The July/August Illuminator

JULY / AUGUST 2011

In this Issue

Rachael's pick: 1st Place

San Jose Fumbles Dispensary Regs

harborsidehealthcenter.com

harborsidesanjose.com

Value per Dollar

An explanation of Harborside's medicine pricing

By Andrew and Steve DeAngelo

Pricing can be a tricky issue for cannabis collectives. Several factors need to be considered and reconciled with each other, which include maintaining fairness to a wide range of patients (from low income to affluent), staff and growers; preventing diversion to the illegal market; covering operational expenses, while supporting the movement and community through charitable donations; responding to competitive pressures, and sustaining an emergency reserve.

price pronciples

Each collective handles them in their own way, but these decisions are never easy. They require a lot of thought and care, discussion and debate, and ultimately must reflect the values and beliefs of the collective. It does not mean our strategy is right and others are wrong, it simply means that our strategy reflects our particular ideals. read full article

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Cannasseur Corner

By Rick Pfrommer, Purchasing Manager, Harborside Oakland

Back in 1988 I attended the first-ever High Times Cup in Amsterdam, Holland, and it was there that I began thinking about what it takes to judge fine cannabis.

Last month saw the return of the second stateside High Times Medical Cannabis Cup, located just across the bay in San Francisco, June 25-26. I've spent the last 20 years developing my skills at the art of judging cannabis and I would like to pass along some of the essentials. These few tasting tips should help you on your journey of discovering and assessing cannabis.

tasting tip 1 tasting tip 2 Beginning with the first step, look at the sample (photo, left). Is it covered in trichomes? Exterior trichome coverage is usually a good indicator of quality with an indoor sample. A sun-grown sample frequently has the exterior trichomes blown or knocked off. Next, take a small bud and break it in two (photo, right). There should be a distinct snap of the stem. If it bends, it is still too wet. continue tasting tips

Summer is still here and ready for you to go out and try some of Northern California's finest. Peace!

PLEASE NOTE: New Vendor Orientation will now be held

11am to noon on Wednesdays and Fridays only. Thanks!

For questions or comments about Harborside Oakland's purchasing department, please email:

karl.pfrommer@harborsidehealthcenter.com.

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SJ Buyer's Beat

By Rachael S., Purchasing Manager, Harborside San Jose

(S) Thai Haze

(Hybrid) Tahoe OG Kush

(I) Clean Green Certified Bogglegum

Happy summer, everyone! This past month has been busy. HempCon was a huge success and our patient base is growing everyday. We were excited to submit our entries for the second annual High Times™ Cannabis Cup™ that took place June 25-26 at the Concourse Exhibition Center in San Francisco.

There were five categories for the Cup submissions this year (indicas, hybrids, sativas, concentrates and edibles). I was proud to enter our Clean Green-certified Bogglegum (indica), Tahoe OG Kush (hybrid) Thai Haze (sativa), Grand Daddy Purple Pixie Stix (concentrate) and Yak's High CBD Capsules (edible).

Before the event, I felt like we had a really good chance of taking home an award this year. And I was right: we won Best Indica for our Bogglegum entry!

First Place, Indica.

Rachael's pick: delta559's Clean Green Bogglegum.

Speaking of awards, I'm extremely honored to announce that I also received a certificate in June from Steep Hill Laboratory for Outstanding Commitment to Quality and Safety for Medical Cannabis. David Spradlin of Magnolia Wellness and I were the first two people ever to receive this award, and it really left me speechless. Thanks, Steep Hill Lab - it is a mutually appreciative relationship we have and I'm happy to be a part of it.

As always, I am constantly searching for new, amazing vendors, so please call and set up a time to come see me! By appointment only: (408) 321-8424. For questions about the second annual High Times™ Cup, or about Harborside San Jose's purchasing deptartment, email rachael_szmajda@harborsidesj.com.

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Andrew's Bullhorn RETURNS NEXT ISSUE

A humorous meditation on all things Harborside

By Andrew DeAngelo, General Manager, Harborside Oakland

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JB's Product Pick of the Month

"Little piece of cheesecake, big peace of mind" is really what I think of when I am about to enjoy THCafe's THCheesecake varieties, including cherry, blueberry and chocolate. These individually sized cheesecake treats are each made with 0.5 grams of bubble hash, which seems like the perfect dosage to affect you without being too overpowering. Although they can be somewhat relaxing, these cheesecakes tend to be more sativa-based in their effectiveness. This usually allows patients a clear mental state to take care of their affairs throughout the day. Due to this, these cheesecakes are not only for nighttime, after-dinner consumption. In fact, I like to enjoy these at any part of the day with a nice latte, black tea with milk, or hot chocolate. Enjoy!

THCheesecakes

Cherry, blueberry, plain, and chocolate

- John Brown,Marketing and Web Coordinator

john.brown@harborsidehealthcenter.com.

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Steve Speaks On...

Heart and Soul:

Recognizing the precious resource

of cannabis cultivation

By Steve DeAngelo, Executive Director, Harborside Health Center

The amazing medicine you find at Harborside is grown by a network of 500 small, master growers. They are the heart and soul of the Harborside collective. They are responsible for our success, and they are the keepers of the Harborside promise: to offer the largest selection of the very best cannabis on the planet.

Unfortunately, our master growers are under attack. Last summer, the Oakland City Council passed legislation to license four gigantic factory farms. The idea was that these factory farms would mass-produce cannabis, using assembly-line techniques and semi-skilled workers to radically reduce costs. The cut-rate cannabis would be marketed to Oakland's licensed dispensaries at a lower price than small growers could offer, and they would be put out of business. This was ostensibly to address public safety issues like home fires and armed robberies, but the true motive was to transfer prosperity from our master gardeners to the opportunists who supported centralized production controlled by a few large factory farms.

...many patients prefer to buy organic medicine, carefully tended in small plots by

master gardeners.

I and several other Harborside staff members (along with many growers and concerned patients) testified in front of the council, urging them to vote against the factory farms. We pointed out that patients should be offered a choice of the kind of medicine they want. We told the council that while it's true that some patients may prefer to pay less for mass-produced cannabis, grown by assembly-line workers using chemical fertilizers, many other patients will prefer to buy organic medicine, carefully tended in small plots by master gardeners. read full article

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A patient we love:

Patricia Sanchez

Born with arthritis, San Jose patient Patricia Sanchez also sustained an injury to her spine that affects her breathing. In addition to degenerative disk disease, fibromyalgia and the corporal tunnel syndrome that plagues her mobility, Patricia is unfortunately unable to take pills anymore because of a recent surgery to repair her bleeding ulcer. I was bedridden for many years until about a year ago when I came here to Harborside in San Jose and starting using medical cannabis.

Now receiving daily painkilling relief from vaporizing cannabis or eating any number of the delicious medicated edibles in stock, Patricia also appreciates the soothing quality of topicals and tinctures. And she says Harborside's supplemental services-namely, acupuncture and massage-help her relax and breathe better. "It has been so helpful for me that Harborside offers the low-income medicine program, I would not be able to medicate without that."

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COMMUNITY NEWS

SJ Fumbles Dispensary Regs

By Steve DeAngelo, Executive Director, Harborside Health Center

The San Jose City Council has badly fumbled legislation to license and regulate medical cannabis dispensaries. Under relentless pressure from the police department, the council passed a draft ordinance with several serious flaws on April 19. The council's proposal would award 10 dispensary licenses by an unspecified "first come, first served" process-presumably applicants would camp out at the city clerk's office, like ticket buyers for a sell-out rock concert. Those applicants lucky enough to be handed one of the highly coveted licenses would then be required to self-cultivate 100 percent of the cannabis they sell, and to locate in a general commercial zone.

And if by some even greater miracle, the

feds allowed this scheme to move forward,

the self-cultivation model would create vertical monopolies, with one organization controlling

the product all the way from seed to patient.

These provisions make the ordinance essentially unworkable. With the number of dispensaries reduced to 10, each licensee would have to construct tens of thousands of square feet of grow rooms to meet patient demand. Even if you could find a space that large in a general commercial zone, no landlord is going to allow you to convert their nicely finished retail space into a factory. And if by some miracle you found a willing landlord, the federal government will close them down just like they did up the road in Oakland a few months ago. And if by some even greater miracle, the feds allowed this scheme to move forward, the self-cultivation model would create vertical monopolies, with one organization controlling the product all the way from seed to patient. This reduction of competition would quickly result in a decline in the selection and quality of medicine, with price increases likely to follow. read full article

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Shining light on Shadow Falls

By Heidi Zwack, Ombuds Assistant Manager,

Harborside Oakland

When we received an email from a resident of Pleasanton, California, stating that he had found trash with the Harborside Health Center logo on it in a local park, we immediately took action. The next morning, another member of Harborside Oakland staff, Kara Brown, and I volunteered to drive to Pleasanton and pick up all trash, including the Harborside litter. We arrived to Shadow Falls Regional Park around 8:30am and immediately began picking up any trash or bottles we found. We spent the morning cleaning up the park and then brought the waste back to Harborside to dispose of.

Heidi Kara

When the clean-up was completed I drafted a letter of explanation to the mayor, city council members of Pleasanton, and the chief of police, including pictures of Kara and myself cleaning the park. In the letter, I stated that, "We strive to protect the tranquility and cleanliness of our neighborhood, and I wanted to extend a hand to help protect and clean yours." I also explained that, "We have a very strong commitment to educating every patient who comes through our doors, and we ask each and every patient to be an ambassador for the medical cannabis movement as a whole."

We have not received a formal response yet from the mayor, chief of police or city council members. However, we did hear word that they received our letter and that we should expect a response shortly.

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Highlights from HempCon

The San Jose Convention Center hosted hundreds of representatives the weekend of June 10 from all areas of the medical cannabis industry. Harborside's booth was located inside an exclusive area allocated for verified medical cannabis patients. Patients were also allowed access to a designated outdoor area near the convention center, where they could medicate. Thank you to everybody who participated in the semi-annual HempCon in San Jose. We all had such a great time meeting new

patients and getting a chance to catch up with our regulars. sj crew

Thanks to the coordinated efforts of the crews of Harborside Health Center Oakland and San Jose, our booth was very fun and successful. The booth itself was a small replica of the dispensary, complete with our unique counter, display case and a clone rack. Visitors were able to participate in a scavengerhunt where they were challenged with visiting other booths to collect special Harborside wooden nickels, earning them a prize of a hat, a t-shirt, or an edible from the San Jose location. People were engaged, educated, and able to appreciate the standards of quality and service they have come to expect from us. If you have any ideas for future events, please drop them off in our suggestion box.

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Staff Spotlight

Caroline

Caroline Francese

Purchasing Agent, Harborside Oakland

Artist, mom, gardener and passionate pot enthusiast, Caroline Francese is an integral part of Harborside Oakland's purchasing department.

Prior to Harborside, she painted pottery as an artist's assistant in West Palm Beach, Florida, slung cocktails at a tequila bar, worked with kids in an aftercare program and managed a large flow of inventory at Nordstrom's - and Caroline believes it all prepared her to do a job she's quite fulfilled by, under the tutelage of a master procurer of cannabis, Rick Pfrommer.

Caroline also learns a lot dealing with the lab and reading the results of tested medicine. She finds it satisfying to help growers develop their best strains or most CBD-rich cannabis, keeping in mind the needs of the collective-and asking herself, "Is this something that I really feel the patients are going to like? Is this something that's maybe going to be a part of their spiritual practice of smoking herb?"

"I'm like the link for everybody - for [growers] to know what the patients or bar staff want on the floor, and then vice versa. Without one, there's not the other."

But Caroline's biggest challenge is in finding a way to compassionately reject people, if something's not up to the standards asked for by staff and patients. And, she explains, "saying that in a way to somebody who's spent a lot of time and hard work and energy growing, but making it so that the door is always open for them to come back, so that they don't feel like they're being criticized."

In the meantime, Caroline says she would love to spend an entire summer working on somebody's farm-"if they let me"-and then attempt to grow her own crop of Clean Green-certified outdoor. She's also cultivating a relationship with herself "on a more Buddhist level," meditating, reading self-help books, camping, creating sculptural artwork and hanging out with her four-year-old son. "I grow a lot of rare types of plants," she adds. "I like to start things from seeds. I have this one giant pumpkin, a passionflower vine, English chamomile, Japanese maple, poppies, and lots of succulents."

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FOR YOUR INFORMATION

WIN A FREE 1/8TH

FYI: Recycled jar contest!
How do you reuse your Harborside medicine jars? Most creative use (with photo) wins a free eighth of medicine. Send submissions to andrew.deangelo@harborsidehealthcenter.com or drop off entries in person at reception. Open to Harborside registered patients only; no staff members or their immediate families may participate.

ENTRIES DUE FRIDAY, AUGUST 12, 2011

JAR

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FYI: FAQs of the Month

labels

1.) What are the THC and CBD percentages about and how do you determine those numbers?

Harborside is pleased to announce that we provide laboratory analysis of our medical cannabis products. This effort has been developed in partnership with the Steep Hill Lab, a cannabis analysis laboratory, which owns and operates the laboratory facility. All smokeable cannabis products accepted for distribution to Harborside are lab tested for safety and potency. For the first time in the 3000-year history of human cannabis consumption, consumers are provided a scientific assessment of the safety and potency of products prior to ingesting them.

Over the course of the pastcouple years, the lab has developed its analytical methods in partnershipwith respected bio-chemists from some of the Bay Area's most prestigious institutions. Testing has begun with cannabis flowers and concentrates, and will later include edibles, tinctures, capsules, etc. The testing techniques include gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, gas chromatography/flame ionization detection, and plate culture analysis.

The testing program has two main components: safety screening and potency quantification. Safety screening analyzes and detects contamination of pathogenic molds, which can threaten the health of patients with compromised immune systems. Potency quantification provides the percentages of the major cannabinoids THC and CBD. Upcoming stages of the program will include the use of patient surveys to develop a comprehensive database of the efficacy of medical cannabis.

Harborside's patients are able to access the testing results in a couple ways: labels in display cases and labels on products. Labels include percentages for THC and CBD and are posted in medicine display cases, as well as affixed to the products themselves.

2.) What are THC and CBD?

THC is a chemical compound which is the main psychoactive substance found in cannabis.

CBD is a compound found

in cannabis that has all the medical benefits, but with very low psychoactive effects.

In a nutshell, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are both chemical compounds called cannabinoids, which are found in the cannabis plant. As described by Steep Hill Analytical Laboratory, "THC is the main psychoactive substance in medical cannabis and marijuana. It is most associated with the high and euphoria often experienced when cannabis is consumed. The compound has mild to moderate analgesic effects used to treat pain. Other effects include relaxation, euphoria, altered space-time perception; alteration of visual, auditory and olfactory senses, anxiety, disorientation, fatigue and appetite stimulation. CBD alone is not intoxicating. Medically it has been shown to relieve convulsion, inflammation, anxiety, nausea, and to inhibit cancer cell growth. Recent studies have shown cannabidiol to be as effective as atypical anti-psychotics in treating schizophrenia." Studies have also shown that it may relieve symptoms of dystonia.

Furthermore, the nonprofit cannabis educational service, Project CBD, states, "CBD is a compound in cannabis that has medical effects but does not make people feel 'stoned' and actually counters some of the effects of THC.

The reduced psychoactivity of CBD-rich cannabis may make it an appealing treatment option for patients seeking anti-inflammatory, anti-pain, anti-anxiety and/or anti-spasm effects without disconcerting euphoria or lethargy. Scientific and clinical studies indicate that CBD could be effective in easing symptoms of a wide range of difficult-to-control conditions, including: rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, alcoholism, PTSD, epilepsy, antibiotic-resistant infections and neurological disorders. CBD has demonstrated neuroprotective effects, and its anti-cancer potential is currently being explored at several academic research centers in the U.S. and other countries."

To learn more about THC and CBD please visit

Steep Hill Labs and Project CBD online:

http://steephilllab.com and http://projectcbd.org

- John Brown, Marketing and Web Coordinator,

john.brown@harborsidehealthcenter.com

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FYI: Harborside South Menu gets Sticky

In our San Jose location we have recently invoked new software (www.stickyguide.com) to display our menu online. Like other platforms currently available, you can get an accurate, up-to-date list of our flowers, concentrates, edibles and clones. Here's the part that sets Sticky Guide apart from other online services: not only can you view our current menu items, but you can also view pictures and leave comments on each item individually. And we have implemented the use of iPads at the sales counter - again utilizing Sticky Guide - to showcase our edibles with a new picture menu. To assist our patients we have provided a direct link to Sticky Guide from our website; by simply clicking the "menu" tab from our website (www.harborsidesanjose.com) you will be automatically routed to this fun and innovative new site. Thank you and enjoy!

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