Inside StreetWise: Vendor A. Allen on Legal Weed

20/20, of course, is perfect vision, but 2020 can bring you blurred vision with the legalization of marijuana.

I am not looking forward to the legalization of recreational marijuana.

My Dad would have called it, "looking forward to getting your head bad." He was totally against using drugs because he believed weed would lead to harder drugs.

In my case, it was true. I went from grass and weed to heroin. At first it was fun and sociable, even though it was illegal. Everyone in high school was doing it. At least that was what I was told.

Everyone was not doing it, but it seemed like it, because of the social networks with which I associated. There was a lot of peer pressure to be with the "in" crowd.

So, now in 2020, cannabis will be legal. I sort of feel sorry for some of the young people in today's society because even if they have discipline and the luxury of not doing something illegal, they will have easy access. So, I would like to encourage young folks who don't smoke weed to continue to stay focused and not to smoke weed, not to "get your head bad." It's better to have 20/20 vision than blurred vision.

You can get a lot of things done when your head is clear. I'm speaking from experience, having been sober for more than 10 years. It's better to deal with life on life's terms than to be influenced by peers or drugs that blur your vision and knock you off your square. To all my friends, family and associates, stay focused and keep your 20/20 in the year 2020.

Vendor A. Allen (Santa) poses with carolers during the GiveAShi*t Pop-Up Shop on Dec. 6, 2019.