| Being Well
An ongoing bulletin on holistic services at Harborside
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The Past Five Years -
and Future - of Harborside
By Steve DeAngelo
On the morning of October 3, 2006, just before we opened the doors of Harborside for the very first time, I got a phone call: "Federal agents are raiding medical cannabis locations in San Francisco and Oakland-right now." We had always known we were taking a risk, but had not expected to confront it so directly, on our very first day of business. But we opened our doors that day anyhow, and we made a commitment to our patients: to provide them with the very highest quality cannabis and patient services-no matter what the risk level is.
Five years later, October 3, 2011, was a day of dramatically mixed messages. My morning started with the very pleasant duty of giving the Oakland Treasurer's Office a check for $360,483.33, which represented 1/3 of our total annual tax payment of $1.1 million. It felt wonderful to be able to make such a tangible contribution to the benefit of our entire community, to be accepted by city officials as respectable and valuable members of the community. Read full article |
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Steve Speaks
By Stephen DeAngelo, Co-Founder and Executive Director
Cannabis Reform The Wellness Model Today, with medical cannabis laws in 16 states and the District of Columbia, the cannabis reform movement is at a crossroads. Some voices are calling for a change in strategy, arguing that the emphasis on medical cannabis leaves the majority of cannabis users without legal protection, and that therefore the movement should advocate for legalization of cannabis for recreational purposes. Other voices-including me-call for a renewed, movement-wide emphasis on cannabis as a medicine.
Common to both legalization advocates and their prohibitionist opponents is the notion that only a small minority of current cannabis users could legitimately qualify as medical cannabis patients. This coincidence of opinion is troubling, but not surprising, since it rests on the same misconception of the nature of medical cannabis. Read full article
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Andrew's Bullhorn
A humorous meditation on all things Harborside...
By Andrew DeAngelo, General Manager, Harborside Oakland
The Seven High Habits
of Effective Cannabis People
I have been lucky enough to know and work with some of the medical cannabis industry's greatest achievers. In fact, one of them is my older brother, Steve DeAngelo. Between the two of us, we have 70 years of combined cannabis experience. During the course of that time, we have been through just about everything with this plant. We've had a lot of success, and failure, and we have known all the folks who will someday occupy the Cannabis Hall of Fame-which does not yet exist, but will someday. All of these great achievers have certain habits in common, which I will share with you now:
1. A 100% Commitment to the Cannabis Plant.
It is your work. It is your play. It is your life. There's nothing else to work on because there's nothing else worth working on. To relax and play without cannabis is more like work, and since there's nothing else worth working on, cannabis becomes the main ingredient of any vacation. Where you go is determined by the cannabis-friendly nature of the place. You won't find a lot of cannabis folk vacationing in Malaysia; we do go to Jamaica or Holland frequently.
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Cannaseur Corner Rick Pfrommer, Purchasing Manager, Harborside Oakland 
Shining a Light on Sun-Grown Medicine Harborside Health Center continuously strives to be at the forefront of all aspects of the medical cannabis movement. In the current era of scarce, costly resources and global, environmental degradation, it is becoming readily apparent that we can no longer remain ignorant of the full ecological price of our medicine. Doing the math, the benefits of outdoor-or "sun-grown" cannabis (as we prefer to call it)-vastly outweigh the artificial, resource-intensive methods of growing indoors. The sun-grown cannabis of today is a much different medicine than it was even 10 years ago. The commercial production of cannabis was literally pushed into the shadows from the 1980s to the 1990s. Plants that had once flourished under California's glorious sun were forced under the shade of Redwood trees and Manzanita bushes. Cultivators switched to indoor grows, where this incredible, adaptive plant-with the potential to grow 16 feet tall or more-was confined and restricted to a much smaller space.
The quality and potency of sun-grown cannabis has risen dramatically in the last decade, and it can frequently test between 15 to 20% THC.
Indoor cannabis spends its entire lifespan in a virtual prison, nourished by harsh artificial lights under regimented schedules, patrolled by vigilant guards-excuse me, I mean growers. (Disclaimer: I do love indoor cannabis. Heck, I just like cannabis in general.) In this author's humble opinion, however, nothing compares to well-grown, well-cured, sun-grown cannabis. The range of flavors expressed by buds grown in a natural environment is endless. French wine experts speak of terroir, the flavor that comes from the land in which the grape was grown. Wine, coffee and tea flavors are all said to be affected by the soil they are grown in, the atmosphere that surrounded them and the season they grew through-simply, all of the elements of a balanced ecosystem. Read full article
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PARC Action
The latest on news from Harborside's Patient Activist Resource Center
 
This holiday season, Harborside will be participating in a few community drives that will benefit the City of Oakland in various ways. Here is a breakdown of what we have going on:
Warm Coats, Jackets and Blankets
From now through December, we are joining up with One Warm Coats, and will be holding our first Winter Coats and Blankets drive. Patients can bring in LIGHTLY USED coats, jackets and blankets, and in return for each item, they will receive a raffle ticket. On December 30, a raffle will be held, where we will give out over an ounce of top-shelf meds: First Prize gets a half-ounce, Second Prize gets a quarter-ounce, and third prize gets an eighth of any medicine you choose. Also, there will be a bonus prize for whoever brings in the most items, of another half-ounce of any meds!
We are coordinating with a number of churches, homeless shelters, and schools to drop off the coats, jackets and blankets. We don't want anyone to be cold this winter because they don't have a coat or blanket. With everyone's help, we can keep our community warm, healthy and safe.
We're also holding a Red Cross Blood Drive on December 3. The Red Cross Blood Mobile will be here all day taking blood, and will provide snacks. Anyone can register to donate blood, and you do not have to be a patient. We encourage families and friends to get involved. To sign up, please talk to an Ombuds associate.
Stay tuned for more drives and opportunities! We have a lot more ideas in the works, including our annual Food Drive, holding monthly dinners at homeless shelters, recreational time with senior citizens, and playground cleanups. Here at Harborside, we're all excited to open up new avenues for our patients and staff to become involved in the community of Oakland. Thanks so much for your participation.
- Sugam Soni, Ombuds Associate, Harborside Oakland back to top |
JB's product pick of the month:
Americann Medicated Gummi Cares
It isn't often that we see a low-calorie, candy-like edible that tastes good and offers powerful effects. This is where the new Americann Medicated Gummi Cares come in. The Americann Medicated Gummi is a black-cherry flavored gummy candy made from an all-natural, vegetable oil extraction. This edible is available in Indica or Sativa, both packing strong effects with 1.09 ml of cannabis oil per piece!
The Americann Medicated Gummi Cares were originally formulated for patients who have a difficult time consuming larger amounts of food. These gummies are easy to eat because they are smaller in size and taste great. Most importantly, many of us feel the onset of effects is extremely rapid compared to other, larger edibles.
Every individual reacts differently to medicated edible products. For those patients with a high tolerance, more of the edible should be eaten to feel the effects. If you typically have a lower tolerance to edibles, you may want to bite this candy in half or cut it into smaller portions when you try it for the first time. The Americann Medicated Gummi Cares can be purchased individually for $9 each or in re-sealable packs of 6 for $40.
Americann Medicated Gummi Cares
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Being Well
An ongoing bulletin on holistic services at Harborside
Harborside Partners with London University in Pioneering New Research
There is a large variation in the types and kinds of medical cannabis available to you at Harborside. All of these options can be overwhelming-you've probably thought, "Which one will work best for me?" To assist patients in this process, Harborside-in collaboration with the Beckley Foundation and the University College London--is participating in a pioneering study looking at the effectiveness of cannabis in treating different symptoms and conditions.
Among other things, results will reveal which types (like flower buds or edibles), which species (think sativa and indica), which strains (like Blueberry or Sour Diesel) and what cannabinoid contents (like THC and CBD percentages) are found by patients to be the best for treating specific medical conditions and symptoms. The survey asks patients about current medical cannabis use, medical cannabis use in general, and how medical cannabis compares to other treatments such as pharmaceuticals. The survey aims to build the leading database of information on the effectiveness of differing cannabis strains, and cannabinoid contents in managing differing symptoms and conditions.
All patients are asked to fill out the confidential and anonymous online questionnaire. The more patients we hear from, the stronger the results! Be a part of this groundbreaking research and go online to fill out the questionnaire at http://cannabisstudy.com/.
- Jennifer Janichek, Harborside
Harm Reduction Counselor
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Staff Spotlight
Infini Terry
Ombuds Assistant Manager, Harborside Oakland
As Ombuds Assistant Manager, Infini greets and registers new patients daily, checking-in and welcoming back returning patient-members, while maintaining Harborside's extensive schedule of free holistic services.
Known for her mega-watt smile, graceful warmth and jovial spirit, Infini Terry is a beloved member of Harborside's founding circle. Employed since pre-opening orientation back in July of 2006, she recalls the first several months of Harborside Oakland as a sales associate, helping just one or two patients a day.
Since then, Infini has worked in several departments at Harborside, including Processing, Purchasing and Inventory, and has even helped do payroll, with most of her time spent in Sales and Ombuds-where she is currently Assistant Manager. While she's appreciated learning the back-of-the-house aspects of dispensary operations, as well as the rigid complexities of Harborside's quality-control of medicine, Infini most enjoys face-time with patients. "It's funny because they look at me surprised, like, 'You remember my name? My dry cleaning lady doesn't even know my name!'" says Infini, laughing. "But a lot of them do appreciate it and I can build a relationship off that."
As Ombuds Assistant Manager, Infini greets and registers new patients daily, checking-in and welcoming back returning patient-members, while maintaining Harborside's extensive schedule of free holistic services. Occasionally, she's asked to resolve any conflicts that arise. "You've got to have good communication-several different kinds of people come in here, many who are really, really ill. You have to know how to keep your energy up, no matter what the situation," says Infini, attributing much of what she's learned to the training she's received at Harborside, as well as from observing her co-workers. "I just like everyone to be on nice, neutral ground-we're all happy, no stress, everyone is good."
In her five-plus years at Harborside, Infini feels proud of everything her collective-family has accomplished, "standing together," and is excited to keep learning, to see what the future brings. "The overall growth of Harborside is what I like. I always want to see it continue, and be a part of that." back to top |
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A patient we love
Fazal Mohammed Faizi is a 37-year-old resident of San Jose, and a loyal, valuable patient to Harborside San Jose.
Fazal-or "Mo," as he prefers-is an ex-Marine who bravely fought in the Iraq War in October of 2009. He was active on the front line, and while getting out of his tank, he was sprayed by enemy bullets. Mo was sent to a hospital in Germany where he had multiple surgeries, which ultimately resulted in the amputation of his right leg. After being sent back home to the U.S. on a long-term disability retirement, doctors began prescribing him several different kinds of painkiller medications and antidepressants. These cocktails of assorted pills made him ill and provoked constant thoughts of suicide. When a friend recommended that he try medicinal cannabis, Mo researched the magical plant and decided to give it a try. After experimenting with several different types of strains, he has learned that the sativa-dominant strains help him to be more productive and clear-minded during the day. Although Mo relies on the aid of his crutches, the sativa-dominant strains also help keep him mobile. At night, Mo prefers indica-dominant strains to go to sleep and stay asleep throughout the night. Before medicinal cannabis, he would wake up several times a night from either severe pain or nightmares.
Mo often wonders why he waited so long to try this form of medication and is now an active spokesman for medicinal cannabis. He encourages anyone with any debilitating ailments to at least give medicinal cannabis a try. His experience makes him feel like he can take a breath of fresh air and love life again.
From Mo's very first visit to Harborside Health Center in San Jose, he was greeted by Vlad and could immediately feel the warmth and compassion that all the staff exuberates. He is always welcomed with a friendly smile and says that he feels so "at home" when he arrives. He knows the selection at Harborside is top-of-the-line and affordable, and he also truly appreciates that we honor veterans with a discount.
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FAQ of the month
What is "Sun-Grown" Medicine?
Put quite simply, sun-grown meds come from cannabis flowers grown outdoors, in the sun. Many patients these days seek out sun-grown cannabis for many reasons, such as: they may find it to be a tastier smoke, it's kinder on the environment, it can be easier and cheaper for them to cultivate, etc. Sun-grown cannabis goes back to the beginnings of cannabis cultivation before there were lights and sophisticated setups for indoor grows.
It was not until cannabis started being outlawed in the United States that it was brought indoors for cultivation to hide from the law. It was at this time that experimentation began with different grow techniques, including hydroponics. All of these techniques can grow very good cannabis, but they all usually require quite a bit of fertilizers to maintain the plants. These fertilizers can affect the taste of cannabis, depending on the care, cure, etc. This problem can be curbed with sun-grown cultivation since it is usually done in soil. Most of the time in sun-grown cultivation, chemical fertilizers can be substituted with organics and/or can be used less often since the plants can absorb some of their nutrients from the soil itself. In fact, you can often find that sun-grown medicines are also Clean Green Certified. Some argue that sun-grown cannabis is better for the environment simply because of the energy source being used to grow the cannabis. For more in-depth analysis on sun-grown cannabis, read "Cannasseur Corner" in this issue!
Due to the environmental and fiscal impact that indoor cultivation can have, we at Harborside encourage patients to try sun-grown cannabis as an alternative. Indoor grows cultivate some excellent specimens of cannabis, but we are also finding that sun-grown cannabis can reach excellent quality with rich trichomes and THC quantification results in the mid-to-high teens. Give sun-grown cannabis a second look next time and you may find yourself walking away with a great medicine for a really good value.
-John Brown, Marketing/Web Manager, john.brown@harborsidehealthcenter.com.
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Direct Democracy
Victorious results from the rallying, grassroots efforts of the San Jose referendum
By Goose Duarte, Assistant General Manager;
Elan Hawtrey, General Manager, HHC San Jose
Last month, the medical cannabis community of San Jose rallied together to submit a referendum to stop a medical cannabis ordinance that threatened the existence of medical cannabis dispensaries in the City of San Jose.
On September 27, the city council approved an ordinance dictating unworkable conditions for the operation of medical cannabis dispensaries, including: requiring that all medical cannabis and products be produced on-site, eliminating cash transactions, providing the police department 24-hour access to the live feed of the collective's security cameras, and limiting the number of such collectives to a maximum of 10 in a city of one million-plus. The ordinance would also require that all existing dispensaries close their doors until the city actually started issuing permits. A truly unworkable set of guidelines.
In response, the medical cannabis community joined forces to create the Citizens Coalition for Patient Care. With only 30 days to act, CCPC needed to collect 29,637 signatures of San Jose registered voters opposing the ordinance. This monumental task could only be accomplished by hiring a signature collection company, which would cost nearly $200,000. With the support of honorary chairman Senator Vasconcellos, one of the authors of Senate Bill 420, and chaired by James Anthony, California's leading land-use attorney for medical cannabis issues, over a dozen San Jose dispensaries and cannabis-related businesses worked tirelessly around the clock to raise funds, spread awareness, and gather signatures. Their efforts were well worth it.
On October 28, CCPC proudly presented the City of San Jose with nearly 50,000 signatures, more than enough to submit the referendum. The city council now has 30 days to decide whether they want to put the referendum up for a general vote, or will simply work with the dispensary operators to create an acceptable ordinance.
This is an example of the kind of direct democracy that the supporters of the medical cannabis movement have historically used to combat laws that prevent patients from safe access to their medicine. This was another victory for the movement and for medical cannabis patients everywhere-and we are proud to have, once again, helped to make a difference.
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