Of all the alarming things that inspectors of Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board might discover about a grow op, this one may top them all.

While inspecting the background of a grower in Sequim on November 20, 2014, inspectors discovered a complaint filed against the individual with the Clallam County Sheriff’s office. The owners of a rental property adjacent to the grow op allege that the grower had gotten all dressed up in his birthday suit and was “bending a metal fence post, squatting, and moving his body forward and backward,” in full view of a family of barbecuing vacationers. The sheriff’s report included a photo of said naked bearded man and noted that, according to the tenants, “the man appeared to be aware of the guests barbecuing on the deck.”

The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board has received applications from 19 businesses that want to sell medical marijuana in Whatcom County.

The board has so far approved six medical endorsements. All are existing stores that have a license to sell recreational pot.

Among those getting endorsements is 2020 Solutions, which has two stores in Bellingham.

“We saw the need to serve medical patients in our stores as the medical market changes dramatically,” said Aaron Nelson, senior vice president of operations for 2020 Solutions.

Nelson said 2020 applied for the endorsements shortly after the board began accepting them Oct. 12 and received approval quickly.

WASHINGTON — The smell near the Columbia Heights Metro station Wednesday night was unmistakable. A lit joint in hand, Tony Lee stood outside a residence talking with friends as the evening bustle passed them by, no one paying the group of men any special attention.

“The community I’m in, everyone engages in smoking,” said Lee, 34, a District of Columbia resident who runs his own small construction firm. Plus, he said, if he’s not smoking, he detects the odor of other people getting high throughout the city on a daily basis anyway.

“I’ve grown accustomed to it,” he said.

The products will be available next year in the four U.S. states where cannabis use is legal, namely Colorado, Washington, OR and Alaska.

The 27-year-old, who is set to release her highly-anticipated eighth studio album, has made no secret of indulging in cannabis and has been an open supporter of its legalization.

Her line will reportedly include strains of Karibbean Kush, Haitian Haze and Jamaican High Grade and will also include edibles and concentrates. “MaRihanna is blazing a trail for the industry”.

While speaking at a cannabis convention in Negril, Jamaica this week, Rihanna announced her new line of marijuana, according to a reggae website covering the event.

As the state eased restrictions on marijuana licensing and opened a new round of applications for medical marijuana facilities applying for a state license to open as a retail store, the City of Renton last month passed an emergency ordinance limiting to five the total number of stores within the city.

According to City Attorney Larry Warren, the city received a letter from the state Liquor and Cannabis Board announcing their plans to lift the limit on the number of stores within a municipality, prompting action from the city.

"We were all a little surprised the Liquor Control Board took all of the restrictions off," Council President Ed Prince said this week.

"So we rushed our number through, five," Warren said.

Retail pot sales in Southwest Washington are down after Oregon’s recreational launch in October

Marijuana dispensaries in Southwest Washington lost about 37 percent in sales and tax revenue in the month October, according to data from the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board.

“Opening up 100 stores [in Portland] within driving distance is tough on everyone,” said Gareth Kautz, who owns High End Market Place, a marijuana retailer in Vancouver.

Vancouver retailers took a hit when medical marijuana dispensaries in Portland began selling recreational cannabis buds on Oct. 1.

CHEHALIS 

Recreational marijuana was introduced to the Plateau a year ago when two retail stores set up shop on the outskirts of Buckley.

And coming this summer, The Green Door and Mr. Bills of Buckley will both be expanding their businesses to include stocking and selling medical marijuana. It is an option allowed to them by Senate Bill 5052, also known as the Cannabis Patient Protection Act, which was passed last July.

With less than eight months before Washington medical-marijuana businesses must join the state-sanctioned market or shut down, retailers are jumping on the bandwagon, while manufacturers worry about being left behind.

The state Liquor and Cannabis Board said 962 applicants are seeking a retail license.

The question is how many licenses to hand out. That will depend on a soon-to-arrive report from consultants researching market demand for marijuana.

That leaves applicants like Tacoma Holistic Collective on Sixth Avenue waiting to learn if they will shut down or survive with tight requirements for security, packaging and tracing of their products. “I don’t mind jumping through some more hoops on the back end,” THC general manager Kevin Heiderich said. 

Genetic variation within the endocannabinoid system may explain why some survivors of childhood adversity go on to become dependent on marijuana, while others are able to use marijuana without problems, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.

"We have long known that childhood adversity, and in particular sexual abuse, is associated with the development of cannabis dependence. However, we understand very little about the individual difference factors that leave individuals vulnerable or resilient to these effects," said Ryan Bogdan, PhD, assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences in Arts & Sciences and a senior author of the study.