KC CHRONICLE   April 2022 Newsletter

On April 20th 2021, Kansas City Cannabis Company had its Grand Opening at its flagship store in Blue Springs. Throughout the state of Missouri, medical marijuana dispensaries sold over $3M worth of cannabis the week of 4/20. On a national level, both medical and recreational markets set a record for cannabis sales on a single day by selling over $111.8M!

But why is April 20th the unofficial cannabis consumption holiday?

The origins lie in San Rafael, CA. A group of high school boys, who called themselves the Waldos, claimed their stake as the 420 story owners. According to the group 420Waldos.com (website set up by the actual group of friends) the group heard a rumor that a local Coast Guard member was cultivating a patch of marijunana near the coastal town of Point Reyes, CA. The rumor was that the Coast Guard member was too spooked to harvest it, and this was the Waldo’s opportunity for adventure, and the score of a lifetime. The group would head out together to look for this field of Cannabis and they agreed to meet at the statue of the famed Louis Pasteur near their school at 4:20PM. This search continued for weeks but they began using the term “420 Louis” (eventually shortened to 420) as a code word for smoking weed. The term spread throughout Northern California, most likely due to the proximity of the band the Grateful Dead who also lived in San Rafael. The Waldo’s hung out in “deadhead” circles, and would be invited backstage at Dead shows, so it would be logical to assume that the term would be shared in those circles. As the Grateful Dead’s influence grew across the country, the term 420 also spread.

However it wasn’t until the 1990’s that Hip Hop culture grasped on to the term, and artists like Cypress Hill, and Dr. Dre brought Marijuana into the mainstream. In the end, the Waldo’s didn’t find the field of Marijuana, but they did find immortality by creating the cannabis holiday that enthusiasts worldwide celebrate.

How to Read an online Dispensary Menu

Have you ever been looking at an online dispensary menu and get confused about THC%, THCA%, Why is almost everything a Hybrid?? It’s easy to get confused when there is nobody there to answer questions, but there are some simple rules to follow when looking at an online menu.

• Key Terms that you may not know. Read on if you are a seasoned pro.


• Popcorn: you may find a deal if you see popcorn bud on the listing. Popcorn bud is in reference to the size of the smaller flower nugs. Patients love finding nice big nugs in their bags, and will pay a premium for it. Popcorn nugs are just as potent as the big nugs, and they grind up just as well.


• THC%: We all know what THC is, but the knowledge drops off a cliff from there. THC stands for Tetrahydrocannabinol. It is one of the active ingredients in Cannabis that is responsible for the psychoactive effect. If there is only one THC number on a product it's most likely Total THC, which is a calculated number that takes into account THCa, and THC. You can calculate this number also as long as you have access to the THCa %. For example if the Original Glue you are looking at has a THCa of 22.3% and THC of 2.3%, you would do the following math: (%22.3 x .877) + %2.3= Total THC% 21.85.


• “Live” extract describes the process in which the extracts are made. “Fresh Frozen” Cannabis is used in the extraction process. As the term suggests, the plant's terpenes and cannabinoids are still “Live”. This is done specifically to keep intact the flower’s Terpene profile. Live products will provide the user with a much closer experience to smoking flower, as opposed to distillate or BHO extractions.


• “Full Spectrum”, often called whole plant extracts, maintain the full profile of the cannabis plant. They contain many cannabinoids, including THC, THCa, CBD, CDBa, CBG, and CBN, as well as terpenes. Full spectrum products allow you to benefit from the entourage effect, which is where smoking flower. You can find edibles, cartridges, concentrates, that will boast being full spectrum.

Budget Cannabis Tips

With inflation on the rise, and gasoline approaching limb prices, everyone can benefit from some tips to stretch your dollar at your local dispensary.

Using a one hitter/chillum/small bowl: Normal pipes or bowls will have a carb hole on the side to aid in burning. While this may seem useful, it can lead to the bowl burning hotter than needed. Direct injected pieces, such as a one hitter or a glass chillum, gives the user more control on the burn and reduces smoke leaking out. Are you flying through bud at an increased rate? Try switching to a smaller bowl, or a one hitter a couple of times a week. You will most likely find you have more medicine in your jar at the end of week.

Using a dry herb vaporizer: Dry herb vaporizers are a great option when trying to conserve marijuana. A dry herb vaporizer such as the Pax 3, or the Crafty+ can range in price from $200-$300 dollars. There are also cheaper options that will only set you back $40-$50. Dry herb vaporizers heat the flower to preset temperature that stays below the temperature for ignition, meaning it does not combust or create smoke. The temp is hot enough to vaporize the cannabinoids and decarb your flower. Not only will you get the benefit of vapor vs smoke, but you can also stretch out that eighth much longer. In addition, if you keep your device at lower temperature settings you can use the bud that you have already vaped (better known as Already Vaped Bud or AVB for short). There are many ways to use it, including eating it or making a tincture or oil.

Rolling smaller or less joints/blunts: Joints are a crowd favorite, an easy way to smoke with multiple people, and also many people's go to solo option. If you’re like me, the size of the joints I roll keep getting bigger and thicker. It’s easy to see that joints or blunts are not an efficient way to conserve Cannabis. All the smoke that you see coming off that joint or blunt is flower burning and being wasted. To mitigate this, roll smaller personal joints or “pinners”, or try using a one hitter as I mentioned above.

Using Edibles and Flower together: One of my favorite ways to stretch your cannabis dollar is to combine edibles and flower together to supplement your stash. It takes some effort to time it but taking an edible about 40-50 minutes before smoking is an effective way to multiply your medication. When you time it right, you will find yourself in pure bliss. The linking of the THC you get from smoking, and the 11-hydroxy-THC (the chemical compound that edibles create in your body) is a potent combination, and it allows you to use less flower and edibles overall. With Edible prices and flower prices dropping rapidly, the tag team method can help you keep that budget in check.