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inside
contents 3.2019
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P UR SUI T OF H A PPINES S
Comedian, actor and cannabis cultivator Jim Belushi talks about his diverse career, memories of his brother and his passion for cannabis cultivation.
features
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Industry Insider BLOOM FARMS Founder Michael Ray leads the charge for quality and awareness in his cannabis products.
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Reaching for the Reset Button Cannabis tolerance affects many frequent cannabis consumers, but taking a small break can actually help reboot your tolerance level.
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Moving Forward March Madness inspires progression in the realm of cannabis consumption in college sports.
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departments news
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10 News Nuggets 11 By the Numbers 14 Local News reviews 18 Cool Stuff 20 Entertainment Reviews in every issue 40 À La Carte 42 Growing Culture 44 NorCal Now! 46 News of the Weird
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Online Exclusive! d Florida to Allow Smokable Cannabis d Alaskan Crime Bill to Affect Rec Cannabis
VOL 10 ISSUE 9
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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ashley Kern EDITORIAL COORDINATOR Benjamin Adams ASSISTANT EDITOR Ayesha Rahman EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS Matthew Abel, Hilary Bricken, Devon Alexander Brown, David Edmundson, Caroline Hayes, Carl Kozlowski, Alison Malsbury, Emily Manke, Kiara Manns, Madison Ortiz, Denise Pollicella, R. Scott Rappold, Ed Rosenthal, Kimberly R. Simms, Lanny Swerdlow, Simon Weedn, Laurie Wolf PHOTOGRAPHERS Steve Baker, Kristopher Christensen, John Gilhooley, Joel Meaders, Mike Rosati, Eric Stoner, Bruce Wolf ART DIRECTOR Steven Myrdahl PRODUCTION MANAGER Michelle Aguirre ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Alex Brizicky, Angie Callahan, Eric Bulls, Kim Cook, Casey Roel, Vic Zaragoza OFFICE MANAGER Mikayla Aguilar
CULTURE® Magazine is published every month and distributes magazines at over 600 locations throughout the Southern California. No articles, illustrations, photographs, or other matter within may be reproduced without written permission. CULTURE® Magazine is a registered trademark. All rights reserved.
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CULTURE® Magazine is printed using post-recycled paper.
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NEWS
NUGGETS
American Cannabis Companies Sign Deal with Canadian Producers On Feb. 11, Oakland-based Harborside signed a deal with Toronto, Canada-based Lineage Grow Co. The two companies will merge, and Lineage Grow Co. will adopt the Harborside name. On the same day, Canada-based TerrAscend Corp. signed agreements with The Apothecarium to also establish a footprint in the United States. The
deals represent the growing amount of partnerships between American and Canadian cannabis companies.” Today’s news is another major step in executing TerrAscend’s U.S. strategy. Ryan Hudson and his team have done a tremendous job building The Apothecarium and Valhalla into successful, world-class brands in the most sophisticated and coveted US markets,” stated Matthew Johnson, president of TerrAscend Corp., and TerrAscend USA, Inc. The Apothecarium operates four dispensaries in California and Nevada. The deals illustrate a shift towards larger partnerships with Canadian companies in the future.
Survey Indicates Californians Trust Cannabis Industry More than Social Media Portions of the 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report, which measures how much people trust various things, were released on Feb. 13. According to the report, Californians said they trust the cannabis industry more than social media. Forty-seven percent of respondents said they trust that cannabis businesses are doing the right thing. While 44 percent said they trust dispensaries, and 43 percent said they trust cannabis cultivators, only 33 percent said they trust social media. “This year’s results reveal Californians’ 10
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increasingly complex view of the tech sector and their expectations that businesses will do more to improve local issues,” the report reads. “The findings are further underscored by growing employee expectations for their employers to take action to address societal concerns.” The findings reflect the growing stability of the cannabis industry and how people now perceive it.
World Health Organization Recommends Reclassifying Cannabis According to an official letter dated Jan. 24, The World Health Organization (WHO) called for cannabis and cannabis resin to be removed from Schedule IV of the 1961 drug convention, which was signed by countries from around the world. WHO officials provided the recommendation for cannabis and cannabis resin “to be deleted from Schedule IV of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961).” The letter was written by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director general, and the letter was sent to UN Secretary-General António Guterres. The organization also recommended to remove cannabis extracts and tinctures from Schedule I of the 1961 drug convention and to remove dronabinol from Schedule II, among other recommendations. Cannabis and cannabis resin, however, would remain under Schedule I of the 1961 drug convention, as it is designated under two schedules. Schedule I, unlike the U.S. federal system, is the least restrictive category.
The rank of San Francisco among major cities in the U.S. that are hiring for the most cannabis-related jobs: (Source: San Francisco Chronicle)
1
The amount of money, in millions of dollars, that Bay Area-based dispensary Caliva raised in funding in late January: (Source: NBC Bay Area)
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The amount of money, in dollars, that a permit to host a temporary cannabis consumption event in San Francisco would cost if the Board of Supervisors approves the proposal: (Source: San Francisco Examiner)
The approximate percentage of cannabisrelated jobs, out of cannabis-related job openings throughout the country, that are located in San Francisco: (Source: CNBC)
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3,000
The estimated number of people who are currently enrolled in Arkansas’ medical cannabis program: (Source: Fox16)
7,000
The amount of money, in dollars, that Ohioans spent on medical cannabis during the first 12 days of legal sales: (Source: Dayton Daily News)
The estimated amount of money, in billions of dollars, that the United States cannabis industry is expected to collect in sales revenue during 2019: (Source: Forbes)
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333,592
The rising percentage of the average cannabis employee compared to the U.S. median salary: (Source: CNBC)
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On Conscious Cannabis and Psychedelics: A Conversation with Daniel McQueen and Natalie Metz WHEN: Wed, March 27 WHERE: California Institute of Integral Studies, 1453 Mission St., San Francisco WEBSITE: ciis.edu/public-programs/event-calendar/mcqueen-daniel-ss19 Yes, cannabis is classified as a mildly psychedelic substance, and it interacts with other psychedelics as well. Join Executive Director of Medicinal Mindfulness Daniel McQueen and licensed naturopathic Dr. Natalie Metz for a discussion specifically on cannabis and psychedelics. Learn about how cannabis interacts with substances like MDMA, psilocybin, ayahuasca and DMT. McQueen previously
hosted group psychedelic events that he called Conscious Cannabis Circles, and he’s been studying psychedelics for 19 years. Now, he wants others to learn about the endless possibilities inside the mind and how you can utilize them, with the help of cannabis. You can also learn about facilitating the mind to overcome psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder through psychedelics. CultureMagazine.com
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NEWS
LOCAL
Atmosphere
CLOUDY CONGREGATIONS
San Francisco could soon allow c o n s u m p t i o n at c a n n a b i s e v e n t s By Benjamin M. Adams
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hile recent California legislation provides cities with a pathway toward allowing cannabis consumption at temporary events, the city of San Francisco is still in the process of approving an ordinance to work in accordance with state law. On Jan. 29, San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman announced that city officials will soon accept applications for permits to allow legal cannabis sales and consumption at events, pending a few final approvals. That means that events like festivals, concerts, parades and farmers markets would be able to get a permit that would allow consumption. The proposal would implement Assembly Bill 2020, statewide legislation which went into effect on Jan. 1 and gives California cities the power to pass legislation and issue cannabis permits for temporary events to allow consumption on the premises. Events must obtain both a state license and a local license in order to offer legal cannabis consumption on-site. For now, permits would only go toward established events that have been held on a regular basis, have a local permit and have significant amounts of illegal cannabis consumption that could be abated. Tom Temprano is a legislative aide working in the Office of Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, and speaks on his behalf. “The legislation has been introduced at the Board of Supervisors and has been assigned to a committee
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meeting that will hopefully occur before the end of February,” Temprano told CULTURE. “Following committee action, it will move to the full Board of Supervisors for a vote. It is worth noting that there are currently six sponsors for the legislation out of the 11 members of the Board of Supervisors.” Local permits would be issued by the city’s Office of Cannabis. “Under our ordinance, any applicant for a permit must hold an Event Organizer License issued by the California Bureau of Cannabis Control,” Temprano added. “Basically, the applicant needs to already have authorization under state law to be eligible.” Supervisor Vallie Brown, who is cosponsoring the legislation, said cannabis smoking currently takes place and goes unchecked at these types of events, saying that “we can’t stop it.” Whether or not the city of San Francisco chooses to regulate it, tens of thousands of people smoke at the larger events. Most of these events operated with free consumption more or less under the radar of authorities until recreational cannabis regulations were implemented in California. Among the events that are vying for a cannabis consumption licenses is 420 Hippie Hill—and enormous outdoor event held in Golden Gate Park dating back to the 1970s. Since tens of thousands of 420 Hippie Hill attendees smoke cannabis illegally, this is one of the events that could utilize Assembly Bill 2020 and a local permit. Under the proposal, permits could begin at $500 for events up to 500 people and up to $3,000 for events with more than 2,500 people in attendance. Other events could follow 420 Hippie Hill and apply for local consumption-friendly permits such as San Francisco Pride or massive music festival Outside Lands. More challenges remain for events like these, such as the current ban on any type of smoking inside Golden Gate Park. “If you’re going to San Francisco,” Scott McKenzie sung in 1967, “be sure to wear some flowers in your hair.” The city hasn’t changed much over the years with its strong festival and counterculture presence. c
Hip-hop duo Atmosphere, made up of vocalist Slug and DJ/producer Ant, returns to the Bay Area for another onslaught of lyrical assault. Atmosphere paved the way for other independent hip-hop groups to reach insurmountable success without selling out or trying to be hardcore. The group members are also supportive of cannabis. “I support all uses of marijuana, not just medical,” Slug told CULTURE in 2018. “That includes the recreational use of marijuana. I’d rather see safe spaces for people to self-medicate as opposed to what we’ve done in the past which is very unsafe.” Atmosphere recently released its seventh studio album Mi Vida Local last October with the lead single, “Virgo.” If you haven’t heard the group’s new album yet, now is your chance to hear it live! WHEN: Sat, March 9 WHERE: Fox Theatre Oakland, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland WEBSITE: rhymesayers.com/ tours/atmospheretour
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REVIEWS
1. AirSelfie While we’re all living in 2019, the makers behind AirSelfie are living in 3019. You would never realize you needed a pocketsized aerial HD camera like the AirSelfie until you try one. It’s a drone and an HD camera, all in one, and flies up to 20 meters into the air. The camera captures 12 MP high quality photos, and it comes with anti-vibration shock absorbers for non-blurry photography. Just imagine what you could accomplish with a device like this. It’s also very lightweight, so it won’t crash and damage priceless photography when it lands. Price: $199.95 Website: airselfiecamera.com 2. Complete Classic Vaportini Just exactly what kind of dark sorcery is this? The Vaportini is a curious, retro-looking device that converts spirits into vapor that can be inhaled through a straw. Why drink shots of alcohol when you can inhale hits instead? Just pour a 1 ounce shot of hard liquor through a funnel into the mysterious Vaportini orb and heat up the sphere by placing it over a candle in a glass. The orb traps the vapor. In five minutes, the spirit evaporates into a vapor that will last about 30 minutes. The Complete Classic Vaportini comes with a specially designed glass and straw. Price: $44.99 Website: vaportini.com 18
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3. Hello, Calm™ Relaxing & Hydrating Face Mask Infused with cannabis sativa seed oil, this ultra-hydrating mask also gives your skin the topical benefits of cannabis seeds, which are rich in essential omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. There is no THC, so you can enjoy this mask during the daytime or when you’re in the middle of a project. It visibly reduces wrinkles, crow’s feet and lines on your skin and is formulated without parabens and synthetic ingredients that you don’t want rubbed into your face. Just apply it and let it sit for 10 minutes. Then peel away the impurities! Price: $28 Website: origins.com 4. LEAF Grow cannabis or any other herb with the least amount of effort using this automated wonder. Just plant a germinated seed in the soil and let the LEAF system do the rest. Nutrients are fed through an automated dispensing system, and the pH level is closely monitored. The LEAF system handles everything else as well, including complex lighting cycles, timed watering and air control. You can even view your plant’s progress (and security) remotely via its HD camera. There is also a convenient mobile app for iOS and Android that lets you control just about every aspect of the growing system remotely. Price: $2,990 Website: getleaf.co
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REVIEWS
entertainment
MOVIE BOOK
The Cannabis Spa at Home Sandra Hinchliffe Pub. Skyhorse Publishing The Cannabis Spa at Home: How to Make Marijuana-Infused Lotions, Massage Oils, Ointments, Bath Salts, Spa Nosh, and More is an avantgarde book that explores the external use of cannabis when preparing topical items such as lotions, bath salts and poultices. It boasts around 75 cannabis spa recipes, all of which utilize wholesome ingredients that can be easily prepared in any home kitchen or spa facility. Those who seek an in-depth guide on how to prepare these topicals at home will learn more about how the inclusion of cannabis can help with pain management and skin issues, among other conditions. (Ayesha Rahman) 20
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RELEASE DATE: MARCH 15 AVAILABLE ON: PC, PLAYSTATION 4 AND XBOX ONE
GAME
Tom Clancy’s The Division 2 Dev. Massive Entertainment Pub. Ubisoft Action role-playing games can take many forms, but in the case of Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, players are set on a path of multiplayer bliss. Taking place seven months after the events from the first game, fans of the series once again get to complete objectives together to improve their arsenals and proceed through the campaign. Endgame raids will also be featured, which allows up to eight players to band together. And of course, endless hours of glorious playerversus-player content await you. (Nicole Potter)
The Sisters Brothers
MUSIC
Dir. Jacques Audiard Annapurna Pictures
Ladytron
Living in a time when so much media seems to focus on futures either wrapped in wild, advanced electronics or dystopian and survivalist, it can be nice to be taken back to a past where things were more simple and gritty. Enter the dark comedy western The Sisters Brothers to satiate such an appetite. Directed and co-written by Jacques Audiard and brought to life with a stacked cast of John C. Reilly, Joaquin Phoenix, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riz Ahmed and Rutger Hauer, the film excellently and hilariously tells the story of two brothers in the murder-for-hire business whose deal to kill a man becomes more harrowing and complicated than originally planned. (Simon Weedn)
With a new self-titled album, synth-pop legends Ladytron mark two decades as a band and easily demonstrate why it is considered one of the best of the genre. Brimming with all of the dancey, hip-shaking grooves and enveloping, atmospheric production longtime fans could want, the new record sees the quartet continuing down the dusky, electronic path that it started 20 years ago. The beats are heavy, the analog synthesizers are thick and dynamic, and the vocals are as ethereal and eerie as they’ve ever been. Yet, the new record doesn’t ever sound like a rehashing of past hits or sounds, instead the record is wonderfully crisp and fresh. (Simon Weedn)
Ladytron !K7
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Chasing the Magic Jim Belushi makes the cannabis world better through his charm, humor and philosophical approach By David Edmundson
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S O , I ’ M N O T S AY I N G T H I S I S T H E O N LY M E D I C I N E , I ’ M J U S T S AY I N G I T ’ S B E T T E R T H A N O P I O I D S A N D I T ’ S B E T T E R T H A N A L C O H O L . I T ’ S S A F E R , I T ’ S C L E A N E R , I T ’ S N O N V I O L E N T, I T ’ S P E A C E F U L , I T ’ S E N L I G H T E N I N G .”
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im Belushi is exactly what the cannabis world needs right now. On the surface, the multi-talented comedian is extremely likable and can instantly put you at ease,
but underneath the surface beats the heart of an activist and poet for cannabis. His passion for the medicinal, spiritual and psychological benefits of cannabis is second to none. Unlike a lot of celebrities who are happy to put their name on a cannabis strain or product, Belushi is taking it a step further by starting his own farm in Oregon and using his fame to shepherd in those who have been fed misinformation on the plant for so many years. The Baby Boomers suffering from arthritis might not want to trust an up-and-coming musician, but they will trust Jim Belushi, the man they watched every week for nine years on ABC. One thing is for sure, Belushi is not here to make a quick buck in the cannabis game. He explained to CULTURE that he is here to disrupt the status quo in the cannabis industry and is having a blast doing it.
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When did you know you wanted to be in show business? Well I was in football, and I was a tackle, but none of the girls were dating the tackles. I don’t know why. They say your name over the loudspeaker when you got a tackle. But in the theater, there were 25 girls and five guys, and I just liked the numbers. And then I got on stage, the adrenaline just rushed. And when I got laughs, it just kept coming, and I was hooked. It was what I call “chasing the magic.” I was never like, “I want to be rich,” or “I want to be a star.” I was just chasing the magic. In an industry that likes to put people in boxes, you’ve done it all: Films, TV, voice acting, singing and theater. Is diversity important to helping you flourish creatively? I just chase the magic, buddy. There’s magic in all of it. I mean when I’m singing with Dan Aykroyd in The Blues Brothers, with a 10-piece band, you know, three organs, three horns, two guitars, three backup singers, harmonica player . . . It’s like strapping on F-16 engines and just flying. When I’m on Broadway doing eight shows a week or whether I’m doing my improv group with these guys I love, we’re jamming. So, you know, what it really is, I think the magic comes in collaboration. Ensemble. You know? Everything I do has jazz in it.
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On the flipside, you were on a very successful sitcom, According to Jim, for nine years. Was it difficult to keep your performance fresh after almost 200 episodes? Oh, that was magic. Larry Joe Campbell and Courtney and Kim, we had a ball. I mean we captured magic all the time. We didn’t want to do what every other show was doing at the time. I had a very strong conversation with the creators when they wrote the pilot. At the end, the last scene was me apologizing to my wife. And I said, “Look, can you write this scene where there is no apology? Can you write this scene where they come to an understanding and a respect and love for each other without having to apologize?” Look, that formula works, and people have been very successful, but what happens is the wife turns into a bitch and the husband turns into an idiot? I didn’t want to do that one. I just don’t think that’s a great model to put out for men or women, in the world. There’s a way to make up with somebody without saying, “I am wrong.” Because you keep making a person wrong, then they start to hate themselves, and then they start resenting the other person. 182 episodes, I never apologized. We just passed what would have been your brother John’s 70th birthday. How do you think he would have reacted to cannabis legalization? Danny’s [Aykroyd] quote is the best one and that is, “If Johnny was a pothead, he’d be alive today.” You know. I believe John was a product of a generation filled with PTSD. There were friends dying in Vietnam, people who went to Vietnam. Separation from the parents was rough. You know, the movement. I think he expressed it beautifully, his work satirizing in Saturday Night Live and The Second City. But I think he really suffered from CTE, he was a middle linebacker, and he got all the tackles. And he was five-seven and he just jammed his head in there all the time. And I think when he went to college and he smoked a joint, I think he found his medicine. 28
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But it wasn’t known as a medicine, it was known as a drug. And since it was considered a drug, everything fell under that label: Mescaline, cocaine, everything. All of sudden you’re in the drug world. But I think he was searching for medicine. I think if we knew what we know about marijuana today, in the ‘70s, the healing, the help it gives, I think there would be a lot more people alive today. What’s your earliest memory of cannabis? The first time I got high on marijuana, I tried to take my pants off over my head. And I did it. It’s a very creative experience. Tell us more about your farm in Oregon. It’s beautiful. It’s a spiritual vortex, right along the Rogue River, and right in the middle of the banana belt which is the prime location for growing grapes, pears and cannabis. The loamiest soil, which we mixed into our soil. The river has almost a perfect pH. Clean, right from the mountains. It’s in this like hidden valley, there are mountains around us, no houses, just farmland, it’s beautiful. I have a sweat lodge that the Native Americans made for me. We have these beautiful ceremonies in there. It’s just . . . I found myself. And the farm is very Oregonian. I mean Oregon to me is the greatest state of cannabis in the country. A friend of mine in Denver has a cannabis business, and I said, “You know, when those borders come down . . . ,” he goes, “I don’t want the borders to come down!” I said, “why not?,” But he goes, “I don’t want none of that Oregon and California weed coming into my state, because it’ll eat them up.” Because I don’t care what indoor grow you have, it’s not as a good as Oregon or Northern California. Period. We’re in the same parallel as Burgundy and Bordeaux. From Napa to about 15 miles past me is that same parallel. And on the seventh day, you know, God was taking a stroll and he just dragged his hand all the way across that parallel.
“SO, THE BIG MISSION S TAT E M E N T I S THE WELLNESS OF CANNABIS HELPS PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER’S, SEIZURES, H E A D A C H E S , A N X I E T Y, BACK ACHES, PTSD. IT ALSO ENHANCES, AND S P A R K S C R E AT I V I T Y, ENHANCES THE SOUND OF MUSIC, THE TOUCH OF YOUR LOVER’S SKIN, AND ALSO BRINGS A FEELING OF JOY AND EUPHORIA T H AT W E S H O U L D N E V E R F E E L G U I LT Y ABOUT EXPERIENCING. T H AT ’ S A L L T H E WELLNESS OF CANNABIS. I FEEL I’M IN THE RIGHT PLACE F O R M Y H E A R T.”
So how did all of this get started? It started years ago. My good friend John owns a 2,500-acre ranch on the Rogue River, and he would invite us up there twice a year. I’m kind of a water guy, so I took all my clothes off and dove into the river. They all thought I was crazy, and when I came out, it was like I was baptized. I told Dennis, who was the caretaker, to let me know if something came up. A couple months later he tells me, “I found something that you’re either gonna hate or you’re gonna love.” It was 1,800 feet, but thin. And it was a mess, and I went, “I see it.” Later we purchased the adjoining property bringing our farm up to 93 acres.
Has the cannabis world been welcoming to you? I wasn’t chasing the money, so I didn’t really put my name on it. I just called them Rogue’s Lair Farms, and we put it out in local dispensaries. I’ve visited probably 30 dispensaries. I do like two-hour visits, hang with them and do photographs and talk about the pot. They’re like, “Wow,” and the marijuana was such great quality, people really started liking the marijuana. And then it was kind of a whispered thing, “Belushi started it.” So I felt good, I felt like I earned my place. Then I put my name on it. I wasn’t slapping my name on it, trying
to license it and make money. I’ve become part of the Oregon family. I’m very welcome there, people are very nice to me. I’m working with the Oregon Liquor Control Commission in the city of Portland. I’m meeting with them to create an opiate trade program in downtown Portland. There are some difficulties in it because you can’t really trade opiates, but we’re working with other growers to give away cannabis, so they can use it for medicine in lieu of alcohol or opiates. How do you reverse the stigma that has plagued cannabis for several generations? People that watched According to Jim are gonna say, “Belushi’s a good guy, a nice guy, he’s not apologizing but you know what? If he says it’s all right, I’ll microdose and see if it helps my arthritis.” Like I said, you know, I’ll stand and treat them. My mother-inlaw, they all looked at me with some sense of honesty and credibility. And they see that I’m not chasing the money. You know, all of it goes back to John, [and] brings it full circle. It’s like . . . It’s just meaningful. CultureMagazine.com
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Tell me about your cherry pie strain, and why people are calling it the “Marriage Counselor”? It happens every evening. My wife will ask, “You hungry, honey?” I’ll tell her yes. She’ll ask, “What do you have a taste for?” “Well, like a cheeseburger.” “That’s a little heavy for me. Is there anything else you’d like?” “Well, you know what I really have a taste for then is sushi.” “I know but I had sushi with my mom last night. Anyplace else?” Then I’ll get agitated and say, “Why are you asking me what I want for dinner, when you know we’re just going where you want to go and we’re gonna eat what you want to eat! Why are you wasting my damn time?” Well now, before I come downstairs, I take a little hit of Cherry Pie. My wife will ask, “Hey Jim, you hungry?” “Yeah.” “Where do you want to go?” “Baby, we can go to Taco Bell as long as you’re sitting across from me.” It makes me empathetic, it makes me charming. She doesn’t even know I’m high, because I’m not really that high. I’m just a really nice good guy. And so I said I call it the “Marriage Counselor.” Are you interested in expansion, or are you happy with your current footprint? I talk to a billionaire a week that wants to expand my business. And I’m just taking my time, I mean there are eight legal states and we live in a country that has 50. This isn’t going anywhere, it’s just growing. I want to make sure, because it’s such a young industry, which partners to partner up with that’s gonna keep it alive with the quality control that I’m interested in, the message. 30
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“I THINK IF WE KNEW W H AT W E KNOW ABOUT MARIJUANA T O D AY, I N THE ’70S, THE HEALING, THE HELP IT GIVES, I THINK THERE’D BE A LOT MORE PEOPLE ALIVE T O D AY.”
Do you use cannabis for creativity, or do you use it more for recreation? I use it not to fight with my wife before dinner. I do a little chocolate when I’m taking a long flight. I do a little bit to sleep. I never do anything before I perform, whether it’s alcohol or cannabis. Because why would I try to enhance something that’s already magic? So I don’t compound it. I use it for kind of a mood stabilizer, when I start getting uptight or anxious or start feeling old PTSD rushes of like anger, or start getting down on myself. I’ll take a little bit of Cherry Pie until I get a perspective. Instead of letting my mind and my ego run me into the ground, which is caused from trauma. You know, whether it’s the collapse of my family, the death of John, divorces that I’ve had. The number one fear in life is death, the number two fear in life is the collapse of family. I believe that everybody has a trauma that they’re experiencing and needs some kind of medicine. By the way, medicine can also be yoga, or jogging. You know, these great physical things that bring the endorphins and the endo cannabinoids in line with homeostasis of the body. So, I’m not saying this is the only medicine, I’m just saying it’s better than opioids and it’s better than alcohol. It’s safer, it’s cleaner, it’s nonviolent, it’s peaceful, it’s enlightening. So, the big mission statement is [that] the wellness of cannabis helps people with Alzheimer’s, seizures, headaches, anxiety, back aches, [and] PTSD. It also enhances, and sparks creativity, enhances the sound of music, the touch of your lover’s skin, and also brings a feeling of joy and euphoria that we should never feel guilty about experiencing. That’s all the wellness of cannabis. I feel I’m in the right place for my heart. c CultureMagazine.com
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Industry Insider
Opportunities Abound
B l o o m F a r m s F o u n d e r M i c h a e l R ay e m b r a c e s t h e i m p o r ta n c e o f q u a l i t y a n d c o m m u n i t y By R. Scott Rappold
O
nce upon a time, in the dark ages of cannabis prohibition, you probably didn’t know who grew your cannabis, but if you did, they sure didn’t have their name and a smiling photo on the bag. At California’s BLOOM FARMS, they want customers to know who grew the cannabis, whether it’s flower, tincture or oil form. You can find their name on the label and in some cases customers can even read a profile of the product on the company’s website. It’s just one of the many things that makes BLOOM FARMS a different kind of cannabis company, one that donates a meal to a food bank for every
product purchased. “We’ve got to give something back. We’ve got to provide for the community,” says BLOOM FARMS Founder Michael Ray. “We’re focusing more around the reasons why people enjoy cannabis versus just focusing on getting as high as possible for as cheap as possible. A lot of the brands out there seem to be focused just on the highest potency and lowest price.”
“I wanted to make products I ’ d f e e l c o m f o r ta b l e g i v i n g m y grandmother and 90 percent THC d i d n ’ t f a l l i n t h at c at e g o r y. ”
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Photo by Evan Thompson
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C.
C i r c u i t o u s P at h T o C a n n a b i s
Ray, 39, was raised in foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Calaveras County wasn’t quite the heart of California’s black market cannabis industry, but Ray says it was “Humboldt County’s kid brother, little cousin.” Many families lived off cannabis cultivation, lived in constant risk of being raided and arrested. While Ray enjoyed his share of the local agricultural product that supported so many friends and neighbors, he saw a different path for himself. He left the family farm—known as the BLOOM FARM—for college, dropped out and, in a radical change of directions, went to work on Wall Street. The year was 1999, the economy was booming and the internet was transforming the stock market trade. His brother, who had already made the move there, told him “they were pretty much hiring anyone willing to mash buttons.” “It was definitely a culture shock but everything I wanted to do when I was young,” says Ray. “You grow up in the country and you want to go live in the big city.” But as boom times transformed to bust times, of taxpayer bailouts and the housing market collapse, he grew cynical about the stock market and it wasn’t fun anymore. So he went home in 2009. Back in California cannabis circles, plenty had changed.
C.
Cannabis Boom
Reconnecting with old friends, Ray found many were now second- and third-generation cannabis farmers. And they were doing it legally, under the auspices of California’s revolutionary medical cannabis legalization. And the first time he walked into a dispensary, it was
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Photo by Kelly Ginn
the classic “kid in a candy store” feeling. In New York, he was used to a bicycle delivery guy with three kinds of weed: Brown, kind of brown and green. “There were 40 strains and they all had names and they were lab tested,” he says. “The light bulb went off in my head and said to me, ‘This is the next big industry.’” So in 2009 he began to learn how to cultivate. Since people were still getting raided by the feds those days, he kept the operation small, selling to a handful of dispensaries and learning the methods and technologies that were changing how cannabis is grown and how consumers enjoy it. The more he learned, the more he grew fascinated with extraction and vaporizer technology. He saw how crude butane extraction was leading to home explosions and residual butane in the oil. He began to consider starting his own brand, with clean, safe and responsible practices. So BLOOM FARMS was born.
N.
Not All About Potency
Ray believes in four essential tenets of cannabis use: Relief (from pain), relaxation, creativity and fun. These are the focus of the BLOOM FARMS brand, and Ray doesn’t believe delivering the most potent dose of THC every time, which he says is what many products do, is necessarily in line with these outcomes for the user. “I wanted to make products I’d feel comfortable giving my grandmother and 90 percent THC didn’t fall in that category,” Ray says. That sense of responsibility is also why the company adopted it’s “1-For-1” policy of donating a meal to a food bank for every product purchase, providing 1.4 million meals to date. “We are first and foremost a mission-driven company. It’s really important to focus on the double bottom line, not just the financial bottom line of the company but the bottom line of the positive impact we are making in the community and for our employees,” says Ray. “Our goal is to improve the quality of life for all people.” Most BLOOM FARMS products tend to range in the 60 to 85 percent range, which Ray believes is more conducive for many people to actually enjoy cannabis. Their cannabis is sourced from growers all over California thought not, ironically, from the namesake BLOOM FARMS. That’s because Calaveras County officials in 2018 banned cannabis cultivation. For now, their products are only available in California and Nevada, though they just released a CBD tincture that can be sold throughout most of the country. Ray plans to expand to other states with legal cannabis in the future. It’s based on his love for the plant and how it can help people. “I believe (cannabis) is making the world a better place,” he says. c
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Tolerance Over Time
U n d e r s ta n d i n g h o w h e a v y c a n n a b i s consumption affects personal tolerance 36
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By Benjamin M. Adams
P
eople who devour large amounts of cannabis on a regular basis are inevitably subject to diminishing effects over time. That is why first-time smokers get a much more serious kick when they smoke cannabis in comparison to experienced connoisseurs, and conversely, cannabis consumers who have smoked for a long time must consume larger amounts of cannabis in order to get the same effect.
Research suggests that tolerance builds up in people who consume cannabis on a regular basis. One team of scientists in particular spent a great deal of time during the 1990s exploring cannabis and dependence. Beginning with a 1990 study led by Dr. Miles Herkenham of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), researchers found that the effects of cannabis are time and dose-dependent, “suggesting diminishing effects with greater levels of consumption.” Herkenham noticed that mice that received excessive amounts of THC were catatonic at first, but eventually regained their motor abilities—even while continuing to receive the high dose of THC. Their bodies had adapted. Scientists learned that the mammal body adapts to exposure of huge amounts of THC by lowering the number of available cannabinoid receptors and thus reducing the effects over time. Similarly, consumers who smoke large amounts of cannabis aren’t going to get the same effect over time as their bodies adapt. That said—cannabis tolerance differs from other situations like opioid or nicotine tolerance, because it doesn’t appear to have any effect on dopamine production in the brain, which could lead to a more serious situation. Most experienced smokers, however, don’t need a study to confirm that tolerance affects cannabis smokers over time. It’s evident everywhere you look. There is a very easy solution to the cannabis tolerance problem. Some people call them tolerance breaks and others call them t-breaks, but the concept is simple: Take a small break from consuming cannabis to reset the body’s endocannabinoid system. It re-sharpens the effects of cannabis. Taking a break for as little as three days can reset your
“I used to quit every February for tolerance. I also had an episode a few years back where I quit for a little bit because of anxiety due t o w h at I b e l i e v e w a s a n o v e r s at u r at i o n o f m y endocannabinoid receptors.”
body and your cannabinoid receptors so that you get the same effect as you got the first time you lit up. Heavier smokers, of course, need more than a few days to reset the body—perhaps a month or longer for some people. Adam iLL boasts nearly 75,000 followers on Instagram and hosts a show called Getting High With which focuses on material that is pretty much about getting high with extremely potent dabs, extracts, strains of cannabis and so forth. Episodes were broadcast every Thursday on BREAL.tv. Adam iLL got into broadcasting at CBS Radio at 97.1 KLSX, before launching The PotCast and partnering with numerous projects such as The Secret Sesh and the High Times Cannabis Cup as a host or panelist. He was also interviewed for a Q&A with CULTURE in 2017. If anyone knows anything about consuming too much cannabis—it’s Adam iLL. After all, he calls himself “the highest host.” Regularly smoking and dabbing for a living can wreak havoc on the balance of the endocannabinoid system. Tolerance can get so bad that even a huge dab will fail to cause a noticeable effect in the heaviest of smokers. CULTURE asked Adam iLL if he’s ever gone through periods when he smoked so much cannabis that he couldn’t get high. “Yaaa” Adam iLL quickly admitted. “I used to quit every February for tolerance. I also had an episode a few years back where I quit for a little bit because of anxiety due to what I believe was an oversaturation of my endocannabinoid receptors.” Other heavy consumers can take Adam iLL’s advice and participate in a short fast from cannabis, if your tolerance is out of sync. “I can’t think of anything significant in my life that isn’t related to or influenced by cannabis,” he said. Heavy consumers should examine their own lifestyle and consider whether or not a tolerance break is needed. Eliminating cannabis from your lifestyle for a short amount of time isn’t easy— but it’s the only way you can reset your tolerance so that you can get as high as you did the first time you smoked. Consider a tolerance break the next time you notice that you aren’t getting the same effect that you used to when smoking cannabis. c CultureMagazine.com
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annabis legalization has been spreading rapidly through the United States over the past few years. It has been legalized for recreational use in 10 states and legalized for medical use in 33. However, cannabis is still federally illegal and also still not allowed by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA),
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even in states that allow legal cannabis. March Madness, one of the biggest NCAA events of the year, will ensure the NCAA and its antiquated rules against cannabis (among other problems) will be a topic of discussion. The NCAA can trace its beginnings to 1905, when 62 universities became charter members of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United
States (IAAUS). The IAAUS was officially established in 1906 and took its present name, the NCAA, in 1910. The NCAA has banned cannabis for over 30 years, although it only tests for cannabis during championship events, such as football bowl games and basketball tournaments. School athletic departments can also administer their own tests on top of the NCAA’s.
Potential draft prospects have seen their draft stock plummet due to cannabis consumption. Laremy Tunsil was the projected 1st overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, but fell to the 13th pick after a video surfaced of Tunsil smoking with a bong attached to a gas mask, and was posted to his Twitter account minutes before the draft started. Tunsil missed out on an estimated $10-$12 million in potential contract earnings. C.J. Harris, walk-on defensive back for Auburn University, was ruled ineligible to play due to his use of cannabis oil to treat his epilepsy. Auburn, which has its own rules against cannabis use, informed Harris that he wouldn’t be able to compete, not the NCAA. The NCAA has already taken baby steps at changing how positive cannabis tests are handled, saying in 2014 “street drugs are not performance-enhancing in nature” and reducing the penalty for a positive test from a full season suspension to half a season. Universities such as Rutgers University in New Jersey have already started making amends to their cannabis policy for athletes. According to Rutgers’ policy, athletes won’t face any game suspensions until his or her third positive cannabis test, and it takes a fifth positive test to be kicked off of the team. The World Anti-Doping Agency removed cannabidiol (CBD) from its list of banned substances last year, allowing professional fighters to use CBD for recovery without fear of suspension. Professional fighter Nate Diaz can be seen as a catalyst for allowing fighters to use CBD after his post-fight interview where he infamously puffed on a CBD vaporizer while speaking about the medical benefits of CBD. Many former and current professional athletes have come out in support of cannabis legalization in sports, particularly the use of CBD. CBD has been hailed as a new “wonder drug,” offering a multitude of health benefits without the high of THC. In addition to preventing epileptic seizures, CBD can help treat anxiety and depression, help with pain management and may help alleviate cancer symptoms and cancer treatment side effects. However, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) doesn’t fully endorse cannabis as a cancer treatment. With opiate abuse running rampant in locker rooms across the country, athletes are calling for legal cannabis and CBD as a way to combat the rigors of a long season without having to take handfuls of pills a day. In 2016, the University of Miami was given a $16 million grant to study the effects of using CBD to treat concussions, with researchers believing a “concussion pill” can help treat the post-injury
brain cell inflammation, headaches and other symptoms associated with concussions. Retired professional players have recently come out saying that they were consuming cannabis not only during the season, but most of the time during the day of a game. Matt Barnes, who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 seasons, has said that he was medicated for all of his best games and former National Football League (NFL) player Shaun Smith said he would smoke two blunts before a game. Other former NFL players, such as Eben Britton and Eugene Monroe, have vocalized their support for allowing cannabis to treat injuries and others, like Joe Montana and Jack Ham, have invested in the cannabis industry. Former NBA player Al Harrington
now owns his own cannabis company, Viola Extracts. In a 2017 interview regarding cannabis use by NBA players with David Stern, NBA commissioner from 1984 to 2014, Stern told Harrington that he believes cannabis should be removed from the banned substances list and that Harrington had persuaded him. As legalization continues to sweep the United States, the stigma surrounding cannabis is beginning to dissipate. More research has come out demonstrating the positive effects cannabis and CBD can have on athletes. As studentathletes prepare for life after college sports, the NCAA should look into cannabis as a healthy alternative rather than giving athletes handfuls of pills and causing long-term health problems. c
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LIFE OF THE PART Y
Most holidays are cause for celebration, and St. Patrick’s Day is no exception. These days it is just an excuse to party and have fun, and with that comes a lot of alcohol consumption. But numerous studies have found that cannabis can actually be a suitable replacement for alcohol, while also providing some of the psychoactive properties that may contribute to a unique experience. No matter if you choose to drink alcohol or consume cannabis infused beverages, one thing is certain—you’ll need to fill your stomach with the right kind of food. These hand-selected cannabis-infused recipes are bound to get you in the mood to party!
S w e e t a n d S p i cy C h i c k e n W i n g s Ingredients: 3/4 cup Thai sweet chili sauce 4 tablespoons brown sugar
Instructions: 1 teaspoon cannabis infused olive oil*
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a baking pan with oil.
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 tablespoon red chili flakes
2. In a saucepan over medium heat, whisk together chili sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, lime, garlic, infused oil and sesame oil. Cook until fully heated, then remove from pan and let cool.
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 pounds chicken wings
3. Season raw chicken with salt and pepper. Then coat
1/4 cup soy sauce 4 tablespoons white wine vinegar
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1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds
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each wing with chili sauce mixture, and add them into the pan in a single layer. Lower saucepan heat to medium with remaining sauce, and let simmer. 4. Bake chicken for 10 minutes until crispy on the outside (flipping chicken about halfway through). Remove pan from oven, and coat chicken. 5. Switch oven to broil, and return chicken to oven for another 5 minutes. 6. Once chicken is finished, top with sesame seeds, red chili flakes and a little salt.
Homemade Infused Supreme Pizza Ingredients DOUGH 1 cup warm water, between 100-110 degrees F 1 1/2 tablespoon active dry yeast 1 tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon cannabis infused olive oil* 1 teaspoon salt 3 cups flour TOPPINGS 1/2 cup green bell pepper 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced 1/2 cup pepperoni 1/2 cup sausage 1/2 cup olives
Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Leave pizza stone or pan in oven as it heats up. 2. To make the dough, mix warm water with sugar and yeast. Let yeast activate by leaving the mixture untouched for 5 minutes. 3. Add infused olive oil, flour and salt to the bowl until a dough ball forms.
1 cup mozzarella cheese Your choice of red sauce
4. Place the dough on a floured surface and knead
until it gains elasticity, about 10 minutes. Roll out into desired shape and size. 5. Bake dough for five minutes and remove from oven. 6. Spread an even amount of red sauce onto the dough. Next, add ample amounts of mozzarella cheese. 7. Decorate pizza with bell peppers, mushrooms, pepperoni, sausage and olives. 8. Bake pizza for 20 minutes.
Irish Buck Ingredients 1 1/2 ounce cannabis-infused Irish whiskey* 1/4 ounce fresh lime juice 2 ounces ginger ale 1 lime wedge for garnish (optional)
Instructions 1. Combine all liquid ingredients into a glass with ice. 2. Add lime wedge to the edge of glass. CultureMagazine.com
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GROWING CULTURE
LESSONS FROM A JAMAICAN WINTER GROW By Ed Rosenthal
T
he dream and demand, “Legalize It!” has finally come to Jamaica. People aren’t going to jail for cannabis. It is used freely in more places. However, licensing legal cannabis companies is a different story. As in many states in the U.S., it can be costly to go legal, so there is still a large alternative market. And naturally, the retail market is but the tip of a vertical alternative supply chain. It all starts with the farmer. In February I took a trip to Jamaica and happened to be walking in the woods in one of the island’s agricultural areas. As we made our way through brush, my guide casually mentioned that there was a squatter grow nearby. I decided to make a detour and visit the pop-up farm. The garden’s perimeters were marked by barbed wire that was only symbolic—it was only four feet high. Inside there were rows of plants spaced about 30 apart and the plants were spaced four to six inches apart in the rows. There were two groups of plants in the garden. The first group was planted from seed three to four weeks ago. The plants were all under a foot tall, but were beginning to show the first signs of flowering. The second group were plants that
The field was about an acre. There were two sets of plants. The ones close-up were about a month old and were transitioning to flowering. For the first weeks the long night was interrupted by lighting the plants for a few moments by walking a portable light along the rows. 42
Cows walk in the field with the mature plants. They avoid eating the buds.
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were about half way through flowering and would be ready in three or four weeks. These plants had straight stems that ranged in height from one and a half to two and a half feet. None of the plants looked particularly vigorous. The reason was that they were growing in an alkaline clay-loam soil that was not particularly fertile with nutrient insolubility and lockout caused by the clay’s high pH. The field was flood irrigated and little fertilizer, if any, was used. Jamaica has a 12-month growing season, because the weather stays warm and the sun shines most of the time. However, it is close to the equator so it has far less seasonal variation in day length than high latitude areas. It ranges between 15 hours and five minutes on June 22, the first day of summer, and nine hours and 15 minutes on Dec. 22, the first day of winter. Most varieties respond to the long night period by changing growth from vegetative to flowering all year. This commercial garden was not sophisticated and had lots of room for improvement. However, there are things to be learned. First, close planting discourages plants from branching out. Instead, the plants put their energy into growing a single straight stem. When they flower all their energy goes into growing bud along it. Because the plant puts little time into vegetative growth it takes less time from seed to maturity, about 90 days. This can be duplicated outdoors using light deprivation, and indoors by limiting the vegetative period once the plants grow 10-15 inches tall depending on variety. c
The rows were about 30” apart and the plants were spaced 3-4 inches apart in the row.
The single stems of the plants grow a bud 8”-15” long.
TIP OF THE MONTH Are you planning to grow an outdoor garden this year? Here are some ideas you can start now. If you live in the southern tier of the U.S., where the temperature consistently rises to 65 degrees daily in spring you can plant outdoors now. If the plants are large enough for you to consider placing them into flowering just put them outdoors and the long dark period (more than 10.5 hours daily) will induce them to flower. Toward the end of flowering they may need to be covered to increase the dark for an hour or two every day to maintain the 10.5 hour dark period. If you want big plants that flower later in the season, grow the plants vegetatively outdoors, or indoors in the northern tier with cool weather. Outdoors, break up the dark period by flashing red or white light at the plants several times each dark period so the plants receive fewer than six hours of uninterrupted darkness. Indoors give the plants 18 hours of continuous light daily. Or, an alternative is to give them fewer hours of light, but to break the dark cycle as described above.
The single stem plants started flowering within three weeks of planting.
The plants would have fatter buds and more potency had the soil been improved with organic matter an been fed adequate amounts of fertilizers.
Copyright by Ed Rosenthal. All rights are reserved. First North American Magazine rights only are assigned to CULTURE Magazine. No other reproduction of this material is permitted without the specific written permission of the author/copyright holder.
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NORCAL NOW! EVENT LISTINGS
Action Bronson, March 11 Action Bronson is a multitalented anomaly, performing as a rapper and as a VICELAND series host, among other projects. Bronson’s latest album, White Bronco, was released in 2018, followed by a tour that began in November 2018 The Chapel, San Francisco actionbronson.com/tour G. Love and Special Sauce, March 15 In November 2013, and much to our delight, G. Love and Special Sauce graced the cover of CULTURE and discussed cannabis. The band’s ultra-unique sound, which sounds bluesy, airy and laid back, is really what sets it apart from other bands. The Independent, San Francisco philadelphonic.com/tour GLAS Animation Festival, March 21-24 Local and international animators and filmmakers will converge in Berkeley to preview new adult and family material from the industry’s best artists. The event is sponsored by Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, and several other cartoon-friendly platforms. Various theatres in downtown Berkeley glasanimation.com
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Clockwork Alchemy 2019, March 22-24 Originally a part of FanimeCon, Clockwork Alchemy is San Francisco’s own festival that is devoted exclusively to steampunk-themed art and entertainment. Get an autograph from author T.E. MacArthur, or browse through steampunk-themed art, crafts, fashion, music and entertainment. Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport, Burlingame clockworkalchemy.com Bay Area Brew Fest, March 23 Just because St. Patrick’s Day is over, it doesn’t mean that you can’t continue the beer-binging weekend bender. That will be easy to accomplish while attending this event, considering that there will be 70 breweries providing over 200 beer varieties, with food trucks to sober you up at the end of the event. Pier 35, San Francisco bayareabrewfestival.com Wyclef Jean, March 23 Haitian-American rapper Wyclef Jean is best known as one of the three members of The Fugees, along with Lauryn Hill and Pras. But his solo act is equally tantalizing, with mega-hits such as “Gone ‘til November” and “We Trying to Stay Alive.” Uptown Theatre Napa, Napa uptowntheatrenapa.com
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featured event
STEPHEN MARLEY, MARCH 17 “Cannabis is an herb just like mint or sage that can heal many medical ailments, as well as offer spiritual enlightenment,” Marley told CULTURE last May. See the Grammy Award-winning producer and artist perform material from his highly-acclaimed albums and collaborations with artists like Bone Thugs N Harmony and Pitbull. The UC Theatre, Berkeley stephenmarleymusic.com/road California Artisan Cheese Festival, March 23-24 This massive cheese festival is back, and it’s now in its 13th year of festivities. Join for farm tours, seminars and pairing demos to learn all things cheese. Saturday night is Cheese, Bites & Booze!, where you can get a little tipsy on beers that are perfectly paired with cheese offerings. Sonoma County Event Center, Santa Rosa artisancheesefestival.com
San Francisco International Chocolate Salon, March 30 “Chocolate aficionados, fanatics, lovers and addicts” can indulge in delicacies from award-winning chocolatiers and confectioners from around the world. Presentations and demos will be available, with a special demo on cannabis-infused edibles and chocolates from Défoncé Chocolatier. San Francisco County Fair Building, San Francisco sfchocolatesalon.com
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NEWS of the
WEIRD
BY THE EDITORS AT ANDREWS MCMEEL
LEAD STORIES—FASHION FOIBLES Because white shoes are so distracting when you’re lining up your putt? According to Time magazine, Nike will be mowing over the competition with its new Air Max 1 golf shoes, which feature uppers covered with a green material that resembles grass. Matching green laces will further disguise your dogs as you play a round, but lest you think you’ll disappear altogether, fear not: The trademark Nike swoosh on the sides is bright white. The sneakers, yet to be released, are expected to retail for $140.
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Just when you thought there was nothing new under the blue jeans sun: A Ukrainian designer is asking $377 for a pair of jeans that have one fitted leg and one flared leg. Ksenia Schnaider, who calls her design the Asymmetric Jean, told DazedDigital.com: “It’s good to get people talking, and they’re definitely going to make people turn their heads as you walk by!” PEOPLE WITH(OUT) ISSUES Rachel Childs, 29, of Pearland, Texas, is not autistic and doesn’t have a twin autistic sister, according to the Houston Chronicle. Nevertheless, she hired a caregiver for her (fake) twin sister who is (not) autistic. The elaborate plot, which played out in early January, involved the caregiver picking up the “twin” at Childs’ house and
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taking her to the caregiver’s home, where he was hired to care for her overnight. But when Childs’ “twin” exhibited sexual conduct toward the caregiver, he became suspicious and investigated Childs, then contacted police. Childs was charged with burglary of a habitation with intent to commit assault and indecent exposure. PRECOCIOUS Employees of John J. Murphy Elementary School in Round Lake Park, Illinois, were surprised on Jan. 9 when a car drove into the drop-off lane and an 11-year-old student exited the driver’s seat. Witnesses alerted police, who issued an arrest warrant for the frontseat passenger, 31-year-old Khafilu M. Oshodi of Round Lake, for two counts of child endangerment; a 9-year-old
was riding in the back seat. Police Chief George Filenko told the Lake County NewsSun the situation could have “resulted in any number of tragic scenarios.” The children have been placed with other relatives, and police are still looking for Oshodi. Alijah Hernandez of Houston is a skilled barber in her father’s shop, reported KTRK-TV on Jan. 17—which wouldn’t ordinarily be newsworthy. But Alijah is only seven years old. Her dad, Franky, says she’s been watching him since she was a toddler and started perfecting her skills three years ago. For her part, Alijah says cutting hair comes naturally to her; she practices on friends and family (with her dad supervising) and has already faced off in barber competitions across Texas.
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