In college my friends and I dreamed about moving to a state out west where medical cannabis was legal.
- Since we live in the southeast, we didn’t think that medical marijuana would be legal in this state for at least another 10 years.
When the ballot initiative received over 70% approval during the election, I was ecstatic. At last my home state was finally legalizing cannabis, even if it was just for medical reasons. However, I didn’t realize that it would cost so much money every year between doctor and state certification fees, but at least I can legally purchase and possess my favorite plant. The first dispensaries were only allowed to sell cannabis oil, capsules, tinctures, and vape cartridge products. The state legislature would not allow the dispensaries to sell whole flower medical marijuana, despite that being the most popular form of the plant across the board. We had to fight the state for two years before the laws were changed and cannabis flower products could finally be bought and sold in state marijuana stores. Worst of all, they forced cannabis stores to put the flower buds in these ceramic cups with machine-stamped lids that forced you to break the glass to get the weed out. The idea was to force patients to use these pods with a Volcano vaporizer, but they were packed so tightly they weren’t even efficient for that sort of use. If you wanted cannabis flower products, you either had to be a magician with hand tools or risk getting microscopic shards of glass in your lungs.