LET'S TALK ABOUT SEX (on 4/20) | Brazenly Banging, Blitzed

As I age, April 20 becomes a more and more revered holiday. Today, lighting up on 4/20 is legal — and dare I say, encouraged — in 24 states, including New York. But we had to sneak around a little more the first time I celebrated. There is no universal age that marks when stealth begins, but there are two facets of youth that almost everyone will remember wanting to hide from their parents: sex and substances.

Now, I am generally of the belief that being sneaky in your teens is a quintessential rite of passage that eventually turns you into a better, more forgiving adult. That said, I am also an advocate for transparency when it comes to sex and, in this new age of empowerment and education, adults are finally beginning to give young people the space to ask questions and be open about their new experiences.

Although we are entering an age where sex no longer qualifies as a vice to be kept secret, experimenting with substances still warrants furtiveness. But why? Truthfully, I don’t have the bandwidth to unpack why taboos associated with sex versus weed warrant different levels of social acceptance, but I can tell you this: We should be doing them together.

It is a well-documented fact that a drag off a joint before having sex or masturbating can intensify orgasms, reduce sexual dysfunction and enhance taste. Frankly, we owe it to ourselves to normalize anything that advertises results like that. Further, do we not also owe it to the young and inexperienced to point them toward satisfying, formative sexcapades? Just because you and I grew up in an era of terrible first times sneaking around parking lots doesn’t mean those coming of age today should have to. Thus, I have a proposal:

Planned Parenthoods and doctors' offices all over the country offer free contraception without question. Many parents also put this offer on the table for their children. Why don’t we add THC to that table? Put a jar of free tincture right next to the jar of free dental dams. After the comprehensive sex ed lesson about putting a condom on a banana, teach the children how to roll a blunt. They’re going to do it anyway — so we might as well normalize it.

At the end of the day, young adults are going to have sex. Many of them are also going to smoke weed. As someone with a few years of experience in both activities under my belt, I can tell you that they are the wine and charcuterie of experimentation. So, if we’re aiming to create a world where young people feel empowered by and educated about their sexual adventures, why not marijuana? Taking openness a step further saves everyone a headache: Either the headache of sneaking around and getting caught, or catching your kid in the act and having to come up with a punishment. If we’re giving teens the thumbs up to get laid, we might as well thumbs up getting high, too.

With that, I wish you all a happy 4/20. Please like and subscribe.

Sincerely stoned,

Jane Doe (we all know her real name)