A public health office came up with the idea of distributing lockable "stash boxes" through the pot stores, particularly to homes with children. By law, the stores are not allowed to sell such things, nor can they give them away. A new law now allows both activities at the stores. First off, the retail stores (in WA) are not allowed to give away anything. This prevents the "free gift" when you buy an empty baggie for $35. Then, stores can only...
When this year's session opened, there were hundreds of bills left over from last year, including a couple dozen dealing with marijuana. With the laws and regulations on retail pot not even three years old yet, one could expect there would be many opportunities for modifications and additions to something so new. They did manage to deal with 20 items late last Friday, the last day of this year's session. The remainder, including some of the most...
The local natives use the greeting "Tokitae", which means "Nice day. Pretty colors". This is the season where the Olympic Peninsula is frantically blooming, with a different color in the majority almost every day. Right now it's dandelions. Every lawn, pasture, highway divide, and field is covered in blooming dandelions, sometimes completely covering the green. It's gorgeous. But it's not confined to the peninsula. Yesterday at a big gathering...
California exports 80% of it's cannabis crop out-of-state, which means only 20% of the industry is eligible to become state licensed under either medical or recreational schemes. Even if California is 100% successful in regulating the entire domestic market, the black market will still be five times the size. That's how much is needed to supply the market elsewhere in the US. Oregon is in a similar position, but on a smaller scale. The absurdity...
I'm back to Chimacum. Should be here for a while....
It was a great trip along the coast, and I hated to bid it farewell for now. Being able to see the storm-driven waves of the Pacific take bites out of the continent we live on is always an experience. Shortly after I left CA, the Eureka newspaper ran a story on Last Chance Hill which is caving into the ocean taking a chunk of 101 with it. Interesting problem this presents, as there is no solution. Oregon roads were better than California, but...
Things didn't kick up until about 5 AM, so I got some sleep. Then the winds started. The weather service measured some gusts at 72 mph, and it's been at around 40-50 most of the day. Plus rain. High winds and rain are a good combination to find leaks in an RV, and I found 2 new ones. They're easy to fix (window sealing), but they've got to dry out first. And that might be a while. Besides, I won't open my door in this weather, much less go...
A storm warning went up today, mentioning winds from 45-60 mph tomorrow, my planned travel day. So I'm staying put in Newport until Sunday. It's a great place to be stuck, though. Officially it's the opening days of the tourist season, but right now things are slow enough that getting around is a breeze. I'm at the Port of Newport RV Park next to the marina, a monster boat ramp, the famous aquarium, some museums, and the Rogue River Brewery....
The weather has been wonderful for driving the coast, but that's over for a while now. I'll be sitting out the worst of it for the next few days here, then look at the forecast. Sightseeing in the rain doesn't sound like much, but I had planned on doing just that anyway; the sunshine was a big bonus. And the coastline always looks great no matter what the weather. Stateline Cannabis opened in Brookings on the California border. They intend to...
A commonly-seen guess of how many cannabis farmers there are in Humboldt County is around 10,000. Similar guesses exist for the neighboring counties. A lot of those plots are "trespass grows" on private or public land. Then, a lot are on the up-and-up, minding their ways, paying taxes, and desperately seeking more certain rules to live by. This is the start of the growing season in Norcal, which will be completed before the new rules take...