the donut shop.

"Me only have one ambition, y'know. I only have one thing I really like to see happen. I like to see mankind live together - black, white, Chinese, everyone - that's all." Bob Marley

just on the off-chance you haven’t heard, marijuana became legal recently in canada. it’s true, really happened. and i find it fascinating if somewhat unsettling that what was once considered an offence worthy of jail-time is now perfectly acceptable. in my day lives were changed or even ruined for possessing what is now actually considered medicine, for you and for your dog too. 

personally i haven’t had a toke in over forty-five years. before that, however, well, suffice it to say i knew how to roll a joint. hell, i didn’t even need rolling-papers. i learned to roll huge spliffs with newspaper in jamaica. i used coconut leaves in mexico. i could actually just use whatever was handy. meanwhile, i suppose now we’ll all have to listen to everyones’ tedious, boring old doper stories. unfortunately there’s no reason for aging hippies to bogart those stories. it’s all good now, no worries. so allow me to be one of the first. 

it all began one night in my buddy‘s family apartment. jim went on to become one of canada’s leading criminal lawyers. always a high-achiever, in those days he was one of toronto’s leading criminal pot dealers. anyway after lighting up and puffing away that night it just seemed like nothing was happening. i kept insisting that the whacky stuff wasn’t having any effect. i recall that being a big issue for me although jimmy seemed singularly unconcerned. eventually we made our way to a nearby ‘mr. donut’ shop where i found myself standing on a stool and, using my best w.c. fields voice, hollering somewhat inappropriately at the african-canadian waitress: “come over here my lovely chocolate eclair, my chocolate cupcake.” that’s when it dawned upon me that i may have been in fact a little bit stoned. 

tattoos were once considered only for criminals. women wearing pants musta been whores. gays were thought to be criminals. kids who danced were possessed. only drug addicts smoked marijuana. meditation was for flakes. perceptions change over time. the message is clear: i should not be totally completely and stubbornly sure of my ideas. and yet i’m not ready to jump on the pot-smoking celebratory bandwagon.

“one love, one heart, let’s get together and feel all right.” bob marley.