KIND TRIPS: The Travel & Adventure Spring Issue

FULL SPECTRUM TASTE A FLAVOUR OF

BC Organic WHITE RAINBOW

Aromas: Soapy, Sweet and Floral

Lineage: Fish Scales x Apples & Bananas

TERPS >2%

THC 25-31%

YES, PLEASE, BELIZE!

KIND wants to take you up, up and away to these beautiful hotels in Belize, Central America’s hottest travel destination

Between Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, lies the least populated country in Central America, the ideal tourist destination with warm water, great food and dense rainforests and jungles. By scanning the QR code, an airfare and hotel for two can be yours, to enjoy the vacation of a lifetime. Opening their doors to KIND (in association with Travel Belize and The Belize Collection) are the Rainforest Lodge at Sleeping Giant—the world’s only jaguar preserve—and the Lodge at Jaguar Reef, a sanctuary for snorkelling best enjoyed alongside a rum cooler beneath a coconut tree.

It’s truly an unforgettable opportunity at one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Scan the QR code and get the sand between your toes— thank you for dreaming with KIND

THE LODGE AT JAGUAR REEF

THE RAINFOREST LODGE AT SLEEPING GIANT

ETHICAL TRAVEL

BY MARYAM SIDDIQI

The frenzy of post-lockdown travel is subsiding, which is a good thing for a few reasons: calmer journeys through airports, dinner reservations are easier to get and finding a date for that dream trip is simpler. It’s also an ideal time for a shift in how we approach travel. For the sake of the planet, local communities and ourselves it needs to be a more mindful activity—less getting that perfect shot for Instagram, more connecting one-on-one with a resident of the town you’re visiting.

As you think about where to go in 2023, consider destinations and experiences like the ones listed here. Designed to minimize their impact on the environment or created to sustain an Indigenous community’s traditions, they offer visitors a deeper insight into the place and way of life.

ICELAND FRIDHEIMAR FARM, FRIDHEIMAR.IS/EN

In 2010, the volcano Eyjafjallajökull erupted on Iceland, shooting steam and ash into the atmosphere and bringing European travel to a standstill. Now that the country had everyone’s attention, it was just the start of massive tourism to the island nation. With a constantly evolving landscape thanks to volcano eruptions and glacier movement, Iceland offers sophisticated, environmentally sensitive experiences, from North Sailing’s whale-watching tours on electric boats to carbon-neutral land-based tours around the Golden Circle and further afield from companies like Hidden Iceland. Immerse yourself in the fruits of geothermal activity with lunch at Fridheimar, an organic family farm that grows everything in a greenhouse. You’ll dine among the vines, and learn how green energy grows delicious produce.

NEW ZEALAND

VOCO AUCKLAND CITY CENTRE, AUCKLAND.VOCOHOTELS.COM

Looking to lead the world in sustainable tourism, New Zealand has developed a national sustainability commitment with a goal of every tourism business in the country committing to sustainability by 2025. It involves restoring nature, eliminating waste and showing visitors

how to be better travellers when on the island. The newly opened voco Auckland City Centre hotel was designed with sustainability in mind. Along with filtered drinking water in rooms (avoiding plastic bottles), aerated shower heads reduce water consumption, and bedding is filled with 100% recycled materials. For exploring, the hotel has partnered with Wyld Bikes, makers of bamboo bicycles, to help guests get around the city with a minimal footprint.

HAWAII

OLD LĀHAINĀ LŪ’AU, OLDLAHAINALUAU.COM

The appeal of Hawaii is easy to understand—the sparkling blue waters of the Pacific offset by volcanic mountains and lush rainforest. But to travel responsibly there, a destination that’s struggled with overtourism, is to engage with Native Hawaiian experiences. These are activities and experiences that honour Native Hawaiian culture and knowledge. One such is the Old Lāhainā Lū‘au, in Lāhainā, Maui. Unapologetically authentic, this is an evening that adheres strictly to traditional Hawaiian dance and performance. Many tourists come expecting fire play, for instance, which is not Hawaiian. The show, which includes musical performances, is accompanied by a five-course meal of traditional Hawaiian dishes.

4

BRITISH COLUMBIA HAIDA HOUSE, HAIDATOURISM.CA/HAIDA-HOUSE

During the pandemic, the peoples of the Haida Nation of Haida Gwaii, in northern British Columbia, developed a pledge for visitors to sign before their arrival in the delicate ecosystem, which is referred to as the Galapagos of the north. “I will respect Haida Gwaii and Haida ways of being during my visit.” The goal: to ensure guests experience the environment and interact with the people in a way that will preserve and protect both for future generations.

A stay at Haida House immerses visitors in the land and culture. Formerly a bear hunting lodge before it was taken over by the Haida Nation, the lodge focuses on cultural and eco tourism, with experiences that include interpretative tours of the area’s carved poles, meeting with artisans, and hikes.

“I FEEL MY ENTIRE SOUL IS CHANGING.”

Erica Commisso pulls up to the side of the road of #VanLife and explores Canada’s great new open-aired travelling trend

“Live, travel, adventure, bless and don’t be sorry,” said American writer Jack Kerouac, often regarded as a pioneer of a nomadic life and one Instagram search proves that there’s a growing, worldwide community that took his words to heart.

“Van life saved me. This lifestyle has changed the way I think and feel as a person,” says one of the converts, who goes by Dingles on social media, documenting her travels as @a_dingles_story on Instagram. “Suffering from ADHD and a mood disorder, I found day-to-day life a struggle. I just didn’t feel like I belonged. I felt like something was missing from my life, and I didn’t know what it was, but I knew I wanted to travel and see the world and get away from the tiny island I had grown up on.”

The solution, she decided early on, was #vanlife, as it’s affectionately known. Van life is a concept that turns consumerism on its head, forgoing a life of materialism in favour of living in an outfitted camper van with the bare necessities and whatever can be safely used while respecting the earth, and it’s turned into a growing trend.

Canadian influencers like Eamon & Bec, Matt and Em (who go by @claysanabus on Instagram) and Julien and Karolina (@GoVanLife on YouTube) showcase that the lifestyle is adoptable in Canada, as they all set up camp from coast to coast, absorbing all the nature from the Nova Scotian changing leaves in Cape Breton to the snow-capped mountains in Whistler, British Columbia.

As for Dingles, her tiny home island is the 22.5mile-long Isle of Wight, off of the southern shores of England. Growing up, those 22.5 miles were treated like thousands, and a half hour drive was deemed a long way away, one that should be avoided at all costs. The comforts of home were never too far away, which was perfectly fine for a young Dingles, who was resistant to change and needed a structured lifestyle in order to be at peace.

Each influencer is part of a growing movement that sees people—singles, families, couples, friends—give up a physical address in favour of the asphalt arteries that span countries and traverse the globe. The community has grown

so quickly that there are even summits, both in-person and online, connecting international nomads and preaching the bible of a transient lifestyle. Ford even came out with a way to

monetize the trend, unveiling a 2023 Transit Trail van with a price tag that beginning at $65,975 USD.

The Transit was long-loved as a commercial vehicle, but in November 2022 it got a travel-friendly makeover that included beefier tires and trail-ready features like a hardcore face and splash guards. Essentially, Ford realized they could tap into a whole new customer, appealing to the 26% of Millennials who expressed interest in making a purchase in the camper van space. In fact, the Class B van

“I knew I wanted to see the world and get away from the tiny island I had grown up on.”

segment shot up 30% in 2022, and the Transit Trail seems a direct response to the interest— a turnkey version of the Transit that lets people customize the inside to maximize the #vanlife experience.

Van life, Dingles says, was her escape from it all. She started her photography business, called Photolife Photography, at a young age and saved a significant portion of her income to be able to travel for eight to nine months of the year, returning for wedding photography. (She takes pictures and her partner, Thorin, is a wedding videographer.) The minimalist lifestyle,

reconnecting with nature and near-constant change (at her own pace) all appealed to her and have become her new safe space.

“We don’t need a flashy car, expensive clothes, the best hotel or villa. We just need our little home on wheels, our camera, the open road and each other,” she says. “Isn’t that what life is about? Making memories and finding happiness in the birds singing in the trees or finding a hidden waterfall or just cuddling under the stars and being present in the moment.”

It’s the very life that called to Charlotte Yeatman and her partner, Nico. Escaping the shackles of their 9-to-5 life, they converted a van into a fully liveable space, named it Maui and set their sights on the open road.

“We wanted more out of life, hence Maui! We both love to travel, but it’s expensive. We tried to find a way that enabled us to work and travel while having everything we need with us,” Yeatman says. “The answer was a camper van! We take our office with us everywhere we go.”

Before Maui, Charlotte and Nico both lived in London, England, working as the head of marketing for a British sports brand and a

“Life’s about finding happiness in the birds singing in the trees, finding a hidden waterfall or just cuddling under the stars and being present in the moment.”

graphic designer, respectively. Days were mundane, beginning with a pre-work cup of coffee after rising at 6:30 a.m. Both spent their days toiling in the office until at least 7:00 p.m., saving just enough energy to head home, eat a quick dinner and hit the sack. After a while, that setup got boring.

With van life, the duo is fully remote, with Nico owning a graphic design business and Charlotte running a YouTube yoga channel called Hello Spirit and they document their travels on their Instagram, @mauiandus. Their new life, they say, is much more zen, though it still begins with a 7:00 a.m. coffee. The cup of joe is followed by time spent tidying Maui, working, a lunch break, and an evening stroll exploring whatever surroundings they find themselves in, all bookended by a movie or time spent under the

stars and their twinkling lights.

The nights spent surrounded by trees and oceans and connecting with nature and scenic views in far away countries sounds idyllic, but does not come without its adjustments. “It’s exciting, but it takes a lot of energy,” Yeatman says. “You need to make sure that it’s OK to stay overnight, that there’s food, gas and water, so we try and stay somewhere for a week at a time and get into a routine. Not having a routine has been the biggest adjustment.”

Both Dingles and Yeatman say that the difficulties—which also include finding a way to have packages sent to them without a physical address—are worth the reward. “You get to see the world in a different way from the norm and it allows you to explore places you wouldn’t

usually visit. Travelling definitely opens your mind to more things that you may not have thought of before,” Yeatman says. “Being in a van, whether you are on your own or with a partner, makes you think in a more unconventional way. You don’t need a lot of ‘stuff’ like we are conditioned through media and TV. I wear less than half of the stuff I have packed in the van.”

Dingles credits #vanlife for her perspective shift, too. “My mental health and attitude towards life is getting so much better, and I feel my entire soul is changing,” she says. “I have grown so much and I have this way of life to thank. I live true happiness and I continue to work on myself daily and having the freedom and simple things in life is really all that is.”

TOP 9 AT-HOME CANADIAN TRAVEL DESTINATIONS

Everyone wants to see the world. But Canadians know: the best destinations are sometimes closest to home.

BY ALI BECKER

Canada is home to an incredible amount of wild and wonderful places from the far north reaches to the coastal beaches and everything that rests in between.

When given the chance, these remarkable spaces have the ability to bring us back to the deep now and help us reconnect with the wonder and awe that is always all around us.

This list is a microscopic representation of some of the spectacular spots sprinkled across Canada, all of which are well worth the extra effort to get to.

BERE POINT PARK, MALCOLM ISLAND

As the oceanic gateway to BC’s largest marine park, the Broughton Archipelago, Bere Point Park is an ideal spot to watch magnificent sea creatures as they journey by.

Each year, pods of Northern Resident Orcas stop by to rub themselves up and down along the soft pebble shorelines that stretch out along Bere Point Beach.

This rare “rubbing” behavior is not seen in any other parts of the world except along this meandering coastline that lays within the Queen Charlotte Strait. Besides majestic wildlife encounters, the park is home to meandering rainforest trails that showcase massive second growth timbers and eclectic driftwood structures that make great campsites, viewing platforms and picnic spots.

SKOOKUMCHUCK NARROWS, EGMONT

A natural wonder and stunning sight to see, the Skookumchuck Rapids are caused by rising ocean tides that are forced between a land pinch, creating a surge of saltwater into the Sechelt Inlet.

As a result, twice a day, once calm waterways turn turbulent with high waves and wicked whirlpools creating a set of wild rapids and a world-class kayak and surf spot.

The best viewpoint, a smooth rock outcropping, is surrounded by purple sea stars, mussels, urchins and long bull kelp that brave the ever-changing conditions.

If you time it just right, you can catch the bioluminescence “rippling” swiftly through the rapids on a dark night. Nature’s finest psychedelic experience—no substance needed.

THE BADLANDS, DRUMHELLER

Commonly known as a hotbed for dinosaur fossil discoveries, the Drumheller Valley is also home to ancient Hoodoos—large sandstone pillars topped with wide, mushroom-like caps.

These natural stone sculptures evolved alongside the Alberta Badlands over 70 million years ago and are formed from a base of brown marine shale, which holds up the columns, and caps made from sand and clay.

The unique, colourful banding around each Hoodoo shows the different stages of the earth’s formation while their continual deterioration reminds us of the great impermanence of life.

BRITISH COLUMBIA

BRITISH COLUMBIA

ALBERTA

WATERTON LAKES NATIONAL PARK, WATERTON

Canada’s upper half of Glacier National Park, Waterton offers an impressive amount of wellmaintained front-country, backcountry and urban hiking trails that allow people of all ages and abilities to roam.

Ranging from 3 to 32 kilometres, you can ramble amongst the tall timbers, babbling brooks and endless ridgelines from twenty minutes to two full days, and often encounter more wildlife than humans along the way.

With the small but well-stocked hamlet of Waterton situated at the bottom of this amazing trail network, you needn’t go far to supply before getting high up in the hills for some fresh mountain air.

LITTLE MANITOU LAKE, MANITOU BEACH

Another one of nature’s great gifts can be experienced amongst the wide open wheat field of south central Saskatchewan.

Little Manitou Lake is a naturally occuring salt lake said to have five times the mineral density of the ocean and half as much salinity as Israel and Jordan’s Dead Sea.

Fed by underground springs, the nourishing waters of Manitou, which is Cree for Great Spirit, are rich with magnesium, potassium and sodium making for a serene, buoyant and healing soak in the heart of the prairies.

PUKASKWA NATIONAL PARK, HERON BAY

With shorelines so rugged, horizons so vast and waves so wild, you’d swear you were standing alongside the tides of the ocean instead of Canada’s Great Lake Superior.

The soft sandy beaches of Pukaskwa’s (Puk-a-saw) wilderness park are covered with impressive piles of washed up driftwood and funky structures while the low-lying bogs are host to cranberries, black spruce and moose.

From the rocky banks of the water’s edge you can catch black bears foraging blueberries, eagles fishing trout and magnificent lightning strikes that storm the night sky.

BRUCE PENINSULA NATIONAL PARK

A stone’s throw from the Toronto skyline lies the serenity of the Bruce Peninsula, a sought after space for those looking to escape the big city streets and immerse themselves in the turquoise waters of the Georgian Bay and its stunning surrounding nature.

Part of the Niagara Escarpment, the Peninsula is host to some of the largest remaining forests and natural habitats in Southern Ontario, making way for immense amounts of migrating birds, curious black bears and the elusive massasauga rattlesnake.

In high season, you’ll be sharing popular places like The Grotto with multitudes of other nature lovers, so if you’re looking for calm over crowds, consider section hiking the Bruce Trail from the Tobermory terminus or disappearing into the massive old growth cedars on the wild, rocky bluffs.

MEAT COVE, CAPE BRETON ISLAND

A quick turn off the infamous Cabot Trail takes you on a short gravel road odyssey that climbs up to Meat Cove, the most northerly settlement in Nova Scotia.

This small, rural fishing village perched atop the cliffside seems to hang off the edge of the world, overlooking sapphire blue waters and vibrant green grasses speckled with pink and yellow wildflowers.

With a uniquely situated campground, a delicious chowder hut and the most welcoming people you’ve ever met, it’s the type of place that beckons you to slow right down and stay a while.

THE WRECKHOUSE WINDS, CODROY VALLEY

Yep, we’re talking about travelling for the wind. Not just any wind, but some of the fiercest continual gales in the world, some of which clock in at over 200 km/hr—the same as a Category 2 hurricane.

Known to blow trains off tracks and turn semis on their sides, these strong currents are a result of unique topography—southeast winds, offshore storms, temperature inversions and narrow gulches in the nearby Long Range Mountains that accelerate air across the flat Wreckhouse region.

While you’re here, visit Cape Ray Beach and the beautiful Codroy Valley and grab a copy of the world famous Bologna Cookbook before heading off The Rock.

ONTARIO

NEWFOUNDLAND

ALBERTA

ONTARIO

NOVA SCOTIA

SASKATCHEWAN

THE BIG BIG BIG OPPORTUNITY IN CANNABIS

IS WELCOMING TOURISTS TO OUR FIELDS OF GOLD

A LOOK INSIDE THE BUDDING CANNA-TOURISM INDUSTRY.

BY SARA HODGKINSON

The wine industry in Canada is an $11.5-billion-dollar industry. There are 101 wineries in the Niagara Peninsula where tourism regularly tops $2 billion dollars. The area welcomes more than two million wine-related tourists each year. How many people reading KIND have ever taken trips to Amsterdam to smoke weed? How many people could come to Canada as pot tourists if we legalized sales from the vineyards of licensed dispensaries and welcomed tourists into cannabis destinations from Kelowna, British Columbia to the acres of Prince Edward County?

“We o er so much more than your average wine tour,” says Anne Marie Locas of Okanagan Cannabis Tours, a frontline pioneer in o ering cannabis trips. By law, her journeys are interactive and educational— no cannabis can be sampled—but Anne Marie has found alternative ways to make her customers feel high. “We sample terpene profiles by heating cannabis to the vaporization point so that folks can learn about how all these aspects of the plant influence the cannabis strain,” she said. “We also o er non-infused versions of products that are sold at the dispensaries we visit, and we have stops along the way where tour members can meet legacy growers who have operated in the region for decades to discuss the history of the land.”

Okanagan Cannabis Tours also delivers patrons to various cannabis farms, where they can speak with the owners, learn what they do and purchase their weed. “We make sure we’re doing everything by the book. No cannabis is consumed in or on the bus or at the farms, but we do stop at some smoke-friendly viewpoints,” she says, with a grin. However, lighting up on the side of the road isn’t ideal, and the people visiting wineries don’t have to conceal their grapes. Anne Marie says her clients tend to be from overseas (Australians seem to be particularly keen) or else are Canadians on their honeymoon or those wanting to take friends and family visiting from out of province to

experience something truly unique. But she still believes canna-tourism can be so much more and it’s the same thing bugging Jason Alexander and Kelly Sinclair, who opened Fridays Cannabis in Picton, Ontario, in October of 2020. Their dispensary is designed for locals and tourists alike.

“We started to notice a lot of people were coming in from Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Rochester,” said Alexander, adding that it was no accident that the owners picked the small town location for their shop. Picton is in Prince Edward County, a bucolic area about two hours east of Toronto. With its picturesque barns, wineries and beaches, the county has long been a destination for the epicurean city dweller looking for a weekend away. “The cannabis industry has evolved over the last few years,” Alexander says. “When it started it was almost like post-prohibition where people were just happy to have anything, but now I think cannabis tourism can be much more than it currently is.”

As the cannabis industry expands, consumer curiosity and the desire for curated events have grown with it. Both local Canadians and visitors from abroad are looking to engage with cannabis through tours and unique consumption experiences, like the kind held for budtenders by KIND. What used to be a very closed, illegal and tightly knit industry is starting to open up, and consumers worldwide want to be a part of that. Recent years have shown an increase in the number of cannabis-forward tourism companies, albeit with varying levels of success. It helps that many cannabis farms and production sites cropped up in fertile areas already well established in the wine industry, and that wineries and cannabis producers are now piggybacking business o each other as they increasingly find themselves to be neighbours.

Cannabis tourism is of course nothing new, but this is the first time in modern history it can be explored here at home. After five years of legalization, Canada is still the only G7 country to o er federally legalized recreational cannabis. Tourism in Canada, already a $19.5-billion industry, already has the agritourism infrastructure—particularly

in wine regions like the Okanagan and Niagara. So what’s holding back booming cannabis tours?

“It’s been so hard to figure out the laws, everything seems to be gray,” says Ian McClatchey, who moved to Prince Edward County in 2021 to open a cannabis catering business called CHC, which provides private dining experiences. He says current cannabis legislation is holding him back. Like many cannabis business owners, he finds the legal requirements constrictive. “When I spoke to my lawyer about opening this business, he warned me that a lot of laws surrounding how I could operate as a cannabis-adjacent business just didn’t exist yet,” says McClatchey. “I’m running a bootstrap business and what I find mystifying is that I don’t even sell cannabis! My customers bring me their own cannabis from legal dispensaries and I turn that into ingestibles which can be added to their private dinners, yet I’m beholden to the same rules as LPs. I’m trying to adhere to the law, but we’re in a precarious situation because everything is so unclear.”

Tourism in Prince Edward Country is a $190-million industry. Experts agree that including cannabis in their tourism options would see that number radically increase. Think dining experiences, educational events, cannabis tours and tourism experiences, and special events like weddings (weddings, especially, could be huge). These limitations surrounding cannabis for special events are particularly frustrating for the team at Fridays in Prince Edward County, who have had to turn away potential clients looking for cannabis at their destination weddings. While special event licenses for alcohol are fairly easy to procure, they are all nearly impossible to access for cannabis dispensers.

“We have had discussions with venues and couples who wanted to have cannabis at their wedding and for us to be involved we’d have to have the bud bar in a separate building or it would have to be an adults-only event,” Kelly said. “These heavy-handed laws are contributing to a stigma surrounding cannabis that should have been done away with a long time ago.”

THE DOUBLE STANDARD WITH BOOZE

David Brown, a founder of Lift who now runs the industry bible StratCann, says the legal cannabis market needs the kind of boost that things like Farmgate—in which licensed producers sell their weed directly from their grows—and cannabis tourism could provide.

“I think those growers taking on farmgate definitely see a long-term goal of a kind of winery tour model,” he said, and pointed to an industry-wide trend: licensed producers in provinces like Ontario and New Brunswick where small farms are leaning into cannabis farmgate. (BC just opened their program too, but only two have applied so far.)

“Farmgate definitely o ers opportunities for cannabis growers to create a unique, on-site experience combined with product sales,” Brown continued. “When consumers can not only visit the farm or facility where the cannabis is grown, but then purchase products from that location and then also have a chance to enjoy them on site, it then begins to mimic the winery tours di erent parts of Ontario are known for.”

This is something most everyone in legal weed is eager to see. “I’m a licensed tour bus driver with the Ministry of Transport, I don’t sell or supply cannabis, yet I’m identified as a cannabis service and deeply limited in the ways I can advertise,” says Anne Marie Locas of Okanagan Cannabis Tours. “All I want is for the laws to allow me to operate the same way I would operate a wine tour, with the same advertising, and to provide customers with ways to enjoy their cannabis.”

It’s clear that everyone in the industry is feeling the pressure from a government which has created its legalisation in the shadow of reefer madness mentality. Granted, cannabis legalization is still new; still, cannabis tourism seems like the obvious next step for weed.

“The food scene in Prince Edward County is extremely vibrant, and it was a natural progression for my business to cater to the tourists who are looking to enjoy a relaxing weekend,” says Ian McClatchey of CHC, the cannabis event company. “We are getting a lot of feedback from customers who say that they enjoy the wine country setting, but don’t want to deal with the fallouts associated with drinking. A lot of people

seem to be reducing their alcohol consumption, and it feels like a natural progression toward cannabis. People want to relax, unwind and enjoy.”

Like Superette doing delivery to the Ace Hotel in Toronto, Friday’s Cannabis is aiming to expand its presence in the tourism market by providing direct delivery services to the nearby boutique hotels. “We have partnerships with Wander, The Royal and Jackson Falls in the County so if previously you would pre-order a bottle of wine to your room for a getaway experience, we can now curate cannabis packages. That’s something we are working with the hotels to provide— to create that experience with them for their patrons and elevate their stay.”

“I think there are a lot of opportunities for cannabis tourism in Canada and cannabis farm and facility visits show some potential, similar to how we have seen winery tours evolve over time,” says Brown. “I’m also starting to see more events in Canada, be they concerts, festivals or conferences, that are finding ways to allow onsite cannabis sales and, sometimes, consumption. As this evolves, we will see tourism models evolve that cater to this demand and take advantage of those opportunities.”

“People all over the world love coming to Canada and Canadians explore their country everyday. We should do more to help these lovely people get high.”

Keep Discovering grind

EVER-CHANGING STRAINS in all shapes and sizes

THE WIZARDS OF MOTIF LABS

Mario Naric, the 30-year-old CEO of Motif Labs, understands that the consumer comes first when realizing gaps in the market. A chemical engineer who built his own lab, Naric presides over the three aforementioned brands and, ripping this spring, Boondocks—a lifestyle brand focused on the power of identity and purpose, with adventure, sustainability and portability as key pillars to its ethos. On a tour of his facility outside London, Ontario, a hub of activity from where he ships 0.5-million products each month, Naric explained how he came to produce the oil now in roughly 35% of vapes in this country.

“A product for people who don’t take themselves too seriously, who like to have a good time, that doesn’t chintz out on hardware or potency was missing in the market,” says Naric, who started his company at 25 and bet early, after doing research in the US, that extraction was missing in legal Canadian weed. “That BOXHOT release last fall created all this momentum and now, when everyone is pulling back, we’re doubling down. It’s a great time to be in cannabis for people who know their consumer—we create stuff that people want to buy.” Aside from producing Canada’s most exciting and innovative vapes, Motif is also a leading producer of Hydrocarbon

extracts, minor cannabinoids and infused prerolls. They are now working with a variety of co-manufacturers to expand their brands into other key categories as well. Naric has a vision to build a powerhouse of brands that addresses a wide variety of market needs. The latest release

in their leading brand arsenal will be Boondocks, which is dropping a sustainably designed set of all-in-one vapes, live-resin-infused blunts and ready-to-roll milled flower products with a focus on beautifully designed products, great flavours and a set of hardware and packaging that are manufactured sustainably. “Motif’s secret is that the people who run the place, and who make the product decisions, are deeply entrenched in the industry and passionate about exciting the consumer. We make products we, and our friends, want to consume, which is why our products resonate. This is not just a business built to make a quick buck. Instead, this is a group of people coming together to leverage creativity, science and consumer insights.”

Meanwhile, while still a leading white labeler and B2B supplier in Canada, Naric found gaps in marketplace. Part of the error in early weed was that senior leaders in our industry didn’t know their product. Naric represents a new generation of cannabis executives making products in

“Our team is behind the meteoric rise. Motif works because we are the consumer.”

The team behind BOXHOT, DEBUNK, Floresense, and Boondock focus on four things: Consumer, Product, Innovation, and Quality

LEFT TO RIGHT (AMANDA BOLTË CREATIVE DIRECTOR, ANNA MAVEAL SENIOR DIRECTOR, MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS, MARIO NARIC CEO, STEVE NAZARIAN COO, CHAD GRAY SENIOR DIRECTOR, PRODUCT COMMERCIALIZATION)

Canada with purpose. Naric represents a new generation of cannabis executives making products in Canada with soul.

feet moved to 40,000 square feet last year and will hit 125,000 square feet this fall. Doom and gloom in the marketplace of the industry we love? Not inside the ripping universe that is Motif Labs.

“We’re expanding every single part of our business, and that means no less than doubling everything. Products like the BOXHOT infused prerolls could see as much as five times the growth,” says Naric, before joining KIND at his local dispensary, where we bought a big box

of branded products to bring back to our Toronto office to share. With two years of profitability and 7000 kg of cannabis being extracted each month, Naric and his team at Motif Labs seem to be living the dream. “We create great products we can sell at scale and deliver them at a great price while not taking ourselves too seriously,” Naric says, with a smile. “We didn’t build Motif on speculation and we weren’t first to market, but we did remember that cannabis was supposed to be fun.”

“Motif works because we are the consumer and when we have an idea, we have to bring it to market because nobody else will,” says Naric, whose marketplace evolution will no doubt be sped along this spring by products such as 95% THC vapes and diamond-infused blunts with over 50% THC. “Our team is super excited about our products and it’s the team and our approach that’s behind our meteoric rise.”

The meteoric rise, as fast as it’s been, is still in its infancy and, seeing the lab through Naric’s eyes, it’s hard not to be caught up by the Motif Labs momentum. What started with 11,000 square

95% THC vapes and infused blunts with over 50% THC

MARIO NARIC REPRESENTS A NEW GENERATION OF CANNABIS EXECUTIVES MAKING PRODUCTS IN CANADA COMBINING SOUL WITH SCIENCE

ROILTY REIGNS SUPREME

A look at Roilty, the Canadian LP making the best concentrates in all the land.

Inspired by the legacy market, Roilty was born of the once medical focused cannabis company, CannMart, now specializing in a state-of-the-art butane hash oil extraction facility. Ignited with the latest innovation and a variety of product offerings, CannMart’s in-house concentrate brand, Roilty, deserves a spotlight. KIND caught up with CannMart’s Brand Director, Bella Mitchell, for insight into their brand and a glance-behind-the-curtain.

KIND: It feels like we knew CannMart’s Roilty brand would totally blow up. Take us behind the scenes of your launch.

Bella Mitchell: CannMart Inc. was its own beast when I joined the team in 2021, having established the first medical marketplace in Canada. CannMart expanded on their success to create a butane hash oil extraction facility, and Roilty was nothing more than a name. I immediately went to work and began fleshing out the Roil Kingdom—building the brand from

KIND: It’s dope that in such little time you’ve emerged as a leader in the concentrate category.

BM: Thank you. Yeah, this isn’t a brand built by corporate executives. It was built by legacy hearts and hands and born from a great deal of autonomy and trust from my management team; they provided the trust and space to build Roilty as a legacy inspired brand, and that has been monumental to its growth and success.

KIND: What makes Roilty worth rolling with?

BM: The concentrate segment has a lot of masculine skewing brands, however the fastest growing consumer demographic in cannabis is women across all age groups, in all categories. It felt like an opportunity to provide a brand that was inclusive in such a male dominated industry.

KIND: I didn’t know that.

BM: Women are flocking to weed in record descriptions, or silly graphics. Fun is at the center

of the brand’s ethos.

KIND: Besides fun, what is the Roilty ethos?

BM: High-quality concentrates at prices that don’t lean on a brand premium. We think quality should be a prerequisite in the extract category. Our state-of-the-art BHO lab, and learnings from the legacy market seem to speak for themselves.

KIND: And it’s paying off.

BM: It is. Instead of frequently changing strains, which from a product listing perspective can be difficult, we’ve been growing the breadth of our category offerings, including live resin, shatter, sugar wax, vapes (both distillate and BHO), and most recently, diamonds.

KIND: Why lean into this many categories?

BM: The concentrate consumer values variety and

HOW THE OCS ENABLES THE LEGAL CANNABIS MARKETPLACE IN ONTARIO

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT MCDOUGALL

The Ontario Cannabis Store’s distribution centre holds without a doubt, the largest stash of legal cannabis products on planet earth. On any given day, up to two million individual packages of dried flower, edibles,

concentrates, beverages and more from over 250 different licensed producers across Canada are stacked, row after row on racks that stretch to the ceiling 30 metres from the ground across a building that covers almost 50

basketball courts. So. Much. Cannabis.

Most of it – almost 96 per cent is destined for one of Ontario’s almost 1,700 cannabis stores and then Ontario consumers. The rest

is sold through OCS.ca, the Province’s online retailer, and delivered to consumers across the province.

David Lobo, President and CEO of Ontario’s government cannabis wholesaler the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS), leans over the yellow safety railing and points to the 1.3-kilometre long conveyor system that snakes its way through the racks.

“We ship more than 1,100 kgs every single day to stores across Ontario while receiving products from our suppliers. This couldn’t happen without great partners, a lot of automation and careful planning,” Lobo says. “What gets us excited is we’re serving a real need and, if we do our jobs right, bringing exciting, innovative products to market while engaging and educating consumers and solving challenges that didn’t exist even six months ago, let alone six years back.”

Ontario’s newest provincial agency, OCS is the link between Canada’s licensed producers and Ontario’s cannabis consumers. The organization’s mandate is to shift cannabis consumers from the illegal market to the legal market and encourage socially responsible consumption and cannabis education. Only producers licensed by Health Canada who follow all regulations and can provide lab reports with strength and purity for their products can sell to the OCS. The OCS then offers the products that get selected through the product call to licensed retailers who all pay the same price. Now, in the fifth year of legalization, the estimates of market capture in Ontario suggest about 60 per cent of consumers have shifted to legal.

While some critics lament this as slow progress, Lobo says it’s important to keep in mind the scale of the challenge. “Since it was more than a century ago, I can’t imagine that legal alcohol displaced the bootleggers as rapidly or with as much enthusiasm as Ontario’s cannabis retail store network.”

“Our goal is to create Canada’s largest, most vibrant marketplace and that means great customer experiences rooted in selection, service, quality and price,” states Lobo.

“Federal cannabis legalisation is still less than five-years-old and we’re still the only G8 country that has achieved it. There’s a lot of room left for evolution, and we’ve shared some of our thinking with Health Canada on how to move the industry and Canada forward.”

Lobo and his team are clearly listening to the industry. In the last three months he’s made major changes that are aimed at supporting the sustainability of the sector. Recently OCS announced changes to its pricing structure, reducing OCS’s net income to the tune of $60 million a year. As well, OCS is reducing the burden of insurance costs to make it easier for micro producers to get in the game.

Since the well-documented bumps of its first couple of years, OCS has quietly gone about building the world’s largest cannabis pipeline. When Ontario retailers log on to place orders, they have access to more than 3,000 different products with more being added every month.

There are still challenges. There’s never enough of the hottest products to go around and competition on both the retailer and the licensed producer sides of the fence is incredibly fierce.

Lobo, who joined OCS prior to legalization, became the agency’s president and CEO last summer after holding a number of senior roles in the organization. It’s clear he’s passionate about the organization, legalization and cannabis. Name a town and he can tell you the names of the stores in that community and its extremely likely that he’s popped in for a visit. He is an individual who brings tremendous focus to his role and a passion for the details.

While getting those details right is critical, standing in this vaguely dank distribution centre with Ontario’s top cannabis executive, it’s hard not to feel excited about Canada’s place in leading this global shift in thinking about KIND’s favourite plant.

“We’re in it for the long run and that enables us to make the right decisions for cannabis.”

THE HIGHEST HIGHS

SIX PICKS FROM CANNABIS INSIDERS TO ELEVATE YOUR 420

No tastebuds in Canada are more attuned to quality cannabis than the budtenders on the frontline of legal weed. To get you ready for spring elevation, we asked a few friends to sample the products we’re most eager to try.

TREYVAUGHN MCDONALD, BUDTENDER BUZZED BUDS, ON PAX LIVE ROSIN

“A sweet, tropical flavour characterises the Guava Gelato experience. Packed with a tangy-citrus and sour-pineapple twist, the creamy finish of this strain ties it all together. The effects of this Pax strain are calming and soothing, leaving you with a heavy feeling of contentment, pleasure, and an all-around blissful state. This is a personal favourite of mine from the Pax Live Rosin series.”

HELENA DRESCHEL, BUDTENDER BUZZED BUDS , ON SIMPLY BARE WHITE RNTZ ROSIN ROLL

“There are so many reasons to love this Rosin Roll. Organic flower, strainspecific rosin, 3.28% terps—this infused preroll checked all of my boxes. The Rosin elevated those delicious, creamy, candy flavour profiles that we love about White Rntz, and it only took a couple puffs for me to start feeling an immediate wave of relaxation hitting my body. The halfway point was when I knew this joint was a winner—when the rosin really started to hit me, and I had that ‘oh shit im hiiiiiiiigh’ moment. Look no further if you want a delicious, potent, QUALITY infused preroll experience.”

“I’m a 510 fan. They are convenient, discreet when used in public and let’s be honest—they taste great. The first hit from this WeedMe cart brought me back to my last vacation: on a beach in Mexico drinking freshly squeezed fruit juice from a local vendor. It was delicious, and this cart tastes exactly like it. This 1.2g vape cartridge is perfect for anyone who is looking for a cart that will last them a bit longer (that extra 0.2g has saved me on more than one occasion), and for anyone looking to escape Canada’s harsh winters, a couple hits and you can take a quick trip to a tropical paradise. *Warm weather not included*”

“Shred has taken their beloved Tropic Thunder strain and given consumers a new twist with their Shred’Ems Tropic Thunder sativa gummies. With notes of tropical and fruity citrus flavours, this edible has a pleasant and enjoyable taste. At 10mg/pack, the Shred’Ems Tropic Thunder edibles are perfect for anyone who loves the strain but is looking for something a little lighter—particularly for those who prefer edibles over vapes or flower. This edible is ideal for the sativa lover and is sure to give consumers a pleasant high and enjoyable overall experience.”

PEYTON

BLUE DREAM PRE-ROLL

“The Station House Blue Dream Pre-Roll is a strong sativa that has an energetic cerebral effect, with a mild fruity flavour and a consistent burn. Crossed between Blueberry and Haze, the Blue Dream Pre-Roll sits at 17–23% THC, and Station House provides a preroll that is sure to hit the mark for sativa lovers. I would definitely recommend this preroll to someone who enjoys a more focused and energetic high, particularly for those who enjoy a smoke during the day or in social settings.”

“An update on a popular product that people just love, the oil has a smooth aftertaste and light finish while giving the sweet, sweet sensation that people love from weed. Not sugary like an edible or anything you need to combust like a joint, this is easy to consume, discreet and potent—a perfect combination for an elegant, essence-of-olive-oil way to get high.”

HELENA DRESCHEL, BUDTENDER BUZZED BUDS, ON WEEDME TROPICAL ORANGE & PINEAPPLE 510 CARTRIDGE

SERENA SOMANI, OWNER 4K CANNABIS , ON SHRED’EMS TROPIC THUNDER 4:1 CBD/THC SATIVA SOFT CHEWS

BROOKES, BUDTENDER 4K CANNABIS , ON STATION HOUSE

KRIS BERTUCCI, OPERATIONS MANAGER STICKY NUGGZ , ON MEDIPHARM LABS THC30 OLIVE OIL FORMULA

THE FUNKY MONKÉ

BK: “Highly sessionable,” meaning: easy to drink and remain social?

JR: We wanted to create a social beverage, something you could have more than one of with friends as a substitute for your vodka seltzer or beer. In Canada, we use Vertosa’s micro-encapsulation emulsion which gives you an effervescent social high with the calming and relaxing effects of the CBD, plus a fast onset (around 15 minutes). Both the consistency of the onset and offset, along with the 2:1 balance, makes for a very accessible high - a great time, every time.

BK: How does the CBD interact with the THC to avoid couch-lock?

BY BEN KAPLAN

Green Monké is a fast-growing, delicious, cannabis-infused alcohol alternative on the cannabis cutting edge. With infused options offering a range of THC blends—with CBD ratios designed not to overwhelm—Green Monké is transforming the Canadian cannabis drinks market, one can at a time. KIND editor Ben Kaplan opened a Green Monké with Jen Robinson-Lockwood, Green Monké’s Chief Marketing Officer, and got the goods on Canada’s funky new Green Monké bunch.

Ben Kaplan: I feel like you came out of nowhere to being at every barbecue I hit. What’s the origin story behind your drinks?

Jen Robinson-Lockwood: Green Monké launched in the UK in 2018 as a hemp drink and quickly outsold the competition 10:1. In early 2020, my good friend and co-founder Pat Gleeson, took me to the UK to try the drinks, and we decided that the product was too good to not have at home! So we put a little THC into it and launched the brand in California in April 2021, and in Ontario the following December. We have since launched in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Maine, and Massachusetts. Pat and I wanted to design our Green Monké beverages as a low-dose alcohol alternative and to be highly sessionable. We also have a CBD, and a Delta-8 version of our drinks available in almost 30 states in the US.

JR: Incorporating CBD helps take the edge off of THCs intoxicating properties. With many experiencing THC as a head-high, adding CBD to the experience allows for a whole-body-buzz, while still staying clearminded and social along the way, which was important to us to make this drink an alcohol alternative.

BK: What you’re doing with innovation is a big boost for the legal market—creating things that the illicit market simply can’t. Can you talk about what’s next? What are you learning that your customer wants and how are you building upon these lessons?

JR: We’re so excited to be bringing our 10mg Tropical Citrus drink to Canada this summer. With 10mg of THC and 20mg of CBD, it comes with a quick onset and higher dose of THC and a double dose of CBD that will keep you social.

BK: There’s almost nothing better than a citrus cannabis drink. I read somewhere that like 80% of the people who try one said they’ll try one again.

JR: Right? And the other major benefit of cannabis drinks as opposed to your “standard edible” is the way your body processes the THC. In liquid form, the THC is absorbed through all of the pores in your mouth and esophagus on the way to your stomach, reaching more cannabinoid

receptors in the body. This means that where with your typical “edible” the body processes about 25-30% of the THC you eat, with beverages, your body processes between 60 and 75%.

BK: I didn’t know that, but I always suspected that was the case. Can you tell our readers about the skinny Pina Colada you’re launching?

JR: We wanted to create something that was familiar, delicious, and sugar-free. Our newest canna-cocktail, Pineapple Coconut, will have our signature 2:1 ratio, is sweetened with natural sugars like erythritol and stevia, and it’s only 5 calories and has 0 grams of sugar. The taste profile is for a slightly more mature palette and the perfect happy-hour drink heading into the summer.

BK: Lastly, looking into your crystal ball, what’s new and what’s next? This summer, where do you expect Green Monké to be?

JR: 2023 is shaping up to be the summer of Green Monké! We’ll be launching two new drinks in Ontario and British Columbia. We’re also Cookies’ Global Beverage partner and this January we launched three cobranded 10mg THC iced teas and a lemonade in California and will be launching them in Ontario and B.C. this summer!

BK: Sounds like an awesome growth plan. Thanks so much for your time, and thanks for the great product.

JR: It’s our pleasure and thanks for spreading the word about Green Monké in KIND !

Inside the latest research and releases from Green Monké, the coldest new cannabis drinks in town.

“With your typical ‘edible,’ the body processes about 25-30% of the THC; with beverages, your body processes between 60 and 75%.”

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MATT SEE

DRINKS CREATED AND MIXED BY ADRIAN STEIN, @DOPE.COCKTAILS

mocktails Dope kind

kind

The Dope Cocktails team mix magic for your springtime infused beverage pleasure

5 star legacy punch

INGREDIENTS

5 Citrus Blend (Lemon, Orange, Grapefruit, Lime, Pineapple), Orgeat, Non Alc Cocktail Bitters, Dissolving THC Powder, Tropical Fruit

METHOD

• Fill shaker with ice

• Pour all juices into shaker

• Add 1 shot orgeat into shaker

• Add 5 dashes non alc aromatic bitters

• Add 1 pouch of dissolving THC powder

• Shake vigorously, and strain into glass filled with ice

• Garnish with 2 pineapple fronds, starfruit, kiwi and edible flower

@DOPE.COCKTAILS

Ultimo volo

10MG THC ITALY/ NEW YORK CITY

INGREDIENTS

Double Espresso, Coconut, Chocolate, Chai, Razzle Dazzle, Fancy Macaron

METHOD

• Fill shaker with ice

• Pour into shaker 1 double espresso shot

• Pour into shaker 1 shot of Monin Coconut Syrup

• Pour into shaker 2 shots of Chai

• Add 5 dashes of Fee Brothers Chocolate Bitters

• Add 10mg of preferred cannabis oil tincture

• Add 1 pinch of bronze lustre dust

• Shake vigorously, and strain into chilled martini Glass

• Garnish with fancy macaron

@DOPE.COCKTAILS

Glow op sangria

10MG THC

ITALY/ NEW YORK CITY

INGREDIENTS

Gruvi Rose Non Alc Sparkling, Poppi probiotic

Raspberry Rose Soda, Dope Mocktails

Limonene Cordial, Watermelon Radish, Flowers

METHOD

• In a wine glass, place watermelon radish wheels, and edible

flowers

• Fill wine glass with ice

• Pour Gravi Rose Non Alc Sparkling

• Pour 15ml Dope

Mocktails Limonene

Cordial

• Top with more ice to top of the glass

• Pour Poppi Probiotic

Raspberry Rose Soda to top

• Sip, Relax and Enjoy

Lawrence LaPianta, Michelin-star adorned chef/owner at Toronto’s Cherry St Bar-B-Que, lights up sensations for spring

PHOTOGRAPHS BY TYLER ANDERSON

KIND TRIPS BE KIND

COOK LIKE A PITMASTER RIBS (BABY

DRY RUB INGREDIENTS

1 cup turbinado sugar (raw sugar)

3/4 cup kosher salt

1/2 cup spanish paprika

4 teaspoon granulated garlic

3 teaspoon granulated onion

1 teaspoon chipotle powder

MOP SAUCE

1 cup of your favourite brand BBQ sauce (we use our own house blend)

1/2 cup light packed brown sugar

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1/4 cup yellow mustard

1/4 cup Lea & Perrin’s

Worcestershire sauce

4 tablespoons tamarind sauce

SLAW DRESSING

1/2 litre apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1 tablespoon sriracha

INSTRUCTIONS

Remove silver skin from back of ribs. Season generously with rib rub (let stand in fridge for 1 hour after seasoning).

Cook over indirect heat at 225 degrees (107 C) for 2 hours or until the ribs have the colour and look you want. TIME TO WRAP use extra strong foil paper.

Lay brown sugar on foil with cut up butter slices and pour warm sauce on too. Lay the ribs meat side down. Fold the foil tightly around the ribs. Cook 1.5 more hours.

4 5

Gently take the ribs out of the foil and place back on the grill (or smoker) and begin to paint very thin layers of warm mop sauce on the ribs until they are fork tender.

Pull, let stand for 15 mins and then slice and enjoy.

TANGY SLAW MIX 1

Combine half a head of red cabbage thinly sliced and a full head of white cabbage thinly sliced. Add 3 carrots, shredded.

DJ KA RABA

ISONA MISSION

TO ROLL UP THE ELECTRONIC MUSIC SCENE

BY ALEX NINO GHECIU

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KELLY JACOB & KETSIA N’KUMBU

Back before dance music was whitewashed and straightened out, it belonged to minorities. Its origins can be traced back to the 1970s, when LBGTQ+ communities and Black and Brown people in Chicago, New York and Detroit, in the face of stifling discrimination, found refuge in nightlife. Among the genre’s most vital pioneers were women of colour, from house legend Kym Mazelle to disco diva Loleatta Holloway. And yet, on festival stages, in club lineups and in label boardrooms, it’s your Calvin Harrises and David Guettas who dominate the electronic scene. As in, straight white men— the same folks who run everything else.

DJ Karaba is here to crash the bro’s club. The France-born, Montreal-bred producer has amassed a global fanbase (half a million TikTok followers and counting) by carving out space in a genre that can feel alienating to young Black women like herself. After beginning her career as a dancer for pop megastars like Drake and Selena Gomez, Karaba decided she wanted to be the one who makes people move. Inspired by her father’s Congolese heritage, she’s been reclaiming dance music via balmy, rhythmically fluid beats seasoned with sounds of the African diaspora, from Afro house to Ndombolo. Her forthcoming EP, due this spring, features vocals exclusively by Black women. Why? “Because we’re super dope,” she says.

We chatted with Karaba about CBD bath bombs, dancing for Drake, and her mission to amplify super dope Black women in electronic music.

DK: Yeah, it used to be fun! I was in New York and I was like, “Woo yeah! Girl, let’s do this!” And then it shifted. And someone told me, “Maybe you should do more research into what type of weed to smoke. Maybe now that you’re older, there’s a specific one that’s good for you.” I do take the one that just relaxes your body.

ANG: Do you have a CDB bath playlist?

DK: I watch Netflix when I’m in my bath, but I don’t really listen to music. I get bored. I love reality shows; the stupid ones like Love Is Blind or Too Hot To Handle. I just need to watch something and forget about stuff.

ANG: What was your route to get into the professional dance world? Was there an avenue for that in Montreal?

DK: I knew from a very young age that Montreal wasn’t the place for the dreams I had. Obviously, watching Save the Last Dance and all these movies, the main girl would always move to New York. I think I was like 8 or 9 when I already knew that I’m going to have to move to the States. Plus, this was like 20 years ago when Black people weren’t even being celebrated the way they are in the entertainment industry in the world, let alone in Quebec.

ANG: Oh yeah. I imagine growing up in Montreal, you probably didn’t see too many people on TV you could identify with.

DK: There were none. There was maybe like one token person, but to be honest, I wasn’t really watching much Quebecois television because I was just like, “I don’t see myself.” So I was more the kid watching MTV and BET because the States were so much further ahead in their quest of celebrating Black people compared to Canada or Quebec.

ANG: So fast forward a bit — you leave Montreal, go to the States, and eventually become a dancer for Drake. What era of Drake was this? And what was he like to work for?

Alex Nino Gheciu: So DJ Karaba, the masses need to know: do you smoke cannabis?

DJ KARABA: Oh shit, I’m not cool. I used to, but not anymore. It gets me paranoid, so I had to stop. But in my 20s, I used to smoke a lot of weed and obviously, I live in California now, so, you know, woo hoo! But no, I don’t anymore. I had to tone it down. Back in the day I would smoke and go to class and dance and just be about it. And then I think when I was maybe 27, I was like, “Oh, hell no, I can’t do this anymore.”

ANG: Ah, interesting. So you used to be a functional pothead.

ANG: So, you were born in France and your parents decided to move to Canada when you were 7. Why Canada?

DK: It was just the American dream, but cheaper. And then you still can speak French. So they were just like, “We’re going to Montreal!”

ANG: Was dancing your first love?

DK: My first love was music, but then my first reaction to that was to move. So then it went into dance. I just had a lot of energy and I wasn’t a very good singer. So my parents were like, “Let’s just put her in something where she can just get her energy out.” I went into dance and I really liked it. I was just like, “This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

DK: It was when he was on The Boy Meets World tour and he was releasing More Life. He’s a cool guy. He’s really nice and really sweet and always just making sure we’re okay. I didn’t really have conversations with him, but for the little exchanges I had with him, he was really cool. It’s the Canadian gene. [Laughs.]

ANG: At what point did you decide you wanted to start making music?

DK: It was actually when I was touring with Selena [Gomez], which was before Drake. She talks about it in her documentary; she got lupus. And so she had to cancel the tour, and that was in 2016. We did the North American leg and the Asian leg, and then we were about to go to Europe and South America

“ 2017, that’s when Drake happened. And then 2019 is when I was like, “OK, enough. I have to focus on me.”

and she was just like, “Yeah, I can’t physically do it, so I’m going to have to cancel.” That’s when I was like, “Oh wow, okay. They can just cancel like that.” And that’s nothing on her—she was actually like, “I’ll keep you guys on payroll until the end of the tour.” That’s someone that really cares about their staff. She’s actually really nice.

ANG: Yeah, that’s actually pretty dope of Selena.

DK: But I was like, what’s my plan B? My life depends on someone else’s schedule, basically. So that’s when I was like, okay, I need to find something else that I like or another passion. So that’s when I started taking DJ class. Then 2017, that’s when Drake happened. And then 2019 is when I was like, okay, enough. I have to just focus on DJing, focus on me. People will debate on this and say you don’t need music to be a dancer, but

personally, I need music to be a dancer. So really, I went back to what I liked about dancing, which was the music.

ANG: Nice. Did you ever show Drake any of your beats when you were touring with him?

DK: No, because I wasn’t producing at that time. I actually brought my controller, but I was so shy. Now thinking about it, I should have been like, “Listen, you gotta let me play.” Because he would have after parties after the show; we would go places to hang out and he had a DJ that would play. I was just so shy because I was only a year into mixing, and it’s Drake, you know what I mean? It’s not like it’s a bunch of your friends. Like, I’m not going to embarrass myself in front of Drake.

ANG: You should DM him now! Be like, “Yo, remember me?”

DK: No, nooo I don’t do that kind of stuff. I let them come to me. Every step at a time. I want him to, like, come back around and be like, “Oh my God. you’re that girl!” And I’ll be like, “Yeah!” But I ain’t gonna be in his DMs because everyone does that, so yeah, no. You gotta be special, you know what I mean?

ANG: This is the cliché music journalist question, but how would you describe your sound?

DK: I’m just making what I like. I’m super inspired by Afro house from South Africa and I just want to make music that reflects where I come from. Well, where my Dad comes from; Congo, Africa. After that, to say what kind of music I make, you can

“I smoke CBD joints because it never gets to my head. It stays in the body and I feel really relaxed.”

call it whatever you want, as long as you like it. Or maybe you don’t.

ANG: Maybe you can tell me this: Why is it important for you to inject your

to know that there’s so much more music coming out of Africa. I feel like people would listen to it and be like, “Oh, where is she from? Oh, okay, she has Congolese in her, so what’s the music like out there?”

ANG: Can you elaborate on that? Why is it important for you to have a project showcasing Black women?

DK: Because we’re super dope. We’re just easily put aside. So I make it my mission to feature as many Black women as I can, and make sure they’re being heard and seen. And maybe down the line I’ll be like, okay, fine, I’ve done it. But right now, that’s really one of my motivations because I listen to so much music every day and I just don’t feel like I see that—Black women on Afro house tracks, in French.

ANG: Yeah, you’re right, that is super dope. [Laughs.] Especially when you consider the lack of women in electronic music today. I saw a study saying that on the Billboard 100 Year-End Chart only 2.6 percent of producers were female in the last decade.

DK: I saw even less than that — something like 0.3 percent of people in music production are women of colour.

ANG: That’s hard to comprehend.

DK: It can be very lonely. I don’t have anything against men, but sometimes I just want to be in a room with women making music and not just always dudes going, “Arrgh!” But at the same time I think it’s going to slowly change. If I’m not living when the change comes, at least I’ll be part of the wave trying to make a change for the next generation.

Congolese heritage into your music?

DK: There’s not a lot of women in music producing, let alone women of colour. And I don’t think there’s a lot of women that do what I do. So I think that’s why, for me, it was even more important to have my African roots in it. If I think about music that is being played in Quebec, I don’t see any people like me, Black women, being celebrated. I want people to know where this music comes from. I know right now, there’s a big movement with Amapiano, which is from South Africa. I would love for people

ANG: What can you tell me about the music you’ve got on the way?

DK: I’m working on this new EP. For this one, I want to work with Black female vocalists and I want to have a full-on French project. So the music kind of stays the same, but the direction is different. No matter how much people say, “Oh, you should do it in English,” I’m just like nah, I’m still a French girl. Therefore I want to make a project that celebrates that, with Black women.

ANG: Why do you think there are staggeringly so few women of colour in music production? How do you explain it?

DK: I just think it’s because we don’t see it. What you don’t see, you can’t get. If I’m a little girl and I don’t see someone like me doing it, then it’s hard for me to think that I can do it. So it’s about representation and making sure women that are doing this are being put in front. It’s about being equal; as many women as men. We’re not trying to say that we want to be in the front. It’s just that it should be fair game for both genders.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KETSIA N’KUMBU

COMING SOON...

ON TOP OF THE WORLD

After crisscrossing the globe in the name of Canadian culture, Kardinal Offishall is now using his international ear to call Def Jam home

BY BEN KAPLAN

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JALANI MORGAN

STYLING BY AIMEE ELISE LAPEDUS FOR AL VINTAGE DESIGN @AIMEE_ELISELAPEDUS

During Kardinal’s two-hour trip to the KIND office, he ignores calls from the Junos and from the CEO of Def Jam. Clearly the man is having a moment. One of the all-time most dynamic Canadian performers says that, after ten trips around the world, talent is universal, but good people are all the same. A co-host of Canada’s Got Talent and newly anointed head of global A&R at Def Jam—the label behind, among others, Public Enemy, DMX and Run-DMC—Kardi says that moving between cultures restores his faith in the universal decency of people. Talent doesn’t discriminate. And anyone worth spending time with shares similar traits.

“I love being able to navigate different cities and countries and that’s where I learned that we are all essentially the same,” Kardinal recently told KIND, sitting on our patio high over Toronto and enjoying his perch as a man on the move. “Greatness starts in so many different places, but it always ends up in the same place—and that’s someone’s heart.” Heart is something Kardinal has in spades and after

“I want to see my community occupy spaces we had once been rejected from.”

nearly thirty years in the game, he seems to be (once again) reinventing himself. Whether it was his headlining recent performance at OVO Fest when Drake brought together his partners on “Northern Touch,” with a Nelly Furtado assist, or else earning a Canadian Screen Award nomination for his appearance on Run the Burbs, Kardinal remains both humble and ambitious. Proud of his accomplishments, but never settling—always looking to grow.

“I live in gratitude,” he says, with a smile. “I’m a forever student, and I want to see myself in a new space, but also us—meaning my community—occupy spaces we had been pushed out of or rejected from. Anything I can do to help develop our landscape across this country is something I most definitely want to do.”

Developing the landscape is something Kardinal will be doing at Def Jam, the label that meant the most to him growing up. At a time when international music

is all the rage—from Afrobeats to Reggaeton to the K-pop sensation that is BTS—Kardinal is charged with keeping hip hop’s most influential label up to date. Hailing from Toronto, he says, gives him an edge over nearly anyone maneuvering amongst people across the globe. He’s no stranger to different cultures and feels like his hometown prepares him for the world.

“When I travel to India, it’s not foreign to me. I feel comfortable because in Toronto, multiculturalism isn’t just an aesthetic, it’s something ingrained,” says the hitmaker behind “Dangerous” and “BaKardi Slang.” “Being from Toronto, I can look at a person and understand them, whether they’re from Japan or Nigeria, because I grew up participating in their culture. A lot of people live separate experiences, but different cultures are symbiotic here.”

Kardinal is a living history book of hip hop, art and culture, and travel, for him, is a chance to cop talent,

but also promote Black Canadian music abroad. Whether he’s in a Los Angeles boardroom or a Brazilian dancehall, Kardinal says he’s learned the trick about being comfortable worldwide. Wherever he goes, and this includes prime time TV with Howie Mandel or afterparties with Nelly and Drake, he always acts the same way. Kardinal called himself Mr. International when he was still teaching the world to call Toronto T.O. Now he’s doing that job for Def Jam.

“The minute you start worrying about the environment, that’s where things can be misinterpreted or lost in translation, when you focus on the wrong things,” he says. “All I’ve learned through the years of travelling is there’s only one thing I can do and one way to be—your vibe, your energy, that’s all you have if you want someone on the other side of the planet to recognize your greatness.”

“I live in gratitude.”

RIC FLAIR HAS SOME STORIES TO TELL (AND ONES HE DEFINITELY CAN’T)

BY ALEX NINO GHECIU

Death, taxes, and Ric Flair’s swagger. Those are the only certainties in this world. The jet-flyin’, limousine-ridin’ wrestling legend tells me he let out his first “woo!” in 1974; since then he’s styled and profiled his way to sixteen world titles and five decades of flex-god status, leaving a path of envy and awe everywhere he goes. At 73, despite numerous health scares, he’s still just as big-talking and culturally relevant as ever, relishing his current standing as hip-hop’s favourite muse; his name often gets dropped in songs as a shorthand for profligacy and excess. “I’m the founder of swag!” he proclaims over the phone. And that’s not to be confused with schwag. For his latest conquest, The Nature Boy is strutting straight into the legal market with Ric Flair Drip, his inaugural cannabis line, named after the 2017 trap song about him by Offset, 21 Savage and Metro Boomin. Here, we chat with Flair about partying in Toronto, smoking with the Migos and his untameable ego.

ANG: You keep getting name-dropped in songs, whether it’s Migos or Pusha T or Killer Mike. How do you explain it?

RF: Well, I was the first guy basically that ever wore jewellery. Even Snoop Dogg will tell you that. I’m the founder of swag! It’s kinda like when no one had long hair, I had long hair. And then everybody got long hair. I’m still having a hard time holding these alligators down!

ANG: I see you’re still rocking them “$600 shoes.”

RF: Oh, no, $1800. That was back in the ’80s when they were $600. [Laughs.]

RF: I smoked when I was a kid but I actually had asthma, so I didn’t really smoke that much. And I outgrew it as I got older. But I started to get more attracted to edibles because I was eating Xanax like candy while travelling — just to fall asleep, not because of anxiety. But when you travel from Australia to New Zealand, then New Zealand to Saint Louis, Saint Louis to Atlanta and then Japan in one week, it’s hard to sleep. And Xanax is very addictive, so the edibles helped me get off of Xanax.

ANG: Yeah, Xanax is probably something you shouldn’t mess with. Was cannabis around in locker rooms back in the day?

RF: Everybody had a drug of choice back in the ’80s. It was insanity. Even in the ’90s. Hell, even today!

ANG: What are your current thoughts on the drug war?

RF: We lost a lot of soldiers in my industry from all of that, just the different pharmaceutical drugs. When you’re wrestling 365 days a year, twice on Saturday, twice on Sunday, you’re going to find something to relax on, whether it be 12 beers or smoking a joint or some guys were snorting cocaine. You just had to find a way to relax. And we all did. My choice was liquor, obviously.

ANG: A lot of it, from what I hear!

RF: Somebody compared me to Andre The Giant yesterday. I don’t know about that.

ANG: Yeah, I read that — that you could drink as much as Andre.

RF: Not the case. [Laughs.] I’ve seen Andre drink two half-gallons of wine on a 130-mile drive to wrestle again on a double shot. He was 543 pounds!

ANG: Holy shit! Did you used to drink before matches?

RF: No, no, no, never. But as soon as that was over, I dove in pretty heavy until about 4 a.m., depending on what city I was in. Sometimes 6! [Laughs.]

ANG: Do you have any stories of partying in Toronto back in the day?

RF: I’d have been shut down long ago.

ANG: I know you’re friends with Mike Tyson and I’ve read some interviews where he says cannabis helps him keep his ego in check. Does it have that same effect for you?

RF: Nothing can keep my ego in check! Who do you think you’re talking to? You’re talking to the Rolex-wearin’, limousine-ridin’, jet-flyin’! My ego in check? If anything, it’s getting bigger. Ric Flair Drip, hell yeah!

ANG: I know you used to have trouble separating your in-ring persona from your real-life self. I was gonna ask if maybe that’s changed now that you’re older…

ANG: What’s your experience with weed been like?

RF: It’s even worse now! The girls know I’ve got the drip. I’m making new friends every day. They ask, “You got some Ric Flair Drip?” Yup, every trip!

RUNNING

BY BEN KAPLAN PHOTOGRAPHY BY SIMON ROBERTS FOR SIMONRPHOTO

Charlie Dark—DJ, poet, youth organizer—is my hero. With his message of inclusiveness, beats and empowerment, he’s made running cool and spread love from his homebase in London to Paris, Copenhagen, Toronto, Vancouver, L.A. and Berlin. Dark, awarded the Power of Light award from former British Prime Minister Theresa May, replaces inner-city chaos with inner-city pride, and his Run Dem Crew is now followed across the world. “If the average man in the street realized the power and potential within them, the world would be a different place,” Dark told me, and his mantra is: “Leave your ego at home.”

For sixteen years, he’s brought running to hard-to-reach places and says the pandemic has only brought more people into our sport. “Running is a superpower that lives inside your body,” says Dark.

Ben Kaplan: How do you start to run?

Charlie Dark: Go outside, take your phone and walk. Take pictures for a month. Do that and your body gets comfortable. Then run for a bit. Just a bit. Then walk. Mix it up; eventually, the walking gets shorter and the running gets longer. You run.

BK: Do you wear a watch or measure your speed and distance?

CD: I measure emotion. How does going outside make you feel? Outside is an exciting place. Outside is where you need to be. We spend too much time inside. I run to flip the way people think.

BK: What do you mean?

CD: Like running is a sign of weakness, something you do in fear. You run away when you’ve done something bad. But let’s reframe it: running is positive, empowering—it brings connection and exploration. We have kids in Bridge the Gap who’ve never been out of their city and we take them to New York for the marathon. There are dreams happening on our runs.

The running club for people who don’t consider themselves runners, and a global movement to uplift the world

BK: How does running make you feel?

CD: Strong, empowered, liberated. It makes me feel alive and gives me purpose. It also helps keep my head.

BK: How do you find peace on a run?

CD: It teaches you to be present.

BK: You sound like a weed smoker.

CD: Lots of runners smoke weed.

BK: Explain again why anyone can run.

CD: Don’t look at running through the lens of time or distance, but the lens of emotion. It’s about how it makes you feel and the lessons you learn about yourself when you’re out running. That’s how I started my crew. I thought about who I wanted to share that emotion with and what impact I hoped it would have in the world.

BK: Like therapy.

CD: Like meditation.

CD: I reached a point in my life when I needed something and I didn’t know what it was and running was an easy exercise that didn’t require a team, going to a gym or special equipment. It was easily accessible, but I never expected all this.

BK: All what?

CD: Everything changing. I remember running my first ten kilometres in my neighbourhood and feeling

elated like I’d reached a landmark, like I conquered something, and from there it didn’t take long to realize that what I found through running I could apply to the rest of my life.

BK: How so?

CD: Breaking large things down into small, manageable chunks.

BK: How did you start?

“

Ego is one of the biggest blocks to creativity. It’s like a drug planted inside your body in order to make you fail.

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BK: Like opening a store or starting a business.

CD: Training for a marathon is the perfect metaphor. Training might take sixteen weeks, that’s a lot to get your head around. OK. But a little each day. You’re building something. And the more you do, the better you get, the further you go—it breeds confidence. I also found out something else about myself through my running.

BK: What?

CD: I like rules. I like structure. I’m a DJ, you know? We’re taught we don’t like structure, and I would’ve told you that I don’t need help and I don’t need guidance. But through training for a marathon, I was humbled. And being humbled is good. Through running, I learned things that I started to apply to the rest of my life, and once I connected what I was learning on the run to what was

happening in my life, I started to thrive.

BK: At which point you decided you had to share your message.

CD: It’s not enough to do things for yourself. I’m part of the sharing culture, it’s about community. And if running was motivating me to see positive changes in my own life, I knew it could also work for my neighbourhood.

BK: I love that you say, “Leave your ego at home.” Why is that so important to you?

CD: Ego is one of the biggest blocks to creativity and self-expression. It’s like a drug planted inside your body in order to make you fail.

BK: What does that have to do with running?

CD: People approach running with ego—how fast can I go? How far? But you can’t build communities with everyone thinking about themselves. From the beginning, I knew the feeling was special. It was the feeling—not the competition—I wanted to share. I don’t care how far or how fast you can run. Run Dem was based on crew culture. You help one another, not beat one another down.

BK: Run Dem has changed one of the oldest sports in the world. You made it cool.

CD: From the beginning we wanted to capture the fun and vibrancy of crew culture. Why do something if it isn’t brilliant?

BK: It’s such a different way of framing the

“Running is a superpower that lives inside your body.”

sport—having it not be about $300 sneakers and a medal and instead about feeling free.

CD: Run Dem isn’t about running, it’s about inspiration. Running is just a tool we use. And the people I want to reach aren’t inspired by speed or distance, they’re inspired by emotion.

BK: How so?

CD: We live our lives with emotion—from when we wake up to when it’s all over, there’s a fight or flight instinct ingrained in our bodies, and there’s a large amount of PTSD and trauma in our communities. We’re taught the world is a threat and you can’t ask for help, but Run Dem is trying to reframe that—when you empower a young person who feels threatened, they become less confrontational, less afraid and more true to themselves.

BK: I love this so much.

CD: The thing about running is, at some point, you’ll be exposed; no one will help you. What do you do? We learn about ourselves when we’re tested.

BK: Tell our readers about Bridge the Gap.

CD: It’s a community I built fifteen years ago that

brings people together to explore cities under the cover of darkness through the art of running and helps one another be the best they can be.

BK: It’s a running club?

is open to all ages, colours, creeds, religious beliefs. It’s not about talent. It’s about coming together. And it’s always, always a good time to begin.

BK: What’s next for you and the crew?

CD: We’re trying to give people the tools they need to survive the city. Give people resilience, confidence and hope. It’s hard living in a city like London, or Toronto, Vancouver, wherever, and two years of a global pandemic? Everyone is isolated, feeling the pinch. That connection, through running, is important to me.

BK: And that’s why you run?

CD: I’ve spent most of my life bringing people together and if I can connect the dots between music, fashion, running and culture, I’m happy. Running is a beautiful art. It’s a superpower that lives inside of your body and we want to empower the future. Running will help you become the CEO of your life.

CD: Remixed to our current times.

BK: What would you tell KIND readers about running?

CD: Join me. It’s family. It’s intergenerational. Running

“

At some point, you’ll be exposed; no one will help you. What do you do? We learn about ourselves when we’re tested.

Generate Sparks for Your in the Dark Heart

CARLEN COSTA EXPLAINS HOW HAPPINESS BEGINS WITH INTENTIONALITY, WEED AND A DELICATE TOUCH—THIS SPRING, LET’S BRING SUNSHINE INTO THE BEDROOM.

Getting lit for your love is about being intentional and baby cakes, this is the wake-up call to start blazing some life back into your heart’s home. Does it currently feel like you’re just co-existing in your relationship? Passing the moments, one Netflix episode, one box of mac n’ cheese, one toke at a time? Is your thumb cramped because you’re sick of swiping through all the dating apps, porn no longer stirs the appetite and you’re pretty sure your soulmate must be tied up in someone’s basement because where they at already?

Feeling stale isn’t just about bread it’s about the goodness you bake into your life and your relationships with intentionality. Intention is how we regulate the temperature of our relationships and bring us back to one another. Common signs of loneliness or an overdry relationship are: feeling unfulfilled, a lack of communication or withdrawal, unproductive routines, lack of sex or sexual desire, and repeated disagreements that you just can’t quit.

Intention breathes fresh air into connections with one another and with our personal wellness. The body knows when you’re lonely and you’ve stopped trying. Over time, loneliness and a lack of connection can seriously impact your mental health and make you go from hot and broody to cold and moody. This is why making the time to be with loved ones—for sex or companionship—during the winter months is crucial in the management of Seasonal Affective Disorder. What body function is as important as breathing? In certain crowds, the answer would be an orgasm. However, physiologically speaking, it’s actually the regulation of your core temperature, aka thermoregulation. Your survival primarily depends first on oxygen, then on an adequately cooled or heated body. In compliment, there’s this theory called “social thermoregulation,” which posits that our social networks evolved around keeping us warm. Essentially, humans have evolved to demonstrate that the more social you are, the better you are able to regulate your core body temperature in the cold. This is partly why we cuddle.

It’s notable that having high quality relationships (not quantity) is a social determinant of your overall mental health and wellbeing, and now you can also say that having a healthy relationship(s) with

others and yourself keeps you lit from the inside out. So, when the weather outside is frightful, the inside starts to feel so much more delightful—but how do you keep the spark in your intimate relationships aroused when there’s not a lot to do? And, if you’re single, how do you stay motivated to leave your house and connect with others in a meaningful way?

Here are some awesome ideas to elevate your coupled or solo date nights—and yes, you can have a date night for yourself—inspired by cannabliss’d connections:

Try the sexological body work tool called “sensate focus” and use cannabis oil in your practice. Sensate focus is a sex therapy technique that works to maximize your sensations by refocusing on sensuality, instead of goal-oriented behaviours focused on the genitals and penetrative sex.

Not enough time for full-body touch? Break it down and either give (yourself) or get a foot or hand massage with your favourite cannabis oil.

This one is my favourite: Naked Sundays that start with an infused coffee/tea, that turns into after-brunch mid-morning sex or masturbation session (while the kids have 30 minutes of TV time and you do the dishes later).

Plan a (self)lover’s spa-night-in with an infused face mask, infused facial serum, infused body scrub, infused beard oil and infused toothpaste—all new legal cannabis products available across the country.

“

This is my favourite: Naked Sundays that start with an infused coffee/tea.

Tired of the bar scene? Same. Try eating an edible and having a living room dance party instead! Movement is medicine and cannabis makes it a ritual. Plus, the DJ is so much better when you get to choose the tunes.

OK, this one is actually my favourite: have sex with cannabis! Plan a sexy date night with a sultry playlist, cannabis consumption, canna lube, candles, lingerie, infused chocolate, sex toys…(get a baby sitter) and sloooowww it down. Feel your body connect in new ways as your ECS fires off all the good signals to keep you hot for days. Note: if you are on your own and doing this to yourself, the same rules apply! Try a different porn site or, too much porn? Take an edible and get into erotic reading, erotic audio stories or just let your mind find new frontiers!

Being sexy on a budget is about having a great time with what you already have laying around and waiting to be reimagined. Here’s three DIY sex toys you probably already have in your home:

CANNABIS OIL: You already have this in your stash kit, but if you further dilute it in olive or coconut oils, it’s now a lubricant. And, if you warm it up with a couple drops of your favourite body-safe essential oil, it’s now a delicious massage oil.

LEATHER BELT: You don’t need to worry about the feeling of metal on your skin because a leather or fabric belt, tied in a figure eight, is a great alternative to handcuffs. Added bonus: you can wrap your belt around your wooden headboard without worrying about scuffing.

FROZEN GRAPES (INFUSED): Light the fire or some candles, turn on the twinkly

lights, take a hot bath, then pull out your infused grapes from the freezer and pop a couple in your mouth for the coolest blow-job of the season.

Staying mentally cool and emotionally open is all about making and taking the time to intentionally connect that’s why I love talking about and supporting cannabis for our intimate and mental health. Consumption initiates intentionality that can inspire and motivate you to elevate your wellbeing and loving for hours. Need some more advice?

I’m Carlen Costa, DHS, MPH, ACS OCSWSSW Psychotherapist, Clinical Sexologist & bestselling author. Sex, cannabis and mental health is what I do best, in and outside the bedroom. Book a therapy session or sign up for one of my emotional makeover therapy programs and stay lit with me all year long. www.carlencosta.com @carlen.costa

GET LOST

10 One who slurps and burps

14 "Funny ___ or funny weird?"

15 Outdo by a notch

16 "Blame It ___" (George Ezra hit)

17 Fender player's chord diagrams

19 Go over the top?

20 Greektown bistro

21 Cheri of "Dumb and Dumberer"

22 Editor's stack: Abbr.

24 Accommodations akin to inlaw suites

BY BARBARA OLSON

ACROSS

Lunkhead

Post-shower dustings

One who slurps and burps

“Funny ___ or funny weird?”

Outdo by a notch

Fender player’s chord diagrams

Go over the top?

Greektown bistro

Cheri of “Dumb and Dumberer”

Editor’s stack: Abbr.

Accommodations akin to inlaw suites

States to be true

Pavarotti performances

Symbol of sodium hydroxide

Had heard about

Construction worker’s guidelines

Snap, crackle and pop

Long time

24 years for Donald and Melania

“Brave New World” author

Huxley

Scam investigating teams

Flex-time by Barbara Olson ©

26 States to be true

28 Pavarotti performances

29 Symbol of sodium hydroxide

30 Had heard about

33 Construction worker's guidelines

Footnote abbrs.

38 Snap, crackle and pop

39 Long time

41 24 years for Donald and Melania

44 "Brave New World" author Huxley

“Blame It ___” (George Ezra hit)

46 Scam investigating teams

CBC’s Marchitelli and civil rights activist Parks, for two Opens with a pop, as a Mason jar Pitcher in a picture Cup carriers at sporting events?

50 Footnote abbrs.

51 CBC's Marchitelli and civil rights activist Parks, for two

Target for a drywall nail

Gets one’s goat Grimm grouch

52 Opens with a pop, as a Mason jar

54 Pitcher in

Moves without crutches, maybe Cubic metre

Like the lights of Las Vegas

DOWN

Visa transaction: Abbr. Vancouver writer Evelyn Surprised comment on recognizing a friend

Statistics, census info, etc.

Corrida cape waver

Bone cavities, to a doctor

Country singer Rimes Special-occasion cigar

ClassiCanadian Crosswords

31 Toronto-to-Ottawa dir.

Mafioso’s code of silence

32 For-instances: Abbr.

Negligent in duty

34 Heaps upon heaps

Mean figs.

35 Snack table bowlfuls

King ___ (Michael Jackson)

36 Long time, idiomatically

Pioneering cyberchat co.

37 Unfriend on Facebook, say

“The well-built Swede” automaker

40 Sizzling sound

41 Again from the top

Howls of agony

Soccer player’s protective gear

42 Gradually begin, as liking

43 De-intensify

Grafton’s “___ for Killer”

44 To be present: Lat.

Toronto-to-Ottawa dir.

For-instances: Abbr.

45 Exam at Osgoode Hall, briefly 47 Mini-ringtoss ring

Heaps upon heaps

Snack table bowlfuls

Long time, idiomatically

48 "We're so sorry, ___ Albert ..." 49 Information booth visitor 53 Scientology's Hubbard

Unfriend on Facebook, say Sizzling sound

55 Co. heirs, often 56 Old hand

Again from the top

57 Ottawa NHLer, for short

Gradually begin, as liking

De-intensify

To be present: Lat.

Exam at Osgoode Hall, briefly

Mini-ringtoss ring

“We’re so sorry, ___ Albert ...”

Information booth visitor

Scientology’s Hubbard Co. heirs, often

Old hand

Ottawa NHLer, for short

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