Browsing: Medical

Trail Blazers is a series of portraits by photographer Maria Levitov, spotlighting cannabis consumers from all walks of life.

Kai Alexander moved to Colorado from North Dakota a little over a decade ago, eventually taking part in two of the state’s most notorious resources: craft beer and cannabis. A transgender and recent divorcé, Alexander now works for one of Aurora’s most popular breweries, using cannabis to help treat his longstanding anxiety and depression.

Despite being inspired by real-world events, witches were always the lamest Halloween characters. Warts on their noses, shrieking voices and no taste in color — no, thanks. But then I saw Hocus Pocus on the Disney Channel, and that Bette Middler was sure a delight. I had high hopes that Witches Weed would be just as delightful.

A hybrid of Chemdawg D, Cinderella 99, OG Kush and San Fernando Valley OG, Witches Weed certainly sounds like it was brewed up in a cauldron, and its funky high is almost supernatural.

Ryan Kingsbury admits that he used to be that guy yelling at the TV during a football game, complaining that professional athletes were underperforming or overpaid. But after befriending a few of them and noticing a pattern of anxiety, depression and even suicidal thoughts once they left the game, he became familiar with the lonely corners in which former athletes sometimes find themselves.

“It’s much darker and uglier than we as a society want to admit,” Kingsbury says. “We [like to]cheer for them and root for them when they’re on the field — and then we couldn’t give two shits for them when they’re not.”

A strain with a dessert-like name is nothing new, but some carry more of a nostalgic pull than others. Cookies hybrids with names like Wedding Cake and Thin Mints will always tug at my inner child, and the same thing happened when I saw Cheese Quake on the shelf during a recent dispensary visit.

I’m used to seeing the term “cheesequake” on Dairy Queen Blizzard menus, not at pot shops, so I can’t help but lick my lips as visions of creamy ice cream and cheesecake bites pop up every time I hear or read the word. Although the Cheese Quake strain isn’t sweet and sugary like DQ’s version, it still carries a rich savoriness reminiscent of cream cheese, and its relaxing effects will cool you down after a hot day.

Autism spectrum disorder could be added to Colorado’s list of conditions treatable with medical marijuana if Governor John Hickenlooper approves a bill that passed the General Assembly on May 4. HB 1263, introduced by state Representative Edie Hooton, went through the legislature with relative ease after it was introduced in March, but not without changes.

As originally drafted by Hooton, the bill was designed to add acute pain to the state’s list of medical marijuana conditions in hopes of combating opioid addiction. Before its introduction, however, she was approached by mothers and advocates of children suffering from ASD. Persuaded by their stories and studies taking place in Israel and Chile on marijuana benefits for ASD, Hooton added the condition to her bill…and it soon proved the most winning component.

Trail Blazers is a series of portraits by photographer Maria Levitov, spotlighting cannabis consumers from all walks of life.

Plenty of Denver residents like to blame the city’s influx of newcomers and rising real estate prices over the past few years on legal cannabis. Even if that were true, though, we can’t overlook all of the culture and innovation that pot has lured to the Mile High. Musician Nicholas Caputo, for example, recently moved here from Gainesville, Florida, “to pursue art and engage with cannabis culture.” He also wanted to treat his depression with cannabis.

The state’s hemp industry, which produces the majority of cannabidiol (CBD) products in Colorado, are worried about the consequences of a bill the General Assembly has approved that opens the door for CBD medicine approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Colorado lawmakers wanted to be ahead of the curve with HB 1187, introduced by State Representative Janet Buckner, to allow a pharmaceutical drug made from CBD that is expected to receive FDA approval within the next couple of months to be sold in Colorado. That drug, Epidiolex, is made by an American subsidiary of British GW Pharmaceuticals for treating epilepsy.

A friend tried comparing Purple Kush to Blue Moon recently, saying he appreciated both for providing a gateway to craft consumption but had since moved on to more complex options. Say whatever you want about Blue Moon, I told the pretentious douche, but don’t you dare besmirch the Purp God.

Let me explain. Most tokers who started smoking chronic before dispensaries showed up have fond memories of Purple Kush…but who knows if that’s what it really was?

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