“High on Life: A Hipster’s Take on the Conmebol Copa America Game Between Argentina and Canada at Mercedes-Benz Stadium”
Earlier this month, my brother and I scored tickets to the epic showdown between Argentina and Canada at the Conmebol Copa America in the swanky Mercedes-Benz Stadium. And of course, we indulged in a little pre-game puff before heading over. As we chowed down on some mouth-watering pulled pork and sipped on ice-cold Stella Artois, my mind couldn’t help but wander from the game itself to deeper, more abstract musings about the nature of sports events like this.
From my bird’s eye view, the players on the field looked like tiny ants, not professional athletes, but rather primitive hunter-gatherers locked in a battle for survival and glory, pushing their bodies to the brink. And the 70,000 spectators in the stands? They seemed more like alien overlords, watching the carnage unfold like the ancient Romans at the Colosseum. I couldn’t help but wonder if these overlords were content with their elevated status, feasting on food and drink while others fought for their entertainment. But deep down, I imagined they also felt a twinge of shame, knowing they weren’t truly living life the way humans were meant to, unlike the warriors on the field.
As I cringe a little at the misspelled notes I took on my phone during halftime, I can’t help but admit that I’m usually quite pleased with my high-induced writing. And let’s be real, I write high quite often. For years now, I’ve turned to a little bit of weed to help me tackle challenging journalistic projects. Not only does it ease the pressure and help me overcome writer’s block, but it also has a way of unlocking my creativity and allowing me to see the world in a whole new light. Plus, it helps me articulate thoughts that would otherwise remain elusive.
I’m certainly not the first writer or journalist to dabble in marijuana. Victor Hugo, the mastermind behind “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and “Les Misérables,” was a member of a Parisian society of hashish enthusiasts. Hunter S. Thompson and Truman Capote were also known to indulge in copious amounts of cannabis, and while I’m not saying that their substance use was the sole reason for their literary success, I do believe there’s something to be said about the creative potential of cannabis. After all, High Times, a magazine that both Thompson and Capote contributed to, was once hailed as one of the finest literary publications in America.
I’ll never forget the first time I truly experienced the creative and analytical power of cannabis. I was cozied up in bed, watching Andrei Tarkovsky’s “Solaris” on MUBI. I had seen the film multiple times before in my cinema studies classes at NYU, and I always found it unbearably dull. But this time, with a little help from my friend Mary Jane, I was able to see the film in a whole new light. Tarkovsky’s avant-garde masterpiece suddenly became a thought-provoking and mesmerizing experience. And that, my friends, is the magic of cannabis.
