22 minute read
THE LIFE
Ruff Life
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How to start training pets for your return to work.
TEXT NATALIE RAGLAND, DVM, GUEST CONTRIBUTOR AT HONEST PAWS
With quarantine restrictions lifted and more people getting vaccinated, many of us are returning to offi ces for work. This change aff ects not just us but our pets too.
Natalie Ragland, a veterinarian and contributor to Honest Paws, shares insights and tips to help pet owners prepare their pets for life after the pandemic, shedding light on how pets are going to react when we stop working from home and go back to the offi ce.
If you are like most of the world, sheltering in place took on a new meaning because of the COVID-19 pandemic. For pets, the extra time with you has been welcomed. But, as we begin to trickle our way back to working in our offi ces, the shock of absence may impact them more than we realize. There are a few things we can do to make the shift easier. Here are a few tips that might help the transition for your pets, as well as decrease separation anxiety and unfavorable responses brought on by the change in company.
1. Leave more often during the day as “D-day” approaches.
As departure day approaches, leave your space more frequently. If you need to run an errand or go for a walk, block out time away from the house to acclimate your pet to longer absences. If you are going back to work in person without much notice, consider using a few vacation half-days in order to build in a daily routine before implementing your original schedule.
2. Develop your routine.
If you are given ample notice before returning to work, remember that most animals, including our pets, are creatures of habit. Pets know when you are due home and what time you usually leave each day. Reestablishing your routine a few days beforehand may be necessary. You can start by: • reestablishing walk times. • reinstituting normal feeding schedules. • leaving for the day and placing a camera in the house to monitor for any signs of separation anxiety.
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3. Look for signs of stress and anxiety.
If your pet is more prone to being stressed out or anxious when you leave, watch out for such behavior as going to the bathroom in the house and destroying household items such as window blinds and furniture. Seeing these signs may warrant a call to a veterinarian or a tele-health appointment with a behavioral expert. If you are pressed for time as we are all these days, consider increasing your pet’s exercise to release stress hormones and increase endorphins, leading to longer napping times.
4. Consider in-home or daycare service.
If you can arrange for someone to come to your home to either sit with your pet or walk your animal as needed, this may be the best option to start. Some local daycare centers for animals may off er inhome services and drop off and pick up. An even better option would be to have a relative or loved one come visit; coordinate the time when you will be out of the house so that there is some company when you exit.
Trail Blazers
Two local cannabis entrepreneurs break new ground to bene t the community.
TEXT EMILIE-NOELLE PROVOST
Although it might not be obvious at fi rst, not all local cannabis dispensaries are created equal. Some are owned by outof-state corporations, meaning that most of the profi ts they generate leave the community. Others like Green Soul Organics, which is set to open two locations over the next few months, are owned by local people and are invested in improving the lives of their neighbors and families.
Lifelong friends and Cambridge residents Richard Harding and Tabasuri Moses founded Green Soul Organics and its nonprofi t counterpart, Green Soul Foundation, in 2018, with a dual goal: establish a profi table adult-use cannabis business that will provide jobs and boost the local economy, and off er job training and educational opportunities to local people who want to work in the industry. “We have an opportunity to create wealth pathways in our community that have not historically existed,” Harding says. “We are working to pursue a dream in the cannabis industry that refl ects our values and who we are.”
Harding and Moses both grew up in public housing, and both are African American. This is central to who they are and how they will operate the business. As Harding, a public health professional who served seven terms on the Cambridge School Committee, points out, “Cambridge is home to two of the most prestigious universities in the world, but poverty and lack of
education are still a big problem here.” The business partners applied for and received Economic Empowerment Priority status, a Massachusetts program that ensures people living in communities disproportionally aff ected by the biased enforcement of drug laws are able to benefi t fi nancially from the legalized cannabis industry.
Although the state program was created to make opening a cannabis-based business easier for entrepreneurs like Harding and Moses, of the more than 120 applicants that have received Economic Empowerment Priority status, none have actually started a business. “There are still so many barriers to success,” Harding says. “The process [of opening a cannabis business] is long, arduous, and complex, and if you don’t have adequate funding you are going to run into trouble before you even get started. Because cannabis is still illegal on the federal level, you can’t just walk into a bank and apply for a loan.”
Among the obstacles Harding and Moses have had to overcome is a Massachusetts provision allowing formerly nonprofi t medical-use-only dispensaries that were in place prior to 2018, when recreational cannabis sales were allowed to begin in the state, to expand their businesses to include for-profi t adultuse sales. “Cambridge only has eight adultuse licenses,” Harding says. “Five pre-existing businesses were allowed to go vertical, leaving only three licenses for everyone else. It was unfair because none of them had to do everything from scratch like we did.”
In 2019, Harding and Moses helped fi ght for, and eventually win, a two-year moratorium on pre-existing medical-use cannabis dispensaries expanding to adult-use in Cambridge. The city ruling will allow time for Economic Empowerment entrepreneurs to navigate complicated licensing processes and meet state and city requirements. Although the eff ort caused a delay in the process of opening Green Soul Organics’ doors, Harding says it was worth it. “We wanted people behind us to have an opportunity, and to make sure it wasn’t just about us.”
Green Soul also had to contend with COVID-19 setbacks when quarantine requirements and government offi ce closings delayed their licensing hearings for months. And although the Green Soul Foundation supported the community through food drives and by giving out protective facemasks at the Suff olk County House of Corrections, the nonprofi t has had to press pause on in-person mentorship programs and workshops at the foundation’s Kendall Square classroom. “[Jobs in the cannabis industry require] such a hands-on learning process,” Harding says. “We didn’t think it would translate well to online education.”
With restrictions lifting now, things are looking up for Green Soul. Harding and Moses will open recreational-use dispensaries this summer (target opening date in early August) in Cambridge’s Central Square and in Somerville at the location of legendary former music club Johnny D’s. The duo hopes to secure a host community agreement for a third location, and they are working on establishing a cannabis cultivation facility in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, which Harding and Moses hope to have up and running by next year.
For other Economic Empowerment candidates looking to open cannabis-based businesses, Harding has some advice: “Make sure you fully understand local and state regulations so you aren’t making costly mistakes,” he says. “Figure out how to access capital. You need money to play in the space. Be wary of landlords. Many are now getting predatory and jacking up the rent on cannabis businesses. Legal representation, which you will need, is expensive, too. There have been times I’ve felt like the lawyers were the only ones winning,” he says, “but we will persevere.”
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Business partners Richard Harding (right) and Tabasuri Moses (left) are lifelong friends.
The Life and Times of Shawn Carter
A new campaign for Jay-Z’s Monogram cannabis brand reimagines the iconic photos of mid-20th-century American photographer Slim Aarons through a contemporary lens.
This is a scene from the Life and Times of Shawn Carter, Volume Two. (Volume One, if you missed it, was that hard-knock life you heard Jay-Z —Carter’s public persona—rap about in a track that samples the famous line from the 1982 Annie movie.) It’s a good life, a high life, and the people depicted living it are good and high on cannabis.
The image is the fi rst installment of a threepart campaign for Jay Z’s (also known as HOV) new Monogram cannabis line, which launched this spring in California. The campaign is a modern take on the legendary work of Slim Aarons, a midcentury photographer who built his fame by photographing “attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places,” as he famously described it.
The photographs Aarons captured during the Rat Pack era have become synonymous with midcentury luxury, beauty, and leisure. Carter’s Monogram tapped legendary hip-hop photographer/ director Hype Williams to reimagine a series of Aaron’s most notable vignettes. Shot at the stunning Frank Sinatra House in Palm Springs, the series has been cast with a diverse group of creative talents like Grammy nominee Chika, Ghetto Gastro, Curren$y, designer Aleali May, and model Slick Woods—all styled by High Snobiety fashion director Corey T. Stokes. The creatives are seen lounging on fl oats with Monogram product in hand, basking in outdoor opulence.
The resulting imagery illustrates the dynamic, expanding landscape of modern luxury, and how it intersects with a new chapter in cannabis culture. “The perception around cannabis has shifted a lot since the 20th century. If you were to ask me and my peers how we’d defi ne the good life today, weed would defi nitely be a part of it. Whether we’re smoking to inspire creativity or to celebrate an achievement, cannabis has a rightful place in modern-day culture,” says Williams. “HOV has a vision for the industry that he’s bringing to life through Monogram. His focus for this campaign was to showcase how beautifully cannabis fi ts into the good life today, and I am honored to be a part of it.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mona Van Joseph is a professionally licensed intuitive reader in Las Vegas since 2002. Author, radio host, and columnist, she created the Dice Wisdom app and is available for phone and in-person sessions. mona.vegas
JUNE HOROSCOPE
What do the stars hold for you?
TEXT MONA VAN JOSEPH
MAY 21–JUNE 20 GEMINI
Yes, you typically like to have a plan. However, this is the month to see what presents itself while you focus on what gives you peace and purpose. What you need will be easily found.
JUNE 21-JULY 22 CANCER
Avoid highly emotional people this month because they are just a toxic void that seeks attention. Detach from anyone who tends to dump emotional baggage on you. Ask them, “So, how are you going to handle that?”
JULY 23-AUG. 22 LEO
No one can take away what you’ve ever learned or earned. You have created your reality; you can change or recreate that reality. You are still the hero of your own story.
AUG. 23-SEPT. 22 VIRGO
The thorn is out! Past pain is no longer a re ection of your future. It’s time to act as though all things are opening up for you to have the clients, personal relationships, and good vibes you deserve.
SEPT. 23-OCT. 22 LIBRA
You will ultimately become so skilled at a creative project that other people will want to learn from you. Let nature inspire you even further. You are creating your future with your expertise.
OCT. 23-NOV. 21 SCORPIO
Be the ultimate politician this month. Recognize people around you for the skills and bene ts they present. This is the month to seek value, not to be cheap or thrifty. You are establishing your long-term goals now.
NOV. 22-DEC. 21 SAGITTARIUS
Handle high-maintenance people on your own and shield them from the people they bother. You are a leader. It’s time to step back from people you have no power to change.
DEC. 22-JAN. 19 CAPRICORN
You are being guided toward your priorities, and they may not align with what you’re doing now. It’s time to let go of anything that causes you pain. Things are lining up for the outcome you desire.
JAN. 20-FEB. 18 AQUARIUS
When you realize that no one does what you do exactly the way you do it, you are magic. It is time to enjoy what you’ve created and allow the big rewards to manifest for you later this year.
FEB. 19-MAR. 20 PISCES
Do what you love, be with the people you love, and decide your next step based on that vibration. You will be tapped for a project where your awesomeness is actually appreciated.
MAR. 21-APR. 19 ARIES
Be open and imagine some people as though they are a slot machine that doesn’t pay o . It’s di cult for you to stay still, so transfer that energy to nally tackle forgotten home projects.
APR. 20-MAY 20 TAURUS
Your actions and words represent the truth. Step onto that soapbox with the right group and keep expressing your truth. Your writer’s block is suddenly lifted, and words ow from you now.
The hottest cannabinoid to emerge since CBD, DELTA-8 THC gets you high and is being sold as a legal product made from hemp—even in nonlegal markets. But is it really legal? That’s complicated.
TEXT ROBYN GRIGGS LAWRENCE
DELTA- DAWNING
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This product has not been analyzed or approved by the FDA. There is limited information on the side effects of using this product, and there may be associated health risks. Marijuana use during pregnancy and breast- feeding may pose potential harms. It is against the law to drive or operate machinery when under the influence of this product. KEEP THIS PRODUCT AWAY FROM CHILDREN. There may be health risks associated with consumption of this product. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination, and judgment. The intoxicating effects of edible products may be delayed by 2 hours or more. In case of accidental ingestion, contact poison control hotline 1-800-222-1222 OR 9-1-1. This product may be illegal outside of MA.
he deeper Flip Croft-Caderao and his sister-in-law, Kayla Croft, delved into writing their business plan, the more apparent it became: they would never have enough capital to establish and maintain a licensed cannabis business in California. Disappointed but determined, they refused to pivot from their dream. Instead, they sidestepped into hemp, a much more accessible commodity. They fi gured selling CBD and other nonpsychoactive cannabinoids would give them a good understanding of the plant and the cannabis business, and might even generate the capital they needed to migrate over to THC down the road.
In early 2020, Croft and CroftCaderao launched Goodekind (goodekind.com) and sold a decent amount of The Notorious CBG Crumble and Hawaiian Haze hemp fl ower online. Then, last December, they added delta-8 THC gummies and vapes to the menu, and their business exploded.
“Delta-8 freaking took off ,” Croft-Caderao says. “Oh, gosh, it is crazy. It is defi nitely our top-selling product by a ridiculous amount.”
Chances are good you’ve heard of delta-8 by now. Derived from hemp, it’s the hottest cannabinoid to hit the market since CBD, and its appeal lies in what it does that CBD doesn’t. Like its kissing cousin, delta-9 THC, delta-8 will get you high—just not nearly as high as you get from delta-9. And—for now, anyway—it’s legal (or legal enough) under the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill that allows hemp cultivation and production of hemp-based products.
Entrepreneurs like Croft-Caderao saw a loophole in the Farm Bill’s defi nition of hemp-based products as having less than .3 percent delta-9 THC. The bill doesn’t address delta-8 THC, which is essentially degraded delta-9, because hemp has miniscule amounts of it—not nearly enough for commercial production. What lawmakers didn’t see coming was innovation born of desperation. Hemp entrepreneurs with a lot of product on their hands found a way to chemically synthesize delta-8 from CBD distillate, creating a new gray market that the feds are ignoring—for now—and states are just starting to address.
Croft-Caderao sees delta-8 as a perfect blend of the hemp and cannabis industries. “It gets you high, but it’s also unregulated, so you can ship it to people and have an entire e-commerce platform,” he says. “It’s an entrepreneur’s dream.”
—One Reddit user describing their experience with delta-8
THE NEW “IT” CANNABINOID
By all accounts, delta-8 is fulfi lling consumers’ dreams as well. It’s the fastest-growing segment of the hemp-derived product market, New Leaf Data Services reports, with U.S. sales of around $10 million last year. It’s getting a lot of attention—and that’s a little bit worrying for Erica Stark, executive director of the National Hemp Association, which is having a tough time coming up with a position on delta-8.
“On the one hand, we’re still of the mindset that we literally spent years convincing legislators that hemp is not about getting high— and this is really undermining that message and, I think, providing some skepticism about what LANGUAGE LESSON
“Delta” is a term used to describe a chemical reaction that requires heat as a catalyst in a process known as decarboxylation. The numbers that follow that designation show where the cannabinoids bond to the carbon chain.
we say,” Stark says. “On the other hand, the CBD market has suffered with oversaturation. This is a way for farmers to fi nd outlets for their biomass and hopefully recoup some of their losses, which might be a nice bridge until some of the markets even themselves out. We don’t want to shut the door on it or demonize it, but we don’t necessarily want to endorse some of the practices we’ve seen with products that are wildly unregulated and potentially harmful.”
In June, the Hemp Industries Association announced its support for delta-8 based on legal advice that it was not a controlled substance under federal law. “Businesses, farmers, and consumers all deserve regulations that support the exploration of the hemp plant’s full potential,” says HIA Executive Director Jody McGinness.
And of course, delta-8 has plenty of critics, both inside and outside the industry. The U.S. Hemp Authority, a third-party auditor for hemp and CBD businesses, refuses to certify delta-8 products. The U.S. Hemp Roundtable called marketing hemp products with any intoxicating value or euphoric eff ect “irresponsible.” The Roundtable is calling for delta-8 to be regulated like adult-use cannabis.
Individual states are taking radically diff erent and sometimes unpredictable approaches to delta-8, just as they have with CBD and delta-9. A random consortium of states that are as far apart as could be on legalizing delta-9—Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Utah, and Vermont—have banned delta-8, and several more are threatening to. Florida, being Florida, is moving in the opposite direction, toward establishing a legal delta-8 marketplace. Texas legislators struck down a provision to make delta-8 illegal earlier this summer.
U.S. Hemp Authority president Michelle Weintraub has not been WILL I FAIL A DRUG TEST?
When it comes down to it, THC is THC. Anything with THC in the name will show up as THC in a drug test and cause you to fail. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
—Erica Stark, Executive Director of the National Hemp Association shy about how angry she is that delta-8 is muddying the waters of her “won’t get you high” industry. Stark, for her part, is annoyed because she never gets to talk about fi ber and grain hemp, her passion, because delta-8 takes up everyone’s time and attention. “I love seeing farmers have opportunities,” she says. “But it does just suck all the oxygen out of the room.”
OFF TO A NICE SPOT
Delta-8 delivers about half to three-quarters the high that delta-9 does, a space somewhere between THC and CBD, more body than head. It’s like drinking a Bud Light instead of a Long Island iced tea. Croft-Caderao says you get about 50 to 60 percent of what you’d get when you vape delta-9, but people are reporting they they’re not getting anxious or paranoid with the less-potent cannabinoid. “They’re saying, ‘I can smoke sativas again. I can enjoy myself without getting too high,’” he says.
Reddit users describe delta-8 as a “productive buzz”—great for when you need help with anxiety or pain but can’t be intoxicated, and “like weed without the anxiety or introspective thoughts.” An occasional delta-8 smoker wrote: “It’s not an incredible high or anything, but if I’m out and active and just want something to give me a bit of a lift, I’ll puff on a cart and get to a nice spot.”
That’s all good for users who have built up a little tolerance, but people trying THC of any kind for the fi rst time (or the fi rst time in a long time) generally have no idea how much to ingest. Because delta-8 is completely
Here Comes Delta-10
In the new THC numbers game, delta-10 is up next.
Another cannabinoid found only in trace amounts in hemp and cannabis, delta-10 THC is often mistaken for minor cannabinoids CBC and CBL. Like delta-8, it can be synthesized from CBD.
Delta-10 has mild psychoactive e ects but is said to be more uplifting and energizing than delta-8. Users say it’s more like a sativa, while delta-8 leans more indica.
unregulated, dosage is pretty much up to each user. Overdose stories are surfacing, surprisingly common among heavy delta-9 users who underestimate delta-8’s potency (or overestimate their own tolerance). This can be especially dangerous when it comes to edibles. Our bodies metabolize delta-8 the same way they metabolize delta-9, by turning it into 11-hydroxy THC, a compound that can be up to 10 times more potent than delta-8.
SO, HOW IS THIS LEGAL?
It’s not entirely clear that it is. The DEA released an Interim Final Rule, open for review until October, that states, “all synthetically derived tetrahydrocannabinols remain Schedule I controlled substances.” That appears to make delta-8, which is chemically synthesized, illegal. But the DEA hasn’t taken any action against companies selling delta-8, and a lot of companies are betting it never will.
Stark says she asked Sean Mitchell, chief of intergovernmental aff airs at the Drug Enforcement Administration, about delta-8 during a panel discussion, and he confi rmed that any hemp product that is delta-9 compliant is federally legal. That’s just one guy from the DEA, though, and not a fi nal ruling. In the end, Stark is as uncertain as everyone else about legality. “What’s our position?” she says. “I don’t know.”
Croft-Caderao, for his part, expects the market to be regulated—if not outlawed—eventually, and he’s determined to make the most of this window of opportunity while it remains open. “This is the golden era right now,” he says. “This is something that gets you high that is unregulated and that is kind of unfettered.”
He’s already plotting how to keep his business thriving if and when the feds crack down on delta-8. “Business owners like myself have to be thinking, OK, if this gets regulated, this is how I will be able to pivot and use the skills I’ve learned to enter the cannabis market,” he says. “That’s what I’m thinking about, because who knows how much time we have?”
