Four Hundred and Twenty

420. Four-twenty. If you are under the age of 40, you probably know how this seemingly innocent looking number relates to cannabis. Since I am not under the age of 40, I do not know the origin of it, but I do know that it somehow relates to cannabis. It is my belief that it stems from the 70's in either a movie or a book where a group of kids would meet after school at 4:20 to smoke pot. I even have an inkling this group of kids was called "The Waldos." Okay, that's all I know. I plead innocent of anything else.

.....

Today my innocent special needs son, aged 21, asked me at least 15 times in the first 45 minutes after I arrived home from work, "What's your plan?" This is his favourite question. He cannot comprehend the answer. "I have no plan. I am tired. I am going to kill time. I am going to go to bed. The end."

After the 15th time I said, "Make me a plan. You decide. I'll do it." As a result we spent an hour in Value Village tonight. Oh yay.

On the way home, he asked me, "Mom, what did you do on April 20th?"

"What?? I'm not a frickin' calendar. I have no idea. I don't even know what day of the week that was."

"I flew to Vancouver to see B&K on the 19th. I was at their house on the 20th," he says to me. "I saw a lot of cops that day. Were there lots of cops and sirens around here that day?"

"Not that I remember. There's always more cops and sirens in Vancouver."

"No, Mom!" he says in a very you-old-idiot-you-don't-know-anything tone. "April 20th is 4:20 day."

Like I said, I'm over 40. What do I know.