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Have Your Beer And Eat It With Chocolate Cupcakes Spiked With Guinness

Who says you cannot have your beer and eat it? If you dub yourself a beer and chocolate cake lover, then the following Guinness facts might tickle your fancy. A buttload of Guinness gets consumed on St. Patrick’s Day. Guinness reports that people in a whopping 150 countries will sip the smooth stuff on St. Patrick’s Day. As many as 13,000,000 pints of beer will be consumed worldwide on the holiday alone. That’s a whopping 819% more Guinness than usual!

The Relationship Between Guinness and St. Patrick’s Day

The tradition of drinking Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day dates back all the way to 1759, according to the company. 262 years ago, Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000-year lease for the St. James’s Gate Brewery and started brewing ale. Soon after, a new English drink— a strong black beer called porter — hit a sweet spot among the citizens of Dublin. By 1799, Sir Arthur Guinness made the decision to stop brewing ales all together and focus solely on porter.

In celebration of Arthur Guinness and the gang, you can have your beer and eat it on St Patrick’s Day with these magnificent cupcakes drenched in damp blackness.

March 15, 2021
Cannabis Honey Sticks Are For The On-The-Go Stoned Citizen

A couple of weeks ago I was out on an afternoon hike with a friend of mine. Halfway to the summit, I am overcome by a dizzy spell realizing I have not stopped to eat anything that day. As luck would have it, my friend had these nifty straws filled with honey. Delicious cannabis honey straws! It gave me the boost I needed to reach the top, which was when the THC started working its magic. Cannabis honey sticks have become a trend with Stoned Citizens in recent years. We take a closer look at Nature’s Sweetener and make our own cannabis-infused honey with this DIY Cannabis Honey Sticks recipe.

HONEY

A gift from the bees! Honey is a deliciously rich dark-gold viscous liquid that certain bees produce using the nectar gathered from flowers. It has a ton of health and wellness benefits, is known to treat wounds, has attractive chemical properties for baking and has a distinctive flavour as a sweetener. Honey is an antioxidant; packed full of vitamins, amino acids, organic acids, proteins and minerals. It is much healthier than refined sugar and is known to lower blood pressure and improves cholesterol.

This superfood is no new discovery, humans have used honey as food and medicine for thousands of years. A cave painting dating back 8000 years was discovered in Spain, the artwork depicts what looks to be a person harvesting honey. Because most micro-organisms do not grow in honey, it has the potential to go thousands of years without being spoilt.

CANNABIS HONEY

There are some sources that suggest that cannabis-infused honey was used for its antibacterial properties as far back as the 4th century AD. Cannabis-infused honey is a medicine that is packed with all the healing properties of both honey and cannabis. Honey that has been infused with marijuana has been linked to weight loss and is an excellent elixir for fatigue, insomnia, coughing, memory issues, acid reflux, hangovers, acne, sinus issues, cuts and burns, dandruff, stress and anxiety.

CANNABIS HONEY STICKS

Commercial producers are pushing both CBD and THC variants of Cannabis Honey Sticks, for the Stoned Citizen on-the-go. The straw holds a portion of honey that has been infused with cannabis and they proved to be a healthy way to consume cannabis, without having to smoke it. Honey Straws fit in your backpack or pocket and is a great way to get a boost of energy and take your medicine, all on-the-go.

DIY HONEY STICKS

This could seem like a daunting task, but let me reassure you that it takes very little effort to make the Cannabis-infused honey. You may decide to skip this step altogether and store your infused honey in a jar, which is also perfect!

If you decide to take the plunge and try your hand at making Honey Sticks, you will need to gather some equipment. Clear straws, a syringe with a tip that fits into the straw, a candle and two pairs of pliers. You want to do this while the honey is slightly cooled but still runny and easy to work with. Hold the honey-filled syringe upright and fill the straw, leaving a 2cm space at the top. Use a set of plier to clamp down on this end while sealing the opposite side. Hold the open end over a lit candle until the plastic starts melting, before firmly sealing it with the second pair of pliers. Repeat the sealing process on the other end and voila! You have made your very own Cannabis Honey Sticks.

March 15, 2021
Study Shows How COVID-19 Fuelled The Homegrown Cannabis Boom

Many years ago most of the UK’s cannabis supply was imported from places such as Morocco and Lebanon. This is no longer the case, as many organised criminal gangs set up growing operations closer to home. The Independent Drug Monitoring Unit estimated that by 2012, 80% of the cannabis used in the UK was homegrown – up from 30% in the late 1990s. It is most likely well over 90% now.

In recent years, the marijuana industry has undergone another major shift. Small-scale growers are popping up all over the show, mainly supplying themselves and their buddies. This has become possible for several reasons, including improvements to growing technology, new strains more suited to indoor growing, and the wealth of information and expertise on the internet. The homegrown trend took itself to new heights during the COVID-19 lockdown and many stoned citizens no longer depend on drug dealers for a fix.

Keeping Up With Cannabis

To monitor the growth of home cultivation and how cannabis markets were evolving, a bunch of clever stoners formed the Global Cannabis Cultivation Research Consortium in 2009. In 2012, they surveyed growers in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the UK and the US to find out more about small-scale growing, and how and why these people got involved. Most turned out to be regular citizens – with normal jobs, normal family arrangements, and no more involvement in drug dealing or other crime than any other section of the public.

In 2020, the scientists launched their second international survey to see how cultivation was being affected by legalization and policies. This time, they focused on 18 countries, adding France, Georgia, Israel, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal and Uruguay to the original 11, while also running a survey for people in non-participating countries. A global pandemic and national lockdowns had not been part of their planning, but the nerds added questions to find out what effects COVID-19 have on the cannabis industry.

The Findings

With people being forced to spend more time at home, social interactions have been limited, including opportunities to take drugs with friends or to obtain them from the usual sources. Meanwhile, national and international drug supply networks have been disrupted.

The study’s preliminary findings suggest that COVID-19 has affected domestic cannabis cultivation around the world. With nearly 5,000 participants at the time of writing, 16% report only becoming involved in cannabis growing since the pandemic. There are 11% of respondents saying that having more time at home was why they were growing, while 8% cite increased cannabis prices during the pandemic as a motivating factor.

More than one-third of respondents reported that it was harder to meet up in person with people they grew with, or to obtain cannabis through personal social networks or their usual dealer. Yet fewer than one in ten reported that it was harder to get hold of cannabis seeds, growing equipment, or other supplies like fertilisers.

Besides the pandemic, most home growers across the world pointed to other motivations that were in line with our 2012 findings: wanting a product that is healthier and cheaper, while avoiding contact with criminals.

Three-quarters of respondents report that they grow cannabis because they get pleasure from doing so. Nearly half report that they are growing for their own medical use. And while 15% report growing to supply others with cannabis for medical use and 15% supply others for recreational use, our growers are not acting as drug dealers: only 4% reported selling cannabis for profit.

In conclusion, the researchers stressed that these are only preliminary findings. They want to double the number of respondents to at least 10,000 in the coming months, and will publish the final results early in 2022. They do however predict that the growth of home-grown cannabis will see a bigger spike. Once people get the habit of growing their own, there is little reason to go back to buying from dealers. We are willing to bet on it!

March 12, 2021
The Eight Stages of Being Stoned Explained!

I say, pass the Dutchie pon the left-hand side – lyrics that leave us with a longing for a time before a global pandemic forced us into isolation. To a time when we could enjoy the company of friends and par-toke in the splendours of Mary Jane. When we could pass the joint after ritually smoking the first two puffs. Who do we share the experience with? How do we communicate online and explain to one another what our experiences were like? Ever wonder what the stages of being stoned are? We look at the different levels of being high on cannabis, the so-called “Stoned Spectrum”.

Firstly, not every single person will react the same to a particular strain of cannabis. So, it becomes a bit tricky to settle on a universal experience to put into word and describe the stages of being stoned. Every person has a unique Endocannabinoid System. This system is activated by the cannabinoids in the marijuana we smoke or ingest, and each marijuana strain has a specific set of cannabinoids. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC for short, is the cannabinoid that attaches to the CB1 receptor in the brain and causes the psychedelic high in question.

Smoking vs Eating

A recent study has defined two distinct timelines for the effect that THC has when eating your greens vs smoking them. When we smoke cannabis the effects generally start within a few minutes, with the high lasting two to three hours. When we eat cannabis, on the other hand, the effects could take anywhere between 30 minutes and two hours. The overall experience could last a couple of hours, sometimes with effects lingering for up to 12 hours.

There are a few other variables that could, or not at all, affect your experience. Like smoking in the morning vs smoking at night, when last you had a meal, your state of mind and the physical environment around you.

We have compiled these levels, or stages, based on our own anecdotal evidence which we corroborated with the most generally accepted written documentation. You might skip a level or two, or experience them in a different order – remember your very own endocannabinoid system is as unique as your fingerprints!

The Full Experience

In order to fully experience your cannabis, we recommend taking the opportunity to smell your weed! The Olfactory receptors in your nasal passages are linked to your endocannabinoid system, this could contribute to and increase your overall experience. Ever heard of the Entourage Effect? Well, in short, it is when all the components in cannabis; i.e.: cannabinoids, terpenes and flavonoids, work together in harmony to deliver a holistic mind and body experience.

The Stages of Being Stoned

#1 Puff, Puff Pass

After the first few hits, the THC crosses the blood-brain barrier and attaches to the CB1 receptors. You start filling with effervescence and experience a noticeable shift in your cognitive perception. All the senses start heightening, music is more melodic, food tastes better, colours are brighter and the cannabis you are smoking smells even more amazing!

#2 Ascending the Summit

As more THC enters the brain and packs around those CB1 receptors, the feeling of euphoria starts washing over you. All of the cognitive perceptions are slowly intensifying and you become more aware of all the heightened senses. Your body becomes more limber as you ease into a state of total relaxation.

#3 Peaking Pot Head

When the TCH level in your body reaches maximum concentration, you revel in sheer euphoria and might even experience a feeling of swooning. Some report feelings of slightly levitating whereas others have related the feeling to a roasting marshmallow turning into a gooey sticky mess. Slap some biscuits on me and call me a s’more!

#4 Destressed Dope Head

Your body starts readjusting to the THC level and you become more aware of the other beings around you. You may start analysing your own actions and have feelings related to insecurity. Perhaps you will zone in on the people around you wondering who the undercover cop is or who can see your ruby red eyes? Do they know you are high? Why is that dude following you? The best way to avoid any anxious or tense feelings is to keep your mind active and busy, watch a movie, get into a game or pick up a paintbrush.

#5 Space Cadet

You have overcome any anxious or tense feelings if you had any at all, you feel mellow, relaxed and busy stimulating your brain with an enjoyable activity. The body feeling and enhanced cognitive perceptions become tangible, you get giggle fits, you ramble on in the conversation and possibly very comfortably locked into your position on the couch. This is a great time to let your mind wander freely, have deep meaningful conversations or brainstorm some creative ideas.

#6 Dank Descend

The THC level in your blood is tapering down, the effects you have been enjoying are gradually lightening, your eyes are bloodshot and you are hungry like a wolf! The desire to fill the pizza-shaped hole in your soul will feel like a quest you were handed by a wise wizard. The dank descend could last for up to an hour, if you are lucky!

#7 Chronic Cooldown

As the THC dissipates from the brain and most of your senses have returned to the stage when we were still Ascending the Summit. This is a great junction to start grinding up some more flowers, pack it in and roll it into a pretty little Hash Puppy. Get ready for the next round, Lettuce Head!

#8 Total Tranquillity

You are not feeling High anymore however your cognitive perception is still slightly altered, your body is more responsive and your awareness is intact. The psychotropic effects of the THC are wearing down but all the other cannabinoids and terpenes are still hard at work in your body and mind. You are physically at ease and have a general feeling of congeniality. Evaluate your experience, make notes of what you like and what you would adjust for the next time.

Few things are better than a smoking session with your favourite people! Share this with your puffing partner and let us know what your Stages of Being Stoned are!

March 11, 2021
CBD Living Pet Adds Two More Flavours To Its Dog Soft Chews Line

CBD Living Pet is expanding its Soft Chews Line for dogs with two new products for your furry friends. The new Sweet Potato Calming Chews and Bacon-flavored Mobility Support Chews for dogs feature 10 mg of Nano CBD and is 100% THC-free, vegan, and free of dairy, corn, soy and gluten.

Calming Soft Chews for Dogs comes in two flavours: Peanut Butter and Sweet Potato. Both are formulated with DigeZyme to promote satiety, Pediococcus Acidilactici NRRL B-50517 to aid digestion and Inulin FOS to balance dogs’ intestinal ecosystems. The dog treats include Glucosamine HCL, Methylsulfonylmethane and Turmeric to help reduce joint and cartilage inflammation and increase dogs’ ranges of motion naturally, along with a mouthwatering bacon flavor.

Our customers say their dogs have been begging (pardon the pun) for new flavors of our freshly baked Soft Chews. By adding a new Sweet Potato flavor to our existing product line and creating a new soft chew geared especially toward aging and arthritic dogs, we hope to expand great-tasting relief to more good boys and girls.
CBD Living Pet COO Sean McDonald.

CBD Living Pet Soft Chews for Dogs are manufactured using CBD Living’s proprietary water soluble technology, which homogenizes oil into water and breaks down CBD into nanoparticles. Once water-soluble, nutrients are passed directly to the bloodstream through the small intestine for fast, sustained relief. In addition, all CBD Living products are manufactured using 100% organic hemp grown on state-licensed hemp farms in Oregon and Colorado and are triple-tested by third-party independent labs, with the results posted online. All CBD Living products contain absolutely zero THC, and are made in the USA.

CBD Living products are sold nationwide in over 5,000 stores. All products are also sold online, with free shipping to all US states on orders over $75.

Who is CBD Living Pet?

Founded in 2019, CBD Living Pet was created to allow dogs and cats to benefit from the same great quality – and relief – their owners are used to experiencing with CBD Living. With nearly 20 products, ranging from tinctures and gel caps to salves, shampoos and treats, it’s easy to give your pets all-natural relief from pain, inflammation & anxiety. Unlike giving human CBD products to cats and dogs, CBD Living Pet products are specially designed to solve problems uniquely suited to animals.

March 10, 2021
This Baguette Pizza Recipe Will Fill The Pizza-Shaped Hole In Your Belly When The Munchies Come Knocking

Baguette Pizza seems to be all the rave at the moment, or perhaps I missed its arrival on the mainstream food scene. Either way, I was delighted to stumble across this genius idea! Imagine having all the ingredients to make your favourite stoner snack right in your kitchen, every time you have a desire to wolf down a small pizzeria. You know? When you get the munchies! This recipe is more of a planned strategy to satisfy your begging belly!

Pizza is traditionally a savoury dish of flattened dough topped with tomatoes, cheese and a number of other ingredients before it gets baked in a wood-fired oven. It is one of the most popular dishes across the globe and comes in different shapes and sizes. Pizza has been a stoner staple for as long as the doughy delight has been delivered to the doors of stoners across the globe! The topping combination could be just about anything your hazy head could conjure up with what you have available when hunger strikes.

Fit For A Queen

The first dish that was known as “pizza” was prepared by bakers in Naples in the 1600s. A slice of pizza was sold as street food to poor Neapolitans and was often eaten on the go. During a visit to the newly unified Italy in 1889, Queen Margherita was presented with a pizza of red tomato sauce, white mozzarella and green basil; mimicking the Italian flag. The Queen adored the pizza and it was later named after her.

Even though foods similar to pizza have been made since the Neolithic Age (roughly 12 000 years ago), modern pizza was brought to the United States with Italian immigrants in the late nineteenth century. The first pizzeria in the United States was opened by Gennaro Lombardi in 1905 in Manhattan. Even though Lombardi’s has moved from its original location, the pizzeria is still operational and using the original oven since they opened.

Frozen pizza has come a long way since its humble beginnings, but nothing could beat a freshly baked Baguette Pizza to satisfy your midnight munchies! Smothered in rich tomato sauce, stacked with as much (or as little) of your favourite toppings and dripping with melted cheese.

Let’s get down to business! The elements we need to have at the ready are baguettes for the base, a jar of prepared tomato sauce and your favourite toppings!

BREAD

Freshly baked store-bought French loaves are first prize but stale or frozen bread works when it comes to the munchies. You could have a baguette waiting for you in the freezer and they defrost fairly quickly while you get everything else together. You could choose to slice the bread in rounds to make smaller party-size pizzettes or down the middle to make a bigger pizza. The bread crust will slightly crisp-up and the soft interior will absorb the sauce and the deliciousness from the toppings. Be careful of using too much sauce as it will turn your baguette pizza into a soggy mess!

SAUCE

I make a big batch of tomato sauce to be stored in the refrigerator and be ready when the tummy starts growling. If you are a disaster in the kitchen you can use a good quality store-bought sauce. You want to make sure the sauce has the consistency of tomato paste. I start off with browning chopped carrots, onions, garlic and thyme before deglazing the pot with some red wine vinegar and loading it with tomatoes! The sauce should cook for at least an hour, blended and strained into a jar labelled Munchy Sauce.

TOPPINGS

What you choose to top your pizza with will depend on what you have available when assembling your pizza. Perhaps you have ingredients specifically destined for the inevitable midnight munching. Sliced ham, pineapple and mozzarella all in a row by the jar of Munchy Sauce. Or, maybe you love the challenge of coming up with an unconventional topping combination when you are baked! Crispy bacon, caramelized onions, feta cheese, corn salsa and… Well, the list can go on and you can get creative as you allow yourself to be, grab some leftovers and be imaginative.

GETTING BAKED

Adjust the oven rack to the centre position and heat the oven to 220 C. Baguette Pizza bakes fairly quickly, normally within 15 to 20 minutes, however, it will depend on the toppings you have selected. Some ingredients may need extra cooking time. Check on your French loaf pizza frequently and take it out when the cheese is bubbly and the bread crisp. It is worth mentioning that no two ovens are the same, so it is best to keep a hawk’s eye on your pizza baby when trying this for the first time.

March 5, 2021
Californian Citizens Can Now Get Stoned From Seth Rogen’s Weed

Seth Rogen announced that his weed company Houseplant is opening in the US state of California. The famous stoner, actor and filmmaker co-founded Houseplant, which launched in his native Canada, with his writing partner and collaborator Evan Goldberg in 2019.

The “Pineapple Express” star broke the news on twitter by posting a video in which he declares his love for weed.

Almost ten years I go, I envisioned having my own weed company. And today I can say that my company Houseplant's weed will be available in California next week! Also, Houseplant is making lovely Housegoods like ashtrays, lighters, and YES, even ceramics. https://t.co/TNjpWFhbWB pic.twitter.com/00xR8QKNH3
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) March 1, 2021

In the clip the funny man says: “This is honestly my life’s work and I’ve honestly never been so excited about anything,”

If Hollywood had to dish out an award for “the biggest celebrity stoner” in the entertainment industry, Seth Rogen will take the honours, no doubt. In an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live in 2020, he admitted to smoking a “truly ungodly amount of weed” while in quarantine amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The wise man most likely read that THC in cannabis could help with complications caused by the Coronavirus.

Houseplant offers high-end strains of weed as well as home goods for potheads, including table lighters, ashtrays, and ceramics.

The news sparked such great interest among fans and weed-lovers that the Houseplant website crashed shortly after the actor’s announcement. The next day Rogen tweeted that the website was back up, along with a video of Houseplant’s “Pancake Ice,” which is a strain containing 33% sativa according to the actor.

March 4, 2021
All You Need To Know About Lamb’s Bread

One would imagine recipes of lamb dishes popping up when surfing the web for “lamb for stoners” but surprisingly that is not the case. Lamb’s Bread, sometimes (mistakenly) called Lamb’s Breath, is a strain of medical marijuana, popular among citizens looking to relieve symptoms associated with chronic stress and depression.

Origin of Lamb Bread

This plant has origins in Jamaica and it is believed to have been one of the favourite strains of Bob Marley.

Look and Smell

Growers say Lamb’s Bread has bright green buds that are sticky and dense. As for the nose, while some connoisseurs might disregard the smell of Lamb’s Bread because of the lack of sweet, citrus or earthy notes, it still carries scents that non-stoners would like. Spicy, cheesy and skunky scents with hints of wood dominate; think Bubba Kush, but with less chocolate and coffee and more spice.

Effects and Benefits

Citizens familiar with medical marijuana know Lamb’s Bread as a sativa strain known to provide energetic and uplifting effects. It’s a great daytime smoke for potheads at work and medical patients alike. The sativa is great for exhaustion, stress, anxiety and headaches, as well as for amplifying creativity and decreasing social inhibitions.

February 25, 2021
Effortless Breakfast Sarnie With Microgreens

If you just so happen to have a craving for a simple and effortless breakfast that’s super comforting and appetizing then we’ve got you covered. Soul-satisfying food doesn’t have to be a fancy Crayfish Benedict that takes time and effort. If you need to state your hunger and deal with the munchies, then this effortless recipe is a go-to meal for lazy dayz.

Make it fancy

Zhoosh up this breakfast sanrie by tossing some microgreens over the top for some extra crunch. Not only do they add an extra pop of color to the plate, but microgreens also taste great. They are also easy to grow and let’s face it; few things beat feeding yourself with something you grew yourself.

February 23, 2021
Medical Marijuana May Help Lower The Blood Pressure of Senior Citizens With Hypertension

Senior citizens with hypertension may want to take a hit from the bong every so often. A recent study conducted by researchers in Israel shows that medical marijuana may reduce blood pressure in older adults. The study is the first of its kind to focus on the effect of cannabis on blood pressure, heart rate and metabolic parameters in adults 60 and older with hypertension.

The research comes from the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the Soroka University Medical Center and it was published in the European Journal of Internal Medicine.

Marijuana consumption has hit an old time high among senior citizens who are consuming it for various potential health benefits including chronic pain. The researchers say that pain relief may help explain why cannabis use is associated with lowered blood pressure.

The study focused on adults ages 60 and older who were diagnosed with hypertension. Using data from ECG, 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, and more, the study found that marijuana use was associated with a ‘significant’ drop in both diastolic and systolic blood pressure over a 24-hour period, with the lowest point occurring three hours after use.

The golden oldies who took part in the study consumed marijuana in the form of smoking and oil extracts, the study notes. The study showed that while blood pressure decreased during both the day and night, the nighttime decrease was more significant.

BGU Faculty of Health Sciences’ Dr. Ran Abuhasira noted:

Older adults are the fastest-growing group of medical cannabis users, yet evidence on cardiovascular safety for this population is scarce. This study is part of our ongoing effort to provide clinical research on the actual physiological effects of cannabis over time.

February 23, 2021