SHAKEDOWN STREET: ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND

"Must be 19 years or older. ID required." Such reads the sign on the shelf
below the brightly coloured bongs at Shakedown Street, downtown Kitchener's
rainbow-coloured wonderland of vibrant glass, hemp clothing and 'tobacco
product' paraphernalia.

"My name's Peter," introduces the clerk behind the counter. "I've worked
here for six years," he elaborates, offering his help. "We're the only
[shop] of this size," Peter informs. "There are other smaller ones in the
area, but none of this magnitude or variety."

Located on King Street near Kitchener city hall, Shakedown Street is owned
by local hippie guru Bob Lazic and has been in operation for ten years. The
shop sells everything from clothing and magazines to pipes to rolling
papers and hemp seeds. The latter of which "are only for eating," stresses
Peter, "as they're high in beneficial essential amino 3 and amino 9 acids
in a proportion that your body can easily use. They're very good in trail mix."

"They've been steamed to ensure nothing grows, of course."

Shakedown Street advertises primarily a tobacco accessory store. "None of
my pipes here are for drugs," emphasizes Peter, "they all are intended for
the smoking of herbal nicotine...what you do outside of here is your
business." Proper identification is required to make a purchase. Under
Canadian criminal law, tobacco products and accessories require age of
majority to be sold. This and other laws are respected here diligently.

When asked for his recommendations on purchasing a 'tobacco' pipe, Peter
explains that, "It's all a matter of personal preference, with the glass
you don't taste anything other than what you are smoking. With metal
[pipes] you taste metal, with wood you taste wood and with ceramic you
taste ceramic because they are all porous materials. So it's actually what
you like the best, there is no real difference between them all."

"The most popular ones are glass," he continues, "they sell easily four to
one over everything else." This is understandable, considering the variety
of striking rainbow colours that the glass pipes come in. Prices for pipes
are modest, ranging from $5.00 for a metal pipe to $20.00 for a medium
sized artistic glass pipe. Shakedown also carries specialty items; however,
Peter notes that prices can, "go up to $500.00 for an elaborate [Hookah]."
(What is a hookah? Think: the smoking caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland.)

"We also offer a majority of thin papers, because you can get thick papers
anywhere else," Peter says, indicating the large selection. "Thin paper is
better; it burns slower." Specialty papers run on average from $1.00 to
$3.00 and come in a variety of sizes and flavors.

Peter's top recommendation is to get a vaporizer. "They're these new
products coming out on the market," he explains. "What they do is turn
smoke into a vapor more like water vapor, so you don't have to worry about
the tar. That's the healthiest way."

Unfortunately, vaporizers are relatively expensive, with prices ranging
anywhere from $200 to $300. "That's why bongs are good," Peter notes. "Not
only are they cheaper but they help remove the tar from tobacco." This
means using bongs is a healthier smoking option in comparison to pipes and
rolling papers.

Shakedown Street also boasts a selection of clothing including Modrobes and
an entire clothing line called Green Babylon made totally from hemp. "Hemp
is the strongest fiber," Peter explained. Hemp is "so strong it's even used
by the United States Navy for all of their ropes." Shakedown Street also
carries necklaces, soap, hackey sacks and creams made from the natural
fiber and seed. "Unfortunately, hemp is still expensive to produce," Peter
explains, because "there's not a huge market for it yet."

According to Peter, Shakedown Street's usual clientele is impressively
varied. As a 40-something couple leaves happily with a new pipe screen, he
observes, "You'd really be amazed...everybody from students to your
parents" shop at the store. "All age groups, you couldn't pick one out,
that's how random it is in here."

The move towards decriminalization of marijuana has not affected business.
"Nothing has changed," especially since they sell merchandise for tobacco
use. The decriminalization topic is hot right now, especially for those in
the tobacco industry like Peter. "I could talk to you for hours about it,"
he explains.

He muses that nothing will really change with the new legislation because
"cultivation and trafficking penalties will double, so if you get caught
selling you will go away for fourteen years instead of seven for
trafficking and 28 for cultivating."

He believes that these laws will do nothing more than increase paperwork by
strictly fining everyone that is caught "creating more revenue," he says.
The future, he believes, will see the present trend of charging some and
dismissing others replaced with only a warning in small possession
situations. "We are already one of the more lax countries around when it
comes to these laws," he explains. "But I don't think we're going to turn
to coffee shops" selling the substance.

In Canada's future, he continues, "possessing under 15 grams will be legal.
This act is not turning Canada into a situation like Amsterdam." Instead he
believes that the law will regard the substance similar to how it looks at
anabolic steroids, drugs that also enjoy a gray area in Canadian legislation.

Shakedown Street offers obliging and exceedingly knowledgeable staff to
make the shopping experience enjoyable, and my experience is no exception.
Leaving the rainbow-coloured wonderland of hand blown glass, I am one more
happy customer in search of my own white rabbit.