Amanda Lewis

Echo Park Lake

Hipster Smackdown: Echo Park Lake vs. Silver Lake Reservoir

Amanda Lewis
Whether you wish to join their ranks or avoid the nuisance, the precise location and behavior of the phenomenon known as "hipster" seems to be a matter of dire importance to all Angelenos. These gentrifying, culture-conscious creatures can be found preying on vintage purses, foraging for craft beers, avoiding basic bitches and......
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Madzilla Talks About Her Dog Doobie, and Other Topics

Amanda Lewis
Our cover story this week profiles Madzilla, who is known for looking hot while smoking weed and is now Instagram famous. The 25-year-old grew up alternately homeless and living in a trailer with a drug addict. We spent time with her on Fairfax, and over the course of four hours, Madzilla......
Credit: ILLUSTRATION BY DOMINIC BUGATTO

Weed on Wheels: Marijuana Delivered to Your Door in 40 Minutes or Less

Amanda Lewis
Fueling your pot habit wasn't always easy: You had to get your dealer on the phone (often not possible) and then, usually, go to him. Now, with the city putting so much pressure on illegally operating brick-and-mortar dispensaries, weed delivery services are the latest craze in L.A. Although delivery services......
Credit: Mardi Grass/Flickr

Why 2016 is the Best Year to Legalize Pot in California

Amanda Lewis
What killed weed legalization in California in 2014? The simple answer is that people with serious money and political clout didn't believe that older, more conservative voters who go to the polls in off-year elections would back the idea - and by the time the serious money saw private polls......
Drizzled with goodness

Afgoo_Head: Mystery Man of Medical Marijuana Creates Giant Weed Cigars

Amanda Lewis
This past February, at the Los Angeles Cannabis Cup at the NOS Center in San Bernardino, High Times writer Cesar Soriano, 24, waited patiently backstage as weekend headliner B.o.B. finished performing his hit "HeadBand." Then, just as the song ended, Soriano strolled onto stage with what appeared to be an enormous......
Dr. Sona Patel; Credit: Credit: Suraj Patel

Why the Sexy Pot Doc May Be Put Out of Business

Amanda Lewis
Dr. Sona Patel has built a veritable empire off of marijuana prescriptions. With sexy billboards, three locations and low price guarantees like those at big box stores, Patel's "Doc 420" brand dominates search results and word of mouth around Los Angeles - even if she is rarely present at her......
Tongal co-founder and president James De Julio; Credit: Courtesy of Tongal

When Crowdsourcing Is Expensive For the Crowd

Amanda Lewis
David Brashear knew his career was in the toilet when Dustin Diamond, best known for playing Screech on Saved By the Bell, started throwing the contents of his bedroom at him on the set of Celebrity Fit Club. It was 2007, and two years out of film school at USC,......
Credit: flickr.com/securecat

Your Kids Are Getting Stoned Right Under Your Noses

Amanda Lewis
How passe. Kids today often prefer a discreet vaporizer pen  Recently, a 16-year-old girl from the West side we'll call Bridget became annoyed with her boyfriend, whom we'll call Bert. They'd been dating for almost a year when he bought a vaporizer pen. He quickly went from smoking weed before parties on the weekends......