Sacramento News & Review, 17 Jan 2013 – I read with great interest the letter in the January 3, issue ("Kids and pot," SN&R The 420) about smoking pot in public. I don’t smoke anything. We have a neighbor that smokes pot from time to time. When I arrive home from work at 11 p.m. and can smell pot out front, I know I am in trouble. The smell makes me sick. I have to close all the windows in my house and turn on the fan to remove the smell. This makes me a prisoner in my own home. Pot smoking in public (as the letter writer does) is rude and insensitive. If he wants to smoke in his house, apartment or wherever with the windows closed and stink up his space, I have no problem with that. If a business wants to allow pot smoking inside its space, go for it. Just make sure there is a sign out front indicating that pot smoking occurs inside, so I can avoid going in. If we want to establish outdoor spaces for pot smoking, go for it. Just make sure there is a sign some distance away to let people like me avoid the area. After all, if cigarette smoking can only occur in certain places, why not pot smoking?

Sacramento News & Review, 10 Jan 2013 – Where can I find the Three Kings tree? Also, I want to get my card in the new year, and I was wondering if you could recommend a club. – -Mellie Nell The Three Kings "tree"? You make it sound like a quest. "One tree to rule them all."

Sacramento News & Review, 03 Jan 2013 – Forget 2014 or 2016: What’s Going to Happen With Cannabis Next Year in California? While "wait and see" seems to be the prevailing attitude when it comes to sweeping cannabis-law reform in California, leaders in the state’s marijuana industry say 2013 will be a year of action.

Sacramento News & Review, 03 Jan 2013 – I am a cannabis user. My kids are old enough now to ask me about marijuana. What is the best way to talk to them about cannabis? – -High Dad For far too long in mainstream American culture, pot smokers have had to hide their cannabis use from just about everyone. Your parents, your children, your pastor and your square friends all had to be prevented from knowing that you like to smoke a little weed. Someone snitching to your boss or the cops, or your kids inadvertently spilling the beans at school or church are all very valid concerns. Fortunately, the tide is changing.

Sacramento News & Review, 27 Dec 2012 – Hey, it’s the end of the year. You wanna do a recap of the highs and lows? A top 10 list? – -Softball Sammie You got it, Sammie. But 10 seems like a lot of work. How about a few top three lists? Let’s start with the lows:

Sacramento News & Review, 20 Dec 2012 – A "friend" of mine has a problem: She is going through a rough divorce, and her ex is threatening to take the kids because of her medical cannabis use. Can he do that? – -Concerned "Friend" The answer used to be yes, but the times, they are a-changin’. Last year, the sheriff’s department took away the children of Daisy Bram, a young mother of two living in Butte County, after they raided her small cannabis-growing operation. They charged her with child endangerment. It took six months, but the charges were eventually dropped and her children were returned to her care.

Sacramento News & Review, 13 Dec 2012 – Please, please, please tell me that California is gonna be the next state to legalize weed. Can it happen? – -California Cannabis Crusader No one really knows. It’s like California is losing its status as a groundbreaking state. Legalize weed? Hell, we can’t even legalize gay marriage.

Sacramento News & Review, 06 Dec 2012 – What’s a good holiday present for a stoner? You know, like pipes and stuff? – -St. Chron Nicholas Like pipes and stuff? For pipes, I like hella cool hand-blown glass made by artisans. Find them at a local head shop (duh). You can always get any manner of mass-produced smoking devices there (don’t say "bong" in a head shop; they’ll have to kick you out), but please take a moment to look at the hand-made pieces. In the past 10 years, especially on the West Coast, artists have embraced the softening of marijuana laws and are making all kinds of color-changing dragons and eyeballs and swirly things that don’t even look like pipes yet are pipes. Get your friend one of those-which look great on coffee tables and are terrific conversation starters-and maybe you will inspire someone to start their own art-glass collection.

Sacramento News & Review, 29 Nov 2012 – The city of Sacramento says I can’t grow medicinal marijuana outdoors anymore? What gives? – -Outdoor Moore Yeah. Cities and counties banning outdoor growing is all the rage these days. Fresno, Placerville, Roseville and now Sacramento are just a few. Lawmakers claim they need to regulate outdoor grows in order to cut down on complaints from neighbors and reduce the threat of violent crime caused by garden robbers. Medical-cannabis patients argue that cities are contravening state law (which allows growing) and imposing an undue burden on financially disadvantaged patients by forcing them to buy expensive indoor-growing equipment.

Sacramento News & Review, 22 Nov 2012 – I love your column-however, I need to make a small criticism of one "factoid." You said that buds in glass jars will retain their potency for a few months, but I’ve been curing with mason jars for more than a decade and have been able to keep the jars in my basement cellar for up to two years with no discernible change in potency. My question: With the coming ban on home cultivation in Sacramento, I’m thinking about doing a "safe-deposit box" concept, where friends could rent outdoor space, allowing them to cultivate in an area in rural Placerville. Would that work?