I'll admit that I've smoked it on occasion within the last few years (something I can't really pretend to be ashamed of considering the number of users there are in this country) and I can honestly say its been my only "vice", and I feel with perfectly good reason. Where there definitely are the stereotypical "stoners" who use the drug as an escape and to sit around doing nothing and be perfectly entertained, thats never been my experience with it. The drug not only quickens the heart and blood-flow but also the mind. I've found it wonderfully stimulating intellectually, and has been handy to my introspective self in my philosophical ponders and my artistic endeavors. Its led me to strive for living in a similar "high state" without the aid of drugs simply by directing my awareness inward, being aware of each thought and moment as it happen. If you can step outside your own thoughts and observe them rather than being swept away and 'distracted' by them, the incredible phenomenon of existence becomes more apparent, and the result is inherent joy and awesomeness. This is what meditation is, and its been a very important discovery for me I feel, and I believe I owe some credit to marijuana for basically 'forcing' this kind of behavior/observation. Meditation was never taught to me neither in life/religion/school over here in the West and I can't possibly fathom why, (I find it a helpful skill to be able to consciously override any suffering) but if it weren't for my interest in the hippie movement of the sixties (I'm not sure why no one else seems to enjoy the concept of peace, love, happiness and rainbows!) I doubt I'd ever encounter it. Needless to say, my flirtations with the drug were not typical to other peoples, but I found it a very intellectual and useful, and I look forward to a time where such a thing isn't criminalized. (Not that I advocate the drug, because I feel most people use it for simple 'comforting' reasons which I don't care much for.)
A few years ago my parents discovered I had tried pot and sent me to eight months of drug counseling. During that time I learned that even professional drug counselors hadn't a clue about how these drugs actually are. My counselor tried to tell me that about half the marijuana in the area was spiked with other various chemicals such as heroin and cocaine. I knew this was total bullshit (I've never even heard of anyone receiving marijuana that wasn't intentionally laced), and I knew why. Obviously people came in to the office all the time and failed drug tests for heroin and cocaine and blamed the fact that they must have smoked marijuana that had been laced, and the brilliant social-workers bought it. The counselor also tried to convince me that because of my marijuana use I would have moved onto heroin by the time I graduated to college. (Try listening to someone attempting to convince you why you'll be on heroin in no time and you might see how I've developed a disgust for the incredible amount of ignorance involved in today's drug systems.)
I think my participation was acceptable this module. You've heard alot more from me here then in the student participation module because I'm so opinionated, and I didn't want to involve my opinion too much in the class discussion. My lowest grade is always from the quizzes which I'm having a tough time with. I wish the quizzes would show the correct answers I missed after taking it rather than simply telling me I just got a 50% on something I thought I aced.
Vocab I've learned:
- Sinsemilla - Marijuana without seeds
- Amotivational Syndrome - Belief that heavy marijuana use decreases motivation
- Glaucoma - Potentially blinding eye disease causing intraocular pressure
- Anandamide - Possible neurotransmitter acting at the marijuana receptor
