What have I missed the last 25 years?

get yourself an item to consume the weed IMO a cheap bong is a good start vapes are still expensive and in truth difficult to adapt too even at our age ...lol
LED lighting is huge so is the price, seeds are all over the place I'd rec. some seeds you used to know and compare,
the big one for me is autoflowers that was a huge game changer, the latest con/ripp is the nutes chem companies are making a KILLING more so with the noobs

good luck

 

Sounds like me when I came here,,, after marriage and more than 50 years of abstinence… Could, and still can, just barely understand some of the changes… Edibles (hemp TLC) were easy,,, over the counter legal most everywhere… Smoking is medical only here, but it’s far easier to get very good cannabis now than it was back when thought I knew all the right people… The instant the Granddarlings heard that Papaw was looking, they most all offered to help me find my way…

I picked up a small metal one-hitter, and a small steamroller, but I haven’t tried smoking much… One granddaughter hooked me up with a local merchant, and I picked up and 1/8oz of Apple Fritters,,, then a younger friend gave me something above an 1/8th, maybe a 1/4oz, of homegrown from what his father-in-law brought back from Colorado…

Much more variety now, easier to get, and the market has evolved,,, ditch weed, leaves, and seeds don’t sell,,, good flower does, and the savvy market demands it… Then there is so much variety in how cannabis is consumed: flower, but smoke or vape,,, then there are oil and wax as well…

Herself is not keen on me going back to the old me,,, but gummies she’s accepted,,, at some level… She’s sees edibles as strange, but they’re only “hemp” TLC, not like evil “marijuana” THC,,, so smoking illegal (misdemeanor) cannabis is very much frowned on…

Enjoying having a way to get a buzz though,,, haven’t consumed alcohol in many years,,, not likely to resume,,, so cannabis is what’s left for me…

 

Hi hon, Welcome to GC!

I'm "Granny", a cannabis science nerd. As to where you can find some cannabis, you might try what I did when I moved to a town where I literally knew no one. Go back to school! Most community colleges are excellent places to find a connection. Try a class in Yoga or Ceramics- they can be fun and have very little homework.

You might want to get a little glass "one hitter" pipe. Cannabis is about 3 times stronger than it was in the 70s, so forget the "I smoke two joints in the morning" song - it's more like two puffs, now! Saves you the hassle of relearning to roll a joint!

Skip the dabs and concentrates for a while. They can be 90%+ THC. They are a bit too much for a beginner.

Vaporizers can be confusing since the term refers to two very different systems of use. There are the little "vape pens" which use a cartridge. Since you are in an "illegal" state, I would advise you to avoid these. The black market cartridges have been known to be contaminated with vitamin E (causing severe lung damage), heavy metals and pesticides.

Vape pens

The other type of vaporizer uses herbal cannabis and is safe. These vaporizers heat the cannabis to just hot enough to vaporize the THC and other cannabinoids, but not cause combustion. They are really nice since the flavor of the cannabis is not hidden by smoke. They are also easier on your lungs than smoking. Expect to pay $200 to $500 for a decent American-made vaporizer. Avoid the Chinese "el cheapo" Ebay vaporizers, they are poorly made and have been associated with developing chemical sensitivities. I have a little "Vapor Brother's" and it works fine after about 15 years of use.


Vapor Brother's desktop vaporizer

Hope that helps!


Granny

 

Welcome to the City.


Buy a small pipe and stick to smoking flower until you get your bearings with the higher end concentrates like the Kief pictured here. Take a single toke and snuff the pipe and wait 10 minutes to see where you land.

BNW

 

I'm in a similar boat. Took about a 10 year break, when I started back up again I still had some buddies who never quit so I was able to get right back into it without having to search too hard. And I will say that I am very happy to be back!

 

Santa cruz shredders are good grinders, they shred it more than rip it apart ... instead of putting a whole nug in the bong people now a days grind it up and use teh grind . just a tiny elbow pack in the corner of the bongs bowl is all that is needed most likely in that case ... just reading over your thread here . Storms advice is spot on ... look into a dry herb vaporizer ( flower vape) ... the Extreme Q made by Arizer is a great table top that uses bags that are filled with vapor o use it with only the wand and just pull on it when you are ready ... most vapes sit there heated and ready to use and do not burn off the material in the bowl unless you are pulling on it with hot air .
there too are great portable flower vapes like the Mighty vape, The Fury Edge , and even Arizer makes a few portables as well . you can move around with one of those and not be stuck to a desktop only but with the vape bags you can move around with the bag too .
most vapes have quite large bowls that contain the herb that gets vapes ... you can half load etc.... and get the effects most likely ... you can also use cotton as a filter and the cotton adds volume in the bowl so you use less weed each time ... when the cotton gets full of resin save it and Reclaim that resin and also save all left over vape remains from the vape ... when you vape it does not burn the herb so you end up with ABV / AVB - already been vaped , or already vaped bud and you can save that to make edible or other things with too .
let me know if I have opened a can of worms or whatnot , rock'n roll'n whatnot