How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bong.

An Introduction and a Welcome to Legal Weed in Canada

If you are new to the idea of purchasing marijuana legally, then you are either someone who is curious about trying it, or someone who has not even thought of it since college and wants to explore the new, legal options available to you.  You may also have done some reading on the supposed benefits of marijuana as a pain management strategy, creativity enhancer, or a way to find old movies fascinating again.  The purpose of an introductory guide is less to teach you about the details of marijuana and more of a strategy guide for eliminating the discomforts associated with entering a new world.  Or, in some cases, an old world that you haven’t visited in a long time, only to find that the kids have changed the language and slang again and you have no idea what anything means anymore.

The days of cannabis product purchasing in the style of The Trailer Park Boys is now officially over.  Unless, of course you want the authentic experience of buying an inaccurately measured bag of something from a suspiciously confident individual who assures you that this is the good stuff – whatever it may actually be.  It isn’t a terribly bad idea, as some of those people in the grey market really know their stuff and actually grow their own stuff, but the main benefit of the above-board trade is quality assurance, consistency, and transparency.

It is now possible to enter a legitimate place of business with stocked shelves, marketing materials, ads, and knowledgeable staff to help you make your first purchase.  This is where we will address the first discomfort – social awkwardness.

You will become aware of the fact that until now, you thought you just bought a plastic bag of some kind of dried plant matter, took it home, wrestled it into a rolling paper or pipe of some kind and smoked it.  Now there are so many options available that it is easier to walk away rather than risk looking and sounding foolish.  Social anxiety is a real thing and not feeling prepared in dealing with new and unfamiliar rules is one of the causes. 

Remember when coffee shops other than Tim Hortons sprouted up across this country?  Suddenly we had beans from all over the world, new techniques for preparation, and consequently, new terminology that we had to learn.  Thousands of us rather awkwardly tried to order a regular coffee with cream and sugar from a teenager who gritted her teeth with a forced, patient smile that did absolutely nothing to hide her disgust with we ignorant peasants determined to stick to the little we knew.

You are not alone.  We all felt like that once, and completely understand why you would feel unwelcome.  Like coffee culture, marijuana culture looks suspiciously like wine snobbery constructed entirely out of crude internet memes.

Thankfully, most provincial governments have completely dropped the ball on business licensing for brick and mortar dispensaries.  As a result, most of the trade is online and likely to remain so for the foreseeable future.  The benefit of this to you is that you can shop anonymously and do your research before buying.  It allows us to make our mistakes privately and not be embarrassed by our lack of experience in front of experts, enthusiasts, and other awful people.

Sativa, Indica, cannabinol, cannabinoids, the differences, the benefits, the balance of components and their effects will not be discussed here.  There has been a great deal of research on this topic and a helpful summary is included in the blog that Fantastic Weeds maintains for our customers.  However, each term is an excellent starting point for your own google searches.

What Fantastic Weeds has done to make your shopping easier is to allow you to filter product based on intended effect.  You can use the intended effect to experiment with the strain or ingestion method that works best for you.  Once you know what you like, you will become more comfortable with the terminology specific to your needs and the rest will follow.  Everyone is different, but all are welcome.

Thank you for choosing Fantastic Weeds.