of Chicago researchers have found evidence that plain old CBD could help to prevent contracting the virus altogether.According to the study data, when people — not lab mice — were pre scribed regular high-potency doses of pharmaceutical-grade CBD, they were less likely to contract COVID. “Our research suggest that CBD and its metabolite 7-OH-CBD,” which is a compound produced after the body processes CBD, “can block SARS-Cov-2 infection at early and even later stages of infection,” researchers noted in the study.Aspart of the study, University of Chicago researchers treated human lung cells with CBD prior to infecting them with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. What they found was that “CBD potently in hibited viral replication under non-tox ic conditions” — and CBD alone. “Remarkably,” they wrote, “only CBD was a potent agent.” So how did CBD do this? Well, it appears, according to researchers, that the cannabinoid activates a cellu lar stress response that is normally triggered in the presence of “viruses or other pathogens.” This stress response produces a series of proteins, called interferons, which act as antivirals to fight the virus. And, that’s not all researchers found, either. According to the study data, CBD also prevented the virus from making other changes to infected host cells. These cellular-level findings were then tested on mice, which were given two loads of CBD — either 20 or 80 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. According to the researchers, the mice that were given 80 milligrams of CBD per kilo of weight saw significant decreases of viral loads in the lungs and the nose — in some cases up to “40- and 4.8-fold.”

While those findings are indeed no table, it’s important to note that a high dose of CBD, similar to what was given to the mice, would be extremely expen sive if calculated for human dosage. For example, a 150-pound person would have to take 5,440 milligrams of CBD to match what was given to the mice. But while that price may be cost-prohibitive in many cases, it may also be money well spent — at least if we’re calculating in the findings that the same University of Chicago researchers found when looking at datasets related to Epidiolex, a CBDbased pharmaceutical drug for patients with severe seizure disorders.

As part of the study into CBD and COVID, the researchers reviewed data from 1,212 patients taking Epidiolex in a dataset called the National COVID Cohort Collaborative. What they found was that the COVID infection rate among people with a “medication record” of taking pharmaceutical-grade CBD was 6.2% — significantly lower than the 8.9% infection rate for people not taking CBD. And the potential of CBD to fight against COVID was even more evident in the people who took CBD the same day as their COVID-19 tests. When looking at a subset of 531 patients “who were likely taking” 100 milligrams of CBD, the positivity rate was 4.9%, compared to a rate of 9% for the control group that was not taking the drug. That difference of 4.1% is pretty significant — and almost certainly warrants more research into the topic. What role does THC play in the fight against COVID?

It’s also important to note that the mechanism in which these cannabis compounds are ingested may also play a role.According to Van Breeman, who spoke to VICE News about the study, smoking a joint or a bowl of weed, even if it’s filled with CBD, may not play the same role as ingesting an oral supple ment with CBD (or any other cannabi noid). That’s because, when heated, the chemi cal profile and properties of you can’t get high off of just eating a bag of weed. Your stomach may digest the plant matter, but without combus tion, you won’t get high off the THC in the plant. It will remain inactive. Conversely, lighting the plant matter that contains CBD could negate some of the properties needed to combat the transmission of the virus from one person to another. That’s all theory, of course. A lot more research will need to be done to prove what’s true one way or the other. What researchers have to say about the findings In recent interviews, researchers have highlighted both the potential significance of their work — and the fessor of cancer research at the University of Chicago and a lead study author, told VICE.

February 2022 | 17

role in the fight against the pandemic. It just means that for the most part, re searchers are federally prohibited from studying the potential positive effects of THC in a clinical setting. Federal prohibition of cannabis — and cannabis’ classification as a Schedule I drug — has long played a part in limiting researchers’ abilities to research positive effects of the plant. As a Schedule I drug, cannabis is defined as a drug with no currently ac cepted medical use and a high potential forWhileabuse.it’s clear that is not actually the case, the federal Schedule I clas sification severely limits any research that can be done into cannabinoids like THC, which are only found in the cannabis sativa plant. Researchers who want to study the legitimate medical uses of cannabis are bound by these limitations — and while these laws recently became laxer, it is, for the most part, still nearly impossible for researchers to study the medical uses of ResearchTHC. into CBD, on the other the cannabinoid in a wider capacity. The ability to derive CBD from a legal plant makes it a lot easier to conduct research studies like the ones above. And, that’s precisely what hap pened in at least one of these cases. Researchers from Oregon State were unable to study THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, due to cam pus rules prohibiting research using controlled substances. As such, their research was limited to compounds related to CBD. So, whether THC could play a role in the fight remains a question that isn’t easily answered.

Rosner also noted that it’s important to remember these findings are limited to just CBD — and not just any CBD, either. These findings pertain to certain types of high-grade CBD products that can deliver a very large dose of the compound.“Goingto your corner bakery and buying some CBD muffins or gummy bears probably won’t do anything,” Rosner said. It’s also important to note that — again — there is nothing in these stud ies to indicate that CBD can be used as a complete replacement for things like masks and vaccinations. In fact, Rosner noted concern that the research study would lead people to believe that masking and vaccines could be replaced with high-dose CBD, which is not the case. “What we don’t want is people just running out and thinking, ‘I can take CBD, and then I don’t have to get vaccinated or I don’t have to be masked,” Ros ner said. “This is what we really don’t So what are the next steps? Well, researchers are hopeful that the clinical trials with human participants can start ASAP. After all, with COVID infection and hospitalization numbers at new highs, time is of the essence. “We are very eager to see some clinical trials on this subject get off the ground,” Rosner told the University of Chicago’s news service. “Especially as we are seeing that the pandemic is still nowhere near the end,” she added, “determining wheth er this generally safe, well-tolerated, and non-psychoactive cannabinoid might have anti-viral effects against COVID-19 is of critical importance.”

18 | February 2022

OK, so it’s question time. How many of you would take an edible to curb your appetite (or the mid-day munchies)? Let’s see a show of hands. From here I see zero hands (and yes, it’s totally because I’m alone in my house writing this). And, zero hands make sense. When we think of weed, we typically think of eating all the freaking chips and tiny chocolate donuts our stoner asses stored in our emergency snack kits for when we’re high as a kite. The munchies are real. Well, that’s what I think about, anyway. Smoking weed makes me hungry. What can I say? That said, it apparently doesn’t have to make you hungry. Turns out certain cannabinoids can suppress yourWell,appetite.that’s the premise behind the new Cheeba Chews THCV Charged Chocolate Taffy, anyway. These new edibles are pretty freaking unique, if you ask me. Unlike your typical edibles that come with 10 milligrams of THC, these bad boys contain 5 milli grams of THC, 5 milligrams of caffeine, and 2.5 milligrams of THCV — a canna binoid that you don’t often find in your regular edibles. The idea behind adding the caffeine and the THCV is that the edibles will give you a burst of energy, like a weed stimulant, so you can focus on what you need to do. Cheeba Chews even promotes them as a partner for your morning routine, which makes sense. But what the heck is THCV, you ask? Well, I didn’t know either prior to trying out these edibles, so I had to Google it. Here’s what I learned. So, as you may have gathered by the cannabinoids acronym, THCV is related to THC, but this cannabinoid acts a little differently than your everyday THC. Ac cording to the folks over at Leafly, here’s what makes it different: - THCV is an appetite suppressant and may dull the appetite, which can help with weight loss. - THCV may help also with diabetes because it shows promise when it comes to helping regulate blood sugar levels and reducing insulin resistance. - THCV may reduce panic attacks in PTSD patients without suppressing emotion.-THCV may help with Alzheimer’s, but research is in progress. - THCV stimulates bone growth and is being looked at for osteoporosis and other bone-related conditions. Pretty cool, right? Right. But I wasn’t taking it for osteoporosis or diabetes. I was taking it to get stoned and see if these new Cheeba Chews could really curb the munchies. So only the first list entry above really matters in thisAsequation.such,Ipopped two of these bad boys in my mouth as soon as I picked them up from Prohibition, where they’re new on the shelves. I opted for two be cause 5 milligrams ain’t gonna do nothin’ me at this point in my pothead life. And, my first thought was that yes, it was clear that there was caffeine in these edibles. They taste like a caffein ated tootsie roll. Not bad, but not quite what I expected. My second thought was that like many other Cheeba edibles, these had quite the weedy aftertaste. I’m not knocking it, but if you’re super adamant about your edibles not tasting like weed, these may not be the ones for you. Once I washed them down, I waited. And waited. And waited some more. It took about half an hour for me to start feeling the effects of these edibles, but once I did, it was very apparent that they were kicking in — and not in the normal edible way, either. Rather than hitting me straight in the frontal lobe, the effects of these new Cheeba Chews were a soft glaze to my brain. I initially felt a little glow, like a wash of energy running over my brain. I was waking up, despite it being about 9 p.m. on a And,Tuesday.thatwash of energy quickly became a tidal wave. I was awake, aware, and my brain was clear but also slightly high. Unusual? Yes. Rad? Of course! I basically went from being a lazy bump on a log to being wide the hell awake. Interesting, right? Even more interesting was that while I was high, I was indeed not very hungry! That is VERY unusual for me. I am the gotdang chip monster when I’m stoned. From there, things were pretty status quo. Because I was awake I wanted to clean. So, that’s what I did. At like 10 p.m. on a weeknight I decided, screw it, I’m putting away the pile of laundry I’ve been avoiding for weeks on end. From there, I scrubbed the kitchen and organized a bunch of junk in my office that had been piling up, too. Was it cool? Eh, not in the “I’m so stoned I can’t stop laughing at Nancy Grace’s demon face” kind of way. But it was cool in the “Hell yeah, look at me adulting like a boss” kind of way. So, you know. Perspective. I will tell you, though, that while I was not initially starving, that feeling did not last. I’m going to be unbiased here and say that I cleaned for hours, so it could have been that I just naturally worked up an appetite, or it could have been that the edibles wore off and THEN I was hungry, but at some point, I got into the cupcakes. And I got into them real bad. Like, I probably ate six cupcakes in one sitting … and the freaking leftover red velvet cake I had stowed in the fridge. But, like I said, I can’t entirely blame that on the edibles. The weed may have made me hungry, but it also could have been the sweat equity I was putting into doing WORK, son. Or it could have been the fact that the edibles wore off and I was just hungry. I do not know for sure. What I do know is that I will be giving these bad boys another try — and next time I will do so earlier in the day. I’m not an edibles person overall, but if these Cheeba Chews can help me focus, push me into cleaning, and keep the munchies away for a while, I’m in. Even if they taste like coffee and weed. So, if you’re looking for an edible that won’t entice you to pack on the pounds, or an edible that may help you snap to attention when you need to, I’d check these out. I’m not an expert on THCV, but if half of the research on this canna binoid is correct, it’s an interesting one — and as such, these edibles could come in handy for so many reasons. — DGO Pufnstuf

Can these new Cheeba Chews THCV Charged Chocolate Taffy edibles really curb your Wemunchies?triedoutthesenew edibles for Prohibition Herb. Here’s what we learned about them — and the elusive cannabinoid they contain.

DGO’s Blaze and Puf answer your weed questions you are too embarrassed to ask anyone else.

ASK A COUPLE OF POTHEADS IS HERE FOR YOU!

Come one, come all with your silly, embarrassing, or just plain weird questions about weed, weed-related issues, and whatever else you can dream up. We’ll do our best to answer them in the best way possible. And here we go. editor@dgomag.com Ever smoked a High Times Can nabis Cup Colorado people’s choice award-winning strain? (Good lord, that was a mouthful.) I have — and if you haven’t, you have no excuse for it. This strain is available right down the dang road, whether you live in Pagosa Springs or NotDurango.surewhat I’m talking about? Well, I’m talking about Jabberwocky from The Green House Durango, sillies. This strain won the people’s choice award in the Sativa Flower category at the High Times Cannabis Cup Colorado in August of 2020. It was the only award given to a grower in Southwest Colorado, and it’s the first Pagosa Therapeutics has won. I guess when Pagosa Therapeutics, the sister store of The Green House Duran go, goes for it, they go all freaking in. I’ve long been a fan of their grow’s strains because, well, they’re incredibly and insanely potent. They’ve knockd both Blaze and myself on our asses a countless number of times, and while I try not to smoke their strains during the day so I’m not a total freaking pothead stereotype, I do like to indulge in this dispensary’s flower any other time I can justifyWhich,it. you know, is why I was excited for this review. I was finally going to get to smoke the award-winning Jabber wocky strain, which until this point, I had not had the pleasure of trying. I had heard a lot about it, though. This strain has become quite famous for its frost, which indicates a high concentra tion of trichomes. It was the first strain that Pagosa Therapeutics had submitted for competition, and they stole the show on the first try. Given the infamy behind the dispensa ry’s Jabberwocky, I was not only excited, but also nervous. If this grow’s strains kick my teeth in normally, what would the award-winning strain be like? Well, as it turns out, it falls in line with

Continued on page 26

February 2022 | 19

Beware the Jabberwocky strain, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! Just kidding! No jaws here! It’s just some sweet award-winning Green House Durango weed instead.

20 | February 2022

Listen dear readers: there’s getting high and then there’s getting so high you put your vape pen in your toothbrush holder. Well, maybe I should be (but, I’m not) ashamed to admit that Muncheez juicy fruit gummies got me there this week.Have I sold you on it yet? Let’s get into it a little Muncheez,deeper.amarijuana gummy line released by Kaviar, comes in passion fruit (indica), peach (sativa), and water melon (hybrid). Each bag comes with 10 pieces, each infused with 10mg of THC. Since passion fruit isn’t a flavor I come across when out in the wild (aka virtual ly shopping at local dispensaries for as much cannabis as the state will allow me to legally purchase at once), I decided I was going to go with an indica for this week’s review. First off, these gummies are friggin’ delicious. Passion fruit was tropical and just sweet enough without overpower ing any citrus flavor. And let me tell you, it smells divine (for full transparency, I opened up the bag and took a big whiff just now like an unhinged stoner). As COVID-19 is heating up here in Colorado again, I stuck to my usual Friday night routine of getting stoned and watching TV until I inevitably fall asleep. True to indica style, I found my self feeling heavy, relaxed, and sleepy. At this point in my COVID quarantine, my entire living room is essentially a ball pit of snacks, pillows, and blankets strewn across couches and tables. I assume everyone’s living room has reached this peak as well, to be honest. Thus, it wasn’t long before I was a couch puddle huddled under a mountain of blankets who forgot they had turned on “Godzil la: King of the Monsters.” I was pretty set on burrowing under my blanket fort and into my couch for the winter until I decided to clean up and put away the disaster that was atop my coffee table. When I went to put away my edibles into my handy dandy weed drawer, I sighed. It was a mess and my stoned brain decided it was a good time to attempt to aimlessly reorganize it. As far as I could tell, it was going great! As sleepy as I was, I knew I’d feel better about it the next day. Eventually, I lost interest, wandered around a bit with a severe case of munchies (as the name promises), and fell asleep like a rockThestar.next day, sober and clear-head ed, I started the day off by doing some weekend chores. It wasn’t long though before I realized I didn’t have cause to be even nearly as proud as I was of my organizational skills the night before. After I got bored cleaning up my weed drawer, I had apparently wan dered around setting items in random places. For instance, I found one of my vape pens inexplicably in my toothbrush holder. As soon as I found it, I had a flashback to thinking that I needed to keep my vape pen propped up to let the oil flow properly (?!) and that was the best place to keep it. I am never going to live that down so please keep that between us, ok? If you’re looking for a gummy edi ble that will not only flatten you but keep you as relaxed (as anyone can be during a pandemic), look no further than Muncheez — the passion fruit indica will keep things especially tranquil. I would just highly recommend not participating in any late-night cleaning. — Sir Blaze Ridcully

This weed gummy line from Kaviar will make sure your tummy is a rumblin’ (while you’re high as a kite)

Got the Muncheez?

— Amanda Push

While recreational marijuana use be came legal as of June 29, 2021, cannabis sales won’t start until April 1, while leg islators iron out details for growers and retailers. However, sales may be allowed sooner if policies are decided before the deadline.LikeColorado, New Mexico is plan ning to levy a state tax on cannabis sold, starting at 12%. Lawmakers eventually raise the tax to 18% by July 2030.

While this is just a start, lawmakers know they have a long way to go before laws and processes are perfected.

Is it going to get easier to work in New Mexico’s marijuana industry?

Sinsère Chocolates caramel peanut bites are a stoner’s dream candy Belgian milk chocolate, crisp peanuts, sticky caramel, and delicious nougat? Yes, please. Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that they’re filled with THC, either.

“Hopefully this continues to strength en the ability for entrepreneurs to get into the business,” Romero told Albu querque’s KRQE. “And feel very good about how these licenses are being issued.”

“We’re going to continue to learn from this industry as we open it up,” Rep. Romero told the TV station.

Well, if we’re judging by this new weed industry bill it certainly will be.

February 2022 | 21 Have you ever had an edible that gave you munchies for the very edible that gave you the munchies in the first place? That sentence didn’t make much sense, but I swear it did when I wrote it down in my Notes app…when I was stoned. But, I digress. The point is that, this week, I tried Sinsère Chocolates caramel peanut bites for the first time and I am quite over the moon for them. It certain ly doesn’t help that I have a weakness for peanuts and chocolate, and the cara mel is the cherry on top. Unfortunately, chocolate peanut snacks are exactly what I crave when I’m stoned, so I may have ingested way more than I should have and got entirely too high. Let me explain. As usual, I was on the hunt for a new edible to try and as soon as I laid my eyes on that bag of goodies, it was love at first sight. I saved these edibles for a Friday night after a stressful week of work, when I was able to truly kick back, relax, and enjoy the high of someone who has nothing better to do. After ruining the food a few too many times, I’ve been banned by my room mate from cooking or doing anything that requires more than two brain cells to rub together. So, these days, I mostly stick to rewatching episodes of “Futura ma” or trying to guess the culprit in “Un usual Suspects” (the show, not the film). Thus, I popped one of the bites into my mouth and settled in for whatever the evening had to bring. These bites come with 10 milligrams of THC apiece, and, for lightweight self, really packed a punch. These chocolates are a hybrid strain, and they ended up giving me a total body high. A cozy buzz was running through my brain folds (thank you again, Notes app) and I could not stop laughing at the corniest jokes “Futurama” had to offer. Like choke laughing to where I am surprised I didn’t die. Between the Belgian milk chocolate, crisp peanuts, sticky caramel, and deli cious nougat, I was in stoned heaven. And, that’s where my troubles began. Like I said earlier: these bites will give you the munchies. Bad. Like, your kitchen cupboard, fridge, and freezer may be in danger of being emptied, so I highly suggest taking this edible under tight supervision of a sober friend who will yell at you if you try to eat the last of the ice cream. I, having long ago eaten my remaining ice cream, turned to my bag of Sinsère Chocolates instead. I ended up getting so stoned, I have no memories of much afterward. At some point, I must have fallen asleep because I woke up several hours later with my hand still stuffed inside my Sinsère Chocolates bag, only a few bites left. What I’m trying to say is that these Sinsère Chocolates caramel peanut bites are damn near perfection. Clearly, even my half-awake stoned self agreed with that. Next time you have trouble sleeping or want to enjoy a corny 1990s/ early-2000s TV show, give one of these chocolate treats a go. Or two. Or three. — Sir Blaze Ridcully

New Mexico legislators want to make it easier to work in the marijuana industry As of June 2021, New Mexico decid ed to join the cool kids at the legal mari juana recreational table, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome them. But, as with any new significant change to policy, legislators are still working to iron out the kinks. Among the priorities for lawmakers is to make it easier for folks to work in the marijuana industry. One such measure is Senate Bill 100, proposed by Rep. Linda Lopez and Rep. Andrea Romero. Part of this bill is to expand the number of plants a grow can have. For example, the bill proposes to allow smaller grows to go from being allowed to have 200 plants to 1,000. This aspect of the bill is meant to pro vide “equity” to smaller growers, accord ing to Rep. Romero, and create healthy competition and growth opportunities for those in the cannabis industry. Other measures include cutting down on the cost of plants and allowing business owners that are licensed to sell booze to also sell marijuana (though, not within the same vicinity).

Hi there! It’s time for another Q&A with our good buddies Blaze and Puf. These two pot heads are here to answer all of your burning questions about cannabis, legalization, and other weed-related inqui ries. That’s basically all they’re good for — that and smoking weed — so you might as well take advantage of their useless knowledge as you see fit. This month, we have all sorts of awesome questions to answer for you. From what to expect at a dispensary to why your body thinks indicas are sativas (and vice versa), here are your ques tions about pot for our in-house Havepotheads.questions to ask these two fools? Send them to edi tor@dgomag.com and we’ll do our best to answer them. And, feel free to send them allll over — your wild, wacky, and just plain weird questions about weed. Nothing shocks us at this point. And we do mean nothing. Whenever I smoke indicas I gain a lot of energy, but

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Ask a couple ofFrompotheadswhattoexpectata dispensary to why your body does some THC trickery on occasion, here are the burning questions you had for our resident potheads this month

February 2022 | 23 when I smoke sativas I get tired. When I researched, I found that it’s supposed to be the opposite. Is something wrong with me? Blaze: Absolutely not! The anticipated effects of a strain are pretty generalized. There’s no hard and fast rules for how marijuana is supposed to make you feel, think, etc. In fact, I think it’s pretty common for people to have various experiences de pending on the strain. I think it would actually be pretty boring if everyone had the same reactions, to be hon est. I myself have had plenty of times when I’ve had a sativa and passed out on my couch immediately after or smoked an indica then proceeded to clean my entire kitchen. I say go with the flow and don’t let expecta tions ruin your experiences. Puf: Yes. Everything is wrong with you. (I kid! I kid! You’re total ly normal.)Here’sthe thing about weed. It kinda does what it wants in our bodies depending on the strain, the dosage (i.e. how much we smoked at the time), how much we’ve eaten (or dran kety-drank), and other factors. It also totally depends on the mode of ingestion, too. For example, I say eff bongs. Bongs ruin my life. Or, rather, I ruin my life with bongs because I don’t know and or care about my limits when I’m smoking a fat bowl out of a bong. And then, 20 minutes after that thing is cashed, I’m sweating bullets, high out of my mind, and — on occasion — am also super nauseated.Samething goes for most edibles. I can smoke a ton, but if I eat a few edibles, I get very, very high to the point of non-functional and then find myself aimlessly wandering the aisles of a rural Nebraska gas station looking for a specific type of pickle popcorn. (Just ask Blaze.) Now, is that the weed’s fault? Nah. It’s my body’s fault. I overdo it and my body reacts accordingly. Or, in the case of the edibles, my body just processes them differently than other pe ople’s bodies process them. That said, I don’t have the same reac tion as you do to sativas and indicas, no matter how I ingest them. Sativas make me wired and hyper-focused, and can give me anxiety too. Pretty textbook. Indicas, on the other hand, make me sleepy as a mug. And hybrids? Well, who even knows what those do. Depends on theButstrain.just because your body reacts dif ferently doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you. It just means that you may process your weed a little different ly than I do. If I were you, I’d just swap the strains accordingly. When I want to get wired and focus, I’d smoke an indica. If I wanted to crash the heck out, I’d smoke a sativa. Does it sound weird? Yeah, kinda. But who cares. It’s a cool party trick. I’m impressed, anyway. I’m planning to go to a dispensary for the first time, but I’m not sure what to expect. Do you have any advice for Blaze:first-timers? Ah, I remember my first time in a dispensary. It was in a small Colorado bor der town and I had no idea what I was doing. Luckily for me, the budtender could sense I was a fish out of water and took pity on me. I vaguely remember panic ordering.So,inlight of that, I highly suggest being honest with your budtender, tell them it’s your first time, and ask them what they recommend. To give you some context, sativas typically give you head highs and tend to make you feel euphoric. Indicas can give you body highs and make you feel relaxed while hybrids can give you the best of both worlds. How ever, everyone is different and may have different reactions so feel free to experiment! Puf: This is always my fa vorite question because I get it a lot in real life and I LOVE schooling people on dispen saries. Like, no snark at all. I loveToit.echo Blaze’s senti ments, going into a dis pensary for the first time is intimidating. It can feel a little bit like you’re doing something illegal, and a LOT like you’re a dumbass. Don’t let it feel that way. Part of the intimidation factor is that it feels like everyone else who’s ordering knows exactly what the hell they’re doing. Don’t let that fool you. We’re all noobs about weed — all of us except for the budtenders.BeforeIget to that, though, lemme tell you how the process works. You’ll step inside and someone will ask for your ID immediately. You’ll need to pro

24 | February 2022 duce that before you can get in. Don’t try to get around it. If you do, no weed forOnceyou. that’s done, you’ll wait in a line, either in the front of the dispensary or in the dispensary itself, to get called up by a budtender. Easy peasy. And, once you get to the budtender, you can ask allllllll the questions in the world. Don’t know what an indica is? Your budtender can educate you. Don’t know whether you should try an edible? Your budtender can tell you their opin ions or experiences. And the same goes for any other can nabis-related question you may have.

Budtenders are your tour guide to the wide world of weed, and you shouldn’t be embarrassed to ask them questions, no matter how basic they seem. (You also shouldn’t be stingy about tipping them. They work their asses off to keep you stoned. Hook them up like they’re hooking you up!) I had to have this same conversa tion with my dad, my mom, and like 15 other people, too . The truth is that the unknown, whatever it is, is scary. But once you encounter it a couple of times, it becomes less intimidating, which is precisely what will happen with dispen saries. I want to use cannabis but I don’t want to feel high. What sort of products should I Blaze:use? To be clear, the CBD in canna

February 2022 | 25 bis is the non-psychoactive ingredient in cannabis while THC is the psychoactive ingredient. What this means is that THC will get you high while CBD won’t. How ever, marijuana dispensaries cannot sell CBD-only products — all products must include THC. However, some dispensaries do sell products that contain high amounts of CBD and a small percentage of THC. Most likely, these products will not get you high, but just to be on the safe side, try them in small amounts. If you want to use cannabis but avoid THC completely, you can also visit CBD-only stores that provide products with zero THC. Puf: Umm, OK, so I’m gonna be honest here. I like being high and I don’t know if I’d love ingesting or smoking something that didn’t make me high. But while I don’t quite understand the aversion to “feeling high,” I guess I can try to help out here. Like Blaze said, the THC in weed will get you high. It is the cannabinoid that has psychoac tive properties, so if you’re smoking or eating something with any THC in it, you’re probably going to feel at least someThateffects.said,you can keep that feeling to a minimum by smoking or ingesting a cannabis product or strain with a low amount of THC in it. For example, there are specific products that allow you to microdose like 1 milligram of THC at a time. A normal dose is 10 milligrams. So if you’re wanting to keep the THC in the product but don’t want to feel high, I’d suggest starting with one of those and seeing how you feel about it. But if you want to avoid THC com pletely, you’ll probably want to just go with a hemp-derived CBD product instead. I will warn you, though, that my pot-averse mom, who (bless her Texan soul) wanted to get relief for her arthritis tried CBD because she didn’t want to feel “high” like she thought she would from cannabis. Well, it turns out that CBD makes her super sleepy, so she didn’t love that either. My point here is that if you don’t want to feel “altered,” you just have to try and see what works. It’s trial and error, and what you think might work for you may not. Just like what you think might be annoying or make you feel out of control might not make you feel that way at all. So don’t rule out THC or any other cannabinoid til you try it out. On Why does marijuana feel different when I smoke it rather than eating it in edible form? Blaze: When you’re smoking marijua na rather than ingesting it, your body is absorbing THC in a completely different manner. When you smoke marijuana, the THC is going directly to your brain rather than being processed using different or gans. This is why, when smoking, you tend to get stoned much faster than when you ingest it via edibles. On the other hand, when you take edibles, your body process es the edible using your liver, creating a chemical called 11-hydroxy-THC. The di gestive process may take longer for you to get high, but it will be a more potent high.

Puf: I know this one! OK, so while I am not a scientist, I do know that the reason your body reacts to smoking differently than it does to ingesting cannabis in edible form is the mechanism in which you’re taking in the THC.When you ingest an edible, your body is breaking it down and processing it via the lining of your stomach — and the digestive process plays a huge part in how quickly you get high (and how high youButget).when you smoke your weed or vape or whatever, the THC goes right to the old chrome dome, so you get stoned much more quickly. However, you’re typically trading in some of the more heavy-duty effects you’d get with an edible for the faster high. Anything other than that is well above my head and well above my pay grade. All you have to remember is that the method of ingestion directly impacts how you feel when you’re stoned and you’ll be fine.

— Blaze Ridcully — DGO Pufnstuf

LivWell Cortez, 1819 E. Main Street, 970-565-9577, livwell.com/cortez The Medicine Man, 310 E. Main Street, 970-564-5181, cortezmedicine man.com Mountain Annie’s, 1644 CO Rd 203, 970-247-2190, bis.com/durangomountainanniescanna Mancos

The Green House, 730 S Camino Del Rio, 970-247-2420, thegreenhousecolo rado.com/durango Mammoth Farms Dispensary, 927 CO-3, 970-422-3282, info@mammoth farms.com

Durango Organics Cortez, 1104 E. Main Street, 970-565-6500, durangoor ganics.com

Colorado Grow Co., 965 1/2 Main Ave., 970-259-1647, coloradogrowcom pany.com

Durango Organics - Grandview, 37 Co Rd 232, 970-426-4381, durangoor ganics.com

all of the other strains this dispensary sells. And by that I mean it was super potent and it definitely kicked me in the face. I didn’t even try to defend myself. I just gave in. But I’ll get to that. So, let’s start with how this little Jabberwocky strain was created, shall we? The Jabberwocky strain is a hybrid that’s a cross between Lucky Charms and Bio-Diesel. It’s known for its deli cious pine scent and its potent effects, and it’s a popular strain with seasoned smokers across the board, whether it’s grown at Pagosa Therapeutics or otherwise. While I am certainly a regular im biber on the ol’ ganja, I’d actually never smoked any Jabberwocky from any dis pensary prior to this review. I was going into this without a baseline assessment of what this strain should be, other than my bare bones knowledge of the recent win at the High Times Cannabis Cup. And, I can tell you, it wasn’t quite what I expected. Not if we’re judging by the looks of this ol’ gal, anyway. I guess I expected this strain to blow my mind with its thicc nugs, but when I popped the lid open on the container after leaving The Green House, I was surprised to find little popcorn nuggets instead. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. I do not judge a book nor a weed strain by its cover. And I certainly don’t mind little fluffy nugs of weed. I’ll smoke it all — fat, thin, fluffy, sticky, or sometimes even dry when I find some old stash in a desk drawer. I don’t care. Judge away. I was also expecting more of a woodsy, piney scent to emit from the container. What I got instead was a face full of diesel fuel. Gas, gas, gas, gas, gas, gas...everybody?So,beforeI’deven smoked the strain I’d been thrown off by its looks and smell. That didn’t stop me, of course, and I’m lucky it didn’t. This strain, when I lit it up, was a totally different experi ence than I’d expected. First of all, the taste. While this strain smelled like gasoline, it tasted like grassy green heaven. My god, you guys. I have never tasted a strain so clean or fresh or earthy. I was transported from stupid winter to awesome summer. Hell. Yeah. I wanted to smoke the entire bowl from the taste alone, so...you know...I did. And, for me, this was a creeper. I could feel myself getting a little spac ey, but when I’d the bowl was cashed, I went from 0 to 60 in two seconds flat. My eyes stopped cooperating, my mouth got dry, and I swear to Christ, I totally saw the eyes bulge out of the head of a person on an ad. No, it was not animated or a video. It was just a pic. Things stayed trippy for about four minutes before I stopped taking notes. What happened after that? I have no clue.Ithink maybe I did … things? Maybe ate things? I know I existed during that time be cause, well, I’m sitting here typing this, but what actually happened I cannot tell you. I was that high. All I can tell you is that I must have passed out at some point, though I’m not sure when. And I slept like a baby for a solid eight hours or so, which I never do. My brain is constantly wired and on a hamster loop. And, when I woke up, I felt refreshed and ready to go. Also not a thing with me, probably due to lack of sleep. So, I guess it’s safe to say this strain blew me away like it did the people at the Cannabis Cup. Does it have claws that catch like the Jabberwock in the Lewis Carroll works? I can’t tell you cause I lost time and space, apparently. But I can tell you I’d take a turn with that beast with eyes of flame to get my hands on this strain, and you should too.

Telluride Bud Company, 3473 Main Ave., 970-422-8311, telluridebc.com

— DGO Pufnstuf From page 19

Durango Acme Healing Center, 1644 Co Rd 203, 970-247-2190, acmehealingcenter. com

Durango Rec Room, 145 E. College Drive, 970-764-4087, durangorecroom. com

The Herbal Alternative, 1531 Leb anon Road, 970-529-7007, theherbal alternative.net

Dispensary listings

The Greenery, 208 Parker Ave., Suite E, 970-403-3710, durangogreenery.com

Prohibition Herb, 1185 Camino del Rio, 970-385-8622, prohibitionherb. com Kinfolk Farms, 83 Davidson Creek Road, 970-759-8683

Rocky Mountain High, 120 E. 36th Street, 970-259-4093, rockymountain high.co Santé , 742 ½ Main Ave., 970-3752837, santecolorado.com

Cortez Chronic Therapy, 1020 S. Broadway, 970-529-2045, chronictherapy.co Doobie Sisters, 695 N. Broadway, 970-565-2345, doobiesistersco.com

Continued on page 27 26 | February 2022

Durango Organics - Bodo Park, 72 Suttle Street, Suite F, durangoorganics.com970-259-3674,

Looking for legal weed in the Four Corners region? These local dispensaries can hook you right up.

WITHADVERTISEUS!AdvertiseintheRegion’sOnlyfreemonthlyWeedlifestylemagazine! SouthwestOutletsinColorado130+ 970.247.3504 • sales@dgomag.com • dgomag.com February 2022 | 27 The Beacon, 230 N. Oak, 970-5339848 Blend, 198 S. Frontage Rd. E, 970533-5050, blendmancos.business.site The Bud Farm, 385 N. Willow Street, 970-533-9931, thebudfarm.net LivWell Mancos, 449 Railroad Ave. #1, 970-533-9848, livwell.com/mancos Pagosa Springs The Green House, 270 E. Pagosa Street, 970-264-4420, greenhousepa gosa.com Pagosa Therapeutics, 235 Bastille Drive, 970-731-4420, pagosatherapeu tics.com San Juan Strains, 365 E. Pagosa Street, Unit B, 970-264-5323, sanjuans trains.com Smoke Rings, 266 E Pagosa Street, 970-264-0942 Pagosa Craft Dispensary, 127 Gold mine Dr., 970-264-0833, pagosacraft cannabis.com High Grade Specialists, 600 Cloman Blvd. #1, 970-731-3202, highgradespe cialists.com NewFarmington,Mexico Ultra Health Dispensary Farmington, 4251 E. Main St., Suite D, Farming ton, 505-258-4634, new-mexico-dispensaries/farmington-2ultrahealth.com/ Purlife Farmington, 3024 E. Main St., Farmington, 505-433-2672, www. purlifenm.com New Mexico Alternative Care, 534 E. Broadway Ave., Farmington, 505258-4952 From page 26

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