Sailing and Smoking
Grupo Gavilan
agenda, nothing to do, nothing to be, just unstructured time to see,
smell, feel the wind, to watch the sun crash over the bay. I love to
be outdoors when I am stoned, walking down alleys, the quiet streets
in my neighborhood, wild desert trails, and the streets of far-flung
cities and towns. The joy and sense of connection with the environment
is the main reason I smoke pot.
Marijuana heightens the senses - hearing, seeing, taste, touch, and
smell - and I have experienced all my senses sharpened after smoking
grass. Not especially an auditory person, pot heightens this sense and
I hear sounds and nuances I barely notice when straight: the click
clicking of ropes against the mast poles of sail boats, a lone crow
breaking the silence of the night. When listening to music, I notice
the sounds of the bass, feel the subtle changes in the rhythm, hear
themes under the main melody, all ignored when listening to music in a
non-stoned state. My dominant sense is visual, so I become keenly
aware of color, shape, and texture. What I see is subtly altered,
bolded, and riveting: the shades of green on the leaves fluttering on
the tree outside my office window, blood red flowers clinging to a
wood fence, a line of blue boats against a misty horizon. Taking
pictures when high is a favorite activity, and every once in a while,
I take a good one.
If I let it, marijuana can slow me to stillness. Thoughts stop, and
closing my eyes, I become a receptor for the wind, the sounds of
crickets, the smell of lilacs, and to the silence inside."