Thanks Blayze for introducing me to the term "hot boxing," Miguel for telling us about your pot plant Lupe, and Marsha for your "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore"-like tale of liberation through weed.
Thanks for all the invitations to meet in Amsterdam to light up with some really good sh*t. Thanks, Mooli419, for telling me about cannabutter. (Is it cholesterol-free?)
As "research," the comments of course are unscientific, simply anecdotal. But with over 500 responses, a few things seem clearer than ever:
If there's a compelling reason for smoking weed to remain illegal, no one (the government least of all) has offered it. It's hard to see how smoking pot - in moderation, of course - is worse for you than drinking. I am completely unqualified to write about addiction. But it certainly sounds like smoking ganja (why did that word never come up?! or is it hopelessly outdated?) has brought stress relief, not to mention plain old fun, to many many people.
That's not to dismiss the stories of people whose lives were wrecked by their own abuse of marijuana - or heartbreakingly, as in the cases of Wayne, Tonyatardtacular, and Lizzie (#66) the abuse of marijuana by those around them. But I have to wonder if weed was really the root of the problem. As Drat (#113) cheerily put it:
"It isn't pot that makes some of the people that smoke losers. Its only that there are a lot of losers in the world. Many of them don't smoke pot. Whatever you do make it your own decision. Then you can't blame everyone else like losers do!"
(I hasten to add my praise for those former "losers" who wrote about the depths they sunk to abusing drugs, before pulling their lives together. But if it hadn't been weed, would it have been something else?)
Those voting "Yes" for me to get baked far outweighed the "No" respondents in our non-binding vote. And their reasons were often compelling. Among the "Yes" voters:
"I could be wrong but it may make you wiser in the long run although completely stupid while doing it." - Steve Seivers
"Smoke weed today! Your career will thank you tomorrow!" - Finnstoned
"People who haven't smoked pot usually live boring lives, sucks to be you!" - Vic
(Among the no-voters, one standout was Elizabunny's tale of finding a roach in her husband's old yearbook and freaking out that the roach would somehow rat her out and get her disbarred.)
And now for my decision...
Allow me to invoke the great entertainer Sammy Davis, Jr. and the words he once sang: I've Gotta Be Me.
There's a reason why I've come this far as an NBBCer. (I tried to find a tape of Sammy singing this song on YouTube to post here. Alas it does not exist yet.) Part of who I am is someone who's never smoked pot.
Yes, as reader Ami pointed out, taping hundreds of hours of VH1's I Love [insert decade here] might have been easier baked. (Is that how Michael Ian Black and Hal Sparks got more air time?!!!). Yes, Sammy Davis was a pill-popping boozehound who sang a song called "Candy Man," so I sound like a jackass invoking him.
Yes, maybe pot would give me more insight into myself and help me to understand some of life's mysteries - like what the chick below is trying to say:
But I'd be smoking primarily for the wrong reason: to fit in, to catch up. As for relaxation, I can find other ways, though I'm skeptical about yoga. (I've met a lot of passive aggressive yoga people.) Besides, I have other priorities currently. Right now on my to-do list:
- I'm trying to learn a song for every one of our fifty states. Not official state songs, which I loathe. (God, how I hate "Maryland, My Maryland.") I mean songs like "California, Here I Come," "Alabamy Bound," "Back Home Again in Indiana," and "Moonlight in Vermont." If anyone can offer suggestions for other states, please weigh in. All genres welcome. The state just has to be a focus, not necessarily part of the title. (So "Country Roads" counts for West Virginia.
- I'm trying to read the Bible cover to cover. I've tried this before but always run out of steam before the end of Deuteronomy. (Clearly written when Dietary Law books were all the craze.)
- I'm planning on returning to gymnastics class to learn once and for all how to do a back flip. (I sustained an injury trying to do it in 6th grade. I want to overcome the fear.)
- I should really improve my Spanish.
Reader Comments ( Page 8 of 8)
106. when i grow up i want to be a mo rocca.
oh also- there's a guy named sufjan stevens that's trying to make a cd dedicated to every state. so far, he's only gotten a few states into the midwest...i'd start with "come on, feel the illiNOISE."
hannah at 4:12PM on Aug 29th 2007
107. I know there's a song, I believe it's by Fats Waller that is called:
(You're a) Square from Delaware
But I don't know the lyrics.
Emily Hopper at 4:21PM on Aug 29th 2007
108. mo...who cares if ya do or dont...i like ya anyway....and as far as state songs....how about "mississippi queen"
jan at 6:28PM on Aug 29th 2007
109. oh yeah...and how about "california dreamin"
jan at 6:29PM on Aug 29th 2007
110. Hola Mo,
RE: your state song goal--does "Chattanooga Choo Choo" count as representing all of Tennessee?
Also, for Texas you could go with--
"The stars at night,
are big and bright
[clap, clap, clap, clap]
DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS!"
"Reminds me of,
the one I love
[clap, clap, clap, clap]
DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS!"
Do you know that one? We sang that a lot traveling along Texas interstates when I was a child.
Last, does the musical Oklahoma! have a suitable song? I can't remember--it's been too long since I've seen it.
RE: reading the Bible--sometimes when I get bored with a book that comes highly recommended, I skip around or read the end and work my way backward. It really helps. Also, books on CD can be more entertaining as well--especially the dramatized ones. I have one of the Bible you can borrow if you'd like. The book of Revelation on CD is pretty INTENSE!
AND: I like listening to you on "Wait-Wait." It's a great show.
Keep up the good work!
maczimum at 10:20PM on Aug 29th 2007
111. x
healnganz at 7:44AM on Aug 30th 2007
112. good choice! honestly, i was a little worried you might make the
wrong decision. you haven't however, and it just made my day.
Deanna at 12:09PM on Aug 30th 2007
113. Anyone else see the humor in the number of responses to the "I'm not smoking" blog when compared to those from the the "Should I smoke?" blog? :)
Just asking...
lin at 7:07PM on Aug 31st 2007
114. Mo,
Be true to yourself and do what works for you. I used pot 30 years ago, decided I didn't like it and haven't tried since. If you want to try it, try it. If you don't, who cares? Nobody's business but your own.
I guess this would be a bad time to recommend "Rocky Mountain High" by John Denver as a state song for Colorado...
E Bradshaw at 4:38PM on Sep 1st 2007
115. I'm glad to know you decided not to. I struggle with my decision, but overall I'm proud to be a member of the NBBC. I really want to make it last, but in today's society, you see it everywhere (especially at the just starting college stage in one's life). It's refreshing to see that someone that I look up to, (yes, I do realize what I'm saying, crazy, no?) faces the same struggle and comes out with the same conclusion I do. It helps strengthen my resolve. I'm proud of you. And happy. Thanks.
kitten at 12:51AM on Sep 2nd 2007
116. you know, i think that was written beautifully. congratulations for finally coming to your conclusion & i'm happy that you aren't being judgemental on anyone =)
also, i just wanted to say to some other comments about how weed can't be legal because you can grow it, tax purposes i mean, well what about fruits & veggies? or do we not pay tax on those?
but i know i would DEFINITLY pay the tax on a sack if i knew i could just walk into a pharmacy & pick it up. it's so hard to find sometimes!
well, anyway, good luck with your state songs! that's a really cool idea. i'll be looking forward to find out what your playlist turns out to be.
tasha at 10:43AM on Sep 2nd 2007
117. Mo, it's a good decision to skip the weed. It is addictive, and does have longterm effects upon both your personality and your memory. If you want to lose IQ points, just smoke. As the ex-wife of a pot addict I can say that nothing is more miserable than having to be around a person Jonesing for a joint. I'm even embarrassed that I know what that means. We only went on vacations to locations where the local weed was good....It took me a while to catch onto that one. You haven't lived until you've had to run three blocks down the streets of Nassau and then duck into a restaurant to avoid the drug dealers that are chasing your husband. Oh another experience to avoid is the conversation about what happens to the pot during the return through customs to the US. He swore it was all gone. We went through customs. He told me just before we faced the agents that he had put the bag in his underwear. He had a big adrenaline rush from the excitement. I was in terror. I don't break the law, because I don't want to be a criminal. About the IQ thing....it truly turns your memory into Swiss cheese. Because nature abhors a vacuum, the chronic pot smokers invents a fictional history to cover the memory holes. Those who say it's not addictive or less harmful than alcohol are just kidding themselves. This same ex-husband went to AA and was able to overcome the alcohol, but not the marijuana. I was so young and naive when we were married that I believed, "I really want to quit and I'm going to. In fact, I only smoke a quarter a week....That's not much."
Helen at 12:20PM on Sep 2nd 2007
118. Hi Mo! Congrats on your choice to remain in the NBBC. You're in good company!
As far as state songs go, Amy in #94 came up with a good one for RI - but if you're looking for an alternative, how about The Eagles' "The Last Resort"? It's the last song on the "Hotel California" CD, and starts off:
"She came from Providence, the one in Rhode Island, where the old world shadows hang heavy in the air..."
If that doesn't sum up Little Rhody, I don't know what does.
Have a great day! :)
Laurie :) at 1:30PM on Sep 2nd 2007
119. New Hampshire - Matt Pond PA
loring at 11:35PM on Sep 5th 2007
120. Ahh Mo, I'm new to your blog and in that giddy early phase--I love Wait Wait, Mo's on Wait Wait; I've never been baked, Mo's never been baked--but nothing compares to the sense of connection that I felt when I learned of your quest for a song (not the state song) for every state.
I used to teach 5th grade and once got the idea that this would be a great addition to our study of the states. If I ever run across my notes I'll send my list your way. Most of the obvious have been covered in other comments.
In the end I scrapped the plan because 50 songs would take an awfully long time to learn and we were better off learning well one song that lists the states in (nearly) alphabetical order--a handy little tool to have at one's disposal.
Now Mo, should you ever decide to expand your quest, the New Christy Minstrels' "Ramblin' is a clearing house for songs about major US waterways. They've got the Ohio, Mississippi, Sacramento, Missouri, and Rio Grande covered. Throw in "Roll on Columbia" and "The Erie Canal", and you've got something good going, as my former students can attest. Take that Miss South Carolina!
Siri at 4:36PM on Sep 18th 2007