YOU GUYS IN COLORADO ARE SO LUCKY

Hi all...thanks for the welcome Dietblonde.
I mention before that I am relocating there in a few months and it can't be soon enough.
I live in the NY NJ area and though I have been smoking weed for 30+ years it is such a struggle here.
Weed is very available and many smoke, but it is sometimes chancy and unreliable to get. I have had many sources over the years, the last five or so pretty much the same source but when he is out, I have to go through a lot of trouble.
I am in my fifties and am not about to go hit the street corners, mostly because gang members are the dealers and you never know when there will be shootings on the street....besides you never know what could be in it....I have heard recently they add bits of lead (poison) to increase the weight...God forbid some chemicals.

I have arthritis and terrible chronic sinus headaches not to mention being high strung resulting in anxiety.
I have been given all kinds of pills but the side effects are awful and dangerous. All I have to do is smoke my weed and I am able to handle all of my ailments and function happily.

I so resent that here we are criminals for smoking a natural substance that works great, and are encouraged to support the pharmasutical industry which is huge in NJ...they must have a great lobbying effort to keep NJ from legalizing marijuana.
People drink like fish legally, act like asses and crash cars but sitting home smoking some weed to watch TV is a crime.

NJ will probably be the last state to go legal....it's 6 months MANDATORY jail for a half a joint or some papers.

To make end meet I have been helping some ailing seniors with houshold chores and in talking to them I know pot would help them....instead they have tables full of pill bottles and can't eat or sleep well....they worry constantly about all kinds of things. They are sad.

One man admitted to me that he smoked half a joint his friend gave him and all day he felt so much better, laughing at TV shows, he also ate much more and sleep all night. For a man in a whelchair thats pretty good.
He said his quality of life would be much better if he could throw out the pills and just get weed...he is in his 70's and cannot afford pot as Medicaid pays for the pills that cost hundreds of dollars and do very little.

Of course I don't mean for people to throw out lifesaving medications but most of the people I see complain that the doctors just feel like they should give them something, even with the side effects to shut them up.

A woman in the news here drank quite heavily and crashed her car killing numerous people....she drank 10 shots of Vodka on the trip home in the car....yet the newspapers keep harping on her smoking pot at night after her kids go to bed as if that is why she crashed the next day. It was a camping trip and she smoked around the fire with her husband and went to bed. No One knows why she drank so much the next day before taking the long trip home but it's like the reefer madness movie the way they are blaming the pot smoked the night before.
People are still so ignorant here.

My own mother suffers from things I know pot would help a lot...she gets anxiety attacks and also has arthritus....her latest doctor gave her Clonazapan and never told her the significant side effects or that they are highly addictive....all she did was vomit from them....she had tried so many EXPENSIVE pills that had to be thrown away because she felt even worse.
I think if your prescription makes you sick and the doctor tells you to stop taking it you should get a refund.
The only pills I take are good old asprin, Even Tylenol will hurt your liver over time and don't get me started on artificial sweetners.

After all this my point is I have such compassion for these people and would love to become a caretaker for seniors so they can enjoy life even with some ailments.
I have read how to go about getting a MMcard but how do you become a caretaker....is there training....apprentiship....where do you find clients (is advertising legal?)

I have never been in jail and lead a peaceful life as a fitness instructor at a spa in the Catskill mountains so I cannot help these people on any regualar basis....I can't even grow my own without worry.

Can anyone give me an idea of how much cash is involved in getting set up with a doctor, license, AVERAGE cost of weed from a dispensiry and the road to caretaker.....down the road the caretaker fees.

In my twenties we had all kind of variety around, Tai sticks, Colombian Gold, Hawaiian, skunk weed...you guys have so many I have never heard of I will need to do a lot of homework.
Thanks for listening....if you can't tell,I am weedless tonight and just plain mad NY and NJ are still so far from legalizing it....gosh I have been expecting long ago to be able to just buy it like people can buy beer or legal smokes.

Enjoy your evening all.

hey there

what a cool post! i think you get it.

to get your card, you should be able to pull it off for $300 or less. The state also gets $90 for your application fee. For much less, you'll be asked to sign over caregiver status. If you have good, recent medical records regarding your arthritis or other pain condition it can be easier/cheaper. The rules are in flux and different Dr.'s have different standards and fees.

Average is $100 / 7g or less (or more~!)

To be a caregiver a registered patient needs to sign you up as their caregiver. You can get your card so go get it. Ask your Dr. to write on your app that you should be allowed more than 6 plants.

There's currently a pretty good selection of varieties on the front range from Fort Collins to Boulder, Denver, and Colorado Springs. Some providers carry 5 or 6 strains and a few carry 40 or so. There are also a few in some mountain towns along the I70 corridor / ski country.

Where are you moving?

and welcome home...

Sorry to hear about all of your troubles. I'm not somebody who is street savvy and knew where to score pot when I lived in states with no medical program, so I can appreciate your stresses of having constant supply. Once you're here in Colorado you can shop around for strains that are specifically meant for certain ailments. There are a countless amount of varieties and you'll enjoy checking out new dispensaries and meeting new people.

I like that you have a soft spot for older people and their health. I too know many older people who could benefit from marijuana and get off the 'scripts but they either don't have access, live in another state, or haven't had the benefits of medicinal marijuana explained to them. Wouldn't it be rewarding to go around to nursing homes and provide care in the form of marijuana to so many people who could benefit from it?

A lot of people who are "caregivers" just grow and sell pot (on a large scale). Because growing is such a demanding chore requiring many hours of hard work (and money), there isn't much time for anything else. Other "caregivers" are the ones who usually run dispensaries...and running a dispensary is a full time endeavor.

I think your best option is to get in touch with dispensaries and see about working as a delivery man. This way you can go to the homes of those who need the most care, bring them their medicine, get to know them and take a role in their lives. This could be a very rewarding job for someone like you, but getting a dispensary job is very difficult. People hire only those they can trust, usually family and friends.

I spent $90 to see a doctor and paid $90 for the registration fee. I know there are plenty of other places that run even cheaper. I haven't heard of any potential patients being turned away by doctors who work out of dispensaries, so skip the family doctor for your certification.

Hey, best of luck to you and if you're looking for more local resources when you move here you might find helpful info on my blog (link as my signature).