A GENUINE JOINT

Scott Roberts Explores the Magical World of Cannabis Culture.

With the gas gauge hovering at empty, a telling odour lingering overhead
and a hankering for a weekend in the big city, [names redacted] have finally arrived in downtown Toronto.

An hour and a half late and craving a meal, it takes them more than five
hours to make the trek to Hogtown. Students at Laurentian University, the
two have fled Sudbury, Canada's nickel capital.

[names redacted] as her friends call her, aren't really into the
"cultured" scene. They don't plan on visiting the AGO or the ROM on their
three-day visit. There is only one place these two are adamant about
frequenting, and that's the Hot Box Cafe.

"We've definitely heard a lot about this place from our friends, and they
keep telling us we should go," says [name redacted], a first-year criminology student.
"So we're making it a point to go this weekend while we're in the T-dot."

The Hot Box Cafe isn't some trendy side-street eatery on Bloor West. It is
Toronto's first and only marijuana cafe, tailored to the city's 'high'
society. Nestled between Kensington Carpets and open-air grocery stores in
the heart of Kensington Market, it's a place where patrons can sit down for
a coffee and smoke a joint. Customers are encouraged to bring and smoke
their own weed in the cafe.

Inside, the cafe is filled with customers lounging on the sectional couches
and retro chairs. Two teenagers sit and play chess at one end of the cafe,
while three well-dressed 30-somethings talk business at the other. In the
corner, an elderly woman reads a book as she sips her latte.

As [names redacted] first walk through the door of the narrow joint, they
can't help but stand and stare. Between the live turtles and vibrant glass
bongs, the place is mesmerizing and, today, it's buzzing with patrons.

Painted in acid greens and the washed-out oranges, the cafe is a mellow
haven for Toronto's potheads.

Posters on the wall feature the Mona Lisa smoking a joint and a marijuana
leaf replacing the maple one in a Canadian flag.

"This place is chill," [name redacted] says as she gazes around. "It looks just
like my friends described it to me."

It's just how owner and operator Abi Roach envisioned the cafe when she
decided to build it 10 years ago.

"I have always had the thought in my mind that I wanted to eventually open
a pot cafe," Abi says. She legally changed her last name to 'Roach' when
she was 18 years old.

"(The cafe) was one of those ideas that the timing was right, the money was
there and I just did it," she says.

In fact, the timing couldn't have been more favourable for the 25-year-old
Israeli-born entrepreneur. The grand opening of the Hot Box was May 15,
2002, during the peak of Canada's marijuana law debates.

The debate sparked across the country left many citizens more confused than
informed.

Though marijuana laws have not yet changed, police have softened up against
people carrying small amounts.

Some people now believe the drug has already been decriminalized; others
are under the impression that it's now legal to possess and smoke
marijuana. Neither notion is true.

Under our current pot laws, it is illegal to possess or smoke any amount of
marijuana in Canada, unless you have a prescription to use pot for medical
reasons.

So, what does it all mean for pot cafes in this country? Simply put: They
are against the law.

"All of these cafes are illegal in the sense that they don't have licences
to do what they do," says John Conroy, a high-profile Vancouver lawyer.
"The operators are aiding and abetting marijuana possession and use because
it is taking place on their property."

Conroy, who has specialized in drug-related cases for more than three
decades, says cafes such as the Hot Box are still relatively safe from
prosecution.

"There's simply a non-enforcement policy that seems to exist in Canada in
regards to these cafes," he says. "Maybe because (police) realize that it's
not worth their while and maybe because the issue has rebounded against
them politically. Either way, these cafes are not being prosecuted."

That suits Abi just fine. She says that although she knows she is breaking
the law, she feels it is for a greater good. Abi is a self-described
'freedom seeker' and feels smoking marijuana is a freedom of expression
that is guaranteed under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

"I'm doing something good for this province and something good for the
people who live here," says Roach. "I'm willing to face the consequences if
there are any."

But the Hot Box Cafe is no all-night party bar. It opens at 11 a.m. and
closes at 8 p.m. All patrons must be at least 18 years old to enter the
cafe and alcohol is not allowed. But the most important rule prohibits the
selling of pot on the premises.

"When we first opened up we had some problems with people coming in and
using the cafe as their own personal dealing office," Abi says. "We put a
stop to that right away."

Respect, Abi says, is a mainstay at Kensington Market. It's just one of the
reasons she decided to open her cafe here. "(The market) is so open and
multicultural and balanced. Nobody's too rich; nobody's too poor. Everyone
is really accepting," she says.

[name redacted], a 55-year-old teacher, is a regular at the Hot Box. Today, he
is relaxing inside the jam-packed cafe with a couple of teenagers dressed
in black. The three are discussing the moisture level in the marijuana they
are smoking.

[names redacted] decide to join in the conversation, which has really turned
into a lesson. [name redacted], who says he's been using weed since he was 13 years
old, hails from the Netherlands, which has the most liberal pot laws in the
world. As the eldest in the group, he leads the discussion as others listen in.

"The weed here is perfect," he says as he opens a Ziplock bag filled with
marijuana. "It's dry enough that it burns well but wet enough that it packs
together tightly."

[name redacted], who comes to the Hot Box every day after work, says it reminds him of
his home. He says the people here are relaxed, free-spirited and real.
"Look at everyone having a good time out here," he says as he points across
the cafe. "You're telling me that this is breaking the law? Us sitting here
having a smoke. I tell you that you're crazy."