Community
If You Hate Everybody Here, Why Are You Here?
The cannabis community is supposed to be many things.
It can be competitive. It can be loud. It can be opinionated. People are going to disagree about strains, brands, growers, products, events and just about everything else under the sun.
But at its best, a community is still a community.
That means there has to be some level of mutual respect.
And lately, there is something I have been thinking about—not because I want to start drama, and certainly not because I want to write a hit piece about anyone. In fact, the entire reason I am writing this without using a name is because I do not believe in publicly humiliating people for the sake of entertainment.
This is about a pattern.
There is a person in our cannabis community who, from what I and many others have witnessed, seems to have a negative comment for almost everybody.
Post about somebody? There is a negative comment.
Mention somebody’s accomplishment? There is a criticism.
Share something positive about a person in the industry? Somehow, here comes another insult, another complaint, another unnecessary shot.
And after watching this happen repeatedly, I have to ask a question:
If you genuinely dislike nearly everyone in a community, why are you trying so hard to be part of it?
That is not sarcasm. I honestly want to understand it.
Smoking cannabis alone does not automatically make us a community. Community requires people. Relationships. Shared experiences. Support. Respect. Even disagreement can be healthy—but there is a difference between having an opinion and making hostility your entire personality.
You do not have to like everyone. Nobody does.
You do not have to agree with everyone. Thank God, because if we all agreed on everything, we’d have no comments section and half of Facebook would immediately go out of business.
But if every conversation turns into an opportunity to insult somebody, attack somebody, embarrass somebody or remind the world how much you dislike somebody, eventually people have to ask what is really going on.
And before anyone misunderstands me, this article is not written from a place of hatred.
Actually, it is quite the opposite.
I believe people can be carrying pain that the rest of us cannot see. People can be dealing with difficult relationships, stressful circumstances, loneliness, trauma, personal struggles or things that happened long before we ever met them. None of us knows the entire story behind another person’s behavior.
That is one of the reasons I try not to judge people too quickly.
But understanding someone and excusing everything they do are not the same thing.
You can have compassion for someone while still setting boundaries.
You can feel sorry for someone’s struggles while also saying, “You do not get to use your pain as permission to mistreat everyone around you.”
That is where I think we sometimes get confused.
Kindness does not mean becoming somebody’s punching bag.
Acceptance does not mean accepting abuse.
Compassion does not mean pretending harmful behavior is harmless.
And free speech absolutely does not mean anyone else is required to provide an unlimited audience for repeated personal attacks.
I believe strongly in free speech. That is one reason I have chosen not to block people simply because they disagree with me or say something I do not like. I do not want to surround myself with people who only tell me what I want to hear.
Criticism is part of life.
But there is a huge difference between constructive criticism and constantly tearing down the people around you.
One helps people grow.
The other just spreads misery.
So if you are reading this and thinking, “I wonder if OG Strain is talking about me?”—well, I am not going to name anyone.
But here is what I will say:
If you know that you regularly attack people unprovoked, insult people who have done nothing to you, and find yourself unable to say something positive about almost anyone in the community, then maybe this article is worth thinking about.
Not because you should be ashamed.
Because you can change.
Try being nice.
Seriously. Just try it.
Try congratulating somebody when they succeed.
Try scrolling past something instead of attacking the person who posted it.
Try disagreeing without making it personal.
Try giving someone the same grace you probably hope people will give you when you are having a bad day.
You might be surprised by what happens.
Because the energy we put into the world has a way of coming back around. Call it karma, the law of attraction, cause and effect, or just common sense—if you constantly put negativity into every room you enter, eventually people are going to expect negativity whenever you arrive.
And then you may begin to wonder why everyone is negative toward you.
Sometimes, we have to look honestly at what we are putting out there.
If you put out kindness, kindness is more likely to find you.
If you put out respect, people are more likely to respect you.
If you put out constant hostility, insults and bitterness, eventually that is the energy that will surround you.
And at that point, you cannot blame everyone else forever.
The truth is, life is too short to wake up every day angry at people who may not even know you are angry at them.
It is too short to spend your time searching for another person to criticize.
It is too short to be miserable for sport.
And it is definitely too short to become known in a community primarily as the person everybody expects to start a fight in the comments.
That is not a legacy.
That is exhausting.
The cannabis community already has enough people outside of it judging us, criticizing us and telling us who we are supposed to be. We do not need to spend every day doing the same thing to each other.
We can disagree.
We can debate.
We can have different opinions.
We can even occasionally get on each other’s nerves—because let’s be honest, if you’re in this industry long enough, somebody is eventually going to annoy the hell out of you.
But we should still remember that there are human beings behind the usernames.
And if someone is genuinely struggling, I hope they seek support and allow trusted people to help them. Statements about not wanting to be alive should always be taken seriously, not used as a weapon in an argument or dismissed as “just drama.”
There is no shame in needing help.
There is no shame in changing.
And there is no shame in admitting that the way you have been treating people is not the way you want to continue living.
Second chances matter.
Growth matters.
But growth begins when we are willing to look in the mirror.
So this is not a hit piece.
This is an invitation.
To the person who feels this article might be about them: You do not have to leave the community. You do not have to become best friends with everybody. You do not even have to suddenly agree with people you dislike.
Just try being kind.
Try it for a day.
Then another.
And see what happens.
Because if you truly cannot find anything you like about anyone in a community, if every person is an enemy and every success deserves an insult, then maybe the problem is not the entire community.
Maybe it is time to look inward.
And if you are someone who recognizes exactly who I am talking about without me ever having to say a name, then I hope you take something from this article too.
Do not turn this into another opportunity for gossip.
Do not attack that person.
Do not send them hateful messages.
That would completely miss the point.
The answer to negativity is not more negativity.
The answer is accountability, boundaries, compassion and, whenever possible, growth.
At the end of the day, we are all putting something into this community.
The question is:
What are you putting into it?
Because eventually, whether we realize it or not, people remember how we made them feel.
So if you are going to be part of a community, be part of it.
Support someone.
Encourage someone.
Disagree without destroying someone.
And when you are tempted to leave another cruel, unnecessary comment, maybe stop for just one second and ask yourself:
“What am I really putting out into the world?”
Then choose something better.
I promise you—kindness is a lot easier to carry than hate.
Community
STONER MAMA NICOLE Breaking Stigma, One Laugh at a Time
How a Newfoundland mom, cannabis creator, and advocate is turning her own story into a movement built on humor, honesty, and acceptance
There are plenty of cannabis creators on the internet.
There are plenty of moms on the internet.
There are plenty of Canadians on the internet.
And then there’s Stoner Mama Nicole—who apparently decided we needed all three rolled into one, with a healthy dose of humor, a little Newfoundland attitude, and absolutely no interest in fitting neatly into somebody else’s stereotype.
Nicole is a Canadian cannabis creator and mom from Newfoundland, a recovering addict, an advocate, and the personality behind a growing community built around something deceptively simple: people should be allowed to talk honestly about cannabis without being treated like a walking Cheech & Chong audition.
Her mission isn’t simply to post about weed.
It’s to change the conversation surrounding it.
MORE THAN THE PLANT
Nicole describes herself as a cannabis advocate and content creator who uses humor, education, and personal experience to challenge the way people think about cannabis.
And that distinction matters.
For decades, cannabis consumers have been shoved into a handful of tired stereotypes. The lazy stoner. The irresponsible parent. The burnout. The guy in the basement surrounded by empty pizza boxes wondering where his lighter went.
Nicole wants people to see something different.
The person behind the plant.
She believes cannabis can be medicine, and she wants people to understand that cannabis consumers are everyday people—moms included.
That last part is especially important to her.
Because apparently being a mother doesn’t automatically cancel your ability to know what a cannabis plant is.
Who knew?
Nicole’s message is that cannabis consumers can be parents, professionals, people in recovery, caregivers, entrepreneurs, friends, neighbors, and members of their communities.
In other words: they’re human beings.
FROM FUN CONTENT TO A PURPOSE
Nicole didn’t originally set out to build a movement.
She started creating cannabis content because she wanted to connect with other consumers and share her own experiences. What began as something fun quickly became something much bigger.
She discovered that her voice could help people.
Her content could normalize cannabis.
Her experiences could open conversations.
And her humor could make people stop scrolling long enough to actually listen.
That combination became the foundation of Stoner Mama Nicole.
She creates relatable cannabis content, memes, product showcases, and educational posts, but her favorite material is the kind that accomplishes two things at once:
Make somebody laugh—and make them think.
That might be one of the most effective ways to communicate online.
Give somebody a lecture and they’ll scroll.
Make them laugh first, and suddenly they’re paying attention.
BREAKING THE MOM STEREOTYPE
One of Nicole’s biggest goals is breaking the stigma surrounding cannabis, particularly when it comes to mothers and people in recovery.
She wants people to understand that recovery doesn’t look exactly the same for everyone.
Neither does cannabis.
Her own experience has given her perspective that can’t simply be manufactured with a clever caption or a trending sound.
Nicole isn’t pretending that cannabis is the answer to every problem.
She’s advocating for honest conversations—conversations without automatic judgment, outdated stereotypes, or the assumption that anyone who consumes cannabis must fit into a particular box.
And maybe that’s where her content becomes most powerful.
She’s not asking people to agree with her.
She’s asking people to think.
A CANADIAN PERSPECTIVE
Being based in Canada gives Nicole a unique perspective on the cannabis conversation.
Canada’s legal cannabis framework created an environment where cannabis could be discussed more openly, but legalization didn’t magically make the stigma disappear.
Old stereotypes don’t pack their bags and move out just because Parliament changes the rules.
Misinformation still exists.
Judgment still exists.
And there are still plenty of people who have never bothered to learn about cannabis beyond whatever they heard from somebody’s cousin’s brother’s friend’s uncle in 1987.
Nicole believes the answer isn’t more judgment.
It’s education and open conversation.
That’s exactly where she wants Stoner Mama Nicole to make a difference.
WELCOME TO THE GREEN QUEEN BOUTIQUE
Nicole isn’t stopping with content.
She’s also building The Green Queen Boutique, a cannabis-inspired small business where she creates merchandise and products for the cannabis community.
It’s another extension of the same philosophy behind her content: creativity, cannabis, connection, and community.
The Green Queen Boutique gives Nicole an opportunity to turn her creativity into something tangible while building another piece of the brand she’s creating.
And that brand isn’t just a logo.
It’s a community.
COMMUNITY OVER NUMBERS
Ask Nicole what she’s most proud of, and you might expect the answer to involve followers, views, viral posts, or some other social-media number that causes creators to stare at their phones like they’re waiting for the lottery results.
But that’s not what matters most to her.
Nicole says building Stoner Mama Nicole into a real community and brand is what she’s most proud of.
When somebody tells her that something she posted helped them, educated them, or simply made them laugh, that means more than numbers ever could.
That’s a pretty important distinction.
Because followers are statistics.
People are people.
And Nicole wants the people behind those statistics to know they aren’t alone.
She especially values connecting with other moms and showing them that they don’t have to feel isolated simply because they consume cannabis.
THE MOVEMENT IS BIGGER THAN NICOLE
The word community comes up repeatedly when Nicole talks about what she’s building.
And that’s not accidental.
For her, cannabis represents connection and acceptance.
Through cannabis, she’s met people she may never have encountered otherwise. She’s found a community where people can be themselves, and she’s using her platform to help expand that sense of belonging.
That’s what separates an influencer from an advocate.
An influencer can tell you what they’re doing.
An advocate gives you a reason to care.
Nicole wants to become a recognized cannabis creator and advocate who helps change the way people view cannabis—especially when the conversation involves moms and people in recovery.
That’s not a small goal.
But then again, she isn’t building a small brand.
WHAT COMES NEXT?
If Nicole has anything to say about it, Stoner Mama Nicole is only getting started.
She envisions a much bigger brand with collaborations, cannabis events, brand partnerships, merchandise, and continued growth for The Green Queen Boutique.
But despite those ambitions, there’s one thing she doesn’t want to lose along the way:
Authenticity.
That’s important because the internet has a funny way of turning genuine people into marketing machines.
One minute you’re posting something because it makes you laugh.
The next minute somebody is telling you what time to post, what trend to follow, what algorithm to chase, and whether your cannabis leaf needs to be rotated 17 degrees for maximum engagement.
Nicole’s goal is to grow without losing the person who started it all.
Stoner Mama Nicole.
The mom.
The creator.
The advocate.
The woman in recovery.
The Canadian.
The person behind the plant.
THE PERSON BEHIND THE PLANT
At its heart, Stoner Mama Nicole isn’t really about cannabis.
It’s about people.
It’s about giving cannabis consumers permission to be seen as more than a stereotype.
It’s about moms knowing they’re not alone.
It’s about people in recovery understanding that their journey doesn’t have to look exactly like somebody else’s.
It’s about education replacing misinformation.
It’s about humor opening doors that arguments never could.
And it’s about one Newfoundland mom using her own experiences to say something remarkably powerful:
You don’t have to fit the stereotype.
You can be a mother.
You can be in recovery.
You can be an entrepreneur.
You can be an advocate.
You can love cannabis.
And you can still be completely, unapologetically yourself.
That’s the world Stoner Mama Nicole is trying to build.
And judging by what she’s already created, she isn’t just talking about the future.
She’s already growing it.
⸻
STONEY MAMA NICOLE
Cannabis Creator • Advocate • Mom • Entrepreneur
Follow the journey of Stoner Mama Nicole and discover the community she’s building around cannabis, connection, education, humor, and breaking the stigma.
The Green Queen Boutique represents the entrepreneurial side of that movement—bringing Nicole’s cannabis-inspired creativity directly to the community she loves.
Because at the end of the day, the plant is only part of the story.
The people are the story.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Fgu244FWi/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Community
REEDS AMONST THE WEED
It is a scientific fact that listening to music is enhanced in many ways when the listener has indulged in weed. THC nudges parts of the brain designed to absorb sound, including music to become stimulated on a higher level.
THC influences the brain’s ability to let listeners think about the music differently, they hear more within each note, they feel more from the experience of music. Music becomes something like a magic carpet ride. Weed allows the listeners to literally become one within the melody, they are physically stimulated. In addition, the senses are heightened offering a person who is lit to see the color of the music, the story hidden within the music and create a unique movie that only they can see.
When a concert- goer is stoned, then everything about each note, each instrument becomes amplified. When the brain synchronizes with the sound, the experience becomes unbelievably delightful.
What could be more magical than a concert where the reeds play amongst the weed? On Saturday, August 15th a lucky few will get to inhabit music in a way they perhaps have never imagined.
Clarinet trio, Take Three will play a free concert at Lazy Day Farm, a top-notch cannabis cultivator in Durham, N.Y. The members of this professional group have played everywhere from the well-known concert halls to the Grand Canyon.

Each member’s instrument, from the base clarinet, played by Steve Miller to Suzanne Coletta’s, and Steve Silverstein’s, clarinets transform the program into a sensual, funny, soothing, plifting trip. The trio has been able to create harmonies so expertly woven together that the audience, seated in the walnut grove, become en-wrapped in a group experience that wipes away the real world.
Imagine relaxing on your blanket or chair, ganja smoke swirling around you as your mind absorbs the special notes that only multiple clarinets can produce. Music by Mozart becomes a transporter to another time and place. A piece by Debussy becomes an animated painting in your head.
The scene behind the trio is the lush greenness of the cannabis field, where the plants appear to be swaying to the melodies. The enchanted walnut grove presents a safeplace here the mind can wander into the outer space of the brain.
When weed is blended with live music the woes and troubles of the world drift away on the gentle breeze, the hive mind of the audience takes over resulting in an unforgettable unreal feeling of peace.
Community
The Team Behind the Movement: Why The Plug’s Pages Magazine Is Just Getting Started
Every publication reaches a point where it stops feeling like a business and starts feeling like a movement.
For me, that moment came when I looked around and realized I wasn’t simply building another cannabis magazine—I was surrounded by a team of people who genuinely believe in this industry, respect its culture, and work tirelessly to elevate it.
As CEO of The Plug’s Pages Magazine, I couldn’t be more proud of what we’ve accomplished together.
To think that we’ve grown into one of the most widely circulated cannabis publications in the country—and now find ourselves competing neck-and-neck with our former employer—is something I never take for granted. Being second only to High Times in national circulation is an incredible achievement, but rankings alone don’t define success.
Our readers do.
Every article you read, every issue you share, every business you discover through our pages, and every conversation that begins because of something we publish has helped shape what The Plug’s Pages Magazine has become. None of this happens without the people who continue believing in what we’re building.
For that, I am sincerely grateful.
But no publication succeeds because of one person.
It succeeds because of its people.
I’ve known Seymour Buds for many years. We’ve weathered challenges together, celebrated victories together, and shared a vision for what cannabis journalism could become long before this magazine existed. Seymour has remained exactly the kind of person every publication hopes to have—a dependable voice, an experienced writer, and someone who genuinely cares about both the industry and the community surrounding it.
He’s been with me through thick and thin, and our magazine is stronger because of him.
Then came someone who, quite honestly, surprised all of us.
OG Strain.
Sometimes people arrive with a résumé.
Sometimes they arrive with passion.
And every once in a while, someone arrives with both.
From the moment OG Strain joined The Plug’s Pages Magazine, it became clear that we weren’t simply adding another contributor—we were adding someone whose creativity seemed to have no ceiling.
Writing comes naturally to him.
His understanding of cannabis comes naturally.
Connecting with people comes naturally.
Those qualities cannot be taught.
They have to be lived.
That authenticity is exactly what makes his work resonate with readers.
There are plenty of people who write about cannabis.
Far fewer actually live the culture every single day.
OG Strain does.
His passion extends well beyond the pages of this magazine.
Many readers know him as the creator and host of Strain’s Strain Reviews (Talk Cannabis) on YouTube, where he reviews cannabis strains, growers, products, dispensaries, distributors, and cannabis events throughout the Northeast. But the channel has grown into much more than reviews. It has become a destination for cannabis entertainment, educational content, community spotlights, interviews, humorous skits, and creative series like Mr. Water Bong & Ms. Dab Rig—all created with the same goal of celebrating the cannabis community while making people smile.
His creativity doesn’t stop there.
Using music-generation technology, he has written promotional rap songs and original anthems for numerous cannabis companies throughout the Northeast, helping brands develop a unique identity while connecting with customers in an entirely new way.
Companies including Gilly’s Greens, No Mountain Higher, Buddah Brothers, Higher Beings Powered by Hudson Valley Green, Adekrondack, The Gas Station, Key (Keeping Edibles Yummy), Blissful Confections, Ashley Kryptonite, Smokers Section, and many others have all been the subjects of his creative promotional work.
That level of dedication is rare.
What impresses me even more is that none of it comes from obligation.
It comes from genuine enthusiasm.
He loves seeing cannabis businesses succeed.
He enjoys shining a spotlight on people who often don’t receive one.
He understands that behind every brand is a family, an entrepreneur, a grower, or a dream worth sharing.
That’s what separates promotion from storytelling.
And that’s what separates content creators from community builders.
Perhaps what impresses me most is his work ethic.
There was a point where OG Strain was producing articles for The Plug’s Pages Magazine nearly every single day.
Without that level of commitment, we’d likely publish only a fraction of the stories we’re able to share.
He has become our most active contributor, and through his dedication, our readers have been introduced to more businesses, more events, more growers, more products, and more members of the cannabis community than ever before.
Simply put, he has helped expand both our reach and our vision.
When Seymour, OG Strain, and I work together, each of us brings something different to the table.
Seymour brings experience.
OG Strain brings relentless creativity and energy.
I bring years of publishing, journalism, and leadership.
Together, we’ve built something that none of us could have created alone.
Every successful company needs a strong foundation.
Ours is built on trust, passion, and a shared belief that the cannabis community deserves honest, engaging, and professional coverage.
As we continue growing, we’re also expanding our mission.
We don’t simply want to report on the cannabis industry.
We want to help build it.
That means creating opportunities for cultivators, manufacturers, dispensaries, processors, event organizers, content creators, and entrepreneurs to tell their stories in meaningful ways.
Many businesses struggle to get noticed.
Others simply don’t know where to begin.
That’s where we come in.
Whether it’s through feature articles, interviews, event coverage, educational content, product spotlights, or innovative promotional opportunities, our goal is to help connect great companies with the people who are looking for exactly what they offer.
We’re creating something that goes beyond advertising.
We’re building relationships.
We’re building community.
And we’re building a platform where authentic voices matter.
The future of The Plug’s Pages Magazine has never looked brighter.
This is only the beginning.
If you’ve been following our journey, thank you for believing in us.
If you’re a cannabis business looking for a platform that genuinely wants to see you succeed, we’d love to help tell your story.
And if you’re one of the thousands of readers who continue supporting this publication issue after issue, know that every page we publish is written with you in mind.
I’m proud of this magazine.
I’m proud of where we’ve been.
I’m even more excited about where we’re headed.
Most of all, I’m proud of the people standing beside me.
Seymour Buds.
OG Strain.
And every reader who has helped turn The Plug’s Pages Magazine into one of the fastest-growing voices in cannabis media.
We’re not slowing down.
In many ways…
We’re just getting started.
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