Good afternoon!
We’re getting down to the wire with our special March print section of GreenState, which will go out to 250,000 Bay Area driveways on March 18. We got an amazing package of stories we’re finishing up around the theme of “medicine and wellness”.
Chronicle writer Carolyne Zinko is bringing home a knock-out feature on the growing trend in using cannabis for sleep. Cultivation expert Jimi Devine has the ultimate how to guide for finding and buying CBD-rich starters and seeds for this year’s personal medical crop. Oregon freelancer April Short has the definitive take on the science of giving CBD to pets. Plus — we got gobs of product reviews, book reviews, store reviews and more. It’s really coming together. If you haven’t subscribed to the print Sunday Chronicle, now’s the time to check that box off the to-do list. (Advertisers, claim the remaining ad space by emailing bgrambergu@sfchronicle.com.)
Beyond the next print section, we’re planning to launch some fun, new recurring features that readers are asking for like, ‘Ask the Cannabis Editor’, plus a slew of new interviews and videos. Lastly, can you do us a solid and share this newsletter with someone you think would like it? We’ll send a new subscriber a care package of GreenState merch. — David Downs
WE’RE EXCITED ABOUT
Comedy festival Clusterfest announced its headliners, including Jon Stewart, Amy Schumer & friends, The Lonely Island, Trevor Noah, David Cross and more June 1-3 in San Francisco. Tickets start at $249.50. The Clusterfest trailer video is bananas.
Also, more retail stores are opening to all adults 21 and older in California. Newly added to our updated map: GreenState award-winning best southern California dispensary Buds & Roses in Los Angeles, as well as two mid-grade San Francisco clubs, The Cookie Co 415 and Mission Organics. Check out our updated map.
PICKS OF THE WEEK
Strain: Start your Saturday off strong a cup of coffee and the sativa-dominant hybrid Biscotti, available in Southern California’s Buds & Roses collective.
Edible: Berkeley’s artisanal chocolate darlings TCHO Chocolate are powering the tastiness of Satori edibles’ line.
Hardware: California’s leading vape maker Bloom Farms has released a collaboration with men’s gadget site Uncrate. The oil is a mix of the sativa hybrid Jack Herer and the high-CBD AC-DC, thus balancing Jack’s uplifting, energetic creative effects with a relaxed sense of calm courtesy of the CBD.
REVIEW
Are you a first time cannabis buyer? Go over to GreenState and we’ll explain why pre-rolls are for you!
FOOD | TRAVEL
The Girl Scouts of Colorado have announced that they are officially allowing members to sell their famous cookies outside of cannabis dispensaries. Via Complex
Cannabis tourism has rocketed to the top of travel association agendas in 2018, and you can bet March 30th’s FestforumsSF is going to be packed with would be marijuana event promoters looking for information and ideas.
MONEY | POWER | FAME
Actress Candace Bergen has a sideline customizing Louis Vuitton purses, and she’s got some eclectic ideas for decor.
The NBA Players Association Executive Director Michele Roberts says that they’re ready to support and allow medical cannabis use for the league. Via SB Nation.
FASHION | ART | DESIGN
Fresh from Erbanna — a high fashion for store for stylish, odor-proof cannabis accessories — the KAM croco fits your phone, credit cards and loudest cannabis flower.
VIRAL
MMA fighter Nate Diaz nearly lit a massive joint on live television during a Fox Sports broadcast of a UFC event in Austin. Via CBS Sports.
WELLNESS | HEALTH
Upgrade your understanding of cannabis effects by learning about marijuana’s active ingredients – called cannabinoids. GreenState digs into what they are and what they do.
After you master cannabinoids, drill down into one of the hottest ones on the market with our explainer ‘what is cannabidiol?’
More evidence is coming in that medical cannabis can fight America’s opioid overdose epidemic. A groundbreaking new trial conducted by Colombia’s Dr. Ziva D Cooper, published in the journal Neuropsychomarmacology, found medical cannabis allowed patients to take less opioids for increased pain relief “without increases in cannabis’ abuse liability.”
Despite claims by anti-legalization activists, recreational sales have not led to a surge in marijuana-related medical claims at the UC San Diego Health Department. Via San Diego Union-Tribune.
Critics love to say cannabis makes you dumb (as if alcohol makes you a genius). But a new study from the journal Frontiers of Pharmacology finds cannabis improved — rather than hurt — cognitive performance in a study of new medical cannabis users. . . . “Moreover, patients … also reported … notable decreases in prescription medication use, particularly opioids and benzodiapezines.”
Concerns about seniors using cannabis might be overblown. A new study in the European Journal of Internal Medicine found that of the 2,736 seniors studied, almost all said they did better on medical cannabis and had less pain. Some quit opioids entirely.
A review of 24 drugged driving studies concluded cannabis is not strongly associated with traffic accidents. Via Frontiers in Pharmacology.
NEWS
According to new reports from the Associated Press, less than 1% of California’s known growers have gotten a license. . . . That’s because local cities and counties largely will not license them. Case in point: Monterey.
Automatic expungement programs are gathering steam. Officials in Seattle and Oakland’s Alameda County plan to voluntarily delete past pot crimes from their court records. Until recently, citizens had to pay hundreds of dollars to a lawyer to request an expungement.
Colorado Senator Cory Gardner will stop blocking Department of Justice nominees over Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ actions threatening the marijuana industry. Gardner said he was encouraged by recent discussions with the DOJ. . . . Meanwhile, the powerful Koch brothers blasted Sessions’ hypocrisy on states’ rights. . . . And even Fox News polls can’t hide it: they found 59 percent of voters think adult use of cannabis should not be a crime.
HIGHLY DUBIOUS
Some well-meaning cops told Catholic high schoolers that cannabis use causes men to grow breasts and a half-joint equals seven alcoholic drinks. But the world called b.s. . . . “As police officers, we are not experts in health, addictions or public policy making,” the York Regional Police wrote in an apology.
READ
David Deardorff and wife Kathryn Wadsworth’s new book “What’s Wrong With My Marijuana Plant” is being hailed by the Sac Bee as the most mainstream how to book on marijuana cultivation yet.
SFGate remembers the life of renegade rock climber Jim Bridwell, who once salvaged a 1977 plane crash carrying thousands of pounds of marijuana. Bridwell died of kidney failure at the age of 73.
WATCH | PLAY | LISTEN
Watch
Natalie Portman’s Sci Fi Thriller Annihilation drops this week in theatres. The film is an adaptation of Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach Trilogy. Cinema Blend is predicting it will be at 89% on Rotten Tomatoes. . . . Bruce Campbell reprises his cult classic role as a chainsaw-wielding monster hunter in the third season Ash vs Evil Dead. . . . Meanwhile, The Tick returns for a second season of adorable comic book hilarity on Amazon Prime.
Listen
High-end vape and edibles maker Clement Kwan, co-founder of Beboe, is a chronic overachiever. But even he needs to unwind occasionally, find out why he turns to Defonce chocolates.
The legendary stoner duo Cheech & Chong are celebrating their debut in the 1978 counterculture classic Up in Smoke with a special 40th anniversary boxed set. The deluxe collector’s edition features a pack of hilariously oversized rolling papers, and is set for release on April 20. Via Tiny Mix Tapes.
FOLLOW
@aficionadoestates — Follow the 16 time Emerald Cup Winners at Aficionado Estates for a glimpse at how some of the world’s best breeders do their thing.
@meetdosist — Popular dose pen company hmbldt has changed its name to the very appropriate Dosist. You can follow the savvy two milligram-per-hit pens on insta.
@coylecondenser — Top American Glassblower Coyle Condenser announced to GreenState at this week’s CHAMPS Trade Show in Las Vegas that his only gallery show of the year would be in conjunction with San Mateo’s world class headshop The Cave. Keep an eye on Coyle’s instagram for a date later this year.
Best wishes for a relaxing, rewarding weekend, dd + oscar pascual + jimi devine