For Madison

Baked and Awake Episode 29 Saturday February 10th 2018 Canna Industry Updates and More   Opening comments- There will be no pitches today on the podcast. No shoutouts (although since I wrote them out they will still be in the notes). No exhortations to buy T Shirts to support the show or to write reviews anywhere.  In fact, the most important part of this entire episode is happening right now and will be over in a moment. I honestly won't be mad at anyone for turning the show off the moment I'm through- although there is content to follow the words I am about to say. Thank you all, as always- for being here, and for listening.   This episode is dedicated to the memory of a member of my family, taken from us too soon, due to the ravages of drug addiction. This family member was deeply loved during her short, painful life, and she loved back fiercely in return. She will be dearly missed by those closest to her, and those of us who wish we knew her better while we had the chance.  Her name was Madison Haack, and she was just Twenty Two years old, and beautiful. I cannot bring myself to turn this short moment of recognition of a life into an opportunity to soapbox about the dangers of Opiates in all their forms, or the potential efficacy of Cannabis as an alternative to such things in a person's life. Perhaps we may save all that talk for another day though, when we have the benefit of time and healing between ourselves and this moment.     Let it be enough for now to say that I was reminded today of the value of life. I was reminded of what my two boys mean to me, and I thought about my 5 year old Son Ken, who already shows signs of anxiety and complex emotions that sometimes resemble depression. DEPRESSION. In a 5 year old (and yes, we are looking into family therapy for help in dealing with it). I thought of my own siblings who I love so much, and the challenges they all have faced and continue to face in their lives, most of them parents themselves of young families. I was reminded that Opiates are literally everywhere around us, and that the so called "Opioid Crisis" that is so often talked about on TV these days is fucking real. SO real. And so much closer to us all than we dare to imagine.  I'll stop here.  It's enough for now and a hastily conceived mini speech. It does Madison NO honor to treat this as a throwaway topic, or as a moment to leverage for any purposes other than to express my love, and sadness, for both her and the loving, beautiful family who now mourns her loss.   I will leave a few links in the show notes to resources on Drug Addiction Recovery and Treatment. I hope to God none of you listening, now or later on- is personally struggling with this yourselves.  But maybe you know someone who is. We all know sometimes a person can't be helped until and unless they WANT to be, but we can be ready to help them when they ask. Or we can be one of the ones to ask THEM, "Can I help?"   We will be talking about hard drug addiction and it's costs more in the future of this show.   Madison, wherever you are right now, I hope you are at peace, and out of pain. We love you, and in your honor, I am sure that every member of your enormous family, as well as our humble Baked and Awake family-  will hold someone dear to them a little closer tonight.   And now, a short transition while I light a blunt I rolled just for this occasion, and then we can get on down to some cannabis talk.   Reviews, Shoutouts,(Star International, Tacoma House of Cannabis Bloom Tacoma, Diego Pellicer, Dominique Dabs) Teepublic Store, Patreon WA State Officials Seek to Vacate and Dismiss Cannabis Convictions Counterpoint to above story by Andrew Saturn of WOKE Washington Image Inline below Email Mayor Jenny Durkan about speaking to her convictions of Legal Medical MJ Providers still serving time WA State Transition- from Bio-Track to MJ Freeway/Leaf Data  SNAFU WA State Cannabis Traceability System Hacked Kush Marketplace Industry Event, Seattle WA Cannacon Seattle Feb 15-17 2018 Strain of the Week:  DJ Short's Blueberry from Clandestine Gardens, purchased at Have a Heart Cannabis in beautiful Skyway, WA      Royalty Free musicscapes provided by the peerless Antti Luode of Reddit fame.