GROWING UP A STONER IN HUMBOLDT COUNTY CAN BE HARD

While many young and old alike in Humboldt County may be partaking
today in the annual marijuana celebration of April 20 -- also known
as "4/20" -- there is at least one person who won't being joining in.

Her name is Pamela Stoner, the only "Stoner" listed in the 707 area
code phone book.

"I joke around that I come from a long line of Stoners," Stoner said,
adding that she gets many raised eyebrows and curious glances when
her last name is said out loud in a public place. People often try to
get a good look at her to see if she's high.

"The funny thing is, I don't smoke it," she said, adding that she
tried a little as a teenager, but didn't like it.

She's teased all the time by people of all ages. "They're always
asking me, 'Do you live up to that name?'" Stoner said.

Stoner, who grew up in Humboldt County, said she is used to the jokes
and the gibes. She gets at least a couple of pranks calls each month.
In fact, she said she would have hung up on the Times-Standard's call
if she hadn't seen the newspaper's name on her caller ID.

In junior high, Stoner said she used a different last name to avoid
the teasing, but as she got older she got over it.

Now the good-natured Stoner can even throw in a joke or two of her
own. "It's too bad I wasn't named Mary Jane," she said laughing.

As for "4/20," although there are several theories on the origin of
the term, the Wikipedia Web encyclopedia says high school students in
San Rafael in 1971 would meet after school at 4:20 p.m. to smoke
cannabis. The term became part of the group's salute, and was
popularized by fans of The Grateful Dead in the late 1980s. By
extension, April 20 has evolved into a counterculture holiday, often
coinciding with Earth Week.