I’ve been using cannabis for years and I love it. I am generally careful when it comes to developing dependencies. I check myself every once in a while and I don’t self medicate or pretend I’m taking it for pain or sleep or whatever. I take it because I like being high and I’m not ashamed of it.

I am worried about long-term effects. Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s really freak me out and it would suck if there turned out to be a link there. But there’s a good chance something else will kill me before I get there and I’m not sure I want to give up something I so thoroughly enjoy just to live a little longer.

I tried taking a hiatus in January. I read about mental clarity coming back and feeling more rested. I felt none of those things. I also didn’t feel any intense cravings or withdrawal symptoms. Just boredom and dissatisfaction with life in general and I don’t have a lot of hope of that changing with or without weed.