106 | Mindful Cannabis Consumption: Redefining Stoner Culture, Avoiding Weed Hangovers & Tolerance Breaks w/ The Cannabinista
“You can be an athlete, a teacher, a doctor, an artist, a business professional, a CEO… You can be a successful individual, and it just so happens that you consume cannabis. Cannabis doesn’t define you. It’s a tool in your toolkit.”
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Welcoming The Cannabinista for an engaging conversation around scarcely discussed cannabis topics. Anna Li, a prominent cannabis educator and content creator, delves into her journey with cannabis and the launch of her platform Cannabinista during the pandemic era. Anna shares insights into the nuanced benefits of cannabis for relaxation, post-workout recovery, and overcoming insomnia, as well as its complex role in promoting everyday mindfulness and empathy.
The (very fun) discussion highlights the challenges of addressing societal stigmas surrounding cannabis, the importance of mindful consumption, and the evolving landscape of cannabis culture and regulation. Anna also touches on the parallel dynamics between cannabis and psychedelics, emphasizing the importance of intentionality and education in dispelling long-standing myths and promoting informed, responsible use.
Topics Covered:
The inception of Cannabinista and Anna’s journey with cannabis
Benefits of using cannabis, from empathy to sex
Cultural acceptance of drugs and choosing to hide usage from parents
Presenting a different side of cannabis to the public
What makes a good cannabis educator in today’s age
Navigating censorship as a cannabis content creator
What is mindful consumption & making recreational experiences intentional
Pro tips to avoid the groggy cannabis hangover
The benefits of smoking organic craft flower
The pillars of mindful cannabis consumption
Pros and cons of different methods for consuming cannabis
How to take a tolerance break from cannabis
Redefining the stereotypical “stoner”
LISTEN
Where to find Anna Li
About Anna Li:
Cannabinista is a media and community platform dedicated to providing educational cannabis content for the modern stoner, whether it’s through showcasing her love for cannabis infusions, sharing her knowledge about mindful cannabis consumption, or simply presenting a new perspective on what it means to be a stoner in the modern day. Anna’s purpose as Cannabinista is to leverage her platform to elevate women in cannabis and redefine the definition of stoner to eliminate stigmas.
Looking for a professional coach to support you on your psychedelic path?
Look no further! Along with being the host of the Modern Psychedelics Podcast, Lana is a 3x certified professional coach who works with people on the psychedelic path.
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Lana Pribic: [00:00:00] Anna, welcome to the official studio
it's so nice to have you here.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): you. Thank you. nice to see you in person.
Lana Pribic: Yes, you seem pretty much exactly the same in person as online, which is always such a nice thing when you meet someone.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I would hope so. I would hope so. that would be the worst if I was not the same, you know, when you meet someone and they're like, Completely different.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. It happens. It happens. So we're here in Toronto. Tell us a little bit about yourself and about Ban and how it came to be.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. So I'm Anna. I'm a cannabis educator, content creator lover of cannabis enthusiast, whatever you want to call it. And I started this platform, Cannabinista, really on a whim during Covid.
I was, you know, working in the corporate world, stuck at home, working from home, and I was living with my best friend at the time, and, you know, I was making edibles at home during COVID,
What else is there to do?
I
also love, yeah I love food, so I love baking, I love cooking food I also love cannabis you know, I was, you know, it was just kind of second nature [00:01:00] for me.
And then I just started posting it on Instagram, like, on a burner account, right? I literally was sitting on the sofa. One day, and we just made up the name Cannabinista, so we mashed up the word cannabis. And, people think it's barista, but it's actually an iteration from fashionista, so I'm taking the ista and kind of to represent, like, a lover or enthusiast of something. And then I just started posting videos, recipes, mostly recipes in the beginning. And then at that time, it was really easy to connect with other like minded cannabis consumers, whether it was, like, in Toronto, and L.
A. And then from there, I just started building a community of people who also, you know, were interested in recipes, were interested in education, and that's kind of how it all started.
Lana Pribic: So how far back does your relationship with cannabis go, and how did that begin?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I've been using cannabis for 10 years, on and off now. Obviously when I first got introduced to it, you know, I was in high school. Didn't, I didn't even work the first time I used it, you know, you're in like the back alley with your friends, you're smoking. It's like the typical story.
right?
Lana Pribic: on like lunch
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): [00:02:00] yeah. And you know, I was always like a very type A kind of student you know, I was on student council, so I like, it was just like a trying it kind of thing and it wasn't until university where I actually started using cannabis as a way for relaxation. I was in a very stressful program.
I also had a very busy schedule. And I found that with cannabis, it would help me relax at the end of the school day. And also I was really into lifting heavy weights at that time. And I found it was a really good, like post workout recovery. So that was kind of like my later university years.
And it wasn't until when I came back to Toronto, kind of had my own place settled in and everything where I really started to be really enamored with cannabis and started learning more about the nuance of it beyond just consumption and actually learning the science of it, the complex world of cannabinoids and all that kind of stuff.
But it's been a really evolving You relationship. It's changed so much From when I first started using it to to how I use it now
Lana Pribic: Totally. Yeah, that's why we call it a relationship right because it takes work and it evolves over time You mentioned that you were type [00:03:00] a i'm curious about that a little bit do you still kind of identify as being that way or do you find that cannabis is kind of like?
chilled that out a little bit? Or what's your relationship with that? I'm sure it serves you a lot in the work that you do, tapping into that. Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh, I'm still Type A. Like, it is in my DNA in my inner core. And cannabis is what helps me balance that. Perfect. Because there is a negative side to my Type A ness.
Obviously it's helped me with career and other aspects of my life, but it is a detriment
Lana Pribic: in
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): many ways. And that's where cannabis kind of helps me is like, Being mindful because I have an issue. I don't like I can't be mindful it's so hard for me it's really difficult to like be in the present moment and slow down
And when I do consume cannabis, it really is most of the time It is one of the reasons is really to slow down and be able to Check in with myself in a way.
And not have that clouded Maybe it's a bit of anxiety too, but it really helps me
bring that down and like connect with myself.
Lana Pribic: Yeah, I can definitely relate to [00:04:00] that.
Since I started consuming cannabis more seriously in the last four or five years, I feel that I've chilled out so much, but I still have that type A as well. And yeah, I love the way that you put that, that it kind of helps you balance it out.
And it's the, yeah, the yin to the yang.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah,
Lana Pribic: Would you say That's the main benefit for you of consuming cannabis that like it helps bring you to the present moment and create mindfulness Or is there anything else that you would say?
Draws you to continue working with and developing your relationship with cannabis.
What are the
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): what are the benefits for you? learn about these benefits almost after the fact If that makes sense, it's oh, I didn't realize I could use it for this One of the initial reasons was actually insomnia. So in my early twenties, I, or sorry, mid twenties, I had really bad insomnia.
Like my sleep schedule was terrible. I was commuting, like driving like two, three hours a day to go to work and then, you know, not probably not exercising enough [00:05:00] and on top of that stress. So cannabis really helped me with my insomnia. But there is some kind of studies there about how it kind of affects REM sleep and whatnot.
You know, I'm trying to better Fine tune that as well. So insomnia was one of the things It also helped me heal my relationship with food In terms of slowing down with eating food and nourishing myself and seeing appreciating food more i've had a bit of a history with Not like ed necessarily, but just like an unhealthy perspective in how I see food So when I consume cannabis, so cannabis enhances irritates, but specifically the compound thc so I was able to kind of Heal the way I look at food and also eat more slowly and mindfully which is really interesting.
What else? Post workout recovery. I talked about it for that. It is excellent for that specifically topicals If I take off this top right now, you'll see how massive my shoulders are, but I love putting a Topicals on any very tight areas after working out and it just helps with kind of like
that inflammation. What else do I use it for oh
Sex,
Cannabis and sex actually just released an [00:06:00] episode on this, but
It was something that I've recently discovered and I was like, okay helping with sex anxiety, libido, performance, all that kind of stuff. We
Lana Pribic: And also dropping you into the present moment for that
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): It's the same thing, right?
Lana Pribic: you out of your
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, It's the
Lana Pribic: mindfulness.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I could go, oh, and I guess another thing that I really recently started to think about is how cannabis helps me with empathy and almost like a, Seeing people's perspectives better and opening my eyes a little bit more to people yeah, putting myself in people's shoes, I guess that's a different way to say it.
Yeah,
Lana Pribic: that's really cool. I have a friend, he's a huge cannabis, connoisseur, and the way he described it to me once was that like, the, He uses the word ganja but the ganja helps you to yeah, open up your mind and see things from a higher perspective. And I would definitely agree with that and hearing you reflect that as well as, yeah, very validating.
And I think also why people find it so useful for psychedelic integration. Have you heard anyone talk about that?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Like in combination with
Lana Pribic: [00:07:00] in combination like the integration period afterwards. So if you have a very meaningful or intense psychedelic experience, you can consume cannabis after some time has passed and it kind of helps to deepen those insights.
Huge fan of that.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Okay, I've done that before, but I didn't think about that.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. That's so cool. So yeah, so many use cases, the relationship with food. That was really interesting. You said that how I see food has changed. So how did you see food before? And then how do you see it now? Cause I know a lot of people listening really struggle with
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): people listening really struggle with that.
Okay. As
Lana Pribic: a woman,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I feel like a lot of women just like internally, there is some type of weird relationship with body image, right? Whether you have body image issues or not, it's just I don't know. It's just like in our society, you know, like back in the day when you're reading like 17 magazine, you see all these, like Skinny girls.
and whatever, right? That whole back in the day thing. I think growing up I've wanted to, when I say growing up, I mean more like a kid, but I've always expected myself to look a certain way. And when I wasn't looking [00:08:00] that certain way because of what media was trying to tell me, I'm the type of person that like, wants to fix things.
So I'm like, why do I not look like that? And then as that narrative started growing more and more as I became into my teens and, you know, entering womanhood and stuff like that. I started to like, almost control what I was eating, but in an unhealthy way, like going through all the typical fad diets and stuff like that.
And then, at that time, I also didn't have a healthy relationship with working out either, so it was a combination of just trying to make my physical body look a certain way, even though, in the back of my head, I knew that was impossible. I have certain bone structure, I have certain genetics and DNA.
Obviously now I'm more mature, so I understand that. but, yeah So when I was trying to kind of control my food intake or not eating a lot, like that just was not healthy, and then over the years, what I started realizing was after consuming cannabis, you know, your taste buds are enhanced, right? There is that dopamine hit because of food consumption, especially if the food tastes good.
And when I also consume cannabis, I'm able to eat slower, chew more mindfully. And during that process, I found that it [00:09:00] helped me appreciate food for its nutrition rather than demonizing it. As oh, it's causing me this X, Y, Z, right? And that's kind of the intentional, and it all ties to the mindfulness.
It was almost like it awakened my mind and made me realize that like I was looking at food completely wrong, right? It is literally nourishing my body and being able to slow down and eat in a mindful way. I know it sounds really, it's like intuitive eating, I guess you could say. It essentially kind of helped me heal that relationship with food and Yeah, That's kind of the story.
Lana Pribic: Beautiful.
Yeah, that the food is something that so many people struggle with because it's the easiest drug to go to especially things like sugar. It's
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Lana Pribic: the most easily accessible. thing that can be treated like a drug uh, comfort, a um, a thing to, you know, escape the pain or escape the discomfort of being human.
So the fact that you were able to heal your relationship with food through cannabis and the [00:10:00] mindfulness that it allowed you to access is huge.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I mean, but what's the interesting side of that is there's also the flip side where There is a community of people also online saying that, you know, when you get the munchies, people over consume.
food as well, right? So it's a fine balance.
Lana Pribic: I have that problem.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): So my tip is just to stay hydrated. I always tell people, like, when you're having A. cannabis experience, so you will feel more thirsty, right? That's literally because of the food.
Lana Pribic: what's happening.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Consume electrolytes with water and have that with you and, you know, just have some healthy snacks.
or You consume before you have your dinner. So your dinner is your munchies.
Lana Pribic: That's my favorite thing to do like on a Friday night.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): you're like, Yeah it's The best
Lana Pribic: best I love it. What is your relationship like with other psychedelics and other medicines? Yeah
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I've definitely dabbled in mushrooms psychedelic mushrooms. I would say maybe It's not something for me that I feel drawn to consume all the time. It's very powerful, right? I've used it for spiritual purposes. I've used it for recreational purposes and I haven't doubled it in it for a year now, but [00:11:00] the. That the few years that I was very interested in mushrooms like it \ was eye opening experience, that's for sure.
And again, it like made me appreciate the world around me more, right? So I've dabbled in mushrooms. What else have we done? I've tried DMT once. That was intense. Was
Semi. I went like 75%. percent because I didn't let myself go past. That portal. because I was like, no, I'm good.
I was like, I'm
Lana Pribic: nope.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): So it was, yeah, it was like through a pen and it was just like one toe, but it was very strong. And it was like, It was intense, but it was very beautiful but I stopped. I like didn't open the door. Yeah. I was like, fuck
Lana Pribic: Not ready yet.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): No. I don't want to go there.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. I haven't done a full DMT release myself either. It's one of the scarier ones, I think.
Yeah. Yeah. Cool. Is there any psychedelic that you're interested in trying or that like you feel called towards?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I definitely wanted to do the whole ayahuasca experience and ceremony. I was in Mexico [00:12:00] early, was it? Last year and you know they have a lot of opportunities to do that, but I don't know I feel like it's something that I really have to plan out and know why I want to do it I don't think I'm like right now I don't have a reason to and for me I like to be intentional with why I'm using a substance because I Believe this has happened to me before one time when I used mushrooms unintentionally It punished me because I was using it unintentionally and I knew that so reflecting back I was like it was almost like you're right.
I shouldn't have used you unintentionally and you've kind of, you know punished me for the experience I guess in a way so now i'm like extra cautious with psychedelic experiences because you know, you have to be very I feel like there has to be a purpose in a way.
Lana Pribic: For sure. Yeah. I love that.
I love that. One of the reasons I wanted to have you on Modern Psychedelics is because you definitely are aligned with my mission here around mindfulness and approaching, you know, you use mindful consumption. I use intentionality but just approaching these experiences very intentionally.
And I, I definitely want to dig into [00:13:00] that, but. I feel like there's some more things about you that I want to keep digging out. Um, Yeah. So you're Chinese? Yes. Chinese. Yes. Okay. So I'm Eastern European. And for me, I'm assuming that like your parents may also be very strict and like drugs are bad and yeah.
Okay. Yeah. Yeah. I, when I came out of the psychedelic closet to my parents, it was like a whole thing, and I almost like made a confession. I'm curious what your experience has been like with that. Do your parents know? Like, how do they feel about it? Tell us about that. No, they don't know. Oh my gosh, okay.
No.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I've tried to randomly insert information about cannabis. Like, for example, my mom was like saying how she has trouble sleeping, and I was like, oh, did you know that like, These studies on CBD is anti inflammatory blah blah blah and all these things are like my dad will be like Oh this part of my body hurts and i'm like, oh, did you know?
And their response to the did you knows made me realize they are not ready. And I don't think they'll ever be
Because [00:14:00] they are quite older than me. So my parents are almost 70 so we almost have a really large generation gap And I think they're kind of like of the age where They're going to be set in their ways.
It's very difficult to change their minds about a lot of things, even with other topics. So, I'm struggling. I think right now, I don't know if I necessarily want them to accept it or let them know because I feel like at the same time, I almost just want them to live a happy life and not be stressed because
Lana Pribic: that
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): if they found out, they would be stressed.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. Wow. What's that like for you? I mean, Your platform's pretty huge do they not go on the internet, or?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): No no, they don't.
Lana Pribic: Okay, so it's not likely that they will come across one of your TikToks,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): No, they definitely wouldn't. I mean, if anything, it would be, like, a family friend who saw it, who sent it to someone's daughter, or son, or whatever.
Maybe through that, but if that happens, then I'll obviously expose myself, but I think right now it's almost like I am purposely putting that part in the back of my brain, and not letting it affect me, because if I get [00:15:00] If I care too much about what they think, I'm just going to continue to live my life to please them.
And that's what I did for a lot of my life. Like literally for probably like 27 years. I'm I'm I'm turning like, so literally only the past two years I haven't been fulfilling their dreams. So I think I just need to really almost block that out, not in a non mindful way, but in a way where I'm consciously knowing that I'm not going to tell them because it's, it's not the time and place.
The time and place will come one day but it's not right now.
Lana Pribic: Yeah, I love that. I love that. Yeah, I was so curious about that because yeah, my parents too like so against anything other than alcohol, but like alcohol is totally okay.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): though it kills literally hundreds and thousands of people
in North America every year.
Lana Pribic: Huh. Yeah. Yeah, but it's been like with my parents. It's been quite a journey and I was actually able to get my mom to an ayahuasca ceremony and my mom's actually like very open and she does the micro doses. She loves Kana, which is not psychedelic, but it's psychedelic adjacent. And, you know, they definitely struggle with my cannabis [00:16:00] consumption.
But it's been an interesting journey. It's been an interesting journey.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): There's a lot of new studies coming out, specifically from Canada, how more seniors are, going medical cannabis route. It's actually increasing quite a bit. And the number of bad experiences amongst the older generation has declined in the last three years.
Obviously that's with legalization, with more education, right? They're seeing that the demographic of older individuals in Canada are Leaning towards cannabis.
Lana Pribic: That's cool. Do you have an older demographic in your audience at all?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Certain platforms? I do. Yeah. I ha I've been getting a lot of emails from people that are, you know, they're like literally emailing me, Hey me and my wife we're 68 years old.
We've been consuming for so long. You're like teaching us new things about like drinks and stuff like that. People don't, I guess the older generation, they don't know about things like you know, cannabis infused lube. Cannabis infused. Chips
Lana Pribic: about that. What
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): stuff like that, like more novelty products are coming out now.
I guess the older demographic is more used to like hash flower
Lana Pribic: Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Gummies that are like made to look like Skittles you know, like the traditional stuff. I've been getting a lot of [00:17:00] emails from older, folks, which is great. Yeah, it really depends on the platform because they gear towards more of the long form stuff, I think.
Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Cool. Okay. I wanted to touch on your purpose for a second. So yeah, on your website it says my purpose as a digital creator is to leverage my platform to elevate BIPOC women in the cannabis industry, advocate on the benefits cannabis has for supporting one's mental and physical health and help end cannabis stigmas.
Tell us a little bit about that. How did you come up with this purpose?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): That's outdated.
Lana Pribic: It's outdated! Okay.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): My website is so ugly. I'm relaunching on September 1st. But I've kind of redone my mission and purpose a little bit. But it's still similar to the same. At the end of the day what I see my mission, my overall purpose in life, is to show a different side of cannabis.
That is basically the opposite of what traditional media and the war on drugs has presented it to be over the past 50, 60 years. The stigma towards cannabis still exists, even in [00:18:00] legalized countries like Canada, for example, and still in the U. S. and States and stuff like that.
So, knowing that even though there is proven studies, , and there's legalization, people still feel ways about cannabis because it's a lack of education.
So my goal is really to bring forth education in a way that is modernized, right? I don't feel like there's a lot of resources online that talk about cannabis in a non stonery way. I guess that's a different way to say it. It's almost like, I wanna redefine what it means to be like a stoner, right?
, I love the legacy, or like OG culture. I love that side of what has brought cannabis to become cannabis, right? Like the traditional culture, but. I think that also cannabis consumers look very different nowadays. Like, I don't think people would think that I love taking dabs. Like, they would see me on the street and they'd be like, Oh, okay, I wouldn't expect that, right?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): So I think it's just people are changing and I want to be there to support them in that, and ultimately demystifying all the, negative stigmas and stereotypes that are associated with [00:19:00] cannabis culture.
Lana Pribic: Do you know the percentage of the population that engages with cannabis?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I don't know.
I think I recently saw a study. I don't I think, I don't know, we gotta look into this. I'm sure there's a strong percentage of people or high percentage of people that have tried once in their life. But in terms of frequent users, I don't I'm not sure about that.
Lana Pribic: I heard a stat somewhere not too long ago That's why I don't remember what it was, but I remember thinking oh wow, that's way higher than I
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah if you look on google trends the search terms for cannabis weed, 420 all that kind of stuff CBD THC has actually remained pretty Like stagnant for the last 10 years. You actually don't see a lot of people increasing in search for it necessarily which is interesting But I wonder if it's because people are going to social media and other platforms not necessarily Google.
Or
Lana Pribic: maybe the market is catching up with the public perception
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, that makes sense too. And also, to be honest, I don't know if Google is censoring that data either. Maybe they don't want
Lana Pribic: Definitely in some
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh yeah, for sure. So you probably can't even [00:20:00] see, or people probably use VPNs and stuff because people in their home country, they probably can't even search that up because they're afraid of being caught.
So that data actually might be incorrect. Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. It's so clear that you're so passionate about education, like just based on the mission you shared. But also when you look at your content, you have so much nuanced information and it's just so clear when you talk that you just love to share and educate and Just show people that like, hey, a lot of the things that you've been taught is incorrect, like very similar to me with psychedelics, right?
Psychedelics and cannabis are so parallel in terms of the drug war and all of that. So I'm curious, what do you think makes a good cannabis educator in today's day and age? What does it take to like really
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Um, I think obviously you have to be well versed in a variety of different topics because cannabis is really complicated Because there's hundreds of different compounds and a lot of them are not even studied but I think [00:21:00] what takes what the one thing I think about what makes a good educator is Someone that actually talks about the nuance because cannabis is not for everyone even though I am pro cannabis I also like to call out that it's actually not for everyone and some people actually should not consume cannabis I, you know, obviously, like, I want to present cannabis in a positive light, but I don't want to encourage people to consume either.
it's about helping people who are already consuming or already interested in finding ways to improve their life. But, it's not trying, I'm not trying to convert people, like, that is not what I'm trying to do whatsoever, right? If anything, it's actually equipping people with the knowledge to make the decision on their own.
So because cannabis can have negative side effects for certain individuals, right? Like with anything in life, right? Like coffee can have negative side effects. You know, some people can't handle psychedelics either. So the nuance is so important. And the problem with social media is that it's really hard to communicate nuance because people just, see something they just like, They always take it the wrong way.
I'm like, God dang.
Lana Pribic: that's why we love the podcast and the [00:22:00] YouTube. Yeah. Yeah. So you're moving over to longer form content because of that and the censorship.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yes. Exactly. YouTube podcasting for now. YouTube still censors though, They still censor. so you do have to be careful there.
Lana Pribic: got taken down.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh really?
Lana Pribic: I promoted a microdosing company and they like full on sent me an email, they took everything down, and then a week later they gave it back to me, but yeah, YouTube can
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Except they have Coors Lights ads like all over the place, right, which is like literally terrible for people's health.
I know, it's so, again, it's obviously like Big powerful forces behind that that sucks. Yeah, you got to be careful. You got to like almost Not put it in the description like you got to link it like you have your landing page and then you link it on there,
Lana Pribic: I'm not even working with anyone like that anymore, like it's just not worth the risk. Yeah, no illegal companies anymore.
Yeah. But how are they with like censoring cannabis companies? If you have a, you know, we both work with PAX, but if you're working with like a consumable product, is it okay to share that if [00:23:00] it's within a legal jurisdiction?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): So it's almost there's two things. One, there is laws in Canada on the cannabis Act that you cannot, promote the, you cannot promote the sale of cannabis essentially.
Okay, so that's one layer. And then there is the social media overlords saying that you cannot promote, illegal drugs. Even, doesn't matter where you're located because the internet is global, right? So you have these two forces that are cracking down on, substances. I guess we'll just blanket that.
At the other day, Freedom of speech. We live in Canada. We have the right to express ourselves. and through media is how I choose to express myself. But yeah, so there's, it's difficult. That's one of the challenges, right? Spotify is great because, or podcasting is great because at least for now, they don't seem to be censoring.
I mean, Joe Rogan talks about fucking drugs all the time. And he's getting paid by them. So as long as he is still there, honestly, I know some people hate him, whatever, but what he's doing is at least allowing for these alternative topics. To have a platform for now. We'll see how this changes.[00:24:00]
I wonder if Spotify will catch on, or, I keep saying Spotify, but I wonder if podcasts will catch on. over time. But yeah, YouTube is pretty strict on certain things. You, just gotta, you just gotta know the algorithms and like certain words that trigger them to. Age restrict videos. I don't know if you have that either age restriction
Lana Pribic: don't know if I do.
I think it automatically maybe does it I should look into
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah Because age restriction will prevent you from getting views, right? Essentially. So You got to make the content in a way that doesn't get age restricted.
Lana Pribic: Yeah interesting Yeah, a lot of people hate on joe rogan and whatever. I don't really have an opinion, but he he actually follows my instagram
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh, really? really cool?
Yeah, yeah he's into the whole, you know stuff
Lana Pribic: loves his DMT. He
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah
Lana Pribic: his DMT. Let's talk a little bit about conscious consumption, intentional usage. So we have conscious consumption on one side of the spectru spectrum. Let's say, what do you think is kind of on the other end of the spectrum?
Like the opposite of that, the like destructive usage or [00:25:00] unmindful usage. How would you kind of describe those two ends of the spectrum?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. Mindful consumption, to me, is when you are taking time to think about why you're using something before you use it. Whether it's for medical or recreational or therapeutic.
Because I think it is okay to mindfully use something for recreational purposes. There is no, you know, as long as you're not harming yourself, as long as you're not harming yourself or the people around you, that is the only thing that nuance, right? So mindful consumption is whether, you know, you're being mindful about your dose or the format that you're choosing to consume.
I don't consume every day either I think it's good to kind of have a balance in between and I don't need it every day either, but like an example of this would be like you know, I'm finishing work or whatever and you know, I'm like, you know what? I need to relax because I feel a little bit anxious after editing all day.
I'm going to have a little cannabis infused beverage and enjoy my evening. That's me being mindful. On the flip side, not being mindful would be like if I'm literally just pounding gummies or like just literally just smoking joints like crazy for no reason. Oh, I'll just have another one. Oh, it's not a big deal.
But it's do [00:26:00] I need it?
Lana Pribic: Like you don't even know that you're
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, it's almost like the, there's almost like taking a little few seconds and like just checking in with yourself being like, oh, you know, actually I don't need it today or you know. so That's I would say the different ends of the spectrum.
But again, there's people also who literally are prescribed medical cannabis, so they literally need it every day for day to day function, right? Whether it's arthritis pain or things like that's completely different. I think there's a little bit of nuance there.
Lana Pribic: For sure. What do you think about
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): so recreational
Lana Pribic: consumption and making it mindful.
The other night, you know, I had my friend introduced me to the concept of a girl dinner. It's basically just how, have you heard of this?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yeah, it's like, a little grazing board.
Lana Pribic: yeah. So she came over one night and then I had all this stuff left in my fridge. I was like, I'm going to have a little girl dinner and put on this Turkish show that I've been loving.
And I was like, yeah, I'm going to, you know, smoke some weed, hit the packs. And to me, that was very mindful and intentional. What do you think about that? And just kind of, yeah, relaxing with it and using it in that way.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I don't see anything wrong with that. Where [00:27:00] if it became something where you were doing that every day, to the point where you didn't know why, then maybe I'd be like, Oh, like I would check in with you, be like, Oh, like how are things going? Or you know, whatever. But I think as long as you are consciously making the decision and you know how it's going to affect you. I think where it could be a problem is let's say you did so many edibles where the next day you missed your podcast. I think that would be like, I'd be like, Hey, Lana you know, did you need to consume that many gummies that night?
But that wouldn't happen, right? Cause you're a mindful user. So I think there's that little, just a little bit of a nuance there.
Lana Pribic: I made sure to not consume last night, because I knew we had this interview today. I love the nuance, right? Like you just said, right? There's this fine line.
And I think for me, that fine line is like when it starts impacting my day to day the next day. Particularly that groggy kind of feeling that weed hangover. So there's two things there. Like one is don't consume so much or don't consume so mindlessly that you get to that point. But then there's another part where that's [00:28:00] sometimes like a natural aspect of smoking cannabis.
So yeah, how do you deal with that like groggy feeling of what like tips to avoid it? Should it be happening? Tell us a little bit about
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Thank you. Thanks for bringing this up. I love this topic because I don't think it's you have to be groggy the next day. And I have some really good tips to share with you for that. Number one, hydration.
We talked about this before the episode started. It's are you staying hydrated before, during, and after experience? What food are you eating? Are you eating junk food during that, right? Is it a lot of sugar, things like that? Are you consuming close to bedtime? If you're consuming too close to bedtime, you're almost feeling the experience in your sleep.
Does that make sense? So that's why you wake up and it almost feels like you're still high, if I'm sleeping at 10, 30, 11, I like to consume probably starting around 7. So you give yourself a little bit of time to almost like kind of calm down before the night ends, in a way.
And I would also say the types of products that you're using is looking at, that as well and also the dose. Like maybe you're consuming [00:29:00] a little bit too much because experience lasts very long and you're not able to dwindle down. So I would say if someone's feeling weed hangovers, like that's definitely what I would look at.
When I was first consuming, I definitely had weed hangovers, and as I made these little adjustments never. And I wake up at 6am. And yeah, like I also sleep early, but like I don't, on the nights I consume, I can literally feel refreshed. the
Lana Pribic: Wow. Okay. And what about I heard you talk, I think it was on your podcast about like organic strain, organic weed and pesticide spraying and all
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, yeah,
Lana Pribic: How do people get ahold of organic weed? We were just talking about the filter decaf. Yeah. Yeah where do we find that?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): isn't like an official, you know how the in the U. S. they have Yeah. organic labelings, which is also a lie apparently you just pay to get those labels now.
So I don't even trust if anything's organic. So it's not that you can get organic cannabis, let's say, it's more of knowing your producer and whether they, how they grow. because I think organic is, it's like a blanket word, so let's just drop that word. Because [00:30:00] I feel like people say everything's organic nowadays.
I like to look for producers who I, are small batch. So meaning that they only grow a certain amount of cannabis per year, and you know it's like hand trimmed, you know, they actually know, they're not adding pesticides, they're not spraying stuff into their cannabis. And in Canada at least, this is typically, I trust craft flower growers.
So next time you go to a store, ask for a craft flower. That just means that I think they grow. Less than a certain number of kilograms per year. So it's small micro batch. I can send you
Lana Pribic: artisanal weed.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): in a way, yeah. It's not, I wouldn't, it's not like bougie, but it's more just like people that really love cannabis.
And are growing it for a quality, not for mass production. Cause there are tons of brands that grow for mass production and have the shittiest quality. Terrible stuff for you that you do not want to be putting into your body.
Lana Pribic: Okay. Yeah I wonder how much of an impact that plays on the groggy feeling the next day because like when you eat crap food It definitely affects you.
So I would assume
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): 100 Yeah when it's not flushed properly So if someone uses chemicals and sprays, so there's a process when you're about to harvest the [00:31:00] cannabis flower We have to flush it with water, right? A lot of times these companies rush that flushing process So you're literally have remnants of cannabis Sprays and stuff and in california.
They just came out with an article from the la times how They found basically they tested some producers that had these really terrible chemicals that were negatively impacting. People's health So that just came out. I don't want to regurgitate it, but i'll send it to you later. It's crazy.
Yeah
Lana Pribic: Wow Okay. Yeah, that's something that so there's two things there that I personally am going to shift in my consumption one is looking for these craft producers and two is You not hitting the packs 20 minutes before going to bed.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yeah, yeah, yeah, Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Yeah, Yeah. Okay, that's good. That's really good. What would you say the pillars or like the foundational maybe practices or mindsets are when it comes to being a mindful consumer?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I think it's like, knowing your reason why for consuming is really important as well. And knowing your own dose. I think dose is so important because that can make or break an experience. Same thing with [00:32:00] psychedelics, right? Like I'm sure you're very intentional like a micro versus a macro dose, the reason why you're choosing that weight of mushrooms versus another weight.
so I think that's important because the same thing is with cannabis is like your dose can literally make or break your experience if you consume too much. It might have negative side effects if you consume too little you might not be getting what you need And the thing about cannabis is that it's so individualistic like what might work for me Won't work for you or and vice versa.
So you really have to almost like I don't like to use the word trial and error But unfortunately, that's kind of what it is in a responsible way trial and error in a responsible way Know what compounds work really well for you what type of products what formulations? Maybe it's like a bit of THC and CBD together balance.
Maybe it's introducing. CBG.
Lana Pribic: about, yeah, that making sure the products have both THC and CBD.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. The reason why is because high THC in certain individuals can exacerbate some mental health conditions, can increase anxiety for some people. When you add CBD, it's, You're bringing [00:33:00] the blend together. more neutral, I would say.
So CBD has that kind of balancing effect. They call it as the entourage effect, but there's actually no science to prove that. It's more anecdotal. But I personally do find that the one to one balance, it's just a much, it's a less intense in the head and more holistic, like your whole body.
Lana Pribic: whole body. Totally. Yeah, it's you know, psychedelic terms, it would be like doing iboga, which is the actual whole entire tree and all of the alkaloids versus ibogaine, which is just the one alkaloid
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): exactly Exactly. Because they work in synergy. There's a reason why they're together.
Lana Pribic: a reason why nature made it that way. Yeah. Not to say that the compounds on their own isolated don't have benefits. But yeah, maybe not for everyone. Yeah, no, I love that you said that it's so It's such a personalized thing and you have to trial and error.
I've been wanting to inhale less. Thanks to your content actually. I was like, oh, there's so many more options and I saw you making like cool cocktails. I was like, I want that. I went and thrifted some vintage [00:34:00] cocktail glasses and I was like, yes, this is going to be the vibe for the summer. And I found these water soluble drops, the Mod brand.
And I was so excited. And man, they give me such a headache the next day. So yeah. So
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): that,
brand? I don't know.
You gotta read The ingredients, there's some stuff in there that is questionable. There definitely is Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Wow. The headache.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. That probably is not formulated well, I would say that's already a sign that maybe you shouldn't use that.
I'll bring you some cannabis powder and dissolvable drops and
Lana Pribic: things. Powder.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, I make it myself, it's just with oil and,
Lana Pribic: okay.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Organic tapioca, starch and stuff like that. And you just
Lana Pribic: Yeah, you know what I did look at your recipe for that and I was like, okay if I make this it's gonna be a
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): it's a lot of work. I'll send you
Lana Pribic: I would love some. Thank you Yeah, and the high from consuming it through liquid is a little bit different. It's like a little longer, a little more chill. Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): The reason why is because it's actually a completely different compound. so when you [00:35:00] consume through vaporization or through smoking joints, it's THC, but when it goes through your liver, it converts to 11 hydroxy THC.
So this is a completely different compound that has 11 hydroxy THC. more intense feelings for some people. But some people actually don't even feel it because they're missing this enzyme.
that actually breaks down.
I don't know if you've seen people were like, Oh, edibles don't work for me. There's always people that say that as well.
It's again, individualistic. right? Yeah. The drinks are great. I like the drinks, especially for summertime, but I think, A lot of them have a lot of shit ingredients. You got to be careful. Yeah, It's almost like drinking, like,
Lana Pribic: And they're so expensive. That's why I wanted to, there's 10 a bottle.
Or a serving here in Canada. That's why I wanted to make
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): it yourself. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll give you, I also these, like, liquid drops. That are neutral flavored and you can mix into anything. That's
Lana Pribic: exactly what I've been looking for. Yeah, I got the cocktail glasses. I got the cocktail shaker.
I just need the
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yeah. Yeah, you need the
Lana Pribic: That's cool. That's cool
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Let's
Lana Pribic: see
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): you use the packs for vaporizing,
Lana Pribic: that's my main thing. I've been using it for six years. [00:36:00] I love it
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): It's great.
Yeah. Do you smoke joints as well?
Lana Pribic: I try not to. I will if I'm like out at a party. I have such a sensitive throat and being a podcaster and a life coach too, I need to take care of my throat.
So it really damages my throat even just like a hit or two. Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. Vaporizing is a lot better for your
Lana Pribic: a lot better. Yeah. Even with vaporizing, I feel it in my lungs. So
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Well, If you think about it, anything other than air. it's Right? It's not going to be the best for you. I mean, it's going to be better than like, smoke. But
Lana Pribic: And the vape pens.
Another thing I learned from you, vaporizing is vaporizing the dried herb, but vaping is the oils that have the additives, which can also not be great for people. Yes.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I
Lana Pribic: It's almost like we're talking about food, right? The way we talk about food and additives and pesticides. Same thing, yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): The My issue with vapes, it's There's a couple things.
It's one, the convenience factor can create habits for people, which I think people aren't mindful about. It's the same with [00:37:00]
Lana Pribic: vaping. Two
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): is, I think there's a lack of transparency with what's going into that liquid.
Because if you think about it from like a manufacturing process, how is it possible that it gets melted?
There has to be something in there that allows it To be in that format. Does that make sense? like There has to be something that they're adding into there for it to be able to be so quick to vaporize, right? So I would just be careful of like vape pens. I know they're so convenient. It's so easy.
Lana Pribic: They taste good
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, which is also well, why does it taste good? What's flavoring is in there? I think yeah, i've had bad experiences with myself and I was like getting the most high quality. Vape, so I was using live rosin, which is essentially cannabis, pressed Like cold press essentially into this like thick sauce kind of like honey And that's like literally the top of the top the cleanest and even then when I was using that through a cartridge I still felt in my throat.
And then there's also like the metals of the actual cartridge itself. They haven't really studied that leaking [00:38:00] metals And that's leaking metals is not good for you to inhale. period. Yeah gotta be careful. I know. It's like the convenience versus being healthy and mindful.
Lana Pribic: like, the fast food versus the organic homemade food.
Yeah. I love that.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): The organic, like healthy, the healthy lifestyle is always going to take more work and Yeah. people don't wanna do the work. But
Lana Pribic: yeah, I think if you find like joy in it, like I think of cooking, like you seem to love cooking as well. If you find joy in like the chopping and the washing and the shopping for it, you know, same thing.
Yeah. If you find joy in it and enjoyment in it, then. It can be like a hobby, more of a hobby and less work.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Less of a task.
Lana Pribic: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Another thing you talk about a lot is tolerance breaks. Is that like an aspect of mindful consumption?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, definitely. I would say like for me, tolerance breaks, how I've talked about it is, It's not for everyone, because again, we've talked about how there's medical users who, like, they cannot take a tolerance break, literally, like, they got to talk to their doctor, right?
Don't listen to me. [00:39:00] But for people who are using cannabis more for therapeutic for recreational purposes, I personally think it's healthy to take a tolerance break because, you know, gives you a chance to actually reflect on your relationship with cannabis lower your tolerance, right?
Because you can build a tolerance to anything over a long period of time and just kind of reconnect with. yourself without cannabis. And when you come back to it, you have refreshed perspective, right? You're consuming less, you're spending less on cannabis, you know, you can take less to feel the same effects as before.
So I think it's a great mindfulness practice that I think is, good to incorporate.
Lana Pribic: And just high level, how can people go about that? Like how often should they be taking them? What does it look like to take a tolerance break?
How long should a tolerance break be? Like, how do they reintroduce? Tell us a little bit about
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah I actually have a free guide on my website. that breaks this all down, but I'll give you a little hot takes here.
Again, it's individualistic. It's gonna be different for everyone.
So what we do know scientifically is that
Lana Pribic: Cannabinoids, so
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Cannabinoids, so THC, CBD, all that kind of stuff, they stay in [00:40:00] your body anywhere from 30 to 90 days.
But this is just a range though. It could be more, it could be less, yeah. So, in the U. S. you hear people talking about this a lot because they get, they still get drug tested, so I always have people messaging me like, What do I do? Like, I'm getting, I'm like, Yes, I can't give you advice there, but like, People literally, they want to do tolerance breaks because they're going to get a new job and they're going to get drug tested.
So, 30 to 90 days is the ballpark. It's, That's like, one to three months, for me personally, Again, it's different because I don't consume every day when I because I have breaks in between the week I find that my tolerance breaks are shorter Whereas someone who let's say has been consuming for like years or like months straight and high tolerance It's probably going to have a much more drastic effect on them and potential some negative side effects as well, cause essentially it's like withdrawals it could happen. Yeah So for me, I like to do breaks like I schedule them every two to three months and then i'll do The most recent break I did, it was, I did 45 days, but that was more just cause I was just doing a challenge. I could probably go longer, I [00:41:00] could go shorter, it doesn't really matter.
I like to do two to three weeks of a break but it also has a time with my schedule, cause because this is like my job is literally cannabis, so I have to figure out when I can Right. Um, so that's why I love taking the breaks in between. Yeah, it's important to like also, you know, if you have a health practitioner, like consult with them as well, if you are planning to take this break because it affects people differently.
So some withdrawal symptoms that you could expect, it's just like irritability, right? Like maybe you need cannabis for a specific reason. I would find ways to like substitutes almost that you can incorporate during your tolerance break. So for example, if you use cannabis for sleep, you know, Maybe look at increasing your chamomile tea, increasing your before bedtime meditation, making sure you're exercising so you can get sleepy at night, just like finding alternative solutions to help you during that break.
That's going to be a great way to kind of set yourself up for success.
Lana Pribic: Amazing. Amazing. Okay, cool. Cool. Let's talk a little bit about, um, the modern stoner, modern psychedelics, it all [00:42:00] works. So what is like the Like you're very passionate about breaking this like stereotype of what it means to be a stoner.
What is that stereotype and what is it that you're wanting to like reinvent?
Yeah, it is.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, that stereotype which I mean it is true in some sense too, right? Cause stereotypes are based on certain populations that do exhibit that stereotype. You know, I'm thinking like was that movie Harold and Kumar?
Lana Pribic: Literally
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): stereotype. Seth Rogen movies and they're all portrayed as that specific type of lazy person. They're eating junk food. They're, they don't know what's going on with their life. All they're doing. Yeah, they're just sitting on their couch. They're buying like drugs from a drug dealer and it's like a very it's just like very typical, that look, I guess you could say.
And I think, the,
There's not, I'm not going to say there's anything wrong with that per se, people can choose to live their life however they wish, but I think it creates a bad rap for people who don't resonate with that lifestyle, [00:43:00] or who don't act like that, or who don't present themselves like that.
For example, like us, I don't, I'm not lazy, I don't, I actually don't, I really sit on my couch that much ever.
Like, uh, I wish I did actually want to be a couch potato more often. So I think it's about changing the perception that, like, you can be an athlete, You can be a teacher, you can be a doctor, you can be an artist, a business professional, a CEO you can be a successful individual, and it just so happens that you consume cannabis.
Cannabis doesn't define you, right? It's a tool in your toolkit, and that's what I'm trying to change as a narrative. It's cannabis is almost like a supplement, like, you can use it for a specific reason. And in a way, it kind of is. It's a plant, it's an herb, right? It's medicinal, it's proven to have potential benefits for individuals.
So I think it's just like rewriting a bit of what the modern stoner can look like. It can literally be like the mom on the street, the grandma in the park. You never know who is a stoner nowadays. right? Yeah.
Lana Pribic: totally. I think it's very valid that some people aren't as open as you and I are about their consumption of [00:44:00] cannabis or psychedelics.
And then there's also some people out there who. have been positively impacted by cannabis. And maybe they want to share that part of themselves with more people in their life, and they want to share their story.
But there's yeah, this shame, right? This Maybe it's shame or embarrassment or fear because of the social narrative around like stoner culture and like what it means to be someone who smokes weed.
Yeah. What would you say to that person?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): You're not alone. I still get hundreds and thousands of comments on a day of people calling me drug addict. People saying you know, basically, I think drug addict is probably the most popular negative term that I get. Or people just hating on me for consuming cannabis and they're like, Oh, she's probably such a has such a waste like blah, blah, blah, you know, all those insert negative traits.
You're not alone. And I think that at the end of the day, you just got to find your people that do support you and that are level headed people that understand why you want to [00:45:00] consume. It's definitely going to be tough to come out there and, you know, present yourself in that way. But like, honestly, at the day, people don't really care that much about you.
You know, people aren't really thinking about you when they're going to bed. so like,
why does it matter at
the of how I see it. Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Well people get so bothered by things
That other people do it's more It's like the shadow like are you familiar with shadow work at all? Like it's more of like a projection of themselves in their own insecurities or maybe a lack of education or whatever But you know if someone is so bothered by you
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): It's, It's probably something internal upon
Lana Pribic: totally totally Totally.
Yeah,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): and I think we also like, me myself I also sometimes feel the stigma towards myself sometimes i'm also like I have to rewrite my own narrative of what has been happening. Embedded into my
Lana Pribic: brain
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): growing up, right? Like sometimes I have those biases towards myself or to people sometimes i'm like, oh why is Like, I'll be like, Oh, why am I like consuming tonight?
Like, I feel like kind of like about myself. I'm like, but wait, no, I'm like, I'm using it for a reason. Like, it's almost like I have to
[00:46:00] Debunk
my own bias towards myself. Yeah
Lana Pribic: Do you think that's like part of being a mindful consumer is dealing with that
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yes, almost
Lana Pribic: fact that you have that narrative means that you're being mindful?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. almost like sometimes being overly mindful is also could have
Lana Pribic: negative effects.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): right? Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Everything's a balance. It's just like, you know?
It's tough
Lana Pribic: The yin and yang of life, baby. Yeah, I'm all about that. I've seen a bunch of like your reels like, Day in the Life of a Productive Stoner.
Tell us what a productive stoner is. Is that the same as being a modern stoner?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): what a productive stoner is. Is that the same as being a modern stoner?
Does that make sense? Yeah. Yeah, because people associate stoner, the term is so negative. I'm trying to show it in a very positive light and essentially debunk what people think a stoner does in the day in their [00:47:00] life. And I think people really like that video. They were like, sick.
This is me too. A lot of people related to it too. In the comments, they were like, yeah, that's me. I'm a mom of three and I wake up every morning to make breakfast for my kids. Oh, like, I'm a CEO. Like, I, like, do all these things. and blah blah blah Like, You know, it's just, it really doesn't define your character and who you are.
So that's kind of the message that I was trying to show.
Lana Pribic: Yeah. Yeah, and if that doesn't define your character and who you are, it's like focus on the things that do define who you are, right? Like your character, how you show up.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): How you treat people. how you treat others around you, Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Exactly.
Yeah, I think a lot of mainstream socializing culture, like here in Toronto, for example, it's really geared towards alcohol consumption. And like
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I
Lana Pribic: know about you, but I can't even go near people who are on alcohol anymore. Like I'm like repelled by it. I'm like, where are the stoners hanging out?
Like I have, you know, my scene in Toronto, but I guess as we're kind of moving, [00:48:00] so cannabis has been legalized in Canada for what, 10 years
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): No, since only 2018. 2018. Five years.
Lana Pribic: five years. Okay, it seems like I can't even remember when it wasn't. I feel like, yeah, like mainstream socializing cultures, bars, places to go out, places to hang out they're so geared towards alcohol consumption.
And even though it's been legal for five years now I feel like the social infrastructure hasn't caught up yet.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Because It's not allowed.
So there's a law that there's you cannot have cannabis lounges in ontario
Lana Pribic: Oh my
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): BC just approved them. So bc but it's only You Four years after right? Calgary, just for the first time, one of their country music festivals, they're actually allowed to sell cannabis now, but only two specific products. And they probably went you know, to battle for that.
So you can't have cannabis events and consumption lounges. There are spaces in Toronto, like the If You know, as You Know, but they're not
Establishments I guess you could call it. Yeah. So again, that's the stigma, right? It's like why can't I enjoy a cannabis [00:49:00] infused beverage or a cannabis joint on a patio that is designated, right?
But You can go drink alcohol and get belligerent. on a patio on a Sunday
Stigma, baby.
Lana Pribic: Yeah, I'd love to know how many people who Over consume alcohol on a given Saturday night cause harm or damage in public, right? It's just ridiculous. What would be your vision for the future of social infrastructure that allows for Cannabis consumption like if you could design a lounge or like an experience, what would that be?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah um, I've done a couple of events in Toronto and
Lana Pribic: Your 421 looked so sick
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): that was crazy, that was a lot of
Uh Which proved to me that people in Toronto want to meet other folks and being like minded users, right? Yeah, that was like, that was a more of a house party kind of style.
That was like we had cannabis infused mocktails, we had cop's Donuts, we had every product category of cannabis that you can imagine. We had massages, cannabis infused hand massages. [00:50:00] Everything. So many things. That was amazing. But another event that I did last year was a mindful consumption event and we made cannabis infused mocktails, kind of like a workshop similar to, you know, if you just took a cocktail making class.
And then we just kind of hung out, socialized. And then we also had an instructor come in teaching us how to roll joints. So kind of like I envisioned the social aspect of cannabis to evolve into workshop type base, more intimate events. I'd love to see music events that start incorporating Cannabis infused beverages or, Yeah. But I, don't think alcohol would like that. Yeah. Yeah.
Lana Pribic: I would, yeah. If you, I don't purchase alcohol anymore at events, but it's like $12 now for a tall can or something. It's crazy.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I don't drink anymore, so, I, used to drink a lot.
Lana Pribic: Same . That's not,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I have been, I like. We'll dabble in like a natural wine glass here and there, but I get headaches now still no matter what.
I don't know what it
Lana Pribic: Yeah, Yeah, I get a hangover while I'm still drunk. Like Do you get that too? Like [00:51:00] A head hangover or a headache?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. When you're drinking.
Yeah, I yeah, I feel that too. It's the sugar, right? Even, I don't know what it is. Just doesn't sit
Lana Pribic: you're kind of detoxed off of it, you can probably feel the true effect on the body. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): But yeah, that's what I would love to see is just like, lounges.
I think when they do approve, when the law does go through, I think that will come into place. Like a lot of the cannabis stores that we see right now that have additional space, they'll probably create consumption lounges.
Lana Pribic: That would be amazing.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): what they do in Thailand, so it just makes sense.
Us LA they have the same thing, so
Lana Pribic: Yeah. And they're wanting to reverse it now in Thailand,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. I don't hope they don't go through with it. It's tough. But Thailand is amazing. Have you ever been?
Lana Pribic: I haven't. No. Oh
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): God. You got to go. Amazing culture, food, weather, people.
It's so dope there.
Lana Pribic: Okay. I do love Thai
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh my God. it's two dollar noodles. Like the best tasting pad see ew ever. Like the texture of the noodles, like you'll never get in Toronto.
Lana Pribic: I was just gonna say, do you have a favorite Thai spot in [00:52:00] Toronto?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Ooh I really like Kolipe on Baldwin. They're pretty authentic, I would say.
And Yeah, and I also really like Laos food. Like Laotian food. There's a good place called What's it called? I can't remember, I'll send it to you after. But it's really good. Yeah, There's a guy in DuPont too, I just went there, he's also, he's either Laos or Indonesian, I can't remember.
But it's, yeah, it's really good.
And he cooks out of this little, small little house, and it's just like home cooked, food. I bought his sauce as well. I put on my eggs and rice now.
Lana Pribic: sounds perfect. I'm definitely gonna go. Uh, Have you, do you like Malaysian food? Yeah. I went for Malaysian uh, sous on Ossington.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh yeah, that plays good too. Yeah. There's not a lot of Malaysian food.
Yeah. Yeah. There's
Lana Pribic: and it's so yummy. Yeah, all the Asian flavors.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): they're like 50 ingredients, salad or whatever.
Lana Pribic: Okay, I didn't get to try that next time. Cool. So I'm kind of hearing that you're envisioning kind of like, um, like food culture being applied to cannabis culture,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Well,
Lana Pribic: Cooking classes, but [00:53:00] anything that
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): is cultured and creative, just add some cannabis to it.
Yeah.
Lana Pribic: Art tours.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Vintage shopping.
Lana Pribic: vintage shopping. Yo, I did that in Montreal. When I went, all of my friends were hung over and sleeping. I got up because I went to bed at a reasonable hour, smoked weed, went vintage shopping, and I had the best time. And there was an almond croissant involved.
Oh
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yes. Yeah. See like Just like anything that's part.
of Regular life
That's essentially what it
Lana Pribic: just makes things better, which is why you have to be careful with it. Yes. Yeah.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): yes, bring it back to that
Lana Pribic: Yeah. Yes, exactly. Yeah. That being said, what are your favorite things to do while you're high? Oh
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh, I'm trying to think. I haven't relaxed in a long time.
because I've been working so much. lately, so I'm like trying to remember. Oh, actually, no I, oh, last night, where did I go for dinner? I went to Bar Vendetta yesterday for dinner. Had some really good pasta. So I love eating. Usually, it will be like, have a nice reservation somewhere. We'll eat dinner, and then we'll walk around, you know, and just hang out at a park, or you know, I don't know Look at puppies and dogs.
I love dogs as well. [00:54:00] So I just went to a bulldog puppy class. That's what I did recently.
Lana Pribic: Okay, and were you high?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I did, I'd hit a dab before.
and it was just,
oh, The texture of the rolls on the dog, I was like just squeezing him. He was so cute. I gotta show you photos.
Lana Pribic: I saw
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Oh, you saw it Yeah. Oh my god, they're
so cute. But eating, usually, or hanging out with friends.
Watching movies.
Honestly, just relaxing. I live a very wholesome life. now. Cooking, yes. And then sometimes if there's like music events or concerts or comedy shows. There's a psychedelic comedy show next
Lana Pribic: Oh, no way.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): What's his name?
Lana Pribic: go to that.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah he's from comedy central. And He's known for psychedelic comedy.
It's at, the opera house or something
Lana Pribic: That's cool. I'm definitely gonna check that out. I'm definitely gonna check that out. That's so cool. This has been so fun What is alive for you right now? What are you working towards? ? What are you really excited about?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah.
I would say, for me, is really focusing on the long form content. That's kind of been, like, I've been, I started at the beginning [00:55:00] this year, but I'm really going hard on it now that I have a clearer vision. I had to kind of, rebrand my vision for Cannabinista, because I was focusing a lot of short form content and doing things a certain way, and I'm pivoting to the more, mature content, I guess you could say that, more nuanced information.
So I'm excited to share more topics about, topics that I haven't talked about before. On those long form platforms, it's a lot of work, but it's like, what gets me up every day It's I'm excited to research content, film it, edit, do the whole shebang. So that's really exciting for me right now. I'm also, you know, looking into you know, potentially like planning an event for the fall time again, kind of like a, I want to keep this mindful consumption thing going and kind of having it as like a yearly event.
So lots of different little things happening there. And with life, honestly, just enjoying the summer, like we don't really get much sunny days like today's beautiful, but it was kind of cold.
Lana Pribic: It's a crap summer,
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, what's going on? Yeah. Global warming, I don't know. It sucks.
Lana Pribic: of a spring
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah. It was really cold last night. I [00:56:00] was walking after dinner and it was like, yeah, I had to wear like a hoodie.
Yeah. And even then I was cold. Yeah
Lana Pribic: yeah, okay. So you're moving towards long form content. And how can people like Do you have offerings? Can people work with you? Like, how do people support your work?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): your work? Yeah so I am going to be launching programs in the fall which is focused around mindful consumption and helping people with changing their relationship with cannabis. That is something that people come to me for a lot, is that a lot of people have developed unhealthy relationships with cannabis and they don't understand how to get back on track.
And that's my bread and butter, right? It's Helping people through what I've learned and a lot of the tips that I've shared with you today, right? And how to help people hold accountable and things like that. So there is ways to do that Sometimes I do group tolerance breaks when I do that So it's kind of like a subscriber based community where we go on joint tolerance breaks together And then every day i'll kind of give like tips and tricks or thoughts of prompts for people to think about
So
that's how people can support my work People can subscribe to my newsletter that's really important for me as well because [00:57:00] Ultimately Yes. Newsletter is important. because you can own that platform, right? That's the problem with these social media giants is like, any day they can take you down. right? So I need to be able to communicate with the community you can subscribe to my newsletter, but honestly, just following me on all channels is the most
Lana Pribic: what are your handles, and how can people
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Yeah, everything is Cannabinista and then on the podcast, it's Mindful Consumption Podcast, but if you just Google me, you'll, see all the, or Instagram, all the links are in the bio.
Lana Pribic: Amazing. Welcome to the long form content world. Yeah, I love it. Yeah, it's so fun. This has been so nice. Yeah. I love it.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): I'm glad we did this. Thank you. Thanks so much.
Lana Pribic: Thank you. Is there any last words that you want to leave people with?
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): No, honestly, just you know, having this ability to, like, even just talk about cannabis more openly, I think is wonderful, and, you know, I'm sure your listeners will also like this, cause they're cannabis adjacent, training. you've had other cannabis topics, episodes before, so.
I hope some people can find this conversation interesting and maybe learn something new. That they haven't heard
Lana Pribic: I think a lot of what we talked about is completely applicable [00:58:00] to microdosing, to any type of recreational psychedelic experience, and also just life. So yeah, I think this is gonna land.
All right. Thanks for listening, everyone. And thank you, Anna, for being on today.
Anna Li (The Cannabinista): Thank you.
