The Origin Of 420
There are many stories around the origins of 420.
-Some believe it's the number of active chemicals in cannabis
-Some reference Bob Dylan's lyric "Everybody Must Get Stoned" from the song Rainy Day Woman No. 12 & 35 (12 x 35 = 420)
-It's based on teatime in Holland
-April 20th is also Hitler's birthday (whatever that has to do with cannabis!)
But the real origin story goes back to 5 Californian teens meeting at a certain spot after school each day at 4:20pm.
In 1971, the 5 teens learned there was an abandoned cannabis patch in a nearby forest. They were provided with a treasure map supposedly leading to the free pot!
They were all athletes, a group called "The Waldos". They would meet after practice at 4:20 to smoke pot, pile into a car and go search the forest for the abandoned patch.
The students started using "420" for a code for smoking pot. This way teachers and parents wouldn't know what they were talking about.
But how did 420 spread from a high school in California all around the world?
The Grateful Dead.
Many of the Waldos had direct connections to The Dead. The 420 slang was being said back stage and around the band and crew.
In 1990 a High Times reporter named Steven Bloom heard the phrase 420 at a Grateful Dead concert in Oakland, California. He was handed a flier that told the history of 420 and mentioned the Waldos...
Once High Times got the story, the magazine helped to launch 420 world wide!
The unofficial holiday is now celebrated around the world as a day when cannabis consumers unite in celebration of the cannabis plant and protest of cannabis prohibition laws.
In most places, even if cannabis is still illegal, April 20th is a day when you'll likely see large groups of people outside in public without any intervention from authorities.
Red Deer, AB has had many 420 rallies, protests and celebrations over the years and Gord's has been involved in several of them!
Happy 420 from Gord's Smoke Shop and Happy Smokin'N'Tokin'!!