When I first came out to the coast, it was just for a long weekend.
My band had been booked at a regional music festival.
At the time we thought this could be our “big break” but it turned out that we were one of 40 bands playing that weekend. We realized a lot of those bands were better than we were, and had the collective realization that we wouldn’t be finding a big break. On the other hand, I fell in love with the town, so as soon as I could I moved back. I was still trying to be a musician, and started to book gigs with several different local cannabis dispensaries. This was not something that happened in my old town, but out here many cannabis dispensaries had a smokers lounge where they would host live comedy, music, or open mic nights. My favorite place to play is a cannabis shop called Old Head, because it replaced the oldest “head shop” in the city. Back in the day before legalization there were no cannabis dispensaries, only head shops where you could get rolling papers and glass bongs. This cannabis dispensary pays in cash, but they also have an option to take your pay in discounted weed. I can take home a hundred bucks, or I can take a hundred and forty dollars worth of any cannabis I choose. You know I pick cannabis over cash every time! Cannabis doesn’t pay the bills, but when I am stoned then I don’t care so much about the bills I cannot pay.