420 USAGE & HISTORY

WHAT THE HECK IS 420?
I first came across the usage in 1998 while on vacation with my partner in Sacramento, some gift shop had decals, hats, etc all emblazoned with 420, either in time format or similar to a highway sign. At first I figured it was some biblical passage but the clues kept pointing to the marijuana leaf. We were curious but the few people we asked had no idea, so we just let it go. Then while vacationing in Puerto Vallarta in Mexico in 1999, we stopped by a restaurant that had all kinds of license plates on the walls, pictures of people from around the world, and the traditional thing to do there was to permanently scribble messages in ink on the walls. Many had the 420 reference. We again inquired and this time were enlightened with the answer. Since then it's been my default slang for the usage of marijuana. And an inside joke to those that know.

But we still didn't know where it came from. I started researching the internet (which was pretty new back then!) and there was 2 conflicting theories. The one that turned out to be false was that is was a police code for marijuana use. The other, the true history is much more fun and culturally appropriate.

420's OFFICIAL HISTORY
420 (pronounced four twenty, not four hundred and twenty) started in 1972 with six students at San Rafael High School in Marin County, California. They called themselves the "Waldos" because they didn't fit in with any of the established social groups at school. The Waldos really loved the New Riders of the Purple Sage, the first Grateful Dead spin off band. In the mid-seventies, the headquarters for the Grateful Dead was only a few blocks from San Rafael High School.

One day, one of the Waldos was given a map to an abandoned pot field located in a remote section of Marin County near the ocean. The Waldos met one day after school to go look for this pot patch and they decided to meet at the Louis Pasteur statue outside the school at 4:20. They reminded each other during the day about the planned adventure by saying "420" to each other in the hallways. They would spend many afternoons searching for the field, but never found it. Eventually, 420 became a Waldo code word for marijuana, a code that spread into the Grateful Dead scene, and before long, the code circled the globe and people in Japan, Australia, Netherlands, Brazil, and many other countries began celebrating marijuana at 4:20 p.m.

I wonder if the 'Where's Waldo' guy got his title from the Waldos, after all being stoned and trying to find Waldo is lots of fun!

Not only is it the first big international 'holiday' of cannabis culture, but it's also a helpful guide for responsible use, that is, unless you have a medical need, it's best to wait until 4:20 to become intoxicated. It's our "tea time" and "happy hour" rolled into one. And remember: The less you do, the higher you get. People who wait until 4:20 get a lot higher than breakfast bonghitters.

So there you have it. If you read a personal profile online or hear someone say "no drugs" but "420 friendly" you now know what they mean. No hard drugs but marijuana is just fine. Pass the peace pipe!

There is a great t-shirt which I bought and is available at tshirthell (click the link above) that has it printed in roman numerals as "IV:XX". Even with my pothead friends it takes awhile to register, lol.

Known 420 Myths

The following are myths you may hear others propagate:

Police dispatch code for smoking pot is 420. The number 420 is not police radio code for anything, anywhere. Checks of criminal codes suggest that the origin is neither Californian nor federal. For instance, California Penal Code 420 defines as a misdemeanor the hindrance of use of public lands.

There are approximately 420 active chemicals in marijuana. Actually, there are approximately 315 active chemicals in marijuana. This number goes up and down depending on which plant is used.

April 20th is National Pot Smokers Day. Well, it is now; but that wasn't the origin.

April 20th is Hitler's birthday. Yes, it is his birthday. But, as 420 started out as a time, not a date, his birthday had nothing to do with it.

April 20th is the date of the Columbine school shootings. This happened after the term was already in use.

4:20 is tea time for pot-smokers in Holland. Tea time in Holland is at 5:30 pm, or is it 2:30 pm? Seems no one is quite sure when the wonderful people of Holland drink their tea.

420 IRONY
Ironically or 'one-of-those-things-that-make-you-go-hmm' it just happened to also be California Senate Bill 420 (HS 11362.7)Medical Marijuana Implementation, Passed 9/20/03, signed by Governor 10/13/2003, effective January 1, 2004.

Which was needed to implement and clarify the passage of Proposition 215 passed in 1996. As Section 1 from shows:

SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) On November 6, 1996, the people of the State of California enacted the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 (hereafter the act), codified in Section 11362.5 of the Health and Safety Code, in order to allow seriously ill residents of the state, who have the oral or written approval or recommendation of a physician, to use marijuana for medical purposes without fear of criminal liability under Sections 11357 and 11358 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) However, reports from across the state have revealed problems and uncertainties in the act that have impeded the ability of law enforcement officers to enforce its provisions as the voters intended and, therefore, have prevented qualified patients and designated primary caregivers from obtaining the protections afforded by the act.
(3) Furthermore, the enactment of this law, as well as other recent legislation dealing with pain control, demonstrates that more information is needed to assess the number of individuals across the state who are suffering from serious medical conditions that are not being adequately alleviated through the use of conventional medications.
(4) In addition, the act called upon the state and the federal government to develop a plan for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need thereof.