A Kushmas listicle stoners will love M

Piper Courtenay CANNABIS

erry Kushmas! Happy Chronukkah! And, for the nondenominational folks, Happy Winter

Q&A

CANNABIS IS LEGAL in Canada, and that has a lot of Canadians picking up bongs, pipes, and old-fashioned joints for their very first time. From indicas to sativas and edibles to shatter, there’s a lot for a virgin smoker to catch up on. Luckily, Amanda Siebert’s Little Book of Cannabis: How Marijuana Can Improve Your Life is here to help you out (and it’s a perfect size for holiday stockings). The Vancouver-based author recently answered the Straight’s questions.

Q. How did you begin to look at cannabis as a health supplement?

A. In my early 20s, I realized that cleared of convictions for crimes no longer considered illegal.

Cannabis Amnesty, a nonprofit advocacy group headed by criminal lawyer Annamaria Enenajor, has spent the better part of 2018 trying to refocus political attention on the individuals denied career opportunities, international travel, and financial assistance, all because their records are tarnished by a minor drug offence.

On October 17, the organization won a minor victory when the federal government announced it intends to issue pardons to those convicted of simple cannabis possession. Once applicants complete the paperwork, however, their convictions are simply suspended, which is not the permanent deletion of a charge. Without expungement, those charged are still at risk of having pardoned convictions reinstated or disclosed.

APPROVED CONSUMPTION SPOTS

After the federal government decided to move forward with a weed-friendly even when I used cannabis “recreationally”, I experienced improved sleep, reduced stress, and relief from anxiety and depression. As a journalist, hearing firsthand accounts of the multitude of other ways cannabis can be used for health and wellness convinced me that it had therapeutic value.

Q. What does your book have for someone who has never tried cannabis?

A. My book explores topics like sleep, stress, pain management, sex, opioid dependence, cancer, aging, and even creativity. Using a mix of case studies, expert testimony, clinical research, historical context, and practical advice for

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legislative overhaul, it delegated things like consumption bylaws, zoning restrictions, and retail licensing to the provinces and municipalities.

In early October, the B.C. government released updated regulations, including new laws dictating where you can smoke pot—or, rather, a list of all the places you can’t smoke pot. For example, you can’t smoke or vape in indoor public places of any kind, or at a bus stop, or near a school, or on a boat or patio or sidewalk, or within six metres of the doorways, windows, and air intakes of public buildings.

You can, however, smoke in your private residence, if your landlord hasn’t already slipped an amendment under your door saying smoking anything is now against the building’s policy. What the government hasn’t done, yet, is offer any publicly condoned or safe smoking spots or a licensing program for lounges to facilitate respectful consumption. Yes, this means you can kiss the beloved hotbox hot spot, the Amsterdam Café, goodbye. consumption, I hope to offer novices the opportunity to suspend their disbelief about the plant and rethink any misinformed notions about the “dangers” of pot use.

Q. The holidays can be a tough time for mental health. How can cannabis help?

A. During these dreary December days, I find cannabis to be an excellent mood lifter and anxiety reliever. It can also serve as a great sleep aid for those nights spent wide-awake worrying about unchecked lists and overdrawn bank accounts. If, like me, you’re averse to the excessive amounts of alcohol at family gatherings and holiday parties, swapping that eggnog for a joint can ease social anxiety and keep drunken egos in check. A bonus? No hangover! PRODUCT DIVERSITY

Although weed itself may be legal, cannabis-infused edibles and topicals, like creams and bath bombs, are not. No, not even that scrumptious Miss Envy Thc-infused raspberryvanilla lip balm. (Resistance has never smelled so good.)

When the federal government unveiled legalization earlier this year, the framework only extended to flowers, oils, and seeds. The oils are simply tinctures, which aren’t the same as the high-concentrate so-called Phoenix tears that some cancer patients rely on. Seeds aren’t currently available through the province’s legal channels (unless you accidentally get one in your bud). And, frankly, the flower isn’t up to snuff yet.

To top it off, smoking is not the preferred consumption method for many Canadians. For consumers who don’t like to inhale their cannabis, or medical patients who dose at a higher cannabinoid concentration, there isn’t much in the way of selection. The upside is we may just wake up to this wish neatly wrapped in our stocking this year: a little elf told me that Trudeau’s New Year’s resolution includes a framework for the legalization of edible products to be released in the coming weeks. BETTER WEED

Legalization has been a divisive topic on all fronts, but none so distinct as the brawl between the federal-licensed cannabis producers (LPS) and the black-market growers.

On one side, there is a shortlist of legally approved producers, including industry behemoths like Aurora and Canopy Growth. On the other side, there is a network of illicit growers who, through their dedication to dank horticulture, gave B.C. bud its infamous reputation.

Right out of the gate, LPS had the nearly impossible task of measuring their mass-produced product against locally grown small-batch cannabis. So customers have taken to social media to post images of odourless crumbs of weed encased in prescription-style bottles and limp, dusty excuses for prerolls. And LPS have snapped back, asking for more time and patience.

Unfortunately, until smaller-scale growers (microcultivators) are allowed into the market (no one really knows when this might happen), the pressure to keep up with the endless demand doesn’t bode well for the state of legal weed.

Just two months into legalization and, despite its already being a somewhat played-out trope, the system is a work in progress. This stoner wish list is less an indictment of the first shot at the federal legalization of cannabis and more a call to refocus. As we go into the holiday season, it’s totally cool to gift your best bud a scented candle replicating the OG Kush terpene profile, but let’s not forget that the fight for fair access and quality product is far from over. While children may be dreaming of sugar plums, there are opioid-substitution programs that need licensing and support, medical patients who need consistent and costeffective cannabis, and advocates being slapped with fines for services that massive corporations are now suddenly green-lit to provide.

The good news is governments and policymakers seem willing to correct, adjust, and amend. The better news is the black market is thriving and the weed is spectacular.