TRAINING PURPOSES FOR 420 TRAINEES

Call a customer service number for anything and you could hear, “This conversation may be recorded for training purposes.”

I’ve asked about that before getting into the reason I called, and end with, “I’m doing the same thing, recording our conversation for training purposes.”

Am I really? Nooooo.

If I were, what would I be training for?

Today is April 20, 2026, 420.

And also the day of the Boston Marathon.

It’s a combination that took me back to my running group days.

Three of us made up a small group, much smaller than the Hood To Coast Team I joined two decades later.

We shared one goal: The Seaside Marathon.

On race day the guy with a car swung by for the rest of us.

Someone smelled like they’d been hot-boxing joints with Cheech and Chong.

They had the weed stink going strong, like they’d just roasted a bowl the minute before we showed up.

 

Me: You smell like a cloud of weed smoke.

Them: I just roasted a bowl.

Me: And you’re running the marathon?

Them: It helps me focus.

Me: You’re not worried about breathing?

Driver: Which reminds me. Roll down the window, I’ve got an exhaust leak.

 

From one thing to another, we showed up dazed and confused and set off at the opening gun.

Part of the course crossed Hwy101 and ran alongside the road while cars idled their exhaust for us to get further tanked on.

One of the guys couldn’t take it and had to stop and vomit while the pack passed by.

For training purposes, harfing down lungfuls of weed smoke before a marathon is not recommended in any running book.

Neither is carbon dioxide poisoning.

But don’t you wonder how many runners celebrated 420 before taking off in Boston?

 

420 Trainees

With any unknown substance, you never know how people react, how you will react.

Marijuana is no different.

The first time I heard the term ‘medical’ marijuana I figured a hippie finally graduated from medical school and pushed the benefits of weed.

Wink, wink.

My baking friend supplied medical grade marijuana brownies to cancer patients, which seemed like a nice gesture, an authentic gesture.

But cancer and weed seemed an unlikely combination.

Cancer and chemo? Okay.

Cancer and radiation? Sounds right.

Cannabis and cancer? Come on.

She stopped by with a few dozen one day, a surprise visit.

 

Her: These might be helpful.

Me: I’ll keep that in mind. What do I owe you?

Her: We don’t charge for people like you.

Me: People like me? Did I change?

Her: We don’t charge cancer patients. You’re a cancer patient, so no charge. What, you don’t remember?

 

Truth is I was working hard to forget the whole thing, but that’s not how things work, not supposed to work.

My doctor reminded me to fill an oxy prescription, pills and liquid.

Liquid oxy?

I hadn’t started the treatment process yet and felt I had a handle on it.

My pain threshold changed during treatment, and after.

I couldn’t handle what I thought I could handle and took an oxy pill, passed out, woke up feeling worse along with nausea.

I checked the ‘Fuck That’ box.

Two days later in the grip of  ‘throat on fire’ that comes with radiation, I took a dose of liquid oxy, passed out, and woke up feeling worse and more nauseous.

O for 2, and failing.

After a good talking to, spelled intervention, I remembered the weed brownies and said, “if they don’t help this situation, take me to the hospital.”

With zero expectations, and my travel bag packed, medical marijuana came to the rescue.

Two brownies spaced throughout the day and I regained my handle on things.

Maybe it was a placebo effect after the opiates, maybe a fear of hospitalization, but it worked like nothing else.

I stayed on track, living on my path, not my pathology. (Extra beat, BOOM)

 

For Training Purposes In Portland

From potmatespdx.com:

 

 

 

 

You’ve been drawing on the vape pen before coffee, after checking out a farmers market, so maybe 10:00, 10:30, and feeling munchy, ready for a beer? Not so fast.

McMenimen’s doesn’t open until 11.

 

 

Take a peaceful forest walk but watch out for trail runners training for their next race. Forest oxygen is the best.

Maybe it’s Oregon oxygen? From Google AI:

Oregon Track and Field’s Simeon Birnbaum shattered the NCAA 1500-meter record on April 18, 2026, running a blistering 3:31.69 at the Oregon Team Invitational in Eugene. His time broke the previous collegiate record of 3:33.02 set by Villanova’s Liam Murphy in 2025.

 

 

PS:

The traffic on davidpdx jumped from 200 a few days ago, to 2000 today, which I attribute to AI training purposes unless I hear otherwise, like one comment from 2000 hits.

PSS:

As a salty blogger I could get big on my keyboard and say fuck off AI. But that’s not a writing goal, spewing negative feelings all over nebulous notions.

 

I don’t do that. Neither should you.