As an old arthritic hippie, I use weed as my main medication. The day it became recreationally legal in California was a tough day for me.
I live in a small desert town and all the little towns around here passed laws making it illegal in their communities. The laws in these towns took effect on the day of state legalization, so there were pot raids all over the place and all the marijuana dispensaries were raided and closed down like speakeasies during the 1920s; I almost expected Elliot Ness to appear!
So I had to seek out an underground source for the first time in many years. It was either that or drive 20-30 miles or more to obtain it.
I wound up in a back alley in a rough neighborhood making my way into a very dilapidated weird dirty old cement block building. It was hard to even get into the place until I saw that someone had scrawled the word DOOR where the entrance was.
The good news: The prices on the underground market are lower than at the legal places 20 miles away. And the quality was good; I got a refill for my vape pen. But I keep picturing today's version of Elliot Ness arresting me. "Up against the wall, Grandma!"