Why I Don't Smoke The Weed

If I have said it once, I have said it a thousand times - I have never partaken in the drugs, any of them, not even the marijuana, which British Columbia (if not the whole of Canada) is known for. BC Bud? Yeah, that's a real noteworthy thing over here, apparently. Colour me surprised! Although it does kind of make sense because everyone and their grandmother loves to indulge in the green around these parts.

Now, the reason for my abstaining isn't because I am a stuck up bitch who thinks she's better than everyone else and doesn't want to stoop to the level of those people who are so clearly beneath me. Actually, yes, someone did once accuse me of that, even though I don't think I am better than anyone else, except those I am obviously better than. Just kidding. I am the Queen of ill-timed jokes. I wish there was a jokey font. I guess comic sans might be.

Anyhow, the truth is, I was afraid to try drugs. When I was eleven, my older brother got into some bad stuff. I won't share details, because it isn't really anyone's business but his own. The details don't matter, anyway, what did matter is that I loved him. I saw the way his life was heading and, while there were more bad decisions than buying ciggies, getting drunk, and smoking a spliff, that's where it seemed to begin, at least that's how I saw it in my preteen mind. So, I decided I didn't want to go down the path he went, I didn't want to be removed from my home, or put into foster care, or go to juvenile detention.

Sure, as I grew older, I realized his was the worst case scenario. Well, at least one of them, there was always death, which scared me more. People find it surprising I didn't succumb to peer pressure in high school. Yes, it was offered, and yeah, I spent many a night with drunk and stoned kids. From alcohol swiped from parents liquor cabinets to marijuana and from LSD to cocaine and ecstasy, I was around it all. It wasn't as if I wasn't subjected to it. I was, but it never interested me, and honestly I didn't WANT to do it. There was plenty of remarks, a copious amount of assumptions, and a fair amount of peer pressure, never really from my good friends, but I was a determined little girl.

And then I reached my twenties and, despite the rough times and sad times and trying to find myself times, I always figured it was a silly time to start. It was as if I missed the getting high boat. It seemed weird for me to suddenly give it a try after over two decades of living.

So why do I not indulge now?

Because I don't need it. I am weird enough on my own. This world constantly wows me. And to be perfectly honest, I have an odd tendency to sound like I'm stoned without actually being under the influence. "Look at the sky, it's amaaaaaaazing. Can you believe it? It's just breath taking." Insert far out smile here. No, really. Do you remember the double rainbow video? How that guy lost his mind over the double rainbow? Well, that's pretty much me whenever I see something semi-amazing in nature.

For example, tonight I cut open a tomato, which seems like a fairly uninspiring task. Except, I was in awe, because the seeds inside had sprouted. This literally had me grinning from ear-to-ear. I actually sought out the Sidekick to show him. He wasn't as amazed by it, though. Still, it made my night. And that is why I don't smoke the weed now. Because my world is pretty magnificent without it.

And don't go thinking I am one of those people who tell others not to burn one down. Heavens no, partake, indulge, light one up. It just isn't for me, it never has been and, here's the thing, it never will be. Never. Oh, also, please don't call me straight-edge, while that is an accurate label for what I am, I have always hated the term. Mostly because it makes me sound like a scenester kid, which isn't the case. I am too old to be a scenester or hipster, or whatever the kids are calling it these days. Now, where'd I put my cardigan and glasses?