--- title: 5 Surprising Things I Learned While Writing a Book About Legal Pot description: Science is booming. Quality matters. You better buy a Stink Stack. canonical: https://time.com/3825584/5-surprising-things-i-learned-while-writing-a-book-about-legal-pot/ author: Bruce Barcott article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-17T11:00:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T06:27:32.796Z article:section: Ideas og:title: 5 Surprising Things I Learned While Writing a Book About Legal Pot og:description: Science is booming. Quality matters. 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Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. by [Bruce Barcott](https://time.com/author/bruce-barcott/) ## Bruce Barcott Apr 17, 2015 11:00 AM UTC  by [Bruce Barcott](https://time.com/author/bruce-barcott/) ## Bruce Barcott Apr 17, 2015 11:00 AM UTC **1\. Marijuana’s Mystery Is a Fleeting Quality.** The first time I entered a medical marijuana dispensary, I nearly panicked. The idea of buying weed in a “store” wigged me out. The fifth time I visited, my only emotion was annoyance that the strain I sought had sold out. Ditto the effect of visiting an indoor pot farm. The first time’s a sensory overload. The 10th time, it’s like touring a cornfield. Marijuana plants are not as alluring as rubies nor as scary as anthrax. They are vegetable matter. **2\. This Stuff Stinks.** You’ve smelled the smoke. But the raw plant itself is shockingly pungent. After every visit to a pot farm, my jeans and shirt went straight into the washer. When I transported legal product, I often had to air out my Subaru and spritz a little Febreze on the seats. Eventually I wised up and bought Stink Sacks, which are specifically engineered to contain the funk. How strong is the smell? Stink Sack’s major competitor is a company that makes trash bags to contain the scent of soiled diapers. **3\. It Is Possible To Go Broke Selling Weed.** Scoring a state license to peddle pot is not a permit to print money. It’s like any other retail business. Product quality matters. Price matters. Store ambiance and customer service matter. Location _really_ matters. Stonehenge Cannabis, a pot store in Lyle, Washington, is going out of business because it’s starving for customers. Where in the world is Lyle, Washington? Exactly. Meanwhile a shop called New Vansterdam is selling more weed than any other store in the state. Where’s it located? In Vancouver, Wash., directly across the border from Portland, Oregon. **4\. Medical Marijuana Is Not a Hippie’s Delusion.** This may be the most [radical shift](http://time.com/3815608/marijuana-legalization/) in my thinking. I went into the writing of _Weed the People_ half-assuming that medical pot was a scam designed to give stoners easy access to weed. I was wrong. I spent months poring over peer-reviewed research, unearthing government reports, and talking with patients and doctors. For many people struggling with epilepsy, PTSD, chronic pain, and glaucoma, the stuff really is a godsend. And the science is starting to catch up to their anecdotal reports. The next 10 years will see an explosion in cannabinoid science, and we’ll all benefit. **5\. Tommy Chong Is Everywhere, Man.** Speaking of hippies: Over the two years I spent covering the legal pot industry, I kept bumping into the latter half of Cheech & Chong. We met backstage at a concert in Tacoma, at the Denver Cannabis Cup, at a coffeehouse in Boulder, at a hotel restaurant, and at a dispensary in Seattle. With the advent of legal weed, the 76-year-old comedian and pot pioneer is roaring into the business. His licensed brand of marijuana is now in recreational stores in Washington state, and he’s aiming to go nationwide as other states turn legal. Here’s the funny thing. At 76, the guy looks the picture of health: strong, tan, rested, and always ready with a joke and a laugh. _“Weed the People, the Future of Legal Marijuana in America,” from TIME Books, is now available wherever books are sold, including_ [_Amazon.com_](http://www.amazon.com/Weed-People-Future-Marijuana-America/dp/1618931407/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1428519624&sr=1-1&keywords=weed+the+people+the+future+of+legal+marijuana+in+america)_,_ [_Barnes & Noble_](http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/weed-the-people-bruce-barcott/1120935354?ean=9781618931405) _and_ [_Indiebound_](http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781618931405)_._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3825584/5-surprising-things-i-learned-while-writing-a-book-about-legal-pot/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3825584/5-surprising-things-i-learned-while-writing-a-book-about-legal-pot/"},"headline":"5 Surprising Things I Learned While Writing a Book About Legal Pot","datePublished":"2015-04-17T11:00:30.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T06:27:32.796Z","description":"Science is booming. 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