“Imagine breathing in an orange grove planted in the middle of a forest.”

Another reason I welcomed being a part of this project was the mindfulness aspect of it. There’s still a lot of stigma out there about “stoners.” As a 45-year old woman who endeavors to be smart about what I put into my body because I don’t recover as fast as I did 20 years ago, I have no interest in getting blitzed out of my mind on crap weed. These days, I like to intake my cannabis with the same mature attention I give wine. While not a connoisseur or sommelier, I like to play one when I drink wine. Smelling it. Checking out the color. Swishing around all of the subtle flavors in my mouth. Being on the PCC encourages me to approach cannabis in much the same way.

For my very first rating session, I picked a live resin budder, what I would later learn is Hybrid Indigo Larry Live Resin Budder by Beezle. At a decent 77.3% THC potency and touted as good for unwinding, encouraging joy, and providing a sense of relief, it seemed like a good choice since I was feeling pretty tired and it was only 1:00 in the afternoon.

First I inhaled the budder’s aroma of dry wood and citrus. It was definitively earthy and appealing. Imagine breathing in an orange grove planted in the middle of a forest. This elixir for my nose was both enlivening and relaxing. I took a dab and rolled around the citrus and herbal flavor in my mouth. I’m very sensitive to chemical tastes, which I can detect in some concentrates, but good ol’ Larry was pure yum—flavorful, complex, and balanced with a clean aftertaste.

As the effects initially descended upon me, I felt upbeat and joyful. It first motivated me to do some tidying up around the house. But as I got deeper in, it inspired my mind to focus and create.

So I picked up my guitar.

To be clear, I’m no virtuoso. I just started learning the guitar a few months ago. I’m still building calluses on my fingers and figuring out how and where to place them. Transitions are a real struggle when you’re first learning. How do we have so little dexterity in our fingers even though we use them every single day? I know exactly four chords and two songs to play them with in differing orders. As a newbie, my fingers and wrists are typically aching and stiffening after only 15-20 minutes of practice. Truth be told, I wouldn’t have the patience to learn the guitar at all if it wasn’t paired with a strong desire to sing.

“I was relaxed enough to have fun with something that’s actually very challenging.”

My budder buddy Larry encouraged me to learn a new song. With my mind surprisingly clear and focused and my body buzzing yet relaxed, I felt an illogical confidence that I could learn new chords and a new song as effortlessly as Eddie Van Halen. (Did I just give away my middle age?!)

And you know what? I did!

OK, not quite. I fumbled with the finger placements of the new chords, but I didn’t give a flying eff. Indigo Larry helped me channel that rockstar play-or-die attitude. I felt like I’d been infused with an excited dedication to this new craft. I was unwound enough to not care about all the mistakes I was making. I was relaxed enough to have fun with something that’s actually very challenging for my small hands and short fingers. I was focused enough to not fall into the trap of giving up even when the guitar consistently strummed a wonky note. Two hours later, I was still playing those four new chords over and over and over, singing my ever-loving heart out in absolute joy.

Should you be in the market for something that’ll add uplifting energy to your day—whether that means kickstarting your morning, motivating you to get shit done around the house, or inspiring you to create that next masterpiece—I highly recommend Beezle’s Indigo Larry Live Resin Budder for the job.