Category: life

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Illinois Sold More Than $3 Million Worth of Marijuana on the First Day of Legalization

As a former Chicagoan, all I can say is…why the hell didn’t this happen when I lived in Illinois? I know, I know, things are moving along and more and more places are legalizing marijuana, but it sure would’ve been nice…

And now I live in North Carolina, and I really don’t think legalization is coming anywhere near this state anytime soon…

The Cannabis Joint

But back to the story. Though it was passed into law in 2019, it became officially legal to purchase marijuana for recreational use in Illinois on January 1, 2020.

And apparently, people were pretty fired up about it (who could have expected?).

On January 1st, the first day of legal sales, the state sold nearly $3.2 million of weed. The exact numbers were 77,128 transactions totaling $3,176,256.71. Not bad for a one-day haul, huh?

If you’re curious, the state hasn’t yet released figures for how much tax revenue that will work out to.

Toi Hutchinson, senior advisor to the governor for cannabis control, said:

“As we start a new decade, Illinois has achieved a monumental milestone, launching the legalization of cannabis in a way that includes communities left behind for far too long, creates good jobs and expunges thousands of records for those who have lost out on opportunities and ends prohibition.”

Illinois became the eleventh U.S. state to legalize weed, joining Alaska, California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia.

Weed

You have to be 21 years old and have a government-issued ID to buy weed in Illinois. Non-residents of the state can also buy marijuana but in smaller quantities. And keep in mind that all purchases must be made in cash, because cash is king baby!

And also because weed is still illegal at the federal level, and banks are wary about working with an industry that is both illegal and legal at the same time.

Time for a road trip?

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A New Law in Wisconsin Punishes Parents in Bullying Cases

From cities to workplaces to schools and other educational institutions, leaders are looking for better ways to punish bullies. There are initiatives from the White House all the way down to small communities, but on a big scale, nothing really seems to be moving the needle.

So Shawano, Wisconsin, is trying something new – they’re going to make the parents of minor bullies culpable by law, and see if that makes a difference.

 

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The law applies to online and in-person bullying, and it includes a grace period after the first infraction is met with a warning. The idea is that once parents are aware of the situation, they should have an opportunity (a 90-day period) to deal with the situation themselves before further action is taken.

If the child does not improve after the 90 days and gets caught bullying again, the parents will be fined $366.

Another infraction results in a second fine of $681.

 

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Not chump change, especially for families who aren’t well-off to begin with.

Police are hoping that the new law can help them combat both bullying and cyberbullying in the area, says Police Chief Mark Kohl.

“We feel without getting the parent involved, just giving a ticket of fining someone out of this isn’t the answer. This isn’t generated toward the kids being kids, some playground banter. This is the person that is meticulously using social media or saying things that are vulgar in an attempt to hurt, discredit, and really demean a person.”

I’m waiting for follow-up statistics on how this ends up working before making any final judgements on the idea itself, but I applaud their out of the box thinking – and their attempt to get the parents involved in combatting an issue that typically starts at home.

What do you think?

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A 62-Year-Old Man Is Currently 38 Years Into a Life Sentence He Received After Stealing $9

A man’s story of spending 38 years in prison is the perfect illustration of just how unfair the U.S. criminal justice system can be sometimes.

Willie Simmons of Enterprise, Alabama, was sentenced to life without parole in 1982 — for stealing $9. He had three prior convictions at the time, so he was prosecuted under Alabama’s Habitual Offender Act, passed in 1977 to crack down on repeat criminals. The prison population has skyrocketed by 840 percent since that law was passed, from 3,455 to over 30,000 prisoners.

Willie was only 25 at the time of his life-changing arrest. Why did he take the money? He was high on drugs and “trying to get me a quick fix.” His trial lasted all of 25 minutes, with no witnesses called and no plea deal offered.

He’s now at Holman, one of the most notoriously violent prisons in the country. Incredibly, he got sober 18 years ago, despite the prison being absolutely filled with drugs and drug use.

Investigative journalist Beth Shelburne shared Willie’s story on Twitter recently.

“Mr. Simmons was 25 when the state said he should die in prison,” Beth wrote. “Today he’s 62. When I asked his age he paused &  laughed. ‘Been so long since somebody asked me that,’ he said. He hasn’t had a visitor since 2005 after his sister died. ‘Haven’t heard from nobody since then.’”

Beth added that Willie is studying for his GED. He “tries to stay away from the wild bunch,” he says. He hasn’t gotten a disciplinary citation in 10 years.

“My hope is to get out of here, settle down with a woman and do God’s will,” he told Beth. “I’d like to tell people about how bad drugs are.”

But after filing appeal after appeal, Willie still has no end in sight. With no lawyer, every one of his appeals has been denied. And in 2014, Beth says, lawmakers removed the last avenue of appeal for “habitual offenders” like Willie. Still, he says: “I ain’t giving up.”

Beth shared the story to demonstrate why Alabama’s habitual offender law “needs to go.”

What do you think? Does it need to go?

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Mansplaining Convention Is Selling $2,000 Tickets to Help ‘Make Women Great Again’

As if things weren’t ridiculous enough in the world, there is now a Mansplaining Convention set to take place in May 2020. Tickets are only being sold to women, who will get to enjoy watching a panel full of men explaining things to them. Sounds fun, right?!

The event is officially called the 22 Convention, and it’s “destined to be the mansplaining event of the century,” according to organizers. The organizers. Do they not know mansplaining is bad?

It will be a three-day-long event in Orlando, Florida. The goal? To “make women great again.”

Oh, and tickets to this convention cost $1,999. Cue eternal screaming.

The 22 Convention comes from the same “Orlando-based bros” who host the 21 Convention to actualize the “ideal man,” according to Orlando Weekly.

“Women today are being taught to act more like men,” the 22 Convention website says. “Where has that led us? Skyrocketing rates of divorce, depression, dysfunction, and America at the #1 spot in the world for single motherhood.”

But no more, thanks to these mansplaining heroes!

“No longer will you have to give in to toxic bullying feminist dogma and go against your biological nature,” the website says.

At the convention, women will learn about all those horrible topics that have poisoned their brains, such as: feminism, infertility, body positivity, overconfidence, and more.

The website also explains that feminism is “hiding under a mask of fake progress.”

“At The 22 Convention, you will learn the truth that unhealthy militant feminists have been hiding from you your entire lives,” the website says.

In place of feminism, the mansplainers will teach women how to regain their “femininity” and learn to be the “ideal wife.”

There’s also a note on the homepage that says, “Regular ticketing is only available for natural born women.”

This sounds like absolute torture.

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For the First Time, a Woman Has Earned a Four-Year College Football Scholarship

Progress comes in fits and starts. We take two steps forward, one back, some more back, a few forward, eventually pushing new boundaries and into new territories.

One point to progress: a woman has finally managed to win a full, four-year scholarship to college based on her football skills.

American football, to be clear. The kind where you have to use your hands and people running full-force into you is part of the game.

Meet Antoinette “Toni” Harris, a free safety on a full scholarship to Central Methodist University.

She says that she always adored football as a kid, and even though she enjoyed both cheerleader and track, she kept coming back to her first love.

Toni says she watched her cousins play before deciding to take the leap herself, and had a big job winning over her teammates – and others – to her cause.

“But once they [were won over], they were loving, they were supportive – and eventually everyone else got on board.”

And she needed that love and support because at 18, Harris stared down a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Her battle with the disease ended with a win, but one that came with a cost – half her body weight and a struggle to get back into playing condition.

She persevered though, and finished out high school as homecoming queen and a force on the field. She learned to accept (and use to her advantage) her smaller size. Harris then enrolled at Golden West College and played there as a free safety for two years.

“At the end of the day, I told myself, ‘I cannot allow myself to live in fear. You don’t really live if you live in fear.’”

After two years at Golden West, she ended up with dozens of scholarship offers to continue playing football in college. She accepted a full ride from Central Methodist University, a four-year institution, and made history in doing so.

Now, at 22, Harris is happy, healthy, and dreams of playing in the NFL, though she’s got a backup plan, too: she’d also like to be a “homicide detective with a background in forensics.”

I’d say she can and will do just about anything she puts her mind to – how could anyone argue otherwise?

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15 Downsides of Smoking Marijuana That People Don’t Talk About Enough

As legalization sweeps the country, weed is becoming more acceptable. Smoking weed after work is basically the new version of having a glass of wine. But surely there are some potential downsides to weed, and one AskReddit thread had people chatting all about it. Here are 15 downsides of weed that people don’t talk about, courtesy of Redditors.

1. Lack of appetite.

“Not having an appetite if you’re not high. You have to smoke heavily though to get to that point.”

2. All thought, no action.

“Been smoking everyday for the past decade and am recently realizing that being too introspective can be a negative thing at times – I’ve been thinking too much and acting too little.”

3. Cognitive issues.

“Both my roommates are heavy smokers, and they just… think so slowly. It takes them forever to understand anything. They also forget a lot of stuff, like they’ll step away from the dishes for a moment and then never finish them without prompting.”

4. A one-track mind.

“It can become your only personality trait.”

“Some of my peers’ only goal is when they are going to get their next high and like they are so stuck in the culture that they just become sort of boring and their personality lacks dimension.”

“I lost a significant chunk of my best friends in college because by senior year all they were focused on was weed.”

5. Loss of motivation.

“It is fine in moderation, but multiple times per day seems to suck the ambition from most people I’ve seen, including myself long ago.”

“I used to smoke every day multiple times a day and I can confirm: it made me useless and killed my motivation. It also contributed to me losing my job.”

“It makes you okay with being just okay.”

6. Anxiety or panic.

“Things that aren’t currently stressing you out may start to induce anxiety in you. While this isn’t always the case, weed has the potential to worsen your mental state if you aren’t careful. This impact became more pronounced when I smoked weed solo, having other people around allowed me to be more present in the moment, whereas I was in my head when I was alone.”

7. Poor conversational skills.

“I’ve noticed after the initial uptick in chatter- people tend to get really quiet, and zoned out in their own thoughts.

When I used to smoke it, I found it had a dulling effect on my personality and conversational skills after the fact, too.”

“Yeah I’d never tell any of my sweet lovely friends this in real life in case it hurt their feelings, but a couple of them are a lot less fun after they smoke weed.”

8. No more dreams at night.

“One thing that I never see brought up is the effect of marijuana on dreaming. Marijuana use can prevent the user from dreaming during regular sleep. When the user stops using Marijuana for a while, they can experience night after night of extremely vivid dreams. I can only speak for my own experience, but I have heard this echoed by a co-worker’s dad who started smoking again because he couldn’t handle “having acid-trip dreams every night”.

I suspect that marijuana has some potent effect on REM sleep that will remain under-documented until it is de-scheduled and more thorough research can be done.”

9. Vomiting.

“Cannabinoid hyperemesis and cyclic vomiting syndrome.”

“Yeah my ex had cyclic vomiting syndrome so bad, but he smoked weed to help him fight the nausea turns out it was making him worse off. Not a lot of people know about this one, where I’m from at least.”

“I started smoking regularly at night to assuage anxiety and kick start my appetite and eventually ended up developing this super fun condition. It’s absolutely awful. I thought I was pregnant and or dying.”

10. Dependency.

“Its not that its super addicting its just nothing is as fun as being high so you want to be high all the time.”

“As a pretty consistent weed smoker, I don’t like when people say that weed isn’t addicting. They’re right in saying that it’s not addictive chemically like nicotine or something, you can still get addicted to not being sober.”

“I’ve been a daily user for the last 15 (or more) years and my mind automatically starts to feel like I’m not relaxing if I haven’t smoked.”

11. A higher tolerance.

“The one most annoying thing with being a smoker is your tolerance level goes way up so even though you are smoking you arent getting that high you used to get, just a mind numbing insomnia almost.”

12. Triggering psychosis.

“It can trigger psychosis if you’re susceptible to it already.”

“I had a friend go through a mental break after smoking a lot. Had to be admitted and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder (which ran in their family).”

“NPR did a report about a study done in the UK, saying that heavy pot smokers are 3x more likely to have a psychotic episode than people who never smoked at all.”

13. Brain development.

“There is “moderate evidence” that acute marijuana use can impair learning, memory, and attention, leading to a reasonable argument that it shouldn’t be consumed by those under about 25 since the brain is still developing during that time.”

14. Money.

“If you use it regularly it can become super expensive.”

15. Disassociation.

“Cannabis induced disassociation. Can completely ruin your life.”

“I’ve had it (I think it materialized from my generalized anxiety disorder) but it was the scariest fucking thing when it first happened. You feel like you’re in a fog, and disconnected from everything. Took about 8 months for me to shake it.”

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You Should Think About Giving Your Loved Ones a Tasty Pickle Bouquet

Do you have a special occasion coming up? Instead of a traditional bouquet, why not gift your loved ones a bouquet made entirely of pickles?

Pickle bouquets are similar to other edible bouquets, such as fruit arrangements. But in this case, they consist of pickled vegetables, including peppers, tomatoes, whole pickles, and sliced pickles. Plus, bulbs of garlic and fresh dill add some extra flair.

All the different items make for a surprisingly pretty array of colors, much like a traditional bouquet. That said, they’re very different from the bouquets you’re used to.

The pickle bouquet was originally invented by Grillo’s Pickles for Valentine’s Day. The pickles in their bouquets range from sweet to sour to spicy.

“Not only is a pickle bouquet more beautiful than a dozen red roses, and healthier than a standard box of chocolate, it’s also far more creative,” Travis Grillo, the company’s founder and CEO, told Today.

“We know there are a lot of pickle lovers out there that would love nothing more than to get a Valentine’s Day gift loaded with their favorite snack.”

Grillo’s isn’t actually selling pre-made pickle bouquets — but you can make your own using the instructions on their website.

First, pick a selection of your (or your loved one’s) favorite pickles. Try to get a few different shapes, like spears, whole pickles, and slices. Also, look for different flavors, like dill and bread-and-butter. Don’t forget to pick up some other veggies and herbs for decoration.

Then pierce the pickles with bamboo kebab skewers and toothpicks to make a “stem.”

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? CONTEST ? ?BE OUR VALENTINE!!♥ Show us how much you love @grillospickles and get a chance to win a HUGE romantic getaway (or regular getaway) valued up to $750.00. Be as creative as you possibly can! Contest will start Saturday 2/9 and end on Valentine's Day 2/14. Winner will be announced on 2/15! Tag your friends. 1. Must be following @grillospickles 2. Show us why you should be our Valentine.(bouquets welcome) 3. Must tag @grillospickles in your post. . #allnatural #vegan #fatfree #kosher #glutenfree #raw #glutenfreevegan #eater #eatfamous #yougottaeatthis #foodbeast #buzzfeast #treatyoself #lovefood #huffposttaste #devourpower #food #foodporn #spoonfeed #feastagram #foodandwine #feedyoursoull #zagat #hypefeasts #eeeeeats #pickles #foodprnshare #forkyeah

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From there, you can either arrange the stems in a vase or tissue paper. They’re heavier than flowers, so you’ll have to play around a bit to get everything to stay up properly. If using a vase, Grillo’s recommend using floral foam to stick the skewers into.

And voilà! Your perfect pickle present.

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These Jobs Probably Won’t Exist in 20 Years

The world is changing very rapidly. There are countless jobs out there that weren’t even on people’s radars 20 years ago, but what jobs today might be obsolete themselves 20 years in the future?

These 15 Redditors have some ideas!

15. What’s that job called again?

Hopefully, that job where that dude stands in the men’s room of a bar and squirts soap into your hands, and hands you a paper towel, expecting a tip. I don’t hate the guy who does that job, but I loathe the fact that that job exists and that I’m forced to choose between wasting money, looking like a jerk and stiffing the guy, or taking the loophole and not washing my hands.

14. Except for Family Video…

Video store employees.

13. Never mind the papers themselves.

It’s me again, just lonely here, thinking bout the paperboy, wondering when he’s gonna bring me some good news

12. What about Facebook, though?

Any job related to Facebook.

11. Selling things over the phone at all?

My current job may not exist in 5 years, so I am not sure that counts.

I sell reference titles over the phone, specifically print reference titles. I suspect that with the current flow of technology this company may only be around for another 3 – 5 years.

10. The sticker-slapper.

Ever watch “How’s Its Made” and there’s this complicated ass machine literally piecing together and building some kind of complicated product. There are arms grabbing, and lasers cutting, belts moving things, and just miracle after miracle of modern automation. Then there’s this dude who moves the finished product into a box and slaps a label on. And the viewer wonders why the fuck did they need a person to do that lousy step? That job doesn’t stand a chance.

9. They even charge you to do it yourself, so.

That asshole you have to wait a week for from the cable company just to plug in a box for an exorbitant fee.

Edit: everyone… tell me how much this bums you out…

rubs nipples

8. Pretty sure this is already happening.

BlackBerry tech support.

7. I like your hope and optimism.

I hope jobs in general won’t exist in 10-20 years. Wall-E.

Edit: Oh my…what have I started.

6. No one to kill you (at least on the ride home).

Taxi Drivers. Hopefully in 20 years autonomous cars will mean we can go to the pub, get drunk and drive home safely. The computerised cars might have to be programmed to understand slurred words and mistyped commands though!

5. At least you’re aware.

Mine. I am a switchboard operator, a dying breed.

4. They’re already down to like, 1 real person an exit.

Toll Collectors.

3. Do you want to trust a remote control with your life, though?

Train Engineers. My father is one and complains about the newer remote controlled trains taking jobs every day.

2. As we know them, anyway.

Weed dealers will become obsolete quite soon.

EDIT: Weed dealers as we currently know them will be obsolete. They’ll be forever more convenient and less sketchy.

1. Fingers crossed for this one to miss the list.

I’m really sad to say this – but I hope that libraries are still operational in 10-20 years. Maybe bookstores too.

I think that while everybody says, ‘no way, books will be around forever, blablabla’ there is also the fact that libraries run on public funding and there has been legislation that continuously cuts hours and shuts down libraries.

Do you have anything to add? Agree? Disagree?

Tell us what you think in the comments!

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These People Swore up and Down That They Did Not Want a Pet

There are pet people and then there are people who claim to be human but still say they definitely don’t want a pet.

Okay, fine. I know there are responsible reasons to not want a pet, like not being financially able to care for them, or in a living situation that’s not conducive, or you travel or work a lot.

For most of us, though, those claims come to an end the moment “our” next pet worms their way into our lives.

Which is exactly what happened to these 18 people, who changed their tunes rather quickly.

17. I mean, he does look interested.

16. All animals can smell a sucker.

15. He’s clearly appalled at how they’re being deprived in his absence.

14. The cat wants what it wants.

13. She knows a nice chair when she sees one.

12. This is so innocent and adorable.

11. Never say never…

10. You gotta spoil the grandkids – it’s a rule!

9. No one getting tossed out, I see.

8. He was asleep!

7. If you’re gonna do it, do it right.

6. Not even with her children. Ha!

5. Education is important.

4. That seems right.

3. A beard snuggle omgggg.

2. Snuggle buddies!

1. That cat looks awfully smug!

Annnnnnnd I totally want a new pet for the new year. How about you?

Have any of your pets found you accidentally? How did you react?

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A Single Dad Asks His Daughter for Advice on What to Wear for a Date, and the Internet Swoons

There’s not many sweeter things than dads and their daughters who have excellent, close relationships. So when this young lady shared a text conversation in which her father was asking for advice on his first date wardrobe, well, the internet just collectively swooned.

He sent her several different options (I have similar exchanges with my mother all the time, but instead of dates, she stressing over wedding or church wear).

Image Credit: Twitter

The white?

Image Credit: Twitter

The blue?

Tucked in or not? So many choices!

Image Credit: Twitter

Sadly, even though he obviously looked darn good, Dad got stood up (by a horrible lady who is going to regret her choices sooner or later).

People on Twitter were invested, and angry on his behalf.

Some of them are even hoping to hook him up with their single mamas!

Stay tuned for more updates (please, let there be more updates!).

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