Yo. Being a literary type, I have amassed a library of publications over some fifty odd years. Perusing the mess, I came across a first edition of Alternative London, a guide to living the alternative lifestyle in The Smoke, published in 1970, by a fine chap called Nicholas Saunders. NS covers a range of topics, from tenant's rights to transport, from provision of children's facilities to communes, law aid and legal advice to Social Security and homosexuals. All very good stuff, a snapshot of the time in which us 'Heads' and other non-conformists were living. NS states that to identify copyright infringement, he has included some insignificant errors in the text. I'll take the rap: actually, some copyrights expire after fifty years, so maybe it's a moot point. Anyway, credit is due, and that's all I can give him, to NS and his excellent publications, of which I have a sixth edition from 1982 and once owned the telephone directory sized Alternative England and Wales.Thank you, Nicholas. A crutch when walking was difficult.

From the general to the particular, here my focus is on the Drugs chapter. Opiates, hallucinogens, alcohol, amphetamines, cannabis are all presented here, along with the topic of overdosing and some suggested reading.
It begins with a beautiful illustration of Alice and the hookah-smoking caterpillar along with their conversation, from Lewis Carroll's Alice In Wonderland.
Citing The Dangerous Drugs Act 1965, the penalty for possession of opiates can attract fines of up £1000.00 along with ten year prison sentences. this penalty is also applied to allowing premises to be use to consume or deal in cannabis, along with cultivation.
For amphetamines, Drinamyl is a mixture of amphetamine and barbiturate, the old 'Purple Hearts' along with the legendary green and white slow-release capsules. Latterly known, from memory, as 'French Blues' or 'Blues' French being the Smith Kline and French pharma producers. NS quotes prices at 1/6 to 2s each (7-10p each) and that was a stable price into the mid-seventies. A sealed tub of 1000 sold for £65.00 with a £35.00 profit. In my experience, more hassle than it was worth with speed freaks at my door day and night, talking bollocks and pleading for credit. I also had some qualms about the NHS and chemists being ripped off, so got out for years, then sulphate appeared but that could easily be cut. I scored for a while from a villain who used baby milk formula, 50-50, described by NS as 'the kindest cut of all'. He went down for numerous offences and I stopped my occasional use.
Anyway, cannabis, marijuana, hash, grass, 'Bob Hope'.
To be continued.
NS defines cannabis in its flowering tops; tea, (only heard that myself from Jack Kerouac's On The Road) grass, weed etc. and the resin that is extracted from it; hash, pot, shit, (which was a rarely heard one for me, along with 'charge', if anyone knows that one). Paki, Nepalese, Afghani and their classical descriptions, Red and Yellow Leb as soft like halva and wrapped in canvas, which in my experience was more like a muslin or cotton fabric.
Dig the prices; 'surprisingly stable and vary very little with quality.' £400.00 for five pounds, £10.00 for an ounce, (28 g) with 'quid deals' which may be anything from a 1/10 to a 1/20 of an ounce.'
NS goes on to say that one or two doctors do prescribe cannabis in tincture, (dip a cigarette in, allow to dry and syrup to swallow. Tastes terrible, apparently. I knew a girl who had very painful condition that eventually killed her. She was supplied with tincture which she passed on to me, with morphine which she used herself and a variety of tablets that she didn't take and didn't want to pass them on to anyone due to their addictive qualities. For non smokers, NS recommends dried mint in place of tobacco.
Again, controlled under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1965 Max. ten years imprisonment and £1000.00 fine for possession.(FFS!) Dealing, smuggling, allowing premised to be used, etc. Misuse Of Drugs Act cites five years and/or any fine for possession, fourteen years and/or any fine for supply, etc.
The Wootton Report. Report from The Advisory committee On Drug Dependence (HMSO Publications) considers that cannabis is probably less dangerous than alcohol and is much less likely to produce violent conduct than alcohol. Long term consumption in moderate doses has no harmful effects. It goes on to debunk the myth that hash is a 'gateway drug' with the personality of the user being the most likely cause. I wonder if anything has changed?


Next: 1982 edition.

I write what I call Bad Haikus and am always looking for platforms to share them and invite others to write them, Haiku = Japanese poetic form consists of three lines of 5-7-5 syllables. As a mature artist, I've stolen the form. I call it Bad Haiku to avoid confusion with the great cannon of the Masters. (as if)

Just My Luck Bad Haiku.

Thank goodness for bad
Luck. Without my bad luck, I'd
Have no luck at all.

Bad Nuts Haiku.

Anaphylaxis.
An adverse reaction. That's
It in a nutshell.

Bad Kindness Haiku.

Be kind to others
And you will find that kindness
Is everything.

*They can still be heard after some fifty years. Check them out online.

Over 20 years old now but if you don't own a copy of this treat yourself - you won't regret it. Still sounds as fresh today as it did all those years ago.

Hi friends! this time I brought only lebanese types of hashish for sale. Should I also bring some dark maroccan/black hash (according to what my sources can offer right now)? Is there a demand here for this type of sticky hashish? tell me what types of hash you like best and I will try to acquire it. I have lebanese available as you can see in my listings and dark maroccan is also pretty common here. I do get some hash from India, nepal, pakistan and that region in general from time to time. so tell me what types of hash you like best, cheers :)