High there! First of all thank you, for taking the time and interest to get here. For being interested in cannabis, for wanting to know more, and lastly for being maybe the tiniest bit interested in me…I figured I would take a second to introduce myself, my story, my cannabis use, history and goals. I hope this blog will provide some insight, and knowledge into the world of cannabis, at least through my perspective. So here goes nothing…
I was born and raised in the last great ski town of Colorado. A beautiful, sleepy little mountain valley was the perfect backdrop for a childhood filled with adventure, playing and learning in the mountains. Born to two die hard ski bums I was on skis before my 2nd birthday, telemark skiing by the 4th grade and competing in big mountain events before my 15th birthday. I was a sponsored, 3x National Champion telemark skier by the age of 17. I graduated highschool early, planned on taking a year off from school to compete, ski and travel and moved to North Carolina for the summer.
By the time I moved home something was different, and wrong…my heart rate was always racing, my hands and legs constantly shook, I got out of breath too easily and I had gained close to 30lbs. After blood tests and doctors visits, we ruled out Parkinsons and MS, and I was diagnosed with Graves’ Disease, a genetic form of hyperthyroidism. At the age of 18 my world stopped, I was told I could not ski, or even walk more than a block or two at a time. I was put on medication and told to decide between surgery or radiation treatment. My life was a cycle of work and napping, I was always exhausted and my body constantly hurt. Eating became a chore, and I could not for the life of me control my emotions. I was constantly hot and then freezing cold, and anything and everything made me cry. For 2.5 years I took medication, hoping for remission, the whole time without skiing or really working out-per doctors orders. After medication failed I had my thyroid removed and am now happy and healthy. Besides a daily thyroid pill I do not take any medication to help with the rest of my residual symptoms and that is all thanks to cannabis.
Go to virtually any ski town in North America and you will be able to find cannabis, ski bums smoke weed. But growing up with a strict training schedule and never really feeling the need to partake I only smoked once or twice in highschool. I never saw a problem with consumption, much like alcohol and cigarettes why not let people do what they want? And it was baffling that something so common place and renowned was still “illegal”. After being diagnosed with Graves’ Disease I started using cannabis to help with my lack of appetite, insomnia and to regulate body temperature. I also discovered certain strains that helped with my anxiety and crazy emotions. Since getting better I have been able to incorporate cannabis into my daily life to help ease residual symptoms and ski injuries while living a conscious lifestyle. After discovering the many uses of cannabis and how it works for me I was hooked. It didn’t take long for me to decide I had to educate myself and teach myself about this amazing plant and it’s many uses!
Discovering my passion for cannabis lead to the creation of my instagram page, which in turn lead to my work as a cannabis activist. After about a year of advocating locally in my home community, the state of Colorado, and online through various forms of social media, I landed my dream job as a budtender at Rocky Mountain Cannabis in Gunnison Colorado. I also was blessed to work as a growhand for one of the most amazing grows I have personally ever seen. It was and is still one of the most pivotal and important moments in my life. I quit my job as an assistant manager at a coffee shop and walked away from the industry I had been in for 8 years, into the unknown and have not once looked back…All the while exploring and adventuring around our beautiful world. This fall I moved to Washington state and continued to pursue my career in the Cannabis Industry. I am very lucky to be working for an amazing i502 recreational dispensary. I feel so fortunate and lucky to be a part of such an amazing team of budtenders that are dedicated to helping others discover this amazing plant! I can’t wait to see what the future of cannabis holds and am so excited to be apart of it!
It is my hope that this website and the information I share will help others better understand cannabis, the cannabis community, different uses of cannabis, acceptance of cannabis use, feel better naturally and debunk the myth of the “lazy” stoner that society says we are. I can’t wait to share knowledge, adventures and good vibes with all of you wonderful souls! Thank you for reading, feel free to comment, ask questions and provide any feedback you would like!
Stay Stoney!