Many in our community choose to partake in the use of both recreational and medicinal marijuana. These days cannabis consumption is arguably more popular than ever. From sparking up a joint after a long and stressful at the office to helping cancer patiences regain their appetites after painful procedures.

When retail sales of recreational marijuana began in California during Jan, 2018, the culture surrounding the use of cannabis began to take on an almost mainstream feel. No longer would consumers have to hike into the woods or trek the backroads and alleys less traveled with friends in order to sneak a puff or two of some very questionable quality weed.

A move that was viewed to many as both groundbreaking and long overdue was also touted by many California lawmakers as an end all solution to the black market surrounding cannabis in the state.

Unbeknownst to many the taxation on recreational cannabis would skyrocket over the following years leading customers who would so often frequent these establishments back into the underground markets of the pre legalized era.

Many, including fellow Butte College student Octavio Leal have cited sticker shock as just one of the many reasons he has gone back to purchasing his cannabis products from street level dealers. In an effort to further understand Octavios position we asked him if he’d agree to an interview in which he was all to eager to participate in.

So are you more likely to buy cannabis off the street or from a local dispensary and what would be the reasoning behind your decision?

“I almost always buy off the street. Obviously there are times when I am out of town and don’t really have any other option outside of stopping into a dispensary, but any time I am in town I always call up a dealer. Honestly I’ve been doing that for so long that it has just become very simple for me. After you purchase from the same people time after time you began to become reputable with them and this leads to getting even better deals.

With that being said though I think it’s commonly known that the stuff you get from the dispensary tends to be cleaner and safer to smoke, but I just get a lot more product for my money whenever I buy it off the street.”

Have you ever experienced sticker shock when shopping at these dispensaries?

“Yeah, totally. There have been times when I’ve stopped into the club to pick up a nice eighth thinking I will be paying the price they have posted up but when I get it up to the counter it ends up jumping up from $40 to $60 due to all the taxes on it.”

Would you frequent these establishments more if taxes weren’t so high?

“Oh, for sure. I love the environment whenever I am visiting one, if I have a good amount of spare money I will make it a point to go and grab some stuff from one, even if it tends to be more expensive. It just tends to be a luxury that I can’t afford.”