Then The Key Turned
by Charles “Uncle Chuck” Duncan
I grew up in the ‘70s and ‘80s. I remember being told cannabis would make us crazy and in one major magazine ad, it would involve tuba playing during sex (true story).
Nancy Reagan and Mr. T told us that Marijuana was the enemy. Schools showed us films that warned us of the dangers of Marijuana. PSA announcements during after school specials declared Marijuana will make you crave harder “drugs”.
Luckily for me, I wasn’t a huge Reagan fan. I rarely believed what my school told me. Nor did I typically believe any After School Special PSA announcements.
If I was a mouse, the Pied Piper was imagination and creativity. The music and art I enjoyed were almost always created by people who used cannabis.
Bugs Bunny and Benny Hill influenced me just as much as COSMOS and Beakman’s World.
I also enjoyed Fantasy and Science Fiction work of any kind. Dungeon and Dragons, Star Wars, Lords of the Rings (animated version of course) and Post-Apocalyptic themes of Urban Survival.
I was in 8th grade when I first discovered Cannabis.
What interested me most was the effect cannabis had on my ability to create without the distraction of the logical side of my brain getting in my way.
Being able to write about a make believe place without getting writers’ block from the logic dept. telling me my setting was impossible. Being able to hear music instead of just listen. The ability to immerse me in a good fantasy novel instead of poking holes in the writers’ work. It was all because of cannabis. It was like a key for me. Opening doors of imagination that were difficult to explain unless you experienced it. Thank you Mr. Hendrix.
Fast forward to 2018. Oklahoma is now a Medical Marijuana Legal state.
As Uncle Chuck, my biggest passion is talking about cannabis. In all of its forms. The plant itself, the lifestyles that surround it, the different products it creates and the differences it makes in peoples lives.
I hope you enjoy my view and thank you for reading.