Last updated 2021-02-11 01:52 UTC: Added next opening date for US store (no time yet) This was wrong, nevermind. Added comment from stan about Limited / Reserva releases.
Previously: Confirmed time for EU, Ww, and UK opening.
Previously-er: Added strain list for UK/EU/Ww opening. Confirmed date for for next UK/EU/Ww opening. Added Canadian store bundle sale info. Added info about seed pack sizes, upcoming restock list for the US store, and note about delayed strain guide update. Added info about Supreme restock and upcoming Limiteds. Updated affiliates section. Added, removed, and re-added this sentence. Added link to strain review template.
Previously-er-er: Noted that seed production in Canada is in progress. Posted info about the new Illuminautos.

What/Who is Mephisto Genetics?

Mephisto is "a small outfit of autoflower enthusiasts", a boutique breeder that specializes in autoflowering cannabis.
As stan_mephisto (who manages the US store) put it:

My issue with most other breeders is that they do not list thier strain lineage. We tell you who we got our cuts from and credit the original breeders. Our cookies are really cookies, our haze is really haze, and if we re create a hype strain you better believe its the real deal.
All these zskittles, and gelatos autos you see come out are not the real deal, they are just using the hype name. Ask the breeder where they got the gelato, and how they managed to turn it into an auto so fast. It takes two years to turn a photo cut into an auto.

There is a long thread on ICMag, "Mitch's Auto Adventure", with lots of the early history of what would eventually become Mephisto.
The Mephisto website has its own FAQ, a Grow Guide, and a Strain Guide. There are also community autoflower growing guides on the autoflowers subreddit's sidebar / about page.
Mephisto has an instagram, run by Daz of Night Owl. Note that stan isn't on Instagram, and while I have an account (@parsing_trees) I don't really use it; if somebody claims to be either of us on IG and tries to sell you seeds, it's a scam.
The subreddit has a dry weight leaderboard and some strain reviews, also linked on the sidebar.
New strain reviews/smoke reports can use this template.

When / what are the next releases?

stan (on chat):

Limited Edditions are looking like April for EU, Reservas in MArch

stan says:

Expected restocks [over the next couple months] -
Mango Smile, Samsquanch OG, Creme De La Chem, 24k, Ripleys OG, AVT, Toofless Alien, #44, #47, Sour Crinkle, Grape Walker Kush, Forgotten Cookies, Super Orange Haze, Cosmic Queen, Pink Panama, Hubba Bubba Haze
Our farm expansions are starting to pay off, we have a lot of stock ready, its just a matter of getting it to the prospective stores.
We also have the new limited editions ready but they will likely be behind the ones listed.
[...] For all stores. Some of these are headed to seedbanks now. Some of the new releases will happen at seed banks first, then on the US store.

also:

Jammy [Dodgers] is going to be F2 and F3, had to make two batches. Sour Crinkle is F3.

On AFN, stan said:

Limited edditions this year will be - Purple Nuggets, Orange Biscuits, Orang-utan, Jammy Dodgers, Wookie Special, and Forgotten Strawberries.

Previously:

I plan on doing an official announcement soon. The first few drops of the year for the US store will take place on seedbanks. We got our asses kicked the last two events and need seed banks to try and help take the load off the main store.

also:

We sell to seed banks at 40/50% of retail and they mark it up however much they want. We are going to be doing the advertising for these seed banks so we will see about setting some standard pricing setup.
3 packs are 3s, and 7 packs 7s. We are discussing moving everything to 5 packs though to help streamline the packaging process.
Seedbanks will not get freebies yet, but we are looking at providing some freebies for special events.

Stores, Seedbanks, Getting Seeds

What regional stores are there?

US, Canada, EU, UK, "Worldwide" (other countries, see Mephisto's FAQ: Shipping).
Mephisto does not ship across regions -- if you're in the US, CA, EU, or UK, you can only order from that region's store, not the other regions' stores or Worldwide.
Prices are subject to change, but this post has a copy of previous prices at the US store. Prices vary by line, and the Artisanals and Medicinals are a bit more expensive because they require significantly more breeding work.
Direct order freebies are based on the overall order price (not including shipping) -- see Mephisto's FAQ for details, and note that the tiers are based on $ for all stores, because payment processing is now done in USD.

When will the US store be open?

No time/date has been posted for the US store yet, more specific than "looking like mid February" as far as I know.
On AFN, stan posted something which I had briefly quoted here, but in context, I now realize this was about the UK store (wish the newsletter messages actually specified!). No time/date has been posted for the US store yet, as far as I know.
On AFN, stan said:

All these except 24k will be a available in the store. Hoping the seed banks will take some heat off the store so people won't have to fight for it, but I would be prepared for battle anyway.

where "these" is 24 Carat, Orange Diesel, Forum Stomper, 3 Bears OG, Double Grape, Crème De La Chem, Fugue State, Mystery Mix, and Ripley’s OG.
Previously:

I plan on doing an official announcement soon. The first few drops of the year for the US store will take place on seedbanks. We got our asses kicked the last two events and need seed banks to try and help take the load off the main store.

All orders from the US Illuminauto Release have been shipped, but the postal system is a mess right now and many may still be delayed.
Also:

24 carat is drying and should be ready next time the US store opens. Ripleys, SOH, HBH, Pink Panama are all making seeds right now, will see them to start the year,

What other US-based seedbanks have stock?

Supreme seedback restock.
See the US Distributors/Retailers page. The US store is restocking seedbanks on a regular basis now. For the last five months, at least one of those seedbanks has always had Mephisto strains in stock, and usually several.
Seedbank packs are (usually) sealed, and each seedbank handles freebies differently. (The freebies may be from other auto or photo breeders.)
On AFN, stan said:

1x, 3x will still be the preferred pack size on our store front. Seed banks prefer the 7x but I have been pushing them to take 3 packs.

and:

Limited editions will be likely be in March. The new Reservas should hit seed banks in 2 weeks.

What about the Canadian store?

Canadian Store Bundle Sale, Friday January 29, 2021 at 12 p.m. Eastern (EST), see the post for details.
The Canadian store previously opened Saturday Jan. 23, with available stock, but they're still waiting on restocks. They will reopen once Saturday's orders are done processing, which will also give time for the restocks to arrive. They are also producing seeds in Canada now, so as those batches finish they will also increase supply.
Canadian Store Opening Information:

The Canadian store is still waiting on a number of restock items, but we wanted to go ahead and open the store with what is available. Some items are limited and may be quick to sell out.
Opening Date and Time – Saturday, January 23 - 1:30pm EST
Terms and Conditions
We will open the store again in February when all orders have processed, and shipping issues have been dealt with.
The payment methods available for this event are limited to Debit/CC and Bitcoin. Info about payment methods - https://www.mephistogenetics.com/info/payments
Please allow 10 BUSINESS days for your order to process and ship. An order status of processing means your payment has been approved and is awaiting shipment. You will receive a tracking email once your order has shipped.
Orders are processed on a first come, first served basis, first paid first shipped basis.
Please take care when placing your order, we are not able to add on/remove items or make other changes to your order. All sales are FINAL.
Please double check your shipping address. We ARE NOT accountable for missing orders if the address provided is incorrect.

Some of the US Distributors/Retailers also ship to Canada -- Harvest Mutual, maybe more.
Seed production in Canada is in progress:

Also just finished our first reproduction run in Canada. Hopefully after a few more runs Canada will have a good base stock to work from and items will not sell out so fast.

What about the EU, UK, and Worldwide stores?

The Worldwide website says

World Store Back / 13th Feb 11pm AEDT

and the UK website says

UK store back 13th Feb Midday GMT

and the EU says

1pm CET

11pm AEDT = 1pm CET = 12 pm UTC/GMT.
Strain list:

Chemdogging, Hubbabubbahaze, Forum Stomper, Fugue State, Northern Cheese Haze, Samsquanch OG, Skywalker, Super Orange Haze, Canna-Cheese 1:1, Double Grape, ManBearAlienPig.

Strain and Grow-Off Info

What is this freebie I got? Is there info about it? Has anybody grown it?

Check the Monthly Freebie Crosses Thread, which is now linked on the sidebar. Also try searching the subreddit.

What Grow-Offs and contests are in progress?

• Reserva Grow-Off -> submission thread (locked) -> winners!
  
• Freebie Cross Grow-Off -> submission thread (locked) -> winners!
  
• Mephisto Pumpkin Carving Contest -> submission thread -> winners.
  

Is a strain guide update in progress?

On AFN, stan said:

Our farm friend who did the latest update to the strain guide has some serious health issues atm. We have started it but it has taken a back seat for now. I would love to get it updated especially with the new up coming releases.

Does anybody have the 1:1 CBD Canna-Cheese strain description?

While the strain guide hasn't been updated since it was released, this post has a copy of the 1:1 CBD Canna-Cheese strain description.

Does anybody have Reserva strain descriptions?

Reserva Strain descriptions.

What about the Livers bx1 description? What does "bx1" mean?

Livers bx1 description.
"bx1" means backcross -- Mephisto's Auto Livers strain was crossed back to the photoperiod Livers cut and then worked for four generations to re-stabilize the autoflowering trait, but with even more of the Livers traits otherwise.

How do the different strain groups (Originals, Artisanals, Limiteds, Reserva, Illuminautos, Medicinals) differ?

• Originals: Mephisto's first collection of auto strains, which they've been breeding and refining for about a decade.
  
• Artisanals: Newer photo-to-auto breeding projects, based on the Originals (or other Artisanals) and elite photoperiod cuts.
  
• Illuminautos: A test bed for experimental crosses.
  
• Limiteds: F1 crosses of Originals and/or Artisanals. These are usually one-off releases. Some were previously available as Illuminautos or freebies.
  
• Reserva: Re-releases of older strains, usually Limiteds or Illuminautos that became very popular.
  
• Medicinals: High CBD (or 1:1 THC:CBD) strains. Currently there is only Canna-Cheese, but more are in the works.
  

Affiliates

What's the deal with Night Owl? Does Daz work for Mephisto? Is there a strain guide?

Night Owl is an independent auto breeder who did some breeding work for Mephisto several years ago -- the strain guide mentions GBD (Daz) doing early work on Cosmic Queen and Sour Stomper -- though now he just runs their instagram and represents them at events. Many of his strains are partially based on Mephisto's genetics.
There is now a subreddit specifically for Night Owl -- nightowlseeds. Announcements will go there from now on.
Night Owl sells directly through The Seed Bazaar, and indirectly through various other seedbanks. See his instagram for more details.
There isn't a strain guide yet, and info tends to disappear from TSB as things sell out, but u/BlueJayin has been collecting strain details in a google doc.

What about Chef Anna?

stan:

The relationship between mephisto and chef anna goes way back before I even starting working with mephisto. He has done a lot to spread the word of mephisto so we continue that relationship to this day.
To say we "support him" is very broad. He is an advertising partner and he purchases seeds from us to resale as a white label variety.

also:

Chef was an advertising partner with us for a while, currently we do not have any deals/partnerships in place with him.

Chef Anna has his own subreddit, ChefAnnaWithTheSub.

What about some other breeder I saw with Mephisto lines / crosses?

stan:

We do have an active relationship with James Loud not anyone else though.

There are a few other breeders that have collaborated with Mephisto in the past, such as Mainely Autos (not much info on them...), but there are also "basement breeders" that are chucking pollen and selling F1 or F2 seeds as a cash grab. Making seeds is the easy part -- it takes work not to! The real breeding work is in selection, especially over several generations.

What about RocBud? Didn't they sell an F1 with Jammy Dodgers?

stan:

Not a collab with us.

also:

none of the current mephisto breeders have any relationship with Roc. Seems like Roc likes to stretch the truth a bit.

No, it’s not Rainbow Driver 😛 /s
Robot Girl packs a punch. With Watermellon Og/Afgooey x Cookies and Cream genetics, this lady has a very unique, renown lineage and her effects are much more suggestible to your mood/intention than you would think.
In my opinion, the most beautiful and appealing strain that The Botanist offers (picked up from AC location). Sorry, I don’t have any pictures to share but I will post again when I re-up on this stuff (which I will, for sure. Only one I look for from them).
Absolutely trichome - laden and frosty, large heads are visible everywhere and her buds are absolutely enormous. Not as big as GMO cookies I’ve seen but it’s up there. The colors range from a pale green to a deep purple and the hairs are bright orange. Hard as a rock and slightly crispy on the dry.
The nose on this begins with a fruity watermelon with an undertone of dank, cakey undertone that makes you want a second whiff in order to take it all in. Super fruity, just sniffed it again lol.
And for the smoke, it tasted just like watermelon and kush. I love it, as any kush is awesome for me. The high is instantaneous with the initial hit, a blast of euphoria directly to the brain, almost narcotic. You have to sit down, I’d say, for a few minutes after hitting it, just pondering life or your plans for the day. At night, coming up with ideas or things you want to do the next day.
The next stage of the high is based more on your energy level upon consumption. If you’re awake and ready to go, then you’ll get done whatever you’re planning on doing. If you’re getting ready for bed, then you’ll be tired enough for bed. It’s hard to go overboard on this stuff too, as I find music to have more depth and I’m very uplifted in my mood. When smoking RBG I’m not paranoid or completely lost, either.
Overall I’d recommend this strain if you live near either of the Botanist locations, or you can’t get an appointment to BW and you see this on the menu at The Botanist.
Personally I think they do a pretty good job at The Botanist, but I haven’t been to BW (yet).
Thanks and I hope this was helpful, I look forward to writing my Breakwater strain reviews at the end of the month!

My Personal Cannabis Review
Disclaimer: I am by no means claiming to be a Cannabis Connoisseur or expert. I am just simply sharing my perspective with anyone who is interested in reading my opinions/experiences. I will try to be brief, straight to the point and mention details that I think are important to note in relation to cannabis consumption and balancing anonymity.
BIO:
I’m a trilingual 32-year-old Asian-American male, born and raised in the states. I come from a stable middle-class household in the suburbs. I’ve had no predisposition to trauma nor physical/mental illnesses. I’ve had a lovely childhood and been extremely blessed to live a good life. I am 6-feet tall and weigh 155 lbs. I hold a college degree from a really good university, traveled to many countries, and have a blue belt in jiu-jitsu. I didn’t try cannabis until I was 26 years old. However, heavy and daily usage didn’t begin until I was 30.
Cannabis strains that I’ve tried:
Flower: (All flower consumed through a vaporizer, never combustion):
Mendo Purps, Gorilla Glue #4, Jet Fuel OG, Girl Scout Cookies, Purple Diesel, Race Fuel OG, Sundae Driver, Pucker, Gelato, Lemon Tree, Blue Dream. All previously mentioned flower strains come from legal dispensaries from Toronto and Michigan.
Concentrates:
Oil cartridges: Sky Walker OG, Wedding Cake, Sex on the Beach, Member Berry, Banana OG, Blue Dream, Gelato #33 and #45, Orange Blend, Sherbaciao, God’s Gift, Green Crack
Wax: Gelato, Forbidden Venom (Consumed through a portable dab pen)
Capsules: 1:1 thc/cbd and 5mg Indica capsules
All previous concentrates and capsules come from legal dispensaries from Toronto, Michigan, Colorado, and California.
How has cannabis helped me? I don’t know where to start but I’ll just start from whatever pops to my head first, that is, cannabis literally saved my marriage. It has taught me to be unselfish, compassionate, and intimate towards my spouse. Cannabis also gave me the patience and tolerance to deal with my extended family such as uncles, siblings, nieces, and nephews. I don’t necessarily feel proud to say that because I should be that way anyway without cannabis but also at the same time, I can’t take any credit away from this versatile and complex plant. Medicinally, it has helped my aches and pains from everyday life and especially the body soreness from jiu-jitsu. It also helped me sleep. Strangely enough, it has also helped me grow closer to my best friends and simply accept them for who they are. Cannabis helped me with creativity with regards to video editing. It has also helped me become a better gamer.
How has cannabis not helped me? All of the reasons I’m about to note are due to my lack of discipline with this plant and does not point fault towards cannabis per se. It’s more so has to do with laziness and unproductivity due to my excessive consumption. With that being said, in my personal humble opinion that relates to me and only me, cannabis consumption has to be moderate in order for me to truly enjoy and benefit from. Heavy and daily use made me procrastinate and lazy. I also felt my anxiety increasing as time went on. I used to study languages daily and was making great strides but cannabis affected my ability to study. However, anxiety, laziness, and study habits were hindered only sometimes, not all the time. I mean that my self-growth and development was inconsistent with many highs and lows.
Other important points to mention: Tolerance breaks and addiction was not an issue for me at all. I only experienced difficulty sleeping, hot and cold sweats, irritability, and lack of appetite. These symptoms quickly went away after a week or so. I never gained weight on cannabis but did have issues with overeating, especially fast food. This review was written on a tolerance break.
Thank you for reading. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to post them below and I will address them.
TLDR: I’ve learned that cannabis is a versatile and complex plant. Cannabis saved my marriage, helped me deal with family/people, and aided my physical ailments. Overconsumption hindered my lifestyle and if I want to be completely honest with myself, I must consume moderately in order to enjoy it.

It's a lot easier to use than I thought it would. I left the pre-installed restrictor disk in it, and threw the cork in as well. Second hit was massive and consistent hits every time. I've smoked three bowls, two smaller (about 10% full, enough to cover the screen) and one big (almost half of the capacity). The big bowl I got hit with so much vapor it looked like I hit my 0.4ohm Smok Nord 2, and greened me out hard. So yeah, the learning curve isn't bad at all although I did watch/read a plethora of reviews and howtos. Still, I'm a complete novice!
Came in super secure and discreet packaging, arrived relatively quickly, and the company I bought from included some candy and other cute things in my package. Oh, and their free grinder worked pretty damn well, not bad! Can't say anything negative about PuffItUp at all. Only regret is not using one of their coupons on my purchase (pulled the trigger before I knew!) aha.
The device itself exudes quality craftsmanship. It's very attractive and is honestly pretty fun to operate. It has a touch of old-world class and looks kind of like a desk toy or artistic novelty until you use it. And when you're high as a kite, which you damn sure will be with this little beast, it's kind of a tactile fidget spinner that's nice to admire. It feels smaller in person than the pictures make it seem and folding the mouthpiece back over the device is handy. The magnets are powerful without being overly hard to operate.
Still dialing in how many hits I can get per bowl. Right now it's looking like 4-6 or so before the vapor production starts to drop off, the herb fully browns, and the taste turns a bit sour. Speaking of, this thing tastes great otherwise! The overall profile is lot more nuanced and the strain I was using (purple cookie I think?) tasted like a yummy black tea or something. The vapor is light, airy, and dense -- it can get warm enough to still hit your throat and cause you to cough -- but the cough from this doesn't linger or feel quite as overall unhealthy and hard.
Haven't combusted in it yet and the herb seems to have been baked remarkably even. Kind of wanna try the bubbler now. But yeah, this thing absolutely hits like a truck and really earned my respect. Thanks for the recommendation guys! I feel like I might end up with more vapes soon, haha.

what up guys welcome to CCC I'm Shane I'm Danny and we're back for a concentrate movie today I know you thought I was gonna say strain review but we're Davin we're Davin we got some [ __ ] frosting nug man times straight organics Rasen that I've way overpaid for them how can I this done was really expensive guys and you know to be honest we're not huge rosin fans but we're still trying to give it a shot so that's why I picked this up yeah I know there's a ton of viewers out there especially nowadays that are super heavy on the rosin we've been getting a ton of requests that do concentrate reviews but rosin reviews especially so we're gonna try to start doing more of them like Dan was saying this is a collaboration between frosting nub men and straight organics the flavor is SW og what the hell is that again watermelon strawberry watermelon oh gee I don't know I haven't smoked this flavor before I think it's a strawberry grew up and a watermelon OG cross at first when I saw that name honestly I figured it was just like run or something but apparently that is a strain that I'm gonna try before god damn it tastes pretty [ __ ] good obviously knock my socks off oh my god packaging is interesting this stuff is made from ninety micron bubble hash right yeah probably some pretty good melt to begin with was already you know used for the starting material on this stuff oh it's definitely strong do tell these concentrated views are always the funniest videos because we can't even talk than [ __ ] a half if you guys doubt out there you know we're talking about that [ __ ] especially a wake-and-bake such like this first half of the day first out of the day I'm still on sweat got dad stains on my sweats and concentrates me dad in the best you know everything but whoa straight to the [ __ ] forehead dude the effect is great you know the flavor is pretty good but I feel like I feel like Jay Mike is just as good if not better so my knock on Roz bubble hash Rosen has always been it basically just tastes like bubble hash to me you know I'm saying it does and for me for whatever reason I like the high a little bit better off just regular a really really really good pull man but then all of a stop up they were gonna be like you know Robin melted rosin rosin pressed from 90 you is just gonna be better than the 90 years gonna have less you know plant material in it and other things that are in bubble but okay man I still like the bubble I still like the way it melts clear domes this is more like a you know a batter or BHO almost you know what it is I feel like every single time I travel buzzing made from bubble hash I always end up thinking okay now I want a double hash tag I would it's the only concentrate or when I smoke it I am curious to smoke the starting material yeah I smoked pho I mean maybe if it's you know I guess that's not true sometimes if I smoked some really good you know oil all like man I wish I could see the weed that that came from but right whenever I smoke good hash bras in the moments like okay I want to smoke the actual hash and see if I like that better so another thing big thing about rosin for me and I think maybe why I haven't been on the train as much especially the last year in California is like it's expensive this was what 70 to $100 a gram to get stuff like this as far as market value in California where this was selling for forty dollars a gram out the door at Colorado you know 125 for this that's insane now I'm just saying in mind guys we wouldn't tell you right now it's not worth it for me I would never pay anywhere close to 100 grams for this no for me to want to smoke every once in a while we'll go out of kind of our normal you know budget or just kind of did we do something a little different than what we would normally look for if we were just shopping for personal smoke when we're trying to find stuff for videos so that's why sometimes we'll throw a number out there oh this [ __ ] costs 80 dollars a gram 100 ollars a gram and you guys look at us like we're crazy right I wouldn't buy this again no I'm just gonna come out and say that and that being said these are two really high-quality companies that I respect that put out pretty much nothing but quality so it's not a knock on them it's just the market and the product itself I mean if that's where you gotta sell it out to make a profit then damn and I get it that it was in this in the city so you know rents obviously gonna be higher than stuff we know we consider all these factors but we really really just picked this up to review for you guys this is way outside of our budget you know book we do we do come out of pocket quite a bit for the show and this stuff was definitely pricey but shout out to straight organics frosting that man definitely grateful AB but you know if I if I had to break this stuff overall I'm probably gonna go with like a solid 7.5 the the best thing on it is the effect definitely got me super high whoo yeah yeah I bit off a little more than I could chew it thing me too so rosin the when it comes to the rating the big spot that always loses points for me is flavor yeah so this honestly the best rosin and I remember as far as like you know quality as far as just like the metal the high the smells in Terps the Samoa cookies that we got made from our grown car it was that logic right right I'm sure that was some of the best bras and I've ever had I've ever tried whether that being said the flavor is really not that different from you know I can't discern different flavors on screens as well Rasen as I can with flowers or full mil I'll tell you about this this guy it's got my mouth like straight dry as [ __ ] I'm like got straight cottonmouth definitely super cerebral high right it's honestly kind of kind of sativa tea for me I feel like I definitely need to like go do something sucks cuz it's raining outside but yeah I mean it's a it's definitely a strong but it's a good bus again I know that part of it I don't even if I feel like I don't know about you but me personally I have less experience with rosin than with all other forms of concentrates flower right so sometimes I feel not as confident giving like a real solid opinion on Roz and yet overall yeah so if you guys I shout out to all the rosin aficionados out there that watch this show especially if you're in California if you guys have tried something that you think can change our minds put it down there in the comments let us know what is the best rosin that you've ever tried personally give us any leads to you know some fire ask Rosalyn because we're definitely on the lookout for it not saying that this isn't fire but you know when when judging this hash critically you know against BHO against Jay Mike you know I got to give it a 7.5 it's interesting you said that because I was just thinking in my head like how are we supposed to rate these when we rate because when I rate a flower I only rate it against other flower you know so I'm thinking but sometimes when I bring a concentrated I kind of group everything together but maybe I need to think about this just as compared to other rasa I think it's overall dude concentrates a concentrate whether it's no matter the extraction method you know it's a concentrate that's how I judge it yeah because I would say if you break those two categories of differently my numbers would be different just based on personal preference like overall concentrates I think you're 7.5 for me personally that's pretty good rating for this right for rosin I'd give it a nine or something like it is it's as good as any other rosin that I've tried pretty much it's one of the better rosin on track for sure but when stacking it up against you know some Jay Mike you know Boston j-mac tip we're gonna review soon and to be honest we took a dab of that and it tastes better I liked it a little bit better it was a little bit cheaper this stuff had a different consistency when we got it it obviously it's right up yeah so we picked it up and we didn't actually get to take it home and do the close-ups on him for like 24-48 hours so it was yeah it kicked up right away but it looked awesome when we got it right yeah I don't know I think solid overall but I definitely want to try more rosin and get a better feel for it before I just like come out definitively and say that it's my least favorite right well what's your Regan I'm gonna go with an 8 on this guy an 8 ok that's that's pretty fair definitely shout out to straight organics frosting Eggman go follow them wherever they are follow us make sure you like subscribe do all that damn stuff that you're supposed to do down there all the buttons yeah and we'll be back for another one of these probably next week that's right so if you want to check that one out check in with us next week it's gonna be a full melt Friday that's right full melt bubble hash right here on the channel and yeah I hope everybody's smoking purple push out their GDP purple Arkell great bait something dark it darling would be ideal just smoke some grapes today for us guys all right and smash that like we're gone [Music]

A. Intro; "Holy crap dude, why is this post so long? What’s the point?”

I get this question a lot, and I feel like answering this is a pretty appropriate way to start this post off.
The short answer? I feel like people deserve a well-written and informed answer for a complicated problem like Scoliosis.
Theoretically, I could have just made this post in entirely in a bullet-point format like many have suggested, but it would've been like everyone else's “quick and easy” to read posts that weren't good enough for me when I was trying to find solutions for myself. There's nothing wrong with a quick list of personal experience and suggestions, and they do give helpful very information, but that's all people took the time to write when I was trying to find information on this very same subreddit two years ago, and it wasn't enough. I missed so much background information and wasted so much time on things that could've been avoided if someone had taken the time to share and explain their story to me, what they struggled with, and how they made it through it all. Most people on this subreddit, for better or worse, condense their knowledge into a sentence or two. This makes it exceedingly easy to read and motivational and they therefor get a better response, but it’s at the expense of leaving out important experiences and information that could be life changing. When I say life changing, I’m not exaggerating; I literally almost gave up on my life entirely simply because I didn't have enough information to truly understand how things could get better, and what the people had to go through to achieve what I was striving for. Since I didn’t have enough information, I thought I was unfixable, doomed to eternal pain and insecurities. The experience I share here and the massive amount of information I provide here is exactly what I needed and couldn’t find two years ago. The point of this post is to talk about that background information so people can understand the whole picture, instead of getting a quick sugar-coated two sentence explanation on how to “cure” your problem.
The goal of this post is not to make it quick and easy to read and comprehend. That's what everybody else does, and it didn’t help me enough. The condition itself isn't quick and easy to fix or manage. The goal of this post is to prevent as many people from going down the same road I went down myself, and to help you learn how to find your own solutions. In the ~6 months this post has been active, it has been pretty successful in achieving that goal.
With that said, I’ve still had to condense my 4+ years of knowledge and experience into this single post. It would be impossible to write out every single thing I’ve encountered over the 4+ years, so I’ve tried to hit the highlights and share what would’ve helped me. I've hit over double the max characters for a post now that I'm finished (Maybe triple with the stuff I keep adding), and I'll have to continue this post in several segments in the comments below.
Before we get into it, I want to make it clear I know do not know everything, and my goal here is not to tell you what to do. You are not going to find some “miracle solution” for pain management here, and I cannot tell you how to cure Scoliosis. Instead, I will explain what I’ve tried over the past 4 years, my approach to pain management and finding solutions, what has and hasn’t worked for me, what could work for you, and finally how I've achieved pain management that allows me to live almost like a normal person. Additionally, I will be talking about the mental struggles that come along with condition, along with other topics like motivation, depression, and how I deal with it all.
I will also say this many times throughout this post, but I am not a doctor, I am just a normal 19-year-old guy that happened to spend the past 4 years dealing with Scoliosis, like a lot of other people on here. I don’t have a uniquely crazy story that makes my opinion worth more. I have no credentials or research to back any of this up, only my experience. Almost everyone on this subreddit is just a normal person looking for answers just like you and me. Because of this, take what I say, and what anyone says here with a grain of salt. We do not have some higher form of knowledge that grants us the right to make decisions for you. All we can do is speak from personal experience and share our opinions. Do your own research, and do not let any one person form your opinions for you. Make the best decision that makes sense for you, and not because not some random person on the internet told you so. Your search for answers should not end here on this subreddit with us.
This post will be mostly focusing on treating muscular pain, tension, and spasm pains caused by scoliosis. I also talk about nerve pain to an extent (more on that in a second), along with the mental struggles Scoliosis can cause, and a couple of curve progression management suggestions. Overall, this more specifically aimed toward people that have not had any Scoliosis surgeries. While I believe some of my suggestions would work very well for you if you’re post-surgery, since I haven’t had the surgery myself, I can’t guarantee that any of this stuff will be just as safe for you as it is for me. I wish I had the experience to give specific advice on post-surgery problems as well, but I simply just do not have the knowledge or experience to make an informed opinion or hand out advice on the subject. Use your best judgement, ask your surgeon/doctor questions, and decide what you’re willing to try. I say this post is recommended for people that are having nerve pain for a very specific reason; A lot of people think they have nerve pain, but actually suffer from muscular pain that only feels like nerve pain. I always recommend people that think they are suffering from nerve try some muscular pain management options, just to see if that is their problem. Scoliosis can cause actual nerve pain, but since I do not suffer from it myself, I don’t have any recommendations on how to treat it. There are plenty of people on this subreddit that do, however; so definitely browse around and find some people to talk to. A further disclaimer- The physical differences between males an females may play a roll in your experience and different treatments. I'm in the minority of male people with Scoliosis, so take into account as well.

B. Confused? Overwhelmed? Here’s a little help;

Everything is labeled appropriately so you can skip to what you need. In order to get the full picture I still suggest to read through the full post, but if there is a specific piece of information you’re looking for, please feel free to jump around and use this post how you wish.
Please keep in mind, reddit's linking system for comments isn't fantastic. You may have to scroll down a little bit to find what I'm linking, but the comment should be highlighted.
A full index/guide of this post;
Part 1
A. Intro
B. Index (You’re here!)
C. Why should I care what you have to say?
D. My Story and Experiences
Part 2
E. The decisions you will make now will effect you for the rest of your life. Treat them with theseriousness they deserve; My attitude and approach towards Scoliosis management, and how Ihandle information.
Part 3
E. The Decisions You Make…
F. Pain Management Suggestions #1-#3. Hot showers/Baths, Icepacks/Heating Pads, Laying down.
Part 4
F. Pain Management Suggestions #4-#5. Yoga, Tennis/Massage ball.
Part 5
F. Pain Management Suggestions #5-6. Tennis/Massage ball, Theracane.
Part 6
F. Pain Management Suggestions #6. Theracane.
G. Pain Management and Curvature Progression Management Suggestions. The Expensive, In-Depth, and Occasionally Risky Treatments, #7-#8. Chiropractic, Massage Therapy.
Part 7
G. In- Depth Pain/Curvature Management Suggestions, #8-#12. Massage Therapy, Lidocane/Lidoderm patches, Muscle Relaxers, Graston, Psychosomatic Pain Therapy.
Part 8
G. In-Depth Pain/Curvature Management Suggestions, #13. Scolismart.
H. Misc. Every-Day Equipment to Combat Muscle Tension and Pain, #14-#17. Armaid, C-Pillow, Purple Harmony, Sleeping Arrangement, Herman Miller Chair, Hyperice Equipment.
Part 9
H. Misc. Every-Day Equipment #17-#20. Adjustable Minidesk, Purple Back Cushion, Avatar: The Last Airbender.
I. Honorable Mentions (Stuff I recommend looking into for pain and curvature management, but that I don't know much about personally.)
Part 10
J. Finally, my Final Thoughts.
Part 11
K. Just kidding, I'm never finished talking.
L. Additional Links (Bunch of other helpful posts from fellow reddditors, along with the honorable mentions)
M. Motivation, and How I Managed to Keep Living.
N. The Insecurities, and Cosmetic Struggles.

C. Why should you care what I have to say?

I don’t know. You’re the one that clicked on the post, and I literally just told you two paragraphs ago all of our opinions are subjective, and I have absolutely no credentials to back this stuff up! Why are you here?!
In all seriousness; experience, knowledge, and opinions are worth something, especially when it is hard to find good proven methods on how to manage this stuff. You still have to consider everyone is biased in one way or another, myself included, and our experiences and opinions aren’t going to capture the whole picture on any given subject. Doing your own research and getting information from multiple sources is a vital part of the process when you're trying to find something that will work for you. But, by learning through someone else’s trials and errors, it can help you to shortcut through a lot of the guessing and frustration of this process, and get pointed directly toward stuff that has worked for someone else and find something that might help sooner, or rule out options at a much quicker pace. Fortunately, I’ve tried a pretty wide variety of stuff I can share, compare and discuss, so that will most likely be the biggest benefit of reading this post.
Something I have noticed over the few months is a significant amount of people that deal with Scoliosis find a single thing that helps them manage it, and then stop looking and move on. Once they find a little bit of improvement, they are satisfied, and it’s almost like “there’s nothing more to find.” There is nothing wrong with that mentality if it works for you, but I see that mentality resurfacing all the time on this subreddit when people will ask for pain management options, and people only have a random blurb to share. There’s definitely a lot of amazing people on this subreddit that share extremely valuable and good information, but a lot of the time you’ll get 6 different comments with seemingly random and vague suggestions, and it makes it difficult for the person on the receiving end when they’re trying to decipher these random suggestions and weigh options. There’s nothing wrong with these vague suggestions, and people mean well by them, but for someone that is trying to find something that works for them, somebody randomly saying “Try swimming!” with no little to no context doesn’t help much when you’re trying to compare and weigh options. At least, that’s how it was for me.
Almost having enough pain relief, just doing one thing that helps me get by isn’t good enough for me. I personally find it sad when someone stops short of finding more pain relief, and they're satisfied with just barely making it through the pain on a daily basis. I have to keep experimenting and finding new ways to treat my pain until I can live like a normal person, and I think a lot of other people will have that same motivation if they know it's possible, and can get useful information. I’m hoping this post is more helpful than just random blurbs and vague suggestions; I’ve tried to explain what has/hasn’t worked for me, why it did/didn’t work for me, the attitude and mindset I’ve used to be productive and find pain relief, in a safe and effective way. Again, I’m not a doctor, I don’t have a degree in this stuff, so do your own research and make sure whatever you’re doing is safe for you- don’t put your safety and future decisions solely in the hands of a single random internet guy like me.

D. My story and experience with Scoliosis;

My Scoliosis was “officially” diagnosed on 10/19/2016 by a scoliosis/orthopedic surgeon when I had this x-ray taken, and I was 15 at the time. Even though that’s when I was officially diagnosed, I had been feeling the pain for a few months before that, and it had started to affect my ability to focus on things and my school work. The day I was diagnosed, I was immediately recommended surgery since I was past the age where a brace would help and my Scoliosis was likely going to keep progressing, and it was scheduled for that December, 12/30/2016. A couple of weeks beforehand, the surgeon had me take some extra X-rays to help him plan out the surgery and get an idea of what he would be working with. Because of these X-rays, he determined that my scoliosis affected me less physically than most (I was able to bend and move more freely), and my scoliosis was “balanced.” In combination of my scoliosis being balanced, and my growth plates being closed which made it unlikely for me to grow much more, he determined that surgery wasn’t necessary, and my scoliosis would likely stop progressing. The surgery was canceled two weeks before the set date, and he sent me off to physical therapy for pain management.
I attended physical therapy for a couple of hours twice a week, for 6 months. At first, the physical therapist was confident they could solve my issues. However once insurance decided they weren’t going to cover it anymore around the 6 month mark, the physical therapist admitted that they had never seen a case of Scoliosis as bad as mine, and they couldn’t do anything more for me. The physical therapists had strengthened my core muscles with little results, they were only capable of providing me with extremely temporary pain relief through an E-Stim machine which eventually stopped working, and my pain was only getting worse. I get an appointment with my Scoliosis surgeon to determine what’s next. He admits he doesn’t know what to do for me either; as far as he knows, “Scoliosis doesn’t cause pain,” and he doesn’t have any knowledge or any resources to help me.
After that, my parents and I start looking for different solutions. I begin to regularly visit another physical therapist that has skills with more creative treatment; cupping, taping, the Graston technique, and some forms of massage therapy. This is the first time I get good results; my pain is reduced significantly and I’m able to mostly go about my daily activities with friends and focus on school. After about 7 or 8 months, this suddenly stops working and I’m back to square one. During this time, I also had been working on a farm, and the physical labor seemed to help strengthen my back and make the pain easier to manage. Unfortunately, after some awkward events with the people at the farm, I stopped going there about a month after I stopped seeing this physical therapist. With both of my current pain management solutions gone, my pain was getting worse than ever before.
From here, I go looking for Chiropractic solutions. The first I see does not provide any results, and the second was a dangerously reckless older man that did lazy cookie-cutter Chiropractic. Finally, I landed on my third Chiropractor, and he was running a family-owned Chiropractic clinic with an in-house massage therapist. Together, they became the best pain management I had so far, and it worked very consistently.
I visited them once a week for months, and after a particularly productive massage session a few months in, for the first time in nearly 2 years, I had absolutely no tension, and no pain anywhere. I felt like myself for the first time in almost two years, it was perfect bliss, and better than I ever imagined. I slept well for the first time in two years, I was instantly more productive and attentive towards schoolwork. I was living in heaven for those two days.
I woke up on the third day after this “miracle” massage, and my pain had started to edge back in. “But this is expected” I told myself. While I was disappointed, I understood it couldn’t last forever, I had to work to maintain this progress. At first it gave me immeasurable confidence that I could actually achieve a pain free life, and I was headed in the right direction to reach that goal.
But the weeks went by and the next “breakthrough” never came, despite our best efforts. Later I would come to realize I needed to put even more effort into maintaining the pain relief than I had achieved briefly, and I hadn’t been strict enough with myself as I should’ve been in order to keep this progress. At the time though, I didn’t understand why I couldn’t achieve the next “breakthrough.” My pain started getting worse again without being able to reach that same miraculous pain relief. Eventually, I regretted ever having those two perfect days. It was like the Scoliosis was taunting me; it gave me a taste of what I was missing, and then took it and locked it away. At first those two days gave me hope and motivation to keep trying, a taste of what was to come if I just kept moving forward, but after few weeks and months past, I convinced myself there was no way to maintain that peaceful bliss despite how hard I tried or worked. It had to have been a random fluke that would be impossible to replicate again. Those two days of heaven were the most effective and ingenious way to torture me, taunt me, and drain all my hope and motivation away. The contrast of feeling the “undeniable” proof I was so close to my goal, so close to a pain-free life, and then snapped almost instantly back to my normal reality was too devastating for me. I was lucky I was homeschooled, because for the next two weeks I did nothing but sit at my computer playing games all day to distract myself from the pain, and realization that I hadn’t actually finally found the solution to my pain. Even though my pain was objectively the same as it had been since I started with the massage therapist, it came back with what seemed like renewed strength and stubbornness.
Unfortunately, shortly after this, and a total of 6 months after I had started with my massage therapist and chiropractor, I had to leave home for 4 months to take care of my grandparents, and I was unable to see my Chiropractomassage therapist during that time. Even if I was able to achieve that breakthrough again in the near future despite my uncertainties, all of the progress we made was erased during those 4 months. While I was with my grandparents, I consistently had massages from someone that did “sport” massages. While it helped at first, about two months into my stay with my grandparents, my pain had reverted back and it was just as bad as almost a year before. I had taken up painting miniatures and started drawing while at my grandparents and I became obsessed with it, but those activities only made my back pain worse than anything else.
Once I returned home, all the progress I had made with my Chiropractor and massage therapist at home was completely lost. Sitting uncomfortably and sleeping on a bed that was bad for me for 4 months, drawing and painting, and having helped drive several 32 hour round trips between my house and my grandparent’s did a massive toll on my muscles, and they were tighter and more painful than ever before. I had been set back so drastically my masseuse said I felt like an entirely different person, and they had to begin the process of learning how to treat my body all over again.
I set up an appointment with a new Scoliosis/Orthopedic specialist for x-rays, because I feared my Scoliosis had started progressing again. After finding my curves to be exactly the same as they were nearly two years prior, my new specialist happily busted into the room, sat down with a massive smile on face while slapping his knees, and told me he had some great news. Confused, I asked what was up, and he then excitedly informed me that "Your Scoliosis isn't the source of your pain!" when I asked what the source was then, he told me he didn't know, and he had no recommendations for me other than Yoga, but it "simply couldn't be the Scoliosis." Once he realized I was unconvinced by his wonderful news, his attitude changed immediately. He then started to strongly suggest that since I was young and otherwise healthy, I must just be over exaggerating my symptoms. He then heavily implied directly to my mother sitting right beside me, that I needed to get over it and move on with my life. I was beyond furious and said nothing for the rest of the appointment, but I honestly wished he was right. It would’ve been so much easier if I had just been making it up.
Despite the specialist's certainty my pain was imaginary, my pain still continued to progress to new heights, and my massage therapist felt the physical representation of that progression. After a few more months, my massage therapist voiced her concerns that she was having a lot of trouble making progress, and she felt like she was beating her head against a wall. For every step forward, there was two steps backward. Part of the problem was because I was attempting to have a normal life and putting my back under strain it wasn’t used to; I was pursuing art and dual enrolling in a nearby community college where I was in class about 8 hours every week, then coming home and painting/drawing/sculpting for a few hours a week. Even though in the grand scheme of things that isn’t much time, it absolutely ruined my back. I was barely able to make it through the classes, let alone the couple of hours I had to spend on projects at home. I loved the classes, but I paid a heavy price for them.
I was so tight and in so much pain all the time that I got very little sleep, I zoned out frequently, and narrowly avoided causing a car accident at 60-70 mph that would’ve killed both myself and many other people because I couldn’t pay attention to the road. In addition to little sleep, I couldn’t just relax and play video games anymore like I had been doing to escape the pain because of the excitement; an intense moment in a game could lead to my muscles suddenly tightening and causing painful tension, which would mean another sleepless night. This lead to me being isolated from my friends; they knew something was wrong, but they couldn’t do much to help. If I sneezed in any position that wasn’t standing straight up and relaxed, my stomach muscles would tense up and I would feel the effects of it for days afterwards. Anything that would involuntarily stiffen or tighten my muscles- even simple things like laughing or crying too much or too strongly would leave me in pain from the muscle tension they caused for days, and sometimes weeks afterwards. Crying was the worst. I couldn't let myself cry. Crying would screw up my back more than anything else. I couldn't even let myself perform the most basic human emotion, I couldn't let out my frustrations without being incapacitated and feeling the after effects from it for weeks. Nearly every emotion I felt had repercussions, so I had to control my emotions to an extreme keep my pain level down. I would get frustrated and emotional because I couldn't do anything, and getting frustrated and emotional only made it worse. It was a devastating cycle.
Even after I had finished my college classes this pain and tension continued, and for months I was unable to do the things I loved- painting, drawing, and sculpting- unless I wanted to pay for it for weeks afterwards. I mostly just sat on the couch in pain watching TV, or white-knuckle through playing games with my friends. This chain of events happened only in the first half of 2019, I was 17, and those 7-8 months were easily the lowest point in my life. My doctors had essentially abandoned me and told me my pain was incurable. Pain management clinics wouldn't accept me because I was "too young." My only consistent pain management had stopped working. I’d been living this miserable life for two and a half years at this point, with no relief in sight. So, the question became; what was I living for? Wouldn't it be better if I just... Ended it? I'm not ashamed to admit that started to seem like the better option. What else could I do? I was dead weight, eating up my parent’s money for treatments I knew would never work. I might as well free up the extra cash for my parents and rid them of my worthless existence.
The Chiropractor and massage therapist made extremely slow and very small improvements in this time until the even the slow improvements came to a stop, which stripped away my motivation to continue to be consistent with my at home treatment, like working with my massage balls or yoga. I think my parents saw I was headed down a very dark road, and they were always encouraging me to try more and new things, and to always stay motivated.
Along with my parent’s encouragement, a few things happened at this point; firstly, my masseuse and Chiropractor finally said I needed more help than what they could provide, and recommended a psychosomatic pain specialist. Their best guess is that I had been in pain for so long that when I finally got some relief from it, my brain was so used to it being there it started making it up and causing it, and a psychosomatic pain specialist could help me mentally block the made-up pain. I made excuses and put seeing a therapist off for a while, until a few different things happened. Around here is when I narrowly missed causing that car accident, I had finally bought a Theracane recommended by my masseuse(Explained below in “pain management”), and I had been watching a TV show repeatedly called Avatar: The Last Airbender ever since I had discovered it while at my Grandparents house. The show was my reason to get up in the morning, something to hold onto, and I was repeatedly re-watching it over and over again- especially on the days when all I could do was sit and watch tv- and it gave me enough strength to really start trying to treat my pain again. The near-accident in the car happened around this time and it was a wake up call for me, and for the first time I truly realized how bad my situation really was and how much worse it could get. It made me realize I was afraid to die. My parents and Avatar gave me the strength to keep moving forward, and the effectiveness of the Theracane was physical proof there were things I hadn’t tried yet that could work, and I could get better, even if it wasn’t perfect.
I finally met with a Therapist experienced with psychosomatic pain personally- she had been dealing with a similar kind of pain herself for over 20 years. Even though she was a little quick to jump to my “nerdy” hobbies and interests as possible causes for the different issues I was having, we got along well enough and had some great and productive conversations. Talking to her and having someone explain to me from experience how to deal with psychosomatic pain helped tremendously. It helped me figure out what part of my pain was made-up in my brain, and what was actually real. Funnily enough, it had turned out that Scoliosis Specialist wasn’t entirely wrong about made-up pain, but I had to be properly treated for it instead of being told to get over it. Even though the normal pain was still just as painful, I was able to block out the extra pain my brain was making up, so I actually started to feel better and have some time where I wasn’t in as much pain. I had started to put a lot of effort into being more consistent in working on my back with my massage ball at home, and this in combination with my Chiropractor and massage therapist made for fantastic results and pain relief, comparable to what I was experiencing before I had left for my grandparents house. I was able to pick painting, sculpting, and drawing back up again, and this time I was able to do these activities for hours on end for days in a row, instead of an hour or two a month like I had been doing for over a year. The day I spent 11 hours drawing some fan art of Avatar: The Last Airbender with manageable repercussions, and then continued work on it and draw for 6-8 hours each day for the next two days was a huge accomplishment for me, even though the drawing turned out pretty sub-par. We’re now at the beginning of this year, 2020, and I was 18.
Covid-19 hits earlier this year, and I have to once again deal with not being able to have my Chiropractor and massage therapist help me on a weekly basis because of quarantine. However, unlike when I lived with my grandparents for those 4 months, I had a full arsenal of tools to manage my pain now and the determination to use them to their fullest; I had been introduced to the Theracane and I was more consistent in working with my massage ball, and I had the benefit of knowing what my psychosomatic pain felt like and how to block it out. I’ve worked and invented ways for me to do the things I love while putting the least amount of strain on my back as possible. Being able to paint, draw, and sculpt with minimal pain because of the progress I’ve made has had my spirits at an all-time-high. I did and still do work on my back every night religiously, and I’ve found ways to sleep and sit better than I ever have before. Because of this, I’ve been able to mostly maintain the progress I’ve made, with only minor setbacks that I can usually recover from.
Back in December 2019, before Covid-19 was even in the picture, I had briefly visited a clinic called Scolismart, where I purchased an activity suit from them and since quarantine started, I’ve been walking in it for about an hour every morning, which was seemingly helping with pain management. Scolismart is a whole other discussion entirely, which is why I made a post about it a month ago. While I didn’t notice much pain relief from it at first, the pain journal I kept showed the constant pain I’m in had lowered from roughly a 6-7/10, to a 3-5/10 over the course of the two weeks I was there. The results happened gradually so they were more difficult to notice at first but the pain relief was certainly there.
By the time I was two months out from my Boot Camp, and the pain relief is much more significant. Since the change was gradual I didn't notice it as much at first, but I'm able to actually skip my normal pain management routine (massage ball, stretching) occasionally with very little drawbacks, which I have not been able to do since my pain started 4 years ago. I also noticed that before I attended Scolismart I was having to use Lidocaine patches on a nightly basis in order to sleep better and get my muscles to relax and ready for the next day, but I literally didn’t use a single lidocaine patch for 3 months after Scolismart, and I still felt great. So, in summary; the further I get out from Scolismart, the more I'm appreciating the results I achieved through it, and I honestly feel better than I have in 4 years.
Now we’re about a year out since Quarantine started, and my pain has certainly increased slowly, but still very manageable. Whereas two years ago I couldn’t draw for more than an hour or two a week, I can easily get 5-6 hours of drawing done every day.
So you have a better idea of what my pain “looks like,” my specific case of Scoliosis gives me muscle pain. This includes but is not limited to; spasms (both non-painful and very painful spasms), muscle tension aka “aching”, cramps/Charlie horses caused by muscle tension, and muscle knots. Right now, even with the pain management solutions I’ve found for myself, I’m still “babysitting” my back daily. Awkwardly picking something up or twisting in a wrong way can cause a cramp pretty easily, and I still have the issues with sneezing, laughing, crying, stress, frustration, ect, but I’m usually capable of showing strong emotions without side effects now. Generally, sitting in anything that isn’t specifically built to be very supportive of your back will cause me pain pretty quickly, and things like reading, writing, painting/drawing anything where you have to look downward pulls the muscles in my back and causes a lot of pain relatively quickly.
To explain how the daily pain feels to me: You know when you've got an itch on your back, and you can't reach it? You can kinda get around it, maybe relieve a little bit of the itch, but you can't completely make it stop itching?
Now imagine you can't describe to another person where exactly this itch is and how to relieve it- it may be underneath a muscle, or tucked somewhere hard to navigate to. Sometimes there's no way to explain to someone how to find the location of itch; you may feel like you know exactly where the itch is, you may feel it on one side of your back, but the cause of the itch may be somewhere else completely.
Now imagine instead of an itch, it's aching muscle pain, which is similar to how your head feels when you've got a head-cold, or tension which is similar to a headache, or a knot that feels like someone is pinching you and causing discomfort...
If that makes any sense, congratulations, you now have a basic understanding of my daily frustration with scoliosis pain!
And that’s it. You’re caught up with my Scoliosis journey. Onto more pressing matters in part 2;

https://imgur.com/a/LdIeAo8
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On August 31st I ordered 5 strains from MedicinalDreams, I received them on September 19th and after testing them all I wanna review them
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Shipping:Shipping was horrible but you probably already know that about MD. I would recommend ordering from 10DC for cheap carts just based upon how long this package took to arrive. 2/10
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Packaging: Everything was put in a small brown cardboard box, discreet and pretty average. 3 carts were in little mylar bags, one was in a clamshell pack and one was in a plastic tube. 8/10
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I'm going to review the strains from best to worst
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Girl Scout Cookies: This is the one in the tube. It taste like you are smoking a joint while drinking coffee. It's the only one that taste like actual weed. 9/10
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Purple Punch: This one is the most terpy out of the bunch. As soon as I opened the mylar bag the smell of Welch fruit gummies hit me in the face. Taste very fruit/like berry. 8/10
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Gorilla Glue: Taste gassy but not like actual weed like the GSC. Piney taste and overall pretty good. 8/10
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Sunset Sherbet: This one disappointing me but not because of taste but because I ordered a 1mL and recieved a 0.5 mL. I've emailed support and hope they will send me another 0.5 to make my order right. Taste is pretty good though, sweet and fruit. 7/10
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Gelato:This one also disappointed and I can't even really review it since I never got to actually try it. I've tried using it on 2.4, 2.8, and 3.2 voltages and the cartridge just doesn't produce any smoke at all. I included this in my email to support and if I receive a working cart i'll review it. Based on smell and dry hit it does seem good though.

Photos: Cream Pie Kush
This is my first time trying Mohave Cannabis since I think Errl Cup 2019? Either way it was my first visit to Debbies. I scooped two of my favorites from them SFV OG and Chem D. I also picked up a 1/2 oz of their Cream Pie Kush. I may or may not review the SFV and the Chem D eventually, I think reviewing OGs would get old as I smoke a lot of the same strains/cultivars. I have never heard of "Cream Pie Kush" not sure if its just something they bred.. cant find any info online except that they won an Errl cup award for best Indica with a batch of their Cream Pie Kush, the nugs looked great OTC and I have been trying out different stuff lately.. heres the review
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Initial Look: 8.5/10 This looks a lot like solid soil grown greenhouse I've had in the past... pretty sure they grow indoors but it just looks familiar.. not quite popping with white crystal trichomes like you may see from top tier Tru Med or Grow Sciences but still pops with shiny crystal like trichomes and has a good color and structure. First glance reminds me of a cookies strain like an original GSC or Animal Cookies cut. Colorful Greens and little hints of purple, tight trichome covered buds
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Smell: 8/10 scent is kind of weird, its mellow but in a good way.. sweet lemon and hint of chocolate but not too sweet and you may not expect gas and earthy pine from something with the name Cream Pie but thats still what I am picking up.. definitely reminds me of a gassy OG but sweet Iced lemon cake mixed in..
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Taste: 8.5/10 this is really familiar, I love it.. reminds me of a solid batch of cookies ..a hint of sour D fuel falvor, hard to describe. It just tastes like classic good pot.. doesnt taste like it smells, a little sour, a little sweet like baked cookies/cake flavor.. unique nonetheless
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Effects: 8/10 I have a really high tolerance lately but I smoked this first thing in the morning before writing the review and the effect is mellow.. in a good way, very low anxiety, my body is relaxed and I can say it eases my pain in a nice way but it just isnt a super hard hitting narcotic stone.. also I paid more for this being in their top tier, more than I would have for an entire Oz of Chem D OTD and I would have probably preferred to have more Chem D.. but its all good I feel a unique and relaxing effect from the Cream Pie Kush and I'm really glad I picked up all the stuff from Mohave.
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Overall 8/10
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TLDR; Mohave grows awesome bud, sweet and mellow not a super heavy hitter tastes solid 8/10

Photos: https://imgur.com/gallery/VGIvoPk
So I wanted to switch it up from all the OG reviews.. I've done a few similar strains and theyre all wonderful but this time I went with some stuff I normally dont go for, 2 of these I've never had! went to H4L Mcdowell and picked up a couple jars of Potent Planet(meat breath, Slurricane), I will be trying those strains and reviewing them later. I also picked up this Apple Fritter from Loud Labs (I believe), the packaging was "nothing but rocks" but rn I'm pretty sure thats LL.
Reviewing a strain/cultivar lately I smoke about a 0.5 gram joint of it and then I vape a bowl out of my Pax 2 to feel the effects more deeply and get the full flavor.. heres my review:
Initial look: 7/10 dark green and purple which I'm fond of, some milky almost yellow trichomes which is not always a big deal but I do prefer fresh clear trichomes(who doesnt) not sure if that is from sitting on the shelf or just the way it was grown, I've heard both explanations.. its got a yellow color on the bottom of the bud which I've noticed on other strains, not always a deal breaker but this was cured kind of weird or at least I'm not used to seeing bud like this...
the smell: 6/10 wasnt really bangin like I expected for $50.. not that it smells bad or anything, once I broke it up I got a sour fruit smell, some familiar terpenes.. just right out of the bag it wasnt all that smelly..
Taste: 6/10 was pretty good, reminds me of something I've had before, maybe sour bubble or sour diesel but just a solid sour taste, little gassy but definitely can see where they get the fritter as it does taste like a sweet bread or cookie.. definitely cant tell if it was grown indoors or in a greenhouse.. which kinda points toward mids to me..
High: 7.5/10 this is where it "shined" for me, the milky trichomes had me expecting some couch lock but its not all that sleepy,solid Indica hybrid, can tell it will help me sleep if I ramp it up and mix a little CBD in for some pain relief.. but with a coffee or some Iced tea in the afternoon I can hang on plenty fine.
Overall: 7/10
I'm looking forward to trying more from LL cause I'm a big fan of what their grower did at GS I know I probably would have preferred the Motorbreath but this is all that H4L McDowell had that interested me..
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​
TLDR; Overall 7/10 not the worst bud around, an alright familiar flavor, lacks on smell and the high is pretty solid and effective for my Pain/Sleep and Anxiety..

Hey MDers,
Been a bit over a week since I was approved (aaaaand I have no allotment left lol) and began my MD Med journey - figured I would summarize my first week of non-stop dispo trips and the stupid amount of money I spent so that anyone interested hopefully find this info a tiny bit useful. I will review both products w/ pics and dispensaries!
Just a bit of background - I have been spoiled by the ability to medicate with extremely fresh high end buds from Cali on a regular basis over the last 5 years. I have been through a huge amount of Connected, Jungle Boys, Cookies, Alien Labs, and other top tier exotics. A few people told me to not bother with my certificate as MD flower will disappoint me but I wanted to see for my self and I have been fairly impressed and love having the vast selection so conveniently available. Anyway, on to the stuff.
PS - I apologize for the inconsistent photos - its bothering me and I am going to set something up to take consistent pictures in the future.
PSS - I apologize for the inconsistent grammar and spelling that may be contained in the below - this RSO is really making me not feel like reading back through at this very moment lol
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Dispensaries -

Remedy in Columbia
Obviously heard a lot about them and they happen to be right around the corner from me. Place was stupid crowded, very little direction, customer served hugely out of order, tons of people complaining, I waited a total of 1.5hrs only to have my ID and bag full of meds delivered to the car behind me. Guy had it for a couple mins while tying to flag someone down for help. Was my first time but still... Maybe just an off afternoon but was a pretty shit first experience. They need to figure out a better system to handle the volume they are doing. I might give them another try after I finish with the doctors appt reimbursement which is a pretty sweet deal tbh.
Herbiculture in Burtonsville
This was my first pick due to how many different strains of flower they had on their menu, biggest selection I have come across in my general area yet. They also had 20% off for first time patients which seems to be much less common then the 10% I see at most places (was just told about Trilogy in Ellicott City who does 25% off your first THREE visits - def gonna check them out). As far as picking up goes, they have you come inside to check in quickly, and then you go back out to your car to wait for a call to confirm your order and then they come out for payment and come back with your product. I waited about 25-30 mins after checking in for my call, and a friend waited over 45 minutes a few weeks ago. Other then that, everything was great - everyone was friendly and my order came w a rose for Mothers Day even though I am certainly not a mother :D
True Wellness in Laurel
Stopped here after work on day since I work in Laurel - these are fully open just without the deli style setup that they normally have. It was awesome getting to go inside my first MD dispo and have a look around. Cool place, cool people. Got a free t-shirt, some free prerolls, and some good buds!
Greenhouse Wellness in Ellicott City
They had a 20% off Grassroots sale the other day that grabbed my attention since there was a few grassroots things I wanted to try. Ordered online - they are doing curbisde only. Pulled up - they came out and confirmed my info and then asked for payment without ever confirming products ordered, price seemed a bit low but I thought maybe it was just due to a better initial discount then I expected. After pulling away I looked and was short an eighth. I called them right back, they confirmed I was not charged, and said I could come back and they would run it out. I went back and they even took 20% off (Verano so it wasn't on sale) for the trouble. I was very happy with how it was handled and they were very nice about it. Barely had to wait either time.
Have been back a second time about an hour before close, pulled up and left 2 minutes later. Extremely efficient and friendly. They will continue to be a primary dispo of mine.
​
I am in Columbia and willing to drive 20-30 mins for a nice deal. Any suggestions on what to give a try. How is the Living Room? Heard some things...
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Flowers -

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Verano
Heard the best things about Verano before I tried anything - pretty good buds.
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• G6

Pungent sweet skunk and pine aromas. Bright green uniquely structured buds. Came with a humidity pack so things were fresh. Really liked the high and the flavor.
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• G Wagon

Haze's arent for everyone but I love em - so when I saw G6 crossed with a haze I had to have it and it met my expectations. You still get that sweet G6 but the haze smell was bursting out of the jar and also is prevalent on the exhale. Still have more of this to smoke to finish my opinion.
buds -> https://ibb.co/HYrc2ZR
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• Super Glu

Worst of the Verano's I have had - was dry and pretty flavorless. I know the glue's don't that the most pungent flavor, but I wasn't getting much of anything. Have heard good things so I want to try a more fresh batch before I make a final decision on whether or not I like.
buds -> https://ibb.co/9Hnk1vV
​

• Thai Lights

Super interesting smell - kind of a vanilla/citrus/earthy combo. super uplifting buzz, great morning smoke or if you plan to be outdoors this would be a great pick.
buds -> https://imgur.com/a/vPqIFgz
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• Mag Landrace

Solid Indica - puts my mind and body to rest. Will keep this around.
https://postimg.cc/T5rWS4Ln
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Grassroots
Another brand I have been a big fan of - very strong meds, all have been well cured and have very unique and strong scents. I will keep seeking out the GR :D
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• Lemon Grenades

Incredible aroma with this strain, I could not stop smelling it lol big euphoria on this Sativa dominate hybrid. I really liked it.
buds -> https://postimg.cc/5QjRS8Xc
terps -> https://ibb.co/3mjhSCL
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• Texas Shoreline #3

Wow. Skunkiest strain yet from MD, nice citrus hints but overwhelmingly skunky and it fills the room FAST lol smooth smoke, great flavor too. Very cerebral high and very uplifting. Even though it seems to be indica dom, I get a much more sativa feel from it. The effects have some psychadellic nature to them as well which I really liked.
buds -> https://imgur.com/a/FhPPpdt
terps -> https://ibb.co/VMRwwcS
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• Yuck Mouth #4

Garlic Cookies x DoSiDo? Sign me up - lovely smell, just wish it packed a bit more of a punch, but another impressive showing by Grassroots.
buds -> https://ibb.co/tzD1Z2m
terps -> https://ibb.co/RjM0wq4
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• Chem de la Chem

Wasn't the most beautiful looking, but it tested over 30% and packed a punch. Had the strong Chem smell and was grinder ruiningly sticky lol
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Rythm
Between these guys and Culta, best buds I have found yet. Terps near 3%, well cured nugs with great bag appeal, smoked to a blindingly white ash, and tasted great.
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• Black Afghan

The nose on this one knocked my socks off. Incredible. First 3+% terp strain I have had from MD and its amazing. Beautiful nugs, and incredibly heavy hitting. Top of my list right here so far. If you haven't tried, please do, it is worth the premium.
buds 'n terps -> https://imgur.com/gallery/lSp2jn2
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• Tahoe Alien

Such and incredibly well cured, dense, sticky, smelly nug. Good mood lifter, pretty strong too. Would def buy again.
buds 'n terps -> https://imgur.com/gallery/Y209hdt
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Harvest

• Cinderella 99

For the price this was really good! Got it for around 35 with a discount - a great morning or early afternoon smoke, I will def keep this around when I can get it cheap! An amazing citrus smell and great flavor on exhale.
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Culta

• Dosido #9

nugs -> (took pic late, only had a tiny bit left) https://ibb.co/WHchy2Y
I have had many different Dosido strains and crosses, and this was right up there with the best. I have a very high tolerance and this had me on my ass which probably has to do with the #9 being much more heavy on the Face Off OG side of the cross that makes Dosido. Excited to try #16-22 but this will be high on my list for a while I think.
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• Donkey Butter

Super nice nug structure, tons of trichs. Very dank earthy smell mixed with a strong fuel-y smell. Very relaxing high, again another strong med from culta. I am impressed.
buds -> https://imgur.com/gallery/gNTUJ8l
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• Sugar Biscuits

A looker but not a smeller, havent really smoked much yet.
buds -> http://imgur.com/gallery/umw2kQc
terps -> https://ibb.co/wCbPj5w
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gLeaf

• Pineapple Skunk

Might be the craziest smelling of all these strains - intense citrus but with a huge amount of pineapple smell too - its actually nuts how tropical this one smells. Pretty heavy hitter, had me pretty couch locked. Might try it again or some other gLeaf.
buds -> https://imgur.com/gallery/k3QVNKK
terps -> https://ibb.co/7NJHzGY
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Natures Heritage
I said Rythm was my fav but I might be second guessing that soon with these guys. All of these strains I have tried have been all around fire. Great smell, great taste, and delivered clear and long lasting highs. I will be buying all of these again soon.
​

• Sour Bobby

Cant remember a whole lot other then I really enjoyed it lol stupid memory -_-
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• Star 91

Mostly popcorn nugs, so wasn't thrilled on that, but dense dank nugs allbeit small. Haven't smoked much of this one yet. But seems to be quality.
buds n terps -> https://imgur.com/gallery/dyndM27
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• Guava IX

Insanely tropical, strong hints of papaya - one of the best tasting smokes ive had yet. Flavor stands w some of the Guava's I have had from out west.
buds -> https://ibb.co/mF5nZvs
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• ONYCD

Potent smelling, great flavor. Piney diesel with citrus undertones. Strong hybrid buzz that will def knock a beginner out but is a good even keel smoke for a seasoned smoker. Highly recommend all to try.
terps -> https://ibb.co/BCK3tb8
nugs -> https://ibb.co/8cghVJ6
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Shore Natural RX

• True OG
• Lucid Blue

Got this on deal at Remedy - def can feel the blue dream in it, gets your mind going - smells nice too. Gets a thumbs up from me especially for the price.
nugs -> https://ibb.co/WHchy2Y
terps -> https://ibb.co/zbzrYTF
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HMS
Not a huge fan - any strains I should try that might change my mind?
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• Grape Kush

Meh. Didn't seemed flush properly - pretty harsh smoke and burnt to a pretty ugly black ash. It was one of the cheaper strains I have gotten though at $35 for the eigth.
buds -> https://ibb.co/cJrbLZW
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• Northern Lights

Also just okay, classic Northern Lights scent so I was happy to smell that, but nothing to write home about on combustion and the high was short and hollow to me.
buds 'n terps -> https://postimg.cc/z3RwKdBz
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Curio
Overall not a huge fan, both were on the drier side with very little flavosmell. Might be the first brand to go on my 3 strike list ;)
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• Wizard Gum

Grabbed this as it was being raved about on this sub at the time. Liked this a lot better then the Punch but it was also $15 more. Had a sweet smell, and a decently smooth smoke. Enjoyable energetic head high and seemed to eliminate my anxiety fairly well. I want to try Blissful but not sure id get this again.
buds -> https://imgur.com/gallery/7gpjyXA
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• Purple Punch

I have had a TON of purple punch and its crosses so I wanted to see how this compared. Meh. This batch didn't have the prettiest nugs and only had slight hints of that purple punch scent that is so unique. Once ground up you get a bit more but its still muted.
buds -> https://ibb.co/ZTr5vg0
terps -> https://ibb.co/zG48nmq
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Grow West
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• Mandarin Cookies

This strain blew my mind with how much is smelled like mandarin oranges lol I kept also getting reminded of the scent of my favorite chinese food spot so that was slighly offputting lol but this was a good smoke, it did the job - not a whole lot to say on it tho.
nugs -> https://ibb.co/6sHFT9H
terps -> https://ibb.co/Kwjkwrk
​

Top 5 Strains So Far

1. Black Afghan by Rythm
2. Do-si-do #9 by Culta
3. Texas Shoreline by Grassroots
4. Tahoe Alien by Rythm
5. Lemon Grenades by Grassroots (Guava IX a close 6th)

​
Made some BOMB cookies w a G of Garlic Cookies RSO from Grassroots. SO EASY. Everyone should try some RSO.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Conclusion

I spent way too much money and used practically my entire allotment in a week BUT it was fun :D Wish I could experience these dispo's they way they should be experienced, but I have had decent curbside experiences...mostly (remedy, looking at you) The buds have been pretty good tho - I am only okay w the prices as I have been getting my first time deals everywhere and deal hunting, but these prices need to come down or the quality of the meds needs to improve as they do not match in my opinion. But I am impressed with what Culta, Grassroots, Rythm, and Natures Heritage are up to and hope they can improve even further.
​
I wanna get into the MD concentrates now - any recs? Got a Cherrygasm LR Cart thats pretty nice from MPX. I wanna fire my Puffco Peak back up and want some badders and resins tho - lemme know :D

DA FUNK, by Kush Rush Exotics is an Indica-dominant hybrid, and a cross of ITS IT x FIRE AF. Never having tried either of Da Funk’s parents, I was excited to dig into this strain without expectations. My gift of Da Funk had smaller, popcorn sized nugs with a dense Indica like structure and a flakey, powdery texture. Da Funk has an attractive marbling of Persian greens and iris/electric purple, but is most easily recognized by the thick groupings of bright tiger orange pistils which hint at the strains underlying potency.
Typical of all Kush Rush exotic strains, Da Funk’s unqiue smoke really set the strain apart from the competition. Cutting, complex, and multilayered, the nose and flavor on Da Funk is best characterized by a heavy diesel and floral flavor but also possessing a ‘cookie’ like combo of spice, earth and a hint of a mint like cream on the inhale. Notes of berry and citrus really shine through on the backend, giving the strain a fruity, gassy ‘do-si- do’ vibe.
Da Funk’s effects come on seemingly instantaneously, beginning with an immediate sense of head pressure emanating from the middle of the forehead and behind the eyes. Blissful, stoney sedation is the name of the game when smoking this strain with a very high likelihood of some couchlock. I found Da Funk to be quite indica heavy, best suited for the end of the day, or when in need of some serious relief.
From my favorite reviewer IG: budfinderdc

Budfinder

Hey guys. I’ve had my card about a year now and have had a lot of time and opportunities to go to the 5-6 dispensary’s within about an hour from me. #blessed. Anyway. I have a large amount of stock dating back about 6 months. I made a quick list of GP, strain, my rating on a scale of 1-10, and how much i actually have left, in that order. I’m sure there’s a ton of reviews and pictures already on here but if anyone has any specific requests from my list I’ll definitely take pictures and write something up if it helps you guys! From now on now that I’m subbed here I’m gonna TRY to remember to post anything new i grab for y’all, provided I’m not too medicated. Hah.
Here’s my current list!
1.Gleaf new Mac 7.0 -2.5 2.Gleaf old Mac 8.5 - 3.6 3.Gleaf SoCal al 6.0 - 2.1 4.Gleaf zookies 8.0 - 3.0 5.Gleaf purple punch 8.5 - 3.6 6.Gleaf special ops 7.8 - 3.5 7.Cresco Durban 6.0 - .95 8.Cresco gg#4 7.5 - 2.7 9.Prime jr cash 7.8 - .8 10.Calypso afghani 8.8 - 3.2 11.Agrikind lemon dog cookies 9.0 - 3.3 12.Agrikind Ice cream dream 8.5 - 3.3 13.Franklin labs jet fuel 9.0 - 2.6 14.Franklin labs wet dream 9.1 - 2.3 15.Franklin labs bubblegum 9.0 - 1.9 16.Rhythm dosido 9.0 - 3.2 17.Rhythm gelato 9.5 - 3.4 18.Rhythm super lemon haze 8.7 - 2.3 19.Rhythm gg#4 8.5 - 2.3 20.Rhythm strawberry kush 8.5 - 3.1 21.Rhythm brownie scout 9.2 - 6.1 22.Farmrx banana kush 8.5 - gone as of today! 23.Farmrx golden goat 9.0 - 5.8 24.Farmrx chem 91 8.5 - 1.7 25.Farmrx Lucinda Williams 8.5 - 3.1 26.Whole plants jack herer 8.0 - 2.1 27.Whole plants white rhino 9.0 - 2.5 28.Whole plants amnesia haze 8.8 - 2.3 29.Whole plants gorilla zkittles 8.5 - .4 30.Grassroots sinderella 9.0 - .61 31.Ilera blue dream 6.5 - 1.9

Identifying Fake Cartridges and Fake Brands
The easiest way to search this list is do CTRL+F and search the text of the cart you are looking for.
This list will be continuously updated. Look here first to see if your cartridge is fake then ask after that. If you come across a new brand you know for sure is fake also please post here so we add it to the list.s
Fake does not mean it doesn’t have THC. It means it’s either faking a real brand, or it’s fake in the sense it’s not a real brand at all, just packaging with any oil in it. The obvious recommendation is to buy from legal shops, but not everyone can.
Going to add links with more info and pictures of the products, but checking more of the info we have compiled in the last year to make sure everything is up to date and still doing more research. Take a look at those and match up your images. All real cartridge images in the links are from legitimate dispensary purchases.
If you are unsure if a brand is registered or not see our state licensing info index. This information has been compiled from our website research and the cleancarts subreddit also listed some of the brands here.
Just because something matches all the identifiers of a real cart still does not mean it is real. New fake packaging is constantly produced. Also, don’t buy carts online. Almost all the sites are scams and the ones that do not still have fake carts.
Don't rely on the bubble test. Cutting agents have made that a worthless way to see if your cart is legit.
Fake CCELL
A fake test that applies to any brand purporting to use CCELL products is if it has a white ring instead of a clear ring. See this fake CCELL cartridge post for picture comparisons.
Faked Brands
The following brands are so heavily faked if you do not buy them from a dispensary, they are most likely fake:
710 King Pen - California brand. Fakes are constantly updated.
Alpine Vapor - California brand. Always check for the latest packaging constantly fakes are updated.
Brass Knuckles - Multi-state licensed brand. No strain on it = fake. Real Brass Knuckles cartridges have had issues also. Previously tested dirty in CA, pulled off of shelves in NV stores. Fake Brass Knuckles detailed info.
Cookies - California brand. Full gram = fake. Doesn’t say High Flyers = fake. Plastic packaging = fake. Real ones come in a white box. Fake Cookies carts detailed info. Also, check for fake CCELL.
Dr. Zodiaks Moon Rock Clear - AZ brand, not sure if registered in CA. Look for real CCELL to identify authentics. Fake Dr. Zodiak's info.
Eureka Vapor - Multi-state legal brand. Always look for the latest Eureka Vapor packaging as they constantly change it. Great product if it’s real.
FlavRX / Flav - Multi-state legal brand, now only going by Flav. Anything FlavRX is most likely fake, at best really old. Fake FlavRX / Flav detailed info.
Heavy Hitters - California brand. Fakes are constantly catching up with new packaging on this brand. Check out the latest packaging but even then not trustworthy unless it is from a shop.
Kurvana - Not much info out yet on identifying fakes, but empty carts are now showing up in Downtown LA.
Plug Play - California brand. Real ones are great, fakes are everywhere.
Raw Garden - Recent fake that just came out. See further info on fake Raw Garden.
Rove - Multi-state brand. Fakes often have runnier oil. Stickers have mostly been copied now. Fake Rove detailed info.
Select Elite - Multi-state brand. These fakes are really hard to tell, but the center post in some fakes is off size. The hard thing about Select fakes is Select does not have consistency in the stickers among different areas. Even a sticker on a Socal cart might be different than what you see in Norcal. Make sure to check for fake CCELL. More info on fake Select carts.
Stiiizy - Multi-state brand. Make sure it has the right packaging that pulls out. Fake Stiiizy detailed info.
TKO Extracts - California brand part of TKO Products. They only make disposable vape pens, all TKO carts are fake)
West Coast Cure - California brand that appears to be unregistered. Fake West Coast Cure info.
Brands that are just packaging or unconfirmed street brands
The following brands are just packaging and can be filled with any oil. There is no central processor of oil as far as we know. If you have info on them being a street brand or registered brand please post below.
@gold_baby_carti
$auce/Sauce
1Match
2020 Vape
24K Gold
24K Solutions
2K.I.N.D.
31 Carts
31 Flavors
Ace of Spades
Alchemist's Gold
Alien Slime
All In Extracts
Alphacarts
Alternative Pharms
Altitude
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Amerijuana
Apple Dabs
Area 71
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Banks
BankVapes
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Big Gas
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Black Gold
Black Label
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BlazntheAmazn
Breaking Dab
BLVCK
Blvck 710
BLVCK MARKET 710
Bobby Blue
Bombshell
Bomb Squad Extracts
Boom Carts
Botanicals Inc
BMWO
BuddiesCanada.ca
BuddahBear
Buddhas Hand
BuyMyWeedOnline
Bart Carts
Cali Blaise
Cali Carts
California Confidential
Cali Connects
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Cali Plug
Cali RX
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California Honey
Candy Cane
Candy Carts
Cannabis Oil Supply
Cannables
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Cart Toon Cartridges
Carti Cartel
CC
Cereal Carts
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CO Dude Labs
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Connected Cannabis – They are a real company, but currently do not make carts
Connoisseur Concentrates
Copper State
Cosmic Concentrates
Crack Carts
Crazy Glue
Cure
Dabwoods
Dab Nap
Dabout (uses tapout logo)
Dank
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Dank Vapes
DC Dabbers
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Diamond and Co
Diamond Concentrates
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Dirty South
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Dope
Drippy Carts
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Dynapuff
E Glü
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Exclusive Extracts
Exotic/Exotiq f
Exotic Carts
Faded
Faded Extracts
Fake Flavorz
Fat Cat Extracts
Fat Donald's
First Class Canna
Flavorz
FlavRx - They are now produced as Flav. FlavRX is their old name.
Friendly Pharma
Frosted Science
Frosty's Snowcone Clear
FRSH
Fyre Pen
Galaxy Water Clear
Garbage Carts
Gas Gang
Gas Tanks
Ginger Dank
Glo
Global Refinery
God's Shatter
Go Hard
Gold
Gold Crown
Gold Label
Golden Skunk Extraction Co (pepe lepu logo)
Good Bags
Go To Bed
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Green Box
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Icon Extracts
Imperial Extracts
Inked Extracts
Irresistible Medicinals
Ish
Jeff's Sessions
Joke's Up
Juicebox Cartel
Juice House
Jungle Boys Extracts - Jungle Boys is a real brand in California, but they do not make carts as of now
Just Grindin
Kali Extracts
Kings Klear
Kr8zy Glue
K I N D
King Midas
King Tuts Shatter
Kings Kush
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KRT
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Kusher Treats
LA Kingpins
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Levitate
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Liquid Gold
Lit
Lit Labs
Litxtracts
Live Carts
Live East Coast Cartridges
Looney Goonz Drips
Los Angeles Bakers
Los Angeles Exotics
Los Angeles Harvest Club
Loud - Loud Pack is a real company and makes Heavy Hitters, but not to be confused with regular Loud
Loud LA
Lucky Carts
Mad Dog
Madre
Mario Karts
Mary Jane
Marvel Carts
MasterCarts
Match
Match1
Melt Your Face Extracts
Midas Gold
Midas Well
MKX
Moo Sticks
Monopoly Carts
Mr Whiskers
NBA Carts
NE Clear
NextGen Extracts
Nice Guys
Nimbus
OG Kush
Old Crow Extracts
Orbit Extracts
Organa
Organx
Original Buddha Bros
OriginaFake
Oreo Cake
Outlaw Carts
Off White Carts
Palmas
Paradyce Extracts
PenEx - This one has a FedEx logo
Pennybags
Pennybeg
Phtyo
Phyto Supernova
Pie Hoe
PMO
P O D
Pokecarts
Polar
Pop Carts
Potency on Demand
Powerlab Extracts
Precious Extracts
Premium
Premo
Primacan
Primo
PureBurns
Pure Organic
Pure Organix
PurpleFyre
Pussy Pod
Raw
Refine RX
Revenge
Rhino
Ripndip
Rolling Stoned
Royal Highness
Runtz
Savage
Savage Sticks
Sci Extracts
Scorpion Venom
Screw Carts
Shatter Gold
Shell (Gas Stations)
Silence of the Lambs
Simple Rick
Sky High Originals - Possibly a street brand
Sky High
Sky Sticks
Skywalker
Smackabis
Smart Carts - not totally sure if they ever were a brand. They previously maintained an IG and now their website smartbud.us is down. Yet they claimed this copper test shows the difference between real and fake according to smartbud.ca, which has since
South Carts
Smoked Honey
Smorz
SoCal
SoCal Sauce
SodaStix
South Carts
Springfield Farms
Stellar
Stick Vapes - Not the same as Stick E Vapes
STNDRD
Stoopid
Str8 Fire
Suicide Girls
Super G
Super Loud Labs
Supreme
Staked Extracts
Stan Peterman
Star Carts - Also known as Star Wars carts
SweetCarts
Sweet Dreams
Tank Kings
Tastebud DC
Tasty
Tegridy Farms
Terp Tanks
Terpstar
THClear
THC Doctor
The Dabbin Cabin
The Duke
The Foggy Forest
The Gas Gang
The Green Box
The Highest Craft
The Pure
ToGo
Tokemon
Tonix Concentrates
Top Shelf Extracts
Trilly Wonka
Trio
Tru Clear
UFO Extracts
Unique Puffs
Uplifted
Vape God
Venom Vapes (Different from Venom Extracts AZ)
Virtuous Meds
Waky Willy
West Coast Cure
West Coast Extracts (Emerald, Diamond, Platinum)
West Coast Vape Co
Whackd Carts
White Runtz
Wolf Pack
Wonka Oil
Wrck
Wunderland
Xotic
XXX
Yolo
Street and Unregistered Brands
The following brands appear to have a central processor, might also be faked, but we could not find any registration for them:
Aliens RX - they claim to be under Loud Pack's California license, but have pre-printed THC percentages on the boxes. Emailed Loud Pack and no response.
Alpha Carts - Dark Web brand
Anesthesia Farms - no confirmation of it being fake, appears to be street brand
Canna Clear - Some evidence of it being a brand, but not registered with California BCC
EastSide Clear - Dark Web brand
Fiyaman - Unregistered brand but seems centralized
Gold Coast Carts
Gold Coast Clear
Lux Pure - Dark Web brand
Master Chief - Got an email from their PR person once and replied asking for licensing info, no reply.
Muha Meds - Recent tests were done with the brand name at CannaClear, they are pending registration
Space Vape / Myspace Vape - Confirmed street brand, no registration info available yet
Starman Farms - Dark web brand, pic
Super G - Might be from midwest, they make pods and carts.
Supernova Sticks - Street brand but tested @SupernovaCannabisCo is their IG and recent test here @dabpengod2
Brands Accused of Being Street Brands or Fake, But Are Legit
Big Chief - licensed company, but lots of fakes out there
Cobra Extracts (often referred to as Cobra carts) - They are a brand in California, license not known though. Requested by email will add when we get a response.
Left Coast Extracts - Registered with California BCC in September of 2019
Dime Industries - They are currently under one license, but transitioning to another distributor
Dr. Zodiak's Moonrock Clear - Arizona brand
Flav / FlavRX - This brand is real, but FlavRX is the old name and anything using that now is fake. Flav is registered in at least CA and NV
Fuego - They are legitimate CA brand. See here. Make sure yours look the same as it could be a commonly copied name and there probably are fake Fuego related labels.
Honey Vape - Real brand in California. See review here.
Jackpot - There is a brand called Jackpot in Nevada. Make sure yours looks the same could be a commonly copied name.
Pure - They are a registered California brand. Weaker products but budget-priced. Frequently faked.
Sherbinskis - Real brand but heavily faked. See info on fake Sherbinskis here.
Vape Meds - They are legit and have a license number
Zen - There is a legit brand that makes Zen products, but there may also be fakes. This does not appear that one was trying to copy the other, just Zen is a popular word.

I couldn't find an easy list of all options, so here we go. I also linked to each strain's effects that I could find. Feel free to share.
--OG/ORIGINAL PODS--

• SFV OG (I)
• Skywalker OG (I)
• Biscotti (I)
• Hardcore OG (I)
• OG Kush (I)
• Purple Punch (I)
• Blue Dream (S)
• Strawberry Cough (S)
• Sour Tangie (S)
• Premium Jack (S)
• Sour Diesel (S)
• Gelato (H)
• Pineapple Express (H)
• Granddaddy Purp (H)
• Do-Si-Dos(H)
• Strawnana (H)
• Birthday Cake (H)
• Blue Burst (H)
• Mango (1:1 THC/CBD)
• Juicy Melon (1:1 THC/CBD)

--SILVER PODS--

• OG Kush (I)
• Grape Sorbet (I)
• Sour Diesel (S)
• Gelato (H)
• Chemdawg (H)
• Sour Cookies (H)

--GOLD PODS--

• STIIIZY Pink Acai (H)
• Dub Breath (H)
• Banana Pie (H)
• OG Kush (I)
• Key Lime Pie (I)

I need everyone who has gotten product feom this mom and smoked it to comment here. Lets discuss!

Hi all, hope you are all well under current circumstances.
As the title says i am indeed looking for advice on a small scale set up. Long story short, I am allergic to opioids and have chronic pain and frankly done with having to take class A poison daily.
Typically Girl Scout Cookies, Gorilla Glue, Purple Cookies and Stardawg tend to really help. (Feel free to suggest others) I cannot get these strains on a regular basis or cannot have faith in "my guy" having this level of quality regular.
Discretion is needed. With this in mind I have read about the Secret Jardin brand tents and reviews seem pretty well made for purpose. What size would i need for maybe 2 or 3 plants at a time? Also what LED light would you recommend?
I have read about "living soil" being a fairly helpful way to grow without much fussing and interference, has anyone had much luck with this as a beginner? Any suggestions for keeping the smell to a minimum, there's so much out there to choose from i would feel less apprehensive about making the financial plunge.
Sorry if i am asking a lot but I am literally in a rock and hard place, I just want to be a bit more independent and not have to spend a fortune every month putting money in other folks pockets and because the country i live in has not quite caught up with the rest of the world yet.
All advice welcomed and greatly appreciated in more ways than you know.

I review the Purple Cookies strain and share my interpretation of this hybrid.
https://medium.com/@mattramirez117/purple-cookies-a-persona-6518fba7bd17

I submitted a Money Diary to R29 in 2017 when I was a librarian and living with my then-boyfriend, now-husband (R29 changed his initial, but I promise it’s the same person). If you Google R29 Cleveland librarian money diaries, it should come up. Our dog had a major health scare in 2018 that caused us to both start thinking more seriously about what was important to us and what we needed in our lives to make those things possible. The common denominator was, for better or worse, more money. With library jobs being few and far between and with me feeling increasingly bored and burnt out despite loving libraries and all they stand for, I made the tough decision to pursue a coding bootcamp with hopes of moving into software development. The program I’m in has one of the highest job placement rates in the country and I’m hopeful it will lead to a more lucrative and balanced career. We are in an extremely privileged situation right now where our expenses are super low thanks to living with family after my husband sold the house we were living in last year. I listed my husband’s income in the title because he is the one supporting us outside of the fact that our living situation is free.
Section One: Assets and Debt
Retirement Balance (and how you got there): $0. When I quit my library job, I had pretty much exactly the same amount in retirement that I did in credit card debt (just under $7k, a combination of low income and poor choices in my 20s), so I cashed that out and wiped out my debt. Maybe not the smartest choice, but once I get a job again I will be aggressively contributing to this and building up savings.
Savings account balance- Also zero in my personal account, but there is about $62k in the down payment account.
Checking account balance: $162.15
Credit card debt (and how you accumulated it): $0 - at my peak I was 10k in the hole but thankfully my retirement cashout wiped that out
Student loan debt: $16,000. This is what I took out for my bootcamp and I am making interest payments (~$120/month) until March, when the real payments kick in.
Section Two: Income
Main Job Monthly Take Home: $0 right now. My husband brings home about $3500 per month and transfers some money to my account to cover my expenses while I’m in bootcamp. We got married right before I started bootcamp and we haven’t combined finances yet. We likely won’t until kids are in the picture.
Section Three: Expenses
Rent: We are super fortunate to be living with my MIL rent-free while we save up and search for a house
Health Insurance: On my husband’s. I believe he gets ~$130 taken out of each paycheck to cover the both of us
Retirement contribution: none right now
Savings contribution: none right now
Investment contribution: also none right now
Donations: There’s nothing I do monthly, but at some point every year I try to give to the ACLU, the local humane society, the local NPR station, and Amnesty International
Student Loans: $123
Subscriptions: Hulu & Spotify: $10.66
iTunes extra storage: $0.99
Amazon Prime: $13.87
Workweek Lunch: $7.99 (worth it, even though this week I didn't eat much from what I prepped)
Billie razors (every other month): $9.68
Car payment / insurance: I’ve been driving the same car since 2006, paid off long ago by my generous parents. My car insurance is $44.18/month. I plan to drive this into the ground.
Cell phone: I have Google Fi and pay $10/gb of data I use plus $20 for calls and texts, so this ranges anywhere from $40-$80.
Day 1 - Wednesday 10/23
5:30 a.m. - My alarm goes off, and I snooze it until about 6:10 like I do most mornings. I finally extract myself and the dog from our nice little cocoon to take him out and feed him. My husband (Z) has been gone for over an hour at this point. He likes to get to the gym right when it opens and then commute to work when the roads are still relatively calm. I am much less ambitious than he is.
6:30 a.m. - I pee, brush my teeth, and shower. When I get out, I do my usual morning skincare routine: The Ordinary’s Buffet, CeraVe moisturizer (the kind in the tub) and Biore UV Aqua Rich sunscreen. I pick out my clothes for the day (a tan sweater, jeans, and tan suede heeled booties), blow dry my hair, and put on my usual light but generally full face of makeup (primer, foundation, blush, eyeshadow, mascara).
7:05 a.m. - I’m running a little behind this morning. I won’t be late by any means - class doesn’t start until 9 - but I like to get there about a half hour before to get settled in and review things for the day. I grab the overnight oats I made last night and scarf them down before taking my Prozac, giving the dog a treat, and heading out. I listen to Morning Edition for part of my commute, then switch to my Spotify Discover Weekly playlist because sometimes I just can’t with the news.
8:30 a.m. - Arrive at bootcamp and spend the next half hour going over last night’s reading and making some formatting changes to my resume. This is my sixth week in the program and while it is by far the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, I am really enjoying it. Today is our last day before we start an end-of-module pairs project, and we’ve still got some new stuff to learn, so we jump in right at 9.
10:00 a.m. - We take our first break of the morning. I take this opportunity to grab some pretzels from the communal jar and make some cinnamon black tea, then it’s back to learning more about data access objects.
11:05 a.m. - The power goes out! We sit around for a few minutes to see if it’ll come back on, but eventually we go out to the main working space because our classroom has no windows. Some guys start up a game of ping pong, and the rest of us watch since there’s not really anything else to do. My friend, K, from the other class comes out and we catch up, even though we just last saw each other maybe 15 hours ago. K and I met on the first day and although we’re in different classes (she is learning a different programming language), I think we still manage to spend more time with each other than anyone else.
11:45 a.m. - It doesn’t seem like the power is coming back on anytime soon, and there’s pizza waiting to be eaten, so we’re told to help ourselves. We’ve just started a series of lunchtime events where different companies come in, buy us lunch, and talk about their company culture and what they do. I grab two slices of pizza and some salad and sit down to hear about a company that, within the first two minutes, I have decided I absolutely do not want to work for. I try to remain attentive throughout the next hour because I believe everyone has valuable insight to offer, but these people are really rubbing me the wrong way and I just want it to be over so I can pee and get back to work.
1:15 p.m. - The presentation is finally over, and a lot of my classmates want to stay behind to talk to the presenters, so I grab another slice of pizza and decide to do some work on my side project since we’re clearly not going to be getting back to what we were doing this morning anytime soon. The power came back on in the middle of the presentation, so that’s a plus. I’m making (read: trying to make) a Goodreads-style app for my own personal book collection. This isn’t anything I’d ever put out there, but it will be a good thing to show potential employers to showcase what I’ve learned. I’ll build it out as I learn more throughout the rest of the cohort.
2:45 p.m. - Everyone regroups in the classroom to get instructions for our end-of-module project. We’ve been working with our assigned partners on other assignments this week, but this is much bigger. Once our instructor has given us access to the repository, we get started. By 5, we have a good blueprint and a few of the smaller pieces of code written. We’ll have the next two days and all weekend to work on it, so we call it a day.
5:00 p.m. - On my way out to my car, I hear someone call my name and see one of my sister’s friends walking towards me. It turns out she works in the same building! We make plans to get lunch soon.
6:00 p.m. - After a pretty standard rush hour commute, I’m back in my neck of the woods with a few errands to run. I first stop at the local bookstore to pick up a book I ordered, The Four Agreements. I’ve been meaning to read it for awhile, and with some recent miscommunication in several relationships in my life, it feels like the right time. It’s also pretty short, so that’s perfect for my busier schedule right now. As a former librarian, I would normally just get a copy from the library, but I think this is something I’m going to want to refer back to ($13.83). Next, I stop at CVS for a flu shot. It’s free with our health insurance, and there’s no wait! On the way out, I grab some milk ($2.58). $16.41
6:30 p.m. - Back home, I’m greeted by the dog with jumps and licks and sniffs. I walk in to find Z lying on the floor in the living room, his usual spot. I don’t know how he finds it comfortable! We check in briefly and I run upstairs to change into sweats. I come back down and heat up the last of the steak fajitas I meal prepped this weekend, which I have with a black cherry seltzer and a java chip cookie made by Z. I sit on the couch and Z and I catch up in more detail while the dog stares at me willing to drop some food.
7:15 p.m. - I need to make lunches for the rest of the week, so I get out the ingredients for Workweek Lunch’s Mediterranean farro bowls. I realize I forgot to buy tahini, so I’ll have to improvise for some sort of sauce or dressing. I decide that’s a problem for future me. I also make a serving of overnight oats for breakfast tomorrow.
8:30 p.m. - I clean up the kitchen, sit down to record today’s diary, and take out the dog one last time before getting ready for bed. My nighttime skincare consists of Glossier Milk Jelly Cleanser, Neutrogena Ultra Gentle Hydrating Cleanser, Paula’s Choice 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant, more of The Ordinary Buffet, more of CeraVe in a tub, and CeraVe eye cream. After brushing and flossing, I get into bed and start The Four Agreements. I don’t get very far into it since I’m more tired than I realized. I fall asleep around 9:30.
Daily total: $16.41
Day 2 - Thursday 10/24
5:30 a.m. - Nope.
6:15 a.m. - Finally get out of bed, drain and feed the dog. I take a body shower and shave my legs, cutting myself in the process. You’d think I’d be more adept at something I’ve been doing for ⅔ of my life, but alas. I pick out relatively comfy clothes since it’s a project workday: a grey tshirt, black jeans, a black wrap cardigan, and my Ravenclaw Vans to make me feel smarter and maybe put a small dent in my omnipresent impostor syndrome. After that it’s regular makeup and a half-hearted attempt at straightening my hair. Breakfast is the oats I prepped last night. Meds for me, treat for doggo, out the door.
8:15 a.m. - Arrive at bootcamp. My project partner isn’t here yet, so I spend time catching up on the New York Times and CNN 5 Things emails since I opted for music on my commute. I also look over some files we’ll need to reference for the project. My partner arrives at 9 and we get straight to work.
10:30 a.m. - Break for bathroom, animal crackers, and hot chocolate.
1:00 p.m. - Time to give the old brain a rest and have some lunch. I find some dressing in the fridge to put on my farro bowl. The bowl is fine - I might have overdone it on the paprika, or I’m just not feeling it today. My partner leaves to go to a doctor’s appointment and I try to pull my weight for the next two hours until he returns. I understand most of what we’re doing, but he seems to understand it better and I want to make sure he doesn’t feel like he’s doing the brunt of the work.
5:20 p.m. - We’re both stuck and schedule an appointment with one of the tutors, who graciously walks us through our issue. By 6:15, we’re ready to call it a night. We think we should be able to knock out the rest of the project tomorrow and have a chance to actually relax this weekend! Don’t want to jinx it, though.
7:00 p.m. - Since I left after 6, my commute was only about 45 minutes. I say hi to the dog and Z and change into my pajamas. Not feeling another farro bowl, so I make a very sophisticated meal of shredded cheese sprinkled on a tortilla and microwaved for 45 seconds. I slice up an avocado for health, grab a cranberry lime seltzer, and sit down on the couch to catch up with Z. My MIL comes home a bit later and we chat with her for a few minutes.
8:15 p.m. - I take out the dog and head upstairs to get ready for bed. Once in bed, my mind immediately replays an uncomfortable text conversation I had with a friend over the weekend. Long story short, I woke up on Sunday morning to a text from her telling me how much I’d hurt and used her throughout the planning of my wedding. This was a total shock to me and I tried to set up a meeting in person to talk about it, but she’s not ready yet. It’s been what I’ve been ruminating on whenever my mind gets a moment to wander. I was so afraid of asking too much of my bridesmaids during the whole thing because they are all super busy people and I really wanted to keep things low key. I guess maybe I didn’t do a great job of that? I know it’s not useful to keep racking my brain trying to figure out exactly where I went wrong until we talk, but that’s much easier said than done. I talk about it a bit to Z, but I know he’s probably tired of hearing about it so I pretend to be okay so he can go to sleep. I try to distract myself by looking through our honeymoon pictures on my phone and eventually fall asleep.
10:30 p.m. - I’m awoken suddenly feeling super sweaty and flushed. I’m either about to be sick or having a panic attack. I head into the bathroom so I don’t wake Z and lie down on the floor with a wet washcloth on my head, trying to breathe and cool down. After about 15 minutes, I’m able to calm down enough to get back into bed. Thankfully the dog seems to know what I need, and he lies still enough for me to pet him until I drift off.
Daily Total: $0
Day 3: Friday, 10/25
6:15 a.m. - I allow myself to sleep in a little bit given my night last night and unsure of how long I’ll need to be at bootcamp today. I get the dog drained and fed and then focus on showering and getting ready in my usual way. I’m in need of comfy clothes again today, so I choose a black and white striped hoodie, my stretchiest jeans, and my Ravenclaw Vans. I’m not hungry just yet, so I grab my overnight oats to eat on the road along with another farro bowl for lunch. After giving the dog a treat, I hit the road. I stop to get gas on the way ($22.85).
8:30 a.m. - I arrive at bootcamp and make myself some dandelion tea I brought before sitting down and looking over what needs to be done today. My partner arrives around 9 and we buckle down.
12:00 p.m. - I’m hungry but my farro bowl does not sound appealing, so I decide to get a bagel from the place down the block. My partner decides to go, too, and we chat about some companies we’d like to work for in the future. He’s willing to relocate whereas I am not. It’s important for Z and me to be close to our families, plus the job market for tech is pretty healthy around here. I’m definitely nervous and experiencing impostor syndrome every single day, but I know I’ll have more options than I did when I worked in libraries. At the bagel shop, I order an egg and cheddar on a rosemary bagel ($4.75 with a $1 tip).
12:30 p.m. - Sit down for a presentation about interviewing. While a lot of us have been through many interviews, there are quite a few people in my cohort straight out of school and/or with little to no work experience. A lot of the information is familiar to me, but it’s still a valuable presentation.
1:30 p.m. - Back to work on the project. It feels like we’re pretty close to being done(narrator: they were not close to being done), and I offer to start writing some tests for our code. I snack on some pretzels throughout the afternoon.
4:00 p.m. - Writing tests has proven to be kind of pointless because we discovered a bug in a major piece of our code (no thanks to any of the tests I wrote). We spend the next two and a half hours ironing things out.
6:30 p.m. - That was rough. It’s time to go home. Our program works and we divide up the bells and whistles to add to it over the weekend before doing a final commit. I listen to the 10% Happier podcast on the way home.
7:15 p.m. - I walk into a house that smells amazing, which can only mean that Z has been baking. He’s made a bunch of pumpkin chai cookies for a party we’re going to tomorrow. I sample one for quality control. Delicious, as usual. I change into leggings and we catch up on our days.
8:00 p.m. - Z goes upstairs to get ready for bed, and I stay behind and catch up on Money Diaries from the week. Before I know it, an hour has passed and I’m feeling pretty tired. I had hoped to do some yoga tonight (sadly for the first time in awhile), but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I go upstairs and get ready for bed. Z is still awake, so we fool around for a bit before drifting off.
Daily total: $28.60
Day 4: Saturday, 10/26
7:00 a.m. - I wake up without an alarm and lie in bed for awhile scrolling through my phone. I hate starting my day this way, yet I seem to do it every day. My superior husband is, of course, already at the gym. I take out the dog, feed him, brush my teeth and do morning skincare, and throw on some leggings, a chambray button-down, and my Marauder’s Map scarf. Who knows how long I’ll be coding today. Z calls to see if I want anything from the grocery store. I thank him and tell him I’ll just go later to get what I need.
8:00 a.m. - I head downstairs to meal plan and make a grocery list. I’ve been subscribed to Workweek Lunch, who I found via Instagram, for about a month. I’ve been very pleasantly surprised with the ease and speed of the recipes, and to me it’s worth every penny of the monthly subscription. I don’t need a bunch this coming week since we’ll have lunch brought in for us twice and I already have a lot of ingredients, so this doesn’t take too long. I then hop on my school computer to browse job postings to get a better idea of what I might want to do when I graduate in eight weeks. I’m not super comfortable with writing code, but I can read it and understand it pretty well, so I’m leaning towards more business analyst or project manager roles.
9:00 a.m. - Z comes home and I help him unload the groceries. We then head to Starbucks for the morning. This is our weekend tradition and the most significant time we consistently get to spend together. We order separately so we can both get rewards. I get a half caf flat white and a bacon gouda sandwich, paying with money already loaded on my app. Z then tries to help me with the bonus part of my project (he’s a software engineer), but we don’t really get very far (my fault, I ask a lot of questions) before we need to leave to go to a house showing.
12:00 p.m. - We meet our realtor at a house in the neighborhood we’re interested in. We are very much set on this neighborhood because the houses are exactly the size we’re looking for and generally very reasonably priced for the school district they’re in, plus it’s full of young families, close to a beautiful park and within 20 minutes of most of our friends and family. There are lots of great things about the house, but Z thinks the layout is odd and is nervous about some water damage in the basement. We talk about it a little on the way home, but I don’t mind letting this one go. I don’t want either of us to settle and I know there’s something out there we’ll both love, even if it takes us a long time to find it. Sometimes it feels like we’ve been looking forever, but it’s only been about six months. We’re super lucky we don’t have a deadline of when we have to be out of my MIL’s, plus the stress of moving combined with bootcamp seems like too much right now.
1:00 p.m. - Back home, I eat a few bites of a farro bowl before I come to the conclusion that the spice ratio is just gross and the textures are weird and I can’t eat this without gagging a bit, so I sadly throw it away. This is an extremely rare occurrence, but I just can’t today. I eat a spoonful of peanut butter and try to work through more of the problem. I end up getting so frustrated I have a bit (read: kind of major) cryfest to Z before I give up and try a different bonus problem. The good news is that the program works and the bells and whistles I’m trying to add are extra credit. With Z’s help, I figure out this other problem and push it to my partner. I’ll try to tackle the other bonus again tomorrow.
3:45 p.m. - I head out to go get my nails done. I get SNS powder dip about every three to four weeks. After years of hating my nails and ruining manicures far too early, this is a godsend. Usually Saturday afternoons I’m able to walk in, but unfortunately when I arrive there’s a sign on the door saying they closed at 4 today. Balllllllls. Guess I’ll try again next weekend. I’m right across from a grocery store, so I pop in and get stuff from the list I made this morning: red bell pepper, kale, tofu, zucchini, carrots, cilantro, rice noodles, and ketchup ($17.24).
4:30 p.m. - On the way back home, I call my mom. She lives close by, but since bootcamp started, I haven’t gotten to see her as much as I usually do. She tells me about a Halloween party she’s going to tonight and we solidify plans for a wedding we’re attending together tomorrow afternoon. When I get home, I make a peanut butter sandwich on some pumpkin sourdough bread Z got from the bakery and have it along with a cranberry lime seltzer. I should probably eat something more substantial, but I know we’ll be well fed at the party we’re going to tonight, so I don’t worry too much.
5:45 p.m. - I am freezing, so I decide to take a shower. Nobody is dressing up tonight, but I want to look slightly witchy so I still wear my Marauder’s Map scarf and add black jeans, pointy toed black ankle boots, and a dark matte lip. We take a six-pack of Platform S’mores Yammy Z picked up at the store earlier and the cookies he made yesterday and head over to our friends’.
7:15 p.m. - We are some of the first people to arrive and I am thrilled to see that their 4-month-old is still awake and I get to hold her for a few minutes! These friends usually go all out for Halloween but understandably decided to keep it low-key this year given the new addition to their family. A few other couples show up and we spend the next few hours chatting, drinking, and eating. I love how Z’s friends have turned into my friends over the years.
11:30 p.m. - We are beat and say our goodbyes. Typical nighttime routine once we get home. I fall asleep shortly after my head hits the pillow.
Daily total: $17.24
Day 5: Sunday, 10/27
7:45 a.m. - I wake up and take my time getting out of bed even though I’ve got work to do this morning. My mom and I are going to a wedding and she is driving, so I ask her to pick me up at Starbucks since I’ll be working on stuff there. After draining and feeding the dog, I do my regular morning routine and put on my wedding clothes: a black and maroon brocade ¾ sleeve fit and flare dress, black tights, and black pointy toe flats, do slightly heavier makeup, and straighten my hair. Z accompanies me to Starbucks, where I get the same thing I got yesterday after loading $20 more to my app. I spend the next two hours going over class material for the upcoming week. ($20.00)
11:00 a.m. - My mom picks me up and we drive to the restaurant for the event. It’s the wedding of one of my mom’s coworkers, and it’s actually a Chinese tea ceremony, meaning they’re not technically married in the US but in Chinese tradition they are. They’re planning a smaller destination wedding in a few months but wanted to do this to include everyone. Neither of us has ever been to one of these and we have been told to come hungry! My college roommate is actually married to the bride’s brother and she and her husband are there with their three-week-old baby! He is, needless to say, adorable, and we get to catch up for a few minutes. We then spend the next few hours being served plate after plate of food. Both my mom and I are allergic to shellfish, so there’s quite a bit there we can’t eat, but we somehow manage to stuff ourselves on pretty much everything else. My favorite dish is the sesame buns at the end. I pack a to-go box with one of those and a few cupcakes for Z and my MIL.
3:00 p.m. - We waddle out of the restaurant and head back home. On the way, we stop at Discount Drug Mart where I restock on generic Flonase and more face wash ($21.97).
4:15 p.m. - Back home and I am suddenly exhausted. I say hi to Z and the dog and head upstairs to change and lie down for a bit.
5:15 p.m. - I hear my MIL come home and she has takeout from Aladdin’s. I am still way too full, but she was kind enough to bring me something to take for lunch tomorrow! My SIL comes over to eat with us, and we talk about a few trips we’d like to take next year. We all clean up the kitchen, SIL heads out, and I open up my laptop to do more work for the week while Z keeps me company and watches the Browns lose.
7:45 p.m. - There is still more to be done, but it’s not super pressing and I know if I keep going I probably won’t stop until very late. It’s more important for me to be rested tomorrow for an assessment in the morning and a conference in the afternoon. Z takes out the dog, I update the diary, prep overnight oats, and head upstairs.
9:00 p.m. - After getting ready for bed, I get sucked into reading about the different sessions at tomorrow’s conference and don’t end up falling asleep until closer to 10.
Daily Total: $41.97
Day 6: Monday, 10/28
6:15 a.m. - Out of bed after several snooze cycles. Dog and I do his routine, then I hop in the shower. Once I’m done blow drying my hair, I pick out some slightly nicer clothes since I’m not sure what the norm at the conference will be: beige cardigan, purple button up blouse, black pants, and grey Rothys. Running behind as usual, so I take my breakfast to go.
8:15 a.m. - Arrive at bootcamp and begin looking over materials for today’s assessment, even though we can use any resource during it except another human. We only have an hour to work on them and I’m nervous about how much I can get done.
10:15 a.m. - The assessment is over, and while I got all my code written, I find a stupid mistake I made after I submit it. After making some peach honey tea and grabbing some animal crackers on break, it’s time for lecture. We’re starting server-side programming this week.
12:00 p.m. - Time for lunch! I’m excited to eat my Aladdin’s from last night. I get the Jasmine’s Favorite with Chicken Tawook. I can’t finish all of it, so I put it in the fridge for tomorrow and wait for K to get out of class so we can head over to the conference together.
1:00 p.m. - We arrive, check in, and get a tshirt and swag bag - nothing fancy, just your typical pens, stickers, etc. We end up going to all three of the same sessions throughout the afternoon and even manage to do a bit of networking.
4:45 p.m. - There’s an after-conference happy hour we want to check out, so we meet up with some other women from our cohort and head up there. I get a whiskey ginger and some grilled cheese, mini brats, and veggies with hummus to eat. The conference is in the interactive area of the science museum, so we have some fun playing around with the different exhibits.
6:00 p.m. - Time to head home. Since we were at the conference all afternoon, I didn’t get a chance to start today’s homework, so I’m anxious about getting that done.
6:45 p.m. - Arrive home, change, and immediately get to work. Z keeps me company for a bit playing a video game and kindly takes out the dog for his evening walk.
9:30 p.m. - I call it a night. I’m only about ⅓ of the way through my assignment, but it’s not due until the day after tomorrow, so I’m hoping tomorrow I’ll be able to get more clarification on it. Get ready for bed and pass out.
Daily Total: $0
Day 7: Tuesday, 10/29
6:15 a.m. - I had every intention of trying to not hit snooze today but that didn’t happen. Dog routine, my routine. Outfit: navy floral peasant blouse, jeans, tan ankle boots. I miraculously have time to sit down and eat breakfast, although I would have been better off taking it with me because I stupidly ignore a Waze suggestion and it takes me an hour and fifteen minutes to get to bootcamp. At least I have the Armchair Expert podcast to keep me company.
8:30 a.m. - Just as I’m settling in, a group of guys in the row behind me start making blatantly sexist comments about a recruiter coming in tomorrow. I almost say something to them but chicken out at the last minute. After working in female-dominated fields for years, I am fortunately/unfortunately new to this side of the working world and spend the morning playing out alternative scenarios in which I stand up to them while trying to remain attentive in lecture.
10:00 a.m. - Animal cracker and hot chocolate break. Yes, I am 5.
11:40 a.m. - Lecture gets out early. I catch one of the admins and ask her if I could talk to her for a few minutes later today. I need some reassurance I’m not overreacting.
12:00 p.m. - Another company showcase today, this time with lunch from Buffalo Wild Wings. I load up a plate with salad, JoJos, and chicken tenders with garlic parmesan sauce and take a seat. K sits next to me and I tell her about the incident this morning. She makes me feel validated, and I am grateful to have found such a kind and supportive friend in her. The company does their presentation, and while they seem like they have a really great culture, it’s farther away than I’m willing to commute.
1:30 p.m. - I meet with one of the admins, and I feel incredibly lucky to have such a receptive audience to my grievance. She assures me this kind of behavior won’t be tolerated and encourages me to speak up if it happens again (which, let’s be honest, it probably will because I’ve learned a lot of these guys think they’re in a locker room and not a professional setting).
2:00 p.m. - K and I work together to finish last night’s homework and get started on today’s assignment before heading to an interviewing panel at 4:30. The panel is interesting, but I am feeling pretty beat and leave as soon as it ends.
6:30 p.m. - Come home as my MIL is getting the mail. Only boring promotional things for me, as usual. Greet Z and the dog and heat up the rest of my Aladdin’s to have for dinner along with some pita, hummus, and raspberry seltzer. I work some more on my assignment before my eyes start to cross. My blue-light glasses have been a life-saver recently, though, and I’m able to comfortably get more work done without the eye strain I was getting when I first started bootcamp.
9:00 p.m. - Prep overnight oats, take out the dog, bedtime routine, then read some more in the Four Agreements before falling asleep.
Daily Total: $0
Final Tally:
Food & Drink: $45.57
Fun: $13.83
Home & Health: $21.97
Clothes & Beauty: $0
Transport: $22.85
Other: $0
Weekly Total: $104.22
Final thoughts: My life is basically ruled by bootcamp right now, and a lot of my behavior this week was driven by stress. I definitely need to carve out more time for exercise/regenerative activities, but I can’t help but feel guilty when I do a whole lot outside of bootcamp. As of this posting, I’m halfway through the program and while I’d like to incorporate in some healthier habits in the coming weeks, I know it’ll be easier once I have a little bit more time again (and hopefully a decent job)!