421

As kc! pointed out, yesterday was 4/20. Did I celebrate this wondrous date by going home to poke smot? Smoke some trees? Imbibe in the herb? No, I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes. I sort of half watched an episode of CSI I had already seen and played guitar with my echo peddle on. This made me feel a little stoned.

I have been told in the past that the number 420 comes from the number of chemical properties in weed. I was also told that it was a highway that went through Humboldt, CA. Apparently, the beginnings of 420 as a drug reference began in 1971 by high school students in San Mateo, CA to denote a time to meet and smoke. Frankly, I think this is bullshit answer as well. It was my wet dream in high school to get some new word or phrase into the general language - and I achieved this with, "talk to the hand".

I quit smoking pot quite awhile ago. However, I have helped in the trimming of plants during harvest fairly recently. What did I learn from this experience? I leaned that resin is very difficult to get off of your hands but that you can roll up resin balls to smoke. I learned that just handling a massive amount of buds can get you a little stony. I learned that when trimming, I could probably go a little shorter. I learned that even when Fleetwood Mac was a blues band, they still sucked.

The experience reinforced the thought for me that the romanticism of the drug culture just seems like more advertised rebellion sold to those eager for something to identify themselves with, eager for something to fight for without having to put much thought into it.

I enjoyed my halcyon drug days, had me some heavy good times, but I've seen too many casualties, too many addicts, too many users oblivious to their own addiction for the drug thing to be as charming or light as I had once thought of it. Then again, I drink enough whiskey to kill a lesser man...