We got up at 4:10 a.m. and went to 4:20 4/20 sober so you didn’t have to
Last Friday, April 20th, two dedicated bloggers went to the Main Green at 4:20 a.m. with a unique mission: not to smoke, but simply to observe. It was kind of like a Drunk/Sober/High post, except without the Drunk option, and also, instead of one blogger fulfilling each role, it was two sober bloggers versus Brown’s entire awake (and very high) population.To convey what the experience was like, we’ve put together a timeline of our night (morning?) and included interviews with some of Brown’s veteran stoners. The Night of 4/204:10 a.m. – We silence our alarms and drag ourselves out of our beds. Paying little attention, I pull on clothes and shoes, grateful for the fact that it’s too dark out for anyone to see what I look like. Then I emerge into the chilly night, where Kelly is waiting to walk over with me. I feel a strange wave of camaraderie as we pass by a few other small groups of people also on their way to the Main Green. We are the stragglers, however; most people participating are already there.4:15 a.m. – We arrive at the Main Green, where music is playing. A couple hundred people are there. Most are crowded up by Faunce, as if Christina Paxson is about to step up to a podium and give a speech, but we all knew she's too busy blazing from the comfort of her home.4:19:50 a.m. – A countdown from ten begins. All around us, people prepare their joints, bongs, and pipes.4:20 a.m. – At “zero,” we hear from all sides the sound of lighters flicking and people inhaling. Little orange flames and embers are visible everywhere, oddly reminiscent of the magical lantern scene from Tangled.4:21 a.m. – As everyone stands around smoking and chatting, Blog takes the opportunity to interview some participants. Person 1 brought: A joint.Blog: Are you going to be smoking at 4:20 p.m. also?Person 1: I don’t think so. I’m probably gonna be working during the day, getting stuff done.Blog: That’s such a Brown answer.Person 1: …because that’s technically 16:20. If you have any integrity, you’re smoking right now.Blog: What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you while high?Person 1: Okay, it was 4/20 and it was in 2012…I was a sophomore in high school, and I had started a Quidditch club at my high school.Blog: You chose the right college.Person 1: But it was 4/20, and I had forgotten that I had agreed to teach a bunch of little children how to play. So after school I went out and smoked a lot of weed at 4:20. But then I got a call from the principal saying I had to come back to my high school, to the gymnasium, and teach a bunch of 6-year-olds how to play Quidditch. I was falling over myself. I had eaten a Rice Krispie treat that made me see double…my goodness.Blog: Were you successful? Did they learn how to play Quidditch?Person 1: I think so! It was a magical experience for me, at least.Blog: Why do you smoke weed?Person 1: [long pause] That’s a good question. I don’t know.Other Blog member: That’s a deep, existential question to be asking today of all days.Person 1: Yeah, I’m really, really high... 4:27 a.m. – Person 1 offers us a hit, which is very kind. We thank him and move on to another group of people.4:30 a.m. – Suddenly, people start to shift around us. Flashlight beams cut through the crowd. Apparently, for the first time that anyone could remember, cops are shutting down 4:20! People at the front of the crowd immediately break into a run, but there’s so much congestion that the people at the back are either lightly jogging or just walking. We are among them.4:35 a.m. – The Main Green has emptied out. Now on Wriston, we attempt to engage with people walking back to their dorms and houses. Unfortunately, a lot of people aren’t interested, but we’re able to have a few decent conversations. Person 2 and Person 3 brought: 1 grinder-full worth of weed, a joint, and a bowl.Blog: What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you while high?Person 2 to Person 3: Remember the Turkish Keyboard?*Blog: Tell us about the Turkish Keyboard!Person 2: So we were at a meeting for a club that we were a part of—me, [Person 2], and one of our other friends—and we got soo fucking high. And we were kind of sitting back, hoping we could just chill—Person 3: Yeah, it was just an introductory meeting for a new club and I wasn’t even going to go, but I was dragged along by them—Person 2: Yeah, we dragged her along.Person 3: I was way too high, and I showed up and [the person running the meeting] passed around her computer and asked us to put our names in a form. So I’m staring at it and I'm convinced something’s off about it, but, like, also, I’m really stoned. Anyways, it turned out she’s fucking Turkish, so she had a strange fucking keyboard that I couldn’t figure out!Person 2: She didn’t know where the letters were!Person 3: There was also the time I went to Oregon for an SSDP trip. I got my luggage stolen and I had to interact with the airport police as I was coming up on edibles. So yeah, fun stuff.Blog: Are you going to be celebrating at 4:20 p.m. as well?Person 2: Fuck yeah. I have a meeting to lead at 4:30 but I’m going with a group of people and we’re smoking first and then walking over to the CIT.Blog: Is this the same club from the Turkish Keyboard story?Person 2: [laughs] No, different club! It’s for TA-ing, so...it’s gonna be easy this week. Group of people. Brought: 2 joints.Blog: What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you while high?Person 4: One time when [Person 5] was high, I put eye drops in her eyes, and she was like, “I’m blind! I can’t see!” I was like, “Literally just open your eyes.” [laughs]Person 5: Remember that time I prayed in Antonio’s?Person 6: Yeah, that was the same night.Person 4: You thought you were gonna die.Person 5: I think I spoke in tongues for the first time that night.**Blog: How many people do you think were on the Main Green tonight?Person 5: About 200.Person 4: There were a lot!Person 7: It was like Coachella. 4:50 a.m. – The party was now long over, so these two bloggers returned to their beds. While we managed to snag a few hours of sleep, we definitely didn't rest as well as our classmates on the Main Green, given that they were practically all in drug-induced comas. With that said, weed still do it all over again if we had the chance. Thanks for joining us on our 4/20 4:20 journey! If you want to make it into the next edition, start brainstorming the funniest thing that’s happened to you while high ~now~ and we might just see you on the Green next year.*Also* we promised we’d share this message from one of our interviewees: "Look closely at the candidates for the Best Friends Superlative." Blog note: It’s a good reminder, no matter who you’re voting for, that Superlatives nominations are due WEDNESDAY! Vote HERE. *I kind of want to name a band or drink this**We forgot to clarify if they’ve spoken in tongues since (?!) Image via.