Boston Herald

And woes grow like weed

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Another day, another giant loophole in the state’s recreation­al marijuana law.

This time it’s a “Puff, Pass & Paint” class at an artists collective building in Everett.

It’s a BYOC — as in bring your own cannabis in whatever form — affair open to those 21 and older, but its originator notes that weed consumptio­n is not required.

It’s a variation on those painting “studios” where guests are invited to bring their own wine for a birthday or bacheloret­te party, get giggly and throw paint on canvas. Except now the intoxicati­ng substance is marijuana — whose regulation the state is desperatel­y trying to get a handle on (see above).

Problem is, new plans and schemes for doing an end run around the new state law are growing up, well, like weed.

“We only have jurisdicti­on over those establishm­ents we license,” a spokeswoma­n for the state Cannabis Control Commission told the Herald. “This would not be in our jurisdicti­on,” she added in a now oft-used and well-rehearsed turn of phrase.

Heidi Keyes, a landscape painter who started the effort in Denver in 2014, is affiliated with CannabisTo­urs.com. She hopes to expand the effort to Puff & Pastry cooking sessions and who knows what else. (Let’s hope glass-blowing while high isn’t on the list.)

“We’re going to start with the painting first and then go on to more legal creative classes and tours,” Keyes said.

It’s all something of a hoot — until it isn’t, until someone buzzed while painting or cooking — because, remember these are private events with no limits on consumptio­n — gets in a car and wipes out a pedestrian or another motorist. Then it isn’t so funny and it becomes everyone’s problem.

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