Engineered

The landscape has changed rapidly in California and several other states in the US .The commercial world has grabbed the legalisation of marijuana with two hands ,quickly polishing this manky little plant into the shiniest little jewel in leisure and the ‘self entertainment’ market .

It’s been a long time since I bought weed , actually thought I probably wouldn’t ever purchase again ,but the shift in temptation is all too alluring. Whenever we have visitors from Australia one of the attractions we direct them to is Abbot Kinney rd in Venice , more specifically…..MedMen and Dosist .These stores are the future , they’re clean , transparent , modern and are set up very similar to the Apple stores . ID is required but once inside the staff are super knowledgeable, explaining things in laymen form .Its very relaxed and informative . The floor layout is clinical and eerily similar to the way mobile phone stores are set out . The thing that stood out most of all was the clientele ; all ages ,both male and female ,couples, tourists and professionals . After scrolling through the iPads that display the products we eventually sought out assistance . What do we get ? The choice is abundant ,so much so that it had my head spinning without even needing to ingest a morsel . We honed in on the edible market ,but still we didn’t have a clue . You’ve got lolly pops ,cookies ,chips ,cakes , fruit flavoured soft gels and hard gels ,even beer and soft drinks with THC added . On top of that each strain is engineered , some mixed with each other to create a certain type of high . The young Afro American girl who assisted us was great ,she was helpful and had a sense of humour that could handle some of our Aussie schtick . When we told her we were going to Vegas she directed us to a certain type of edible , apparently it would get us up , even put us into a euphoric state . We looked at each other and laughed .” Ahh come on , surely not ? ” She looked at us with a wry smile … “You’ll enjoy it “.

The boys purchased . It’s a weird feeling when you leave the store with a nice red gift bag that pretty much declares to anyone on the street that you’ve purchased weed . Weeks later I return and buy something , I proudly look at my purchase but as soon as I get out the front door I shove it under my arm . The stigma hasn’t left my psyche just yet . That’s the package . Look at it . You’d never know what these little gummies are capable of by just looking at this cute little box , but Ash,Al ,Tim and I have a better idea . “So what should happen is that once you ingest the gummy the effects probably won’t kick in until 45minutes to an hours time . You’ll feel a creeping surge of awareness that’ll tip you into a happy , almost euphoric state . It should last several hours and will be perfect for Vegas ” …….

” You want one now Troy ?” , Ash asks .”Shit no mate I’m driving in LA , I’d rather get home first .”,I reply . Ash and Al chew one down on the way back from Venice , they report that they feel something within 5 minutes . Thank god I didn’t drop one myself .Later that night after many beers and a gummy it’s fair to say we were messed up . Ask Al , he disappeared and somehow found himself home in the dark , to our house in a totally spun out state . It’s hilarious that he found his way back to my joint on the 2nd night in a foreign country in a place he’d had little idea where he was . Ash and I pictured him sleeping next to some homeless guy on the sand somewhere .

Fuck here we go, bombs away . The raspberry flavoured gummy doesn’t completely mask the background taste of marijuana,but it’s still dangerously easy to chew and swallow . 10 milligrams in that little puppy , fuck it we are all in and I chew on a chocolate coffee bean infused with an additional 5 milligrams . Now it’s time to march to MGM and the Calvin Harris pool party . Just like the boys said I notice something within minutes , a little rush ,followed by a relaxed contentment ……. then nothing . We march through the MGM casino , still nothing . If anything I’m more alert . Maybe the coffee bean , the adrenaline of going to a 25 year olds pool party and just the hype washed down with a few pre drinks had masked things . By the time we get in , I’m not feeling it , in fact I’m hyper aware that I’m 25 years over the target audience . Maybe it’s paranoia that you often associate with weed .

On the hour the first rush surges through , almost like a hot flush . The atmosphere is off the charts , no doubt there’s a whole lotta other stuff been ingested here . The affect : From regret , to “Fuck it ” , to “oh yeah ” , to a urge to nod and then rock to the rhythm , the corner of the lips curl up , the chest puffs , shoulders rise . Yeahhh , now I’m feeling it . I’m embarrassed, I can’t stop smiling . I look over at the boys and they’re laughing , on top of the world . ” Fuck how goods this !” Tim declares .”That edible is great , I feel awesome .” ” That chick at MedMen was spot on ” . The edible sends waves that surge through your gut into the top of your head in anything to 20 minute intervals right up until a few hours later . One thing we all agree on is that the girls description of the way these gummies would effect us was very accurate .

That little packet above still hasn’t been opened . When you’ve got kids you’ve got to time these things perfectly . Before the boys went home I would take the boys back to MedMen . They purchased . One of them , not saying who , picked up something that would deliver an extra effect to the bedroom adventures . I would’ve totally dismissed this as total bullshit , but now I think I believe it . ” Hey mate , when you get a chance tell me if it worked ? ” I think I might need to make another trip to Venice “