I don’t expect the Giants’ next offer to be bammer considering Lincecum’s pinner salary of $650,000 last season. Unlike power-hitters, great pitchers like Lincecum are capable of steamrolling the competition. Pack two Cy Young Awards on top and the Giants are looking at a dank deal hooking up with Lincecum again. A budding star like Lincecum cannot be shorted while he is still pitching fire.

“Feds on prowl for marijuana” Sun Journal – Aug 3, 1990

In the operation, which ended today, the guardsmen and agents from the Bureau of Land Management and the Drug Enforcement Administration destroyed 1,200 plants producing potent sinsemilla marijuana and seized five tons of equipment used to maintain the remote ”guerrilla gardens.” No arrests of suspected marijuana growers were reported.

“Military Takes Part in Drug Sweep And Reaps Criticism and a Lawsuit” New York Times – August 10, 1990

This policy is wrong. The craving for mind-altering substances is as basic to humans as the need for food, sleep and sex. It cannot be legislated away, and armies cannot smash it.

“Legalize Drugs The Solution is Worse than the Problem” San Francisco Examiner – August 12, 1990

The examiner is now an internet news hub and contemporary federal marijuana raids don’t employ a mere 200 agents.

Humm-baby!

The news from the Trinity Journal which surely drew the attention of the L.A. Times report is of an attempted murder case which was also reported in the Record-Searchlight.

The L.A. Times article does not mention that Trinity County has been in the national news several times during the previous 29 years. Trinity County has been frequently misrepresented by cannabis-related sensationalism and this article is no exception. I have already posted two semi-tabloid articles describing the situation in Trinity County dating as far back as 1980: State pledges to continue war on marijuana growers and Guerrilla tactics used in marijuana war. Today’s L.A. Times article could have been printed 20 years ago if the words “medical marijuana” were replaced with “sinsemilla.”

“Pot farmers just aren’t what they used to be” The Ledger – Oct 10, 1982 (part 2)

Bill Stewart’s 15 minutes of infamy. The article also discusses the seedless underground of the sinsemilla trade.

That said, there are a lot of common misconceptions about trimming. Like most skilled employment, trimming is not a business that is easy to break into without connections. Flocks of would-be trimmers head to the hills each harvest season expecting a high wage and high times. Rarely do the Emerald Triangle dreamers expect the heavy rain, cold floors, and hard times that await them.

The reasons not to seek trimming jobs are numerous. Worthwhile grows seldom hire newbies. One can expect to be blindfolded, driven up a hill, and led to a crowded shack. Gloves and masks may or may not be provided. Untrusted individuals are often not allowed to bring cell phones or any device which appears to be capable of GPS.

Mechanized trimming is changing the profession. Similar to the way the cotton gin changed agricultural processing of the past, trim machines are changing both the role and the skillset of trim crew members. While there is still nothing quite as nice as a professional hand trim, time is money.

The early trimmers were a bit simplistic, dangerous, and cumbersome. The old Trimbox is what most people think of when they think of mechanized trimmers. Another common model is the Trimpro. The latest model employing this general design is the gasoline-powered Trimpro which is a substantial improvement over earlier designs.

The latest crop of trim machines are much better suited for large processing jobs. Newer, high-end trim machines include the Tumbleweed/Samurai and the Twister. Older models employing the tube design can be found for a substantial discount. Due to the increased use of craigslist by cannabis growers, good deals on these machines can be found on the internet.

Each of these machines has strengths and weaknesses. The primary difference between basic designs of these machines is a familiar concept: top load vs. front load. Another factor which many do not consider is the need for more than one person to operate the high-end machines. As can be seen in the videos, even a small amount can become backed up if a single person is operating the machine.

I do not believe that the trim machine will replace the hand manicurist in the near future. Large flowers are so valuable that it makes financial sense to pay for the mint appearance only a hand manicurist can provide. Smallish flowers, also known as “popcorn” bud or “larf,” are the baby carrots of old-fashioned hand manicuring. For those that don’t know, baby carrots are a product of grinding down small, bruised, and misshapen carrots which would otherwise be discarded. While hand manicurists generally do not look forward to trimming popcorn the masochistic trim machine is always hungry for more.