Me & Julio down by the schoolyard
Graphic by Nic Vandergugten.
Giggle weed. Julio. Bammy. Dope. Mary Warner. Chronic. Ganja. Reefer. Slick students and cool profs have been hip to the lingo for ages. College kids and cannabis have been compatible contemporaries for quite a while, and that isn’t going to change anytime soon.
But is it possible, without harshing anyone’s mellow, to get straight A’s while picking it, packing it, and firing it up? Mary Jane has been merciful to many musicians, we all know that, but does Juanita have anything to offer the struggling student?
Everyone knows someone who always smells like the second day of Burning Man, and they probably wear patchouli and a Bob Marley or Cypress Hill t-shirt, too. Well, it isn’t just dopers and dropouts who turn to the funny stuff for a little R and R. And it isn’t just for chillin’ that these cool cats go illin’.
The late American author and astronomer Carl Sagan doesn’t fit the stoner stereotype and yet he was taking hits from the bong on a regular basis. And he wasn’t the only productive pothead who promoted the wacky tobacky and its bountiful blessings.
Barack Obama, Stephen King, Pablo Picasso, Ted Turner, and Margaret Trudeau are some of the most well known cannabis connoisseurs, and not a goldbricker among ‘em.
Weed first cropped up in America after WWI, and in the 1920s it was jazz musicians who were the most enthusiastic users. In western medicine, cannabis tincture was commonly prescribed in the 1800s and an even longer history suggests Eurasia was burning bats before that. Pot popularity hasn’t been anything to cough at for some time.
Marijuana, like any drug, can be abused. Dependence does occur, though rare, and chronic users do take risks. Too much bogarting doobies can irritate the respiratory tract and susceptible individuals can have bronchial and lung problems. But who says you always have to blaze? You can vapourize it, you can eat it, you can even get pill and tincture forms of it.
But be warned! There’s some strong shit out there that even Spicoli himself wouldn’t be fast to fog. The Beatles may not be the only ones who’d “love to turn you on,” but if we aren’t smart about our handling of the drug, the current stigma attached to it may never blow.
Knowing what benefits we want ahead of time can help the marijuana muse stay magical. Setting limits on usage can keep it fun and satisfying for everyone.
Is toking right before class or work wise? Of course not, that would be a total buzz-kill. Should you notice the effects you like best are dwindling, then it’s time to stop, or at least go on hiatus. Resume after a break and you’ll be as right as Ram Dass.
To paraphrase British philosopher Bertrand Russel, the time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time, so pass the dutchie to the left-hand side.
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