ROX-TV spends a glorious afternoon in the Upper Peninsula reviewing Hitchens, GMO, Sundae Driver, and a mystery nug.
Welcome back to our returning readers here at the ROX-TV website. Today is a rather unique article where I delve into a few marijuana strains including Hitchens, Sundae Driver, GMO, and a mystery nug in Northern Michigan. [Author’s Note: I often times enjoy changing the color on my pictures to fit the mood or vibe. If things look a little odd in the pictures, it’s for this reason] I’ve been around the country and seen a lot of coast lines in my day. From the hot board walk in Venice Beach to the cool Cali beach towns of Pismo and Avila. From Florida’s hot sand in West Palm Beach near Worth Avenue and Ocean Blvd, to the cold hard town of Boston besieged by rain and wind. After all this time and miles put in, regardless of where I’ve been, when I hit the coasts of Michigan I am home. Although it might not get as much publicity as the West or East coasts, Michigan is home to the “Third Coast”.
The Third Coast has over 3,288 miles of coastline (according to the World Book Encyclopedia v.13, p500 of the 2000 edition) which is only bested by Alaska, if you are going by state. Throughout my time as a life long resident of the Murder Mitten I have been able to enjoy many aspects of the Great Lakes over the years. Some of my earliest memories come from the beaches of Oscoda and the border water of Detroit at the Ambassador Bridge. Later on after high school, Port Huron became a safe port when a few friends moved there . I started going to Canada on the regular during the late nineties and early two thousands, and caught the sights and sounds of Toronto standing guard on the shores of Lake Ontario. After many summers on Bois Blanc Island, we eventually purchased some land and built a cabin there, just north of Cheboygan. Mackinaw Island is another gem, just west of Bois Blanc and loaded with serious history. Copper Harbor is dynamite and worth the trip to the coast of Lake Superior, if your ever in the mood for a road trip. I can’t forget about Traverse City and the dope region of Grand Traverse Bay and the Old Mission Point Peninsula. If you ever drift into that part of town, I recommend the Jolly Pumpkin at 13512 Peninsula Dr. on the point.
I guess you could say I’m partial to the Michigan Coast when it comes to beaches and water. I suppose anyone is going to champion their home state, but in this particular case I think the Murder Mitten could make a great case for its unique “beach life” for the title. Regardless of where the readers fall within that context, always support your local scene. Everyone has something to offer and I’m not putting anyone down. So anyway…I found myself in the Upper Peninsula, with a few bags of Marijuana, some good movies, unhealthy junk food, and a book interview scheduled with MC Lars and MC Snax about the “Forever in the Jects” release fast approaching (July 7th, 2021). It was going to be a very interesting and rewarding day to say the least and I was ready to meet the challenge head on. So without further to do….I give to you “a day in the U.P.”…..
6:05am In a small town outside of Marquette
The day started out way to early but I was sick of rolling around anyway. I had an interview scheduled with Project Born on the Hatchet Chat show, hosted by MC Lars and MC Snax, and the suspense was eating up my thoughts. We were going to be talking about the brand new book drop “Forever in the Jects” and I was excited for the opportunity to be in such good company.
My only plan of the day, at least at that point, was to be interviewed. After that I didn’t have much penciled in, so my mind drifted over to the Marijuana I had brought along, just in case there was an opportunity to relax some. I had purchased the medicine at the Genesee County Compassion Club a few weeks earlier (6340 N. Genesee Road, Flint MI 48506) from some really great vendors. If you’ve never been there and your looking for a great place to shop and enjoy yourself, I suggest you pay them a visit. I’ve been going there since 2016 and my purchases at other houses of business ceased to continue upon learning about the place.
I stopped by a few vendor spots in the club that I like to check out every time I roll in, because of the quality of the products and the friendships I’ve made while shopping over the years. I know we are drifting a bit, but some of this dialogue is being written during the strain smoking and reviewing hours, so it is what it is. Shout out to George, Will, Chase, and as always…Harry Areola (Cough Studios/Dabinoes Creator and Owner). I picked up several righteous bags of grass, including Hitchens 80/20 I, GMO 80/20 I, Sundae Driver, and a few no-name bag mystery 1/8ths.
Time was enemy that early in the morning, because it just didn’t seem to be moving fast enough for me. If I had a giant life remote, I would have fast forwarded at least two hours. Turns out I don’t own a remote that can do that, so the hours would have to be experienced one minute at a time.
9:01am Hatchet Chat Interview with Lars and Snax
Polk D gave me a text a few minutes before nine and said that it was time to rock and roll. He sent me the link to the Hatchet Chat meeting and after a few clicks of my phone, I was in the house with MC Lars and Snax. We spent over an hour talking about the “Forever in the Jects” book. I had sent them a sneak peak copy to review the night before and the questions they asked were great. Polk D of Project Born was asked about the process and how the book came together, among many other things. I’d like to share more, but your going to have to wait until the show drops to see the interview in its entirety.
You don’t want to miss it, especially if your into the Juggalo culture and history. Even if your not, watch it anyway because its one of the those things that are still interesting whether your vested or not. Hatchet Chat is a great show that really dives into the history of Juggalo universe and preserves the knowledge and information for the present day fans as well as the future supporters. I had a great time on the show with Lars and Snax and was honored to be a guest. With the program concluded, I found myself back on vacation and it was time to do something. After a quick run into Marquette for some groceries, I managed to take care of the last hurdle before getting into some “testing” and relaxing. It had been awhile since I was able to take the time to really enjoy a “smoking out” and I couldn’t have been at a better location. It was almost time to elevate the mind, body, and soul. (3,6,9)
12:04pm Hitchens 80/20 Indica Quarter Oz.
Like I said a minute ago, I hadn’t smoked in awhile and was actually feeling the anticipation, when I finally decided that the time was right and there was nothing left to do but jump in. I suppose anyone familiar with Lake Superior will know that the water doesn’t get much warmer than “extremely refreshing” (fucking cold) and just like blowing some smoke, diving in head first is strongly advised. All good journey’s have to start somewhere.
The Hitchens was produced by Will, who also happens to be a good friend of mine. I’ve been frequenting Will’s station since 2016. I believe he was one of the first vendors I ever encountered at the Compassion Club and was also an early supporter of my “Envy With Green” book release in 2017.
I’ve been enjoying his flower from that time forward and also featured some of Will’s marijuana in the “Be Kind, Rewind” release, which centered around pairing up strains with Nintendo games. One of the strains used was his “Purple Zombie Brains” and I paired it with “Friday the 13th”.
Since I hadn’t danced in awhile with the green lady, I decided to start out nice and easy with my ten dollar bullshit glass pipe. Hitchens had a nice aroma and the flower was dried to perfection. I ground up a few nugs and put the stuff to work on the porch, while taking in Lake Superior proper. The taste was familiar and reminded me of good smoke from the old days. Some things are with us forever and great tasting smoke definitely has the ability to take one back to a certain time or experience.
After four pipes, I was feeling the old familiar sting so to speak. I was relaxed and whatever edge I may have been dealing with, gently floated away in the Northern air. I decided that maybe a movie was a good move. I was after all, in the middle of nowhere, with time and smoke on my hands. With a proper stoning in place, I fired up “Nightmare on Elm Street: Part 1” starring the one and only Johnny Depp. You may remember him from his dynamite performance as “Hunter S. Thompson” in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Cult classic about H.S.T. and his totally insane work and living habits, especially when it came to drug and alcohol intake in the 1970’s. This guy knew how to party and get the job done. He is one of my favorite authors of all time and I would strongly recommend checking out his material at your earliest convenience).
The “Nightmare on Elm Street” is a great movie to watch when your medicating or recreating. The movie seems to be rather “busy” I suppose when it comes to the sound effects and the chilling “anthem” which is played throughout the flick. I found myself cooking some tacos and lost in the audio from the movie. Hitchens had done its job and I was shuffling around in my own world for a bit.
3:33pm G.M.O. field testing 1/8th 80/20 Indica
I had a nice chunk of G.M.O. which from what I read is a cross between Girl Scout Cookies and Chem Dog, which is described as Indica dominant. The nugget weighed in at 3.5 grams and was nice to look at. You know the kind of weed that you just don’t want to break up because it would destroy the natural beauty? It was like that. The aroma was straight up funk, but the good kind. After going back and forth for a bit, I finally came to an inner peace about busting up the organic work of art. I broke a nice piece off and tossed it in the grinder. As can be expected, the odor intensified.
I smoked a few pipes of this time bomb and was delivered to a heavy Indica type existence. The stone was amazing and highly effective. Within five minutes I was on the couch lock shit. [Author’s Note: The article was put on hold until I could regain a proper footing. I found myself staring at the keys and two paragraphs took about an hour to compose. I would just have to wait a bit before pushing on with the writing]
Although the writing had stalled out, I kept the machine rolling. I smoked periodically over the next few hours, listening to the waves and the birds. The location I was in was perfect for a “Friday the 13th” marathon, so that’s what I did. I forgot how nice and kind the smoke can be. I had been a way for awhile, but no more. After another round of pipes, I dug out the four dvd set of Jason movies, parts one through four to be exact. Pound for pound, the first four movies are pretty solid, perhaps the best chunk of the series. As I’ve complained about it in the past, the only weak link in this crew was part 3, which was the 3D gimmick.
Even after all these years of watching the series, I don’t understand how the third installment could suck as bad as it did. We all know part one and two are genius, and even the “final chapter” (part 4) is a stone cold killer, but part three will always be a piece of flaming shit. Nevertheless, I was committed to the series and would embrace them all. I was feeling pretty good until I opened the case. As always, the movie I wanted to watch the most was missing. Back in the dvd player at home no doubt. At least that was the vague hope. I was bummed. I didn’t want to watch part 2 until it got a little darker outside and I also wanted to save part 4 for the second or third movie. What had just happened I thought? Karma was now forcing me to watch the 3D cake car first and I was shocked. I guess you can only move as fast as the universe wants you to, and that includes direction as well. I swallowed my pride and popped number three in the player. It was a Hunter S. Thompson moment and I could hear his voice….”now now, learn to enjoy losing”.
8:35pm Pizza time in the Northern Woods
Since there were no true pizza joints near my location, I was forced to go old school. I had a budget, so I didn’t have to sink down into the “Jiffy pizza box” level. No, this was going to be a cut above that little blue box. I had picked up a double pizza kit featuring the famous “Chef Boyardee”.
As a kid I always wanted to buy these pizza kits, but they were a little pricey and we had been economically challenged at times, so it just didn’t happen. I suppose in a way, it was like the brand name sugar cereals of the eighties. I always wished for the top shelf favorites like Count Chocula, Lucky Charms, Golden Grams, and so on. The reality was money was tight, so it was going to be the large plastic bags of “puffed rice”. Sugar was applied with a spoon, if we had some to spare. Those were the days. Perhaps it was those hard times which inspire me today to buy shit I don’t even need. Sure I was stoned and needed to eat the pizza box, but on other occasions I make purchases that speak directly to those early years. I don’t even eat half the shit, but having the power to buy what was once forbidden or out of the question always brings me joy as an adult.
I regularly purchase boxes of Twinkies and other Hostess sweets, not with the intention of eating them, but just because I can. If you were able to peer into the kitchen cupboards at my crib, you will find three boxes of Lucky Charms, which I don’t even eat anymore, but keep them around for the symbolic trophy’s that they are. Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve been known to keep a stash of Klondike Bars in the freezer as well. Same principles as always. They say as you get older, you over compensate in areas that were lacking. I must agree. So anyway, the pizza kit was just as it always had been, a smoking mirror of sorts. The truth is, that other than the sauce can with the pepperoni submerged (creating an odd oily pizza sauce which I simply love), this is no different than the wretched “Jiffy” boxes we were forced to make due with. I guess it might all boil down to packaging and simply being told no, but the “Chef Boyardee” pizza box still seems like the Cadillac to me. Moving on.
10:45pm Sundae Driver testing
I’m not going to lie, by this time I was feeling pretty good and probably didn’t need the Sundae Driver. I fell asleep before testing could really get going and that’s fine. My perspective from the previous two strains wouldn’t allow for any honest evaluation, but in the end, it didn’t really matter and that’s the best of all. Vacations are good for the soul. Everyone needs time to step away from the big show for a minute and catch their breath. I certainly did and it felt amazing. There is something about not needing to be anywhere or do anything that is simply enjoyable, especially when all the needs are met.
Just like all the other marijuana that seems to be coming out today, the Sundae Driver had a nice aroma and small compact buds, perfect for the grinder. The end result was a further continuation of the good time feelings and an all encompassing heavy sleep. I can’t say enough how nice it is to fall asleep hard and drift off to the dream world. Normally, I sleep about five hours a night at the most, often times with two or three wake ups in between. The medicine show changed all that. I slept hard and didn’t move much. I woke up at 1:30am and ate two pieces of my pizza from earlier. I don’t think “Chef Boyardee” ever tasted so good.
9:23am Morning evaluation
Well, I guess all in all, the smoke review was useless except for the proper stoning I achieved. In the end, when your dealing with good smoke, at a certain point, none of the descriptors and fancy word dances mean much. The shit either works or it doesn’t. Years earlier I would get caught up with the finer points of trying to capture the very essence of each and every bud/strain that I encountered. For the first year or so, I kept a fantastic “weed journal” documenting the specifics of each new and exciting experience I had, sometimes with sketches and crude drawing to go along with the words.
After the first year, and especially after the second year of serious consuming, the charade of the bells and whistles slowly burned off. When you start smoking full time, all the time, the individual personalities of the strains mattered less and less to me…then the journal stopped all together. I will say that as my personal consumption soared, the effectiveness did wane a little, which led me to the world of edibles, RSO, and other potent concentrates. By 2020 I had reached the giant plateau in the sky and I drifted into nitrous oxide for a little movement, slowly smoking less and less, until the machine finally went silent. For the most part, I would spend the next six months on the weed wagon, which I think was needed to re-set the tolerance, which it most certainly has. I used to smoke an ounce every four days or so, but last night I barely put a dent in three tiny bags of grass. I didn’t finish the quarter ounce and I didn’t finish off either 1/8th. And yet, I was higher than I had been in a long time. The re-set has apparently worked.
I’m good with that, because in my own experience, Marijuana is a valuable tool for many different reasons and needs to be celebrated. If you ever find yourself at a place where the weed stops working “really well”, I would recommend a re-set to achieve a better effectiveness and experience (although that is usually easier said than done). Well, that is all the time we have for today, because I have a vacation to get back to. I hope you enjoyed this rambling and roaming article. Please keep coming back for more odds and ends in the near future. The summer is about to heat up and ROX-TV will be there to bring it all to you. Until next time….
Signing Off,
Mike Shepard
ROX-TV Head Writer
kidvicious810 on IG
