cannabis (5)

Classic 1975 Skateboarding Film – Huntington Beach, California

September 8, 2021 at 6:35 pm

Oh man, this is so good! The rawness of the sport, the crudeness of the boards, the sunny (1975) SoCal spirit, the moves, the dream skating scene starting at 30:17. These guys had something that today’s hot skaters don’t have.

I think this belongs in the same category as The Endless Summer. Pure unabashed LA, in its still glory days of the ’70s.

“Amazing old skateboard documentary mainly based in California in the mid-70s. Shows the early days of skateboarding and show cases some of the main skaters of the day like Stacy Peralta, Tony Alva and many of the original Zepha Surf Shop team.”

From Leo Hetzel

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Surfers’ Hotel in Costa Rica: “Classic, Eh?”

February 1, 2021 at 3:30 am

In 1985, I took my Haut 7′6″ surfboard, and flew to San Jose, Costa Rica. Rented a car and headed out to Limon. A friend had told me it was a dangerous town, and — well…

It was a somehow charming tropical town, with a rusty and decaying port. There were sloths in high trees in the park down by the Caribbean.

I hooked up with a local guy (a lawyer, nonetheless) and his girlfriend, and he showed me where to eat, and where to stay.

Something about Límon is bittersweet. It’s tropically warm, relaxed, somehow mature.

He also showed me how to make a cuba libre (rum and coke) with hi-octane pure alcohol (bought in am unmarked bottle in liquor store), an appropriately named limon (a big orange, but tart) and — Coca Cola. In hotel room, squeeze limon, add alcohol and coke.

The next day I headed out to Puerto Viejo, to visit Curt Van Dyke, son of my long-time dear friend from Santa Cruz, Betty Van Dyke.

On the way I stopped at a black sand beach where there was a bar on the beach playing reggae music. Un piña colada, por favor, and then some bodysurfing. (The sand was black!)

When I got to Puerto Viejo, I went to see Curt. He had maybe a dozen rooms, kept adding on, and a restaurant, and it was walking distance to Salsa Brava, a high-speed kick-ass surf spot.

This pic is Curt out on the deck, with his wife at the time. When he saw me looking the place, he said: “Classic, eh?”

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Homegrown: A Year in the Life of a Humboldt County Guerrilla Grower

October 10, 2018 at 3:30 am

This is a great book. I found it so fascinating, I read it cover-to-cover. I’ve known growers for years, but never realized the full extent of what it takes (took) to grow out in the woods. It’s not only a book about farming, but about gardening, wildlife, plants and trees, and about treating the earth with respect.

Also, the drawings are great (see link below). Andrew told me it was about a year in creation.

Up until now, guerrilla growers in Mendocino and Humboldt counties produced organic, high-strength cannabis, grown without chemicals or electricity. Now things have changed. Yes, it’s become legal, but there are a host of downsides to the recent legislation. The 30 or so years of guerrilla growers hand-growing and homegrowing a clean product have just about ended, as Big Business has moved in. A lot of pot is testing positive for pesticides. People buy their organic produce at Whole Foods, yet don’t know if what they are smoking is laced with insecticides. How much are your lungs worth? Advice to pot smokers: Know thy grower.

Andrew’s book encapsulates the romance and righteousness of working with nature, and documents an era of wholesome cannabis production.

To get it (and to see some of the pages), go to: mollywestranch.com

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Wood Rat Nest

September 26, 2018 at 3:30 am

These nests are pyramidal, about 3 feet tall, all over in the woods around here. Woodrats are kinda nice critters, compared to disgusting Norwegian city rats. They’re like big mice, live communally, are craftily smart at getting bait off traps without springing the trigger. The ones around here are dusky-footed woodrats, often called “pack rats,” have white belies, and bigger ears and eyes than city rats.

They are herbivores and according to Andrew Santos:

“Their lodges are architectural marvels with many entrances and lookouts. Ans interior rooms that service nests And pantries. They generally live solo in a matriarchal society of several lodges, comprising neighborhoods. Nests can get 6 to 8 feet tall.”

–From Homegrown: A Year in the Life of a Humboldt County Guerrilla Grower

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