Jan. 3, 2026

EXPERIENCE 251 | Regulation Navigation with Rachael Ardanuy, Marijuana Attorney and Founder of RZA Legal

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Rachael Ardanuy is a purpose-driven attorney, as passionate about business and community as anyone I’ve come to know lately, and also an adjunct professor, Certified Jazzersize Instructor, and co-founder with her husband of Grow Your Own Fort Collins - a design and install firm focused on home gardening.  We traded some home grown gifts before the show, and enjoyed a lovely conversation.  

Rachael came to Colorado as a marijuana industry attorney - helping with formations and contracts and navigation of the regulatory hurdles in the still-young industry.  As the pace of growth in the industry slowed - and regulatory hurdles in other industries increased - she has expanded to become a full-service contracts and counsel firm with a specialty in regulatory navigation.

In this conversation, Rachael shares a lot about what you didn’t know about the marijuana industry and the local constrictions to growth - and some ideas about what’s ahead.  Smoking lounges, ketamine healing centers, and guided psychedelic journeys are all on the radar.  She’s a smart cookie, and a lotta fun, so please tune in and enjoy my conversation with Rachel Ardanuy.


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Music By: A Brother's Fountain

Transcript
WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:15.810
Rachel Arden Noy is a purpose-driven attorney as passionate about business and community as anyone I've come to know lately, and also an adjunct professor, certified jazzer size instructor and co-founder with her husband of Grow Your Own Fort Collins, a design and install firm, focused on home gardening.

00:00:16.739 --> 00:00:20.609
We traded some homegrown gifts just before the show and enjoyed a lovely conversation.

00:00:21.899 --> 00:00:29.670
Rachel came to Colorado as a marijuana industry attorney, helping with formations and contracts and navigation of the regulatory hurdles in the still young industry.

00:00:30.510 --> 00:00:41.189
As the pace of growth in the industry slowed and regulatory hurdles in other industries increased, she has expanded to become a full service contracts and council firm with a specialty in regulatory navigation.

00:00:42.420 --> 00:00:48.030
In this conversation, Rachel shares a lot about what you didn't know about marijuana industry and the local constrictions to growth.

00:00:48.615 --> 00:00:50.054
And some ideas about what's coming.

00:00:50.865 --> 00:00:55.545
Smoking lounges, ketamine, healing centers and guided psychedelic journeys are all on the radar.

00:00:56.234 --> 00:00:57.854
She's a smart cookie and a lot of fun.

00:00:58.155 --> 00:01:01.094
So please tune in and enjoy my conversation with Rachel Arvo.

00:01:02.121 --> 00:01:02.811
Let's have some fun.

00:01:10.626 --> 00:01:12.486
Welcome to the Loco Experience Podcast.

00:01:12.966 --> 00:01:17.677
On this show, you'll get to know business and community leaders from all around Northern Colorado and beyond.

00:01:18.367 --> 00:01:23.257
Our guests share their stories, business stories, life stories, stories of triumph and of tragedy.

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And through it all, you'll be inspired and entertained.

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These conversations are real and raw, and no topics are off limits.

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So pop in a breath mint and get ready to meet our latest guest.

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Welcome back to the Local Experience Podcast.

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My guest today is Rachel Arno and she is the founder of RZA Legal here in Fort Collins or Loveland.

00:01:47.493 --> 00:01:47.674
Yep.

00:01:47.674 --> 00:01:48.183
Fort Collins.

00:01:48.183 --> 00:01:48.843
Fort Collins.

00:01:48.843 --> 00:02:05.134
And is an expert in the regulatory arts, especially, uh, historically cannabis focused and now expanding into a number of things, but especially if your business is regulated by the man, she'll help you navigate that, uh, circumstance.

00:02:05.194 --> 00:02:05.733
Absolutely.

00:02:06.153 --> 00:02:09.049
And she's also a certified jazzer size.

00:02:09.829 --> 00:02:10.399
What do they call that?

00:02:10.399 --> 00:02:11.748
Jazzer size distributor?

00:02:11.748 --> 00:02:12.318
Instructor.

00:02:12.319 --> 00:02:12.330
Instructor.

00:02:13.368 --> 00:02:14.598
It's different than this situation.

00:02:15.139 --> 00:02:15.229
Both.

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She is an adjunct law professor, a board member of the harsh shalom.

00:02:19.788 --> 00:02:19.938
Yeah.

00:02:20.359 --> 00:02:22.368
So shalom to you, Rachel Shalom.

00:02:22.579 --> 00:02:23.028
Yeah.

00:02:23.058 --> 00:02:23.088
Oh,

00:02:23.088 --> 00:02:23.868
glad to have you here.

00:02:23.899 --> 00:02:24.318
Thank you.

00:02:24.318 --> 00:02:25.399
I'm really excited to be here.

00:02:25.429 --> 00:02:26.628
This a great podcast.

00:02:26.628 --> 00:02:29.658
You introduced that as, uh, mountain Peace in the Harsh Shalom.

00:02:29.658 --> 00:02:32.149
But shalom is so much more than just peace, right?

00:02:32.179 --> 00:02:32.989
It is.

00:02:33.019 --> 00:02:33.588
It is.

00:02:33.588 --> 00:02:34.579
It's a greeting.

00:02:34.579 --> 00:02:35.718
It's a well wish.

00:02:35.808 --> 00:02:39.079
Um, and, uh, and it's something we strive for.

00:02:39.079 --> 00:02:39.709
Peace.

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Peace in life.

00:02:40.854 --> 00:02:41.033
Yeah.

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So, yeah.

00:02:41.519 --> 00:02:41.718
Yeah.

00:02:41.929 --> 00:02:42.348
Fair enough.

00:02:42.889 --> 00:02:43.954
Um, talk to me about, uh.

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Z?

00:02:45.889 --> 00:02:46.128
Yeah.

00:02:46.788 --> 00:02:48.709
So RZA legal, that's my initials.

00:02:49.098 --> 00:02:53.449
Um, I, I, my maiden name is Zes.

00:02:53.479 --> 00:02:56.688
So, um, was always at the end of the alphabet.

00:02:56.718 --> 00:03:00.019
Usually had to wait till they repeated my name twice, not paying attention.

00:03:00.109 --> 00:03:00.199
I'm a

00:03:00.199 --> 00:03:00.558
bear.

00:03:00.558 --> 00:03:01.908
So I was always up close to the front.

00:03:01.908 --> 00:03:08.628
Well, I went from Z to a, I fell, fell in love with a guy named Ar Deno and, uh, you know, changed my last name to ar Deno, but kept Zes is my middle name.

00:03:08.628 --> 00:03:10.544
So that's where Rizza came from.

00:03:11.104 --> 00:03:11.264
Excellent.

00:03:11.269 --> 00:03:18.258
Um, also homage to, to the Wu-Tang Clan, of course, but, um, yeah, Rizza Legal started in 2015.

00:03:18.829 --> 00:03:19.459
Oh, so you call it Rizza Legal.

00:03:19.459 --> 00:03:22.818
Well, you know what, I like to leave it blank and let whoever says it.

00:03:22.818 --> 00:03:27.378
So then if they say Rizzo Legal, then, then I know that they're, you know, then they,

00:03:27.383 --> 00:03:28.429
they see that you're bringing the Riz.

00:03:28.429 --> 00:03:28.579
They,

00:03:28.663 --> 00:03:30.019
they Exactly right.

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Otherwise, yeah, RZA legal works for me too.

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Um, whatever gets you there.

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Well, we, uh, we both noticed as we were, uh, preparing for this podcast that, um, there were fun smells.

00:03:43.163 --> 00:03:44.183
In the studio today.

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And so without further ado, here's my thank you for joining the local.

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We got local experience shades, nice local think tank, and local experience stickers.

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Oh, and roughly an eighth of my homegrown.

00:03:59.783 --> 00:04:00.054
Nice.

00:04:00.054 --> 00:04:00.174
What?

00:04:00.294 --> 00:04:01.373
Do you know what kind it is?

00:04:01.644 --> 00:04:02.514
No, not certain.

00:04:02.514 --> 00:04:02.574
No.

00:04:02.663 --> 00:04:05.604
We're calling it, uh, citrus Fire.

00:04:05.993 --> 00:04:06.984
I like that name.

00:04:07.074 --> 00:04:07.313
That's nice.

00:04:07.313 --> 00:04:07.373
Um,

00:04:07.764 --> 00:04:12.653
because, uh, my producer right here said it smelled citrusy and I, I don't disagree.

00:04:12.774 --> 00:04:13.074
All right.

00:04:13.074 --> 00:04:13.704
That works.

00:04:13.764 --> 00:04:14.093
So,

00:04:14.213 --> 00:04:14.574
yeah.

00:04:14.574 --> 00:04:15.623
You know, um, but

00:04:15.623 --> 00:04:16.613
I don't know, I won't remember.

00:04:16.613 --> 00:04:17.663
My neighbor gave me a clone.

00:04:17.819 --> 00:04:20.994
I, I try to grow a backyard plant every year.

00:04:21.144 --> 00:04:23.574
Uh, just provide shade for my cherry tomatoes and stuff.

00:04:25.194 --> 00:04:25.403
Yeah.

00:04:25.403 --> 00:04:27.024
Your, your second tomato plant you mean?

00:04:27.024 --> 00:04:27.744
Yeah, exactly.

00:04:27.749 --> 00:04:28.059
Well, yeah.

00:04:28.088 --> 00:04:28.379
Nice.

00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:29.019
Um, the fuzzy

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tomatoes.

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Fuzzy.

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I love that.

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Yeah.

00:04:31.803 --> 00:04:33.004
I've got some homegrown too.

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Also grown here in Fort Collins.

00:04:35.163 --> 00:04:37.084
This is, um, gorilla Glue.

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Oh.

00:04:37.624 --> 00:04:39.108
So, um, it's a little, that's a good one.

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Yeah.

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It's got some smell on it.

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It's a, it's kind of one of the more mellower, calm down strains.

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Okay.

00:04:45.093 --> 00:04:45.634
Um,

00:04:45.723 --> 00:04:48.814
so this seems, mine seems to be a sativa biased hybrid.

00:04:48.963 --> 00:04:49.264
All right.

00:04:49.264 --> 00:04:50.764
That use is probably more indica bias.

00:04:50.764 --> 00:04:50.973
Is that

00:04:51.093 --> 00:04:51.963
Yes, it is.

00:04:51.963 --> 00:04:55.954
It's, it's definitely more of a stony, uh, nighttime.

00:04:55.954 --> 00:05:00.033
I call it like the work weed and the, so you got dates, you gave me daytime weed and I gave you the nighttime weed.

00:05:00.303 --> 00:05:03.543
That's usually, that's not, that's not the legal distinction.

00:05:03.574 --> 00:05:03.663
Well

00:05:03.903 --> 00:05:04.564
enjoy that.

00:05:04.564 --> 00:05:09.963
And let's go ahead and just thank, drop that down onto the floor so it doesn't clutter our shot for this conversation, if you don't mind.

00:05:10.744 --> 00:05:12.543
And then we'll get into the meat of this thing.

00:05:13.324 --> 00:05:13.923
So.

00:05:14.403 --> 00:05:15.274
How long have you been a lawyer?

00:05:15.574 --> 00:05:17.403
I've been a lawyer since 2012, so, okay.

00:05:17.403 --> 00:05:18.184
What's the math on that?

00:05:18.454 --> 00:05:20.374
13, almost 14 years.

00:05:20.434 --> 00:05:22.293
And I recall you were a Florida gal?

00:05:22.564 --> 00:05:22.923
Yeah.

00:05:22.923 --> 00:05:23.103
Yeah.

00:05:23.103 --> 00:05:25.653
I got my degree, my law degree in Florida.

00:05:25.803 --> 00:05:32.374
I practiced there for about three years and, uh, one year into practicing my husband and I visited Colorado.

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We really loved it here.

00:05:33.694 --> 00:05:39.093
And, um, Florida doesn't have reciprocity with any other state as far as your Oh, licensing goes.

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Oh really?

00:05:39.244 --> 00:05:39.363
Yeah.

00:05:39.363 --> 00:05:47.764
So I had to come out to Colorado in 2014, take the bar again, um, to be able to practice here in Colorado and we moved here in 2015.

00:05:47.764 --> 00:05:55.233
So, um, yeah, so I'm, I'm licensed in Colorado, Florida, and I also waived in New Jersey when they legalized for adult use in 2022.

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Okay.

00:05:56.014 --> 00:06:02.374
And so were you a regulatory focus right from the start and'cause Florida doesn't even still have it, right?

00:06:02.374 --> 00:06:02.434
Yeah.

00:06:02.434 --> 00:06:03.874
So that couldn't have been a specialty yet.

00:06:03.874 --> 00:06:04.408
Right.

00:06:04.408 --> 00:06:09.418
In Florida, if you were calling yourself a marijuana attorney in 2012, that meant you were a criminal defense attorney?

00:06:10.019 --> 00:06:11.548
There was, there was nothing.

00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:13.228
Um, so is it still the same

00:06:13.288 --> 00:06:14.069
or what's the story there?

00:06:14.069 --> 00:06:14.519
They have a medical

00:06:14.519 --> 00:06:15.119
program.

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They do.

00:06:15.569 --> 00:06:15.598
Okay.

00:06:15.658 --> 00:06:21.689
Um, so when I was practicing in Florida, in my beginning of my career, I did estate planning, so wills and trusts, powers of attorney.

00:06:22.079 --> 00:06:25.678
I did, uh, family law, so divorces and child support.

00:06:25.949 --> 00:06:29.819
I did, um, some criminal defense work, some civil litigation.

00:06:30.059 --> 00:06:33.569
Um, but when I moved to Colorado, I was like, I'll do anything except for family law.

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Mm-hmm.

00:06:33.869 --> 00:06:35.369
I just, I really didn't like it anymore.

00:06:35.369 --> 00:06:37.139
I was, it's not why I went to law school.

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I wasn't.

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It's brutal.

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It's brutal.

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Cut into those emotional circumstances and

00:06:40.709 --> 00:06:41.199
Exactly right.

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Curtis, your job

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is to take a side.

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They hired you and win.

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Even if that dude or woman is the total asshole situation.

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Yeah, right.

00:06:48.803 --> 00:06:49.204
Exactly.

00:06:49.233 --> 00:06:56.028
It's, um, you know, it takes true love to make true hate and everyone there loved each other at one point, so they all just really hated each other.

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And it, you know, it was just really hard, hard emotional work and I that not something that I was passionate about.

00:07:01.488 --> 00:07:05.149
And so when I moved to Colorado, I was like, I'm gonna be new in this state.

00:07:05.178 --> 00:07:07.968
Everything's gonna feel new, even though I've been practicing for a while.

00:07:07.968 --> 00:07:10.939
The laws are in different places and they call'em different things.

00:07:11.238 --> 00:07:13.309
Um, so I can be new and I could do something new.

00:07:13.309 --> 00:07:13.319
Yeah.

00:07:13.319 --> 00:07:19.908
And it was 2014 when I took the bar exam, um, in Colorado and, um, to back up in Colorado.

00:07:20.119 --> 00:07:28.369
Um, the, the people voted to legalize marijuana in 2012, but it took about two years to actually see dispensaries open up for adult use.

00:07:28.369 --> 00:07:28.488
Gotcha.

00:07:28.819 --> 00:07:32.449
So that happened right around the time that I took the bar exams.

00:07:32.478 --> 00:07:32.509
Oh.

00:07:32.509 --> 00:07:32.689
So there's

00:07:32.689 --> 00:07:34.129
a lot of work happening.

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There was a

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lot going on out here.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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And there weren't a lot of attorneys who were willing to, um,

00:07:40.519 --> 00:07:42.884
sell their name by working with a Right.

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A we shop.

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Right, exactly.

00:07:45.499 --> 00:07:49.338
Um, and so, you know, right when I took the bar and came out here.

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Luckily, Colorado was on the forefront.

00:07:51.983 --> 00:08:02.423
They, you know, um, came out with an ethics opinion that said, listen, we're not gonna take your law license away if you are guiding these folks, because we don't want the state to be the only ones with the attorneys here.

00:08:02.423 --> 00:08:06.384
We want these folks to not just have handshake ba, you know, backroom deals.

00:08:06.384 --> 00:08:08.483
Like we, we want to legitimize this industry.

00:08:08.603 --> 00:08:14.213
We want encourage attorneys to work with marijuana licensed businesses, um, and help them through the regulations.

00:08:14.213 --> 00:08:14.514
Right?

00:08:14.519 --> 00:08:14.528
Yeah.

00:08:14.694 --> 00:08:14.874
Yeah.

00:08:14.934 --> 00:08:21.954
So, yeah, so 2015 I moved here and literally jumped directly into working with marijuana businesses, um, July of 2015.

00:08:22.403 --> 00:08:29.934
And, um, ever since then, twice a year, there's been crazy changes, whether it's through the legislative process or rulemaking and rulemaking.

00:08:30.204 --> 00:08:30.293
Mm-hmm.

00:08:30.293 --> 00:08:33.173
So every single year we've seen an evolution in the marijuana world.

00:08:33.533 --> 00:08:38.964
Um, even though the state constitution says it has to be regulated like alcohol, we know it's not.

00:08:39.024 --> 00:08:40.374
We know there's a lot of, um.

00:08:40.823 --> 00:08:44.033
Lot harder, uh, barriers to entry in the marijuana world.

00:08:44.033 --> 00:08:44.063
Okay.

00:08:44.063 --> 00:08:46.073
And limitations even here in the city.

00:08:46.073 --> 00:08:53.573
That's part of something I'm working on this year, is trying to encourage city council to revisit the regulations for Fort Collins marijuana.

00:08:53.573 --> 00:08:54.923
We deserve delivery.

00:08:54.923 --> 00:08:58.464
We deserve, um, you know, hospitality venues that serve cannabis.

00:08:58.464 --> 00:08:59.033
I think they're so far

00:08:59.033 --> 00:08:59.964
away from schools too.

00:09:00.663 --> 00:09:02.938
Those are real consumers, right.

00:09:03.903 --> 00:09:04.173
I'm just,

00:09:04.578 --> 00:09:06.573
I mean, the consumer's eyes here are the parents, right.

00:09:06.573 --> 00:09:15.153
We can't bring our kids into a dispensary to go buy a, you know, a bag of weed, but we can take them into, um, the liquor store and push them around in the car.

00:09:15.153 --> 00:09:15.844
Well, yeah, yeah.

00:09:15.979 --> 00:09:16.139
Honestly.

00:09:16.139 --> 00:09:16.298
And

00:09:16.298 --> 00:09:17.884
you also can't leave them in the car.

00:09:18.033 --> 00:09:18.783
Can't leave them the car.

00:09:19.354 --> 00:09:23.014
Come on, help us out city council, uh, let's, let's get some delivery going.

00:09:23.163 --> 00:09:27.214
So, you know, it's not just people who, uh, have mobility issues or those who you might think.

00:09:27.214 --> 00:09:37.384
It's like there's a whole segment of our population who can't access cannabis unless they're home grower like you and I, but can't access it if they've got their kids on them and they can't bring them into the shop and they can't get in the car.

00:09:37.384 --> 00:09:37.563
Right.

00:09:37.563 --> 00:09:37.833
Interesting.

00:09:37.833 --> 00:09:39.813
So it's like there's, let's get with the time you a

00:09:39.813 --> 00:09:42.573
babysitter for 30 bucks so you can get out to buy a$50 bag of weed.

00:09:42.604 --> 00:09:49.053
And I know I've encouraged dispensary owners to have to work with local, uh, you know, um.

00:09:49.244 --> 00:09:50.323
Nurseries and stuff.

00:09:50.323 --> 00:09:50.864
We a little pipe pen

00:09:50.864 --> 00:09:51.433
right out front.

00:09:52.453 --> 00:09:55.364
Hey, you know, marijuana is a hyperlocal business.

00:09:55.364 --> 00:09:56.683
They can't ship it outta state.

00:09:56.683 --> 00:09:59.053
They can't, they're very, they have to be tied into their communities.

00:09:59.114 --> 00:09:59.173
Yeah.

00:09:59.173 --> 00:09:59.384
So

00:09:59.504 --> 00:10:08.803
it seems like as a very low volume, uh, purchaser, uh, it seems like there's been a lot of consolidation in the industry.

00:10:08.808 --> 00:10:15.254
Like the, the weed shops are getting, the owners of the weed shops are becoming bigger and bigger companies, and there just aren't very many like.

00:10:15.658 --> 00:10:17.639
Standalone shops anymore.

00:10:17.639 --> 00:10:20.729
Is that true or what Can you tell me about the industry itself?

00:10:20.729 --> 00:10:23.458
The healthiness of it, the profitability even?

00:10:23.759 --> 00:10:24.119
Yeah.

00:10:24.119 --> 00:10:24.389
Yeah.

00:10:24.389 --> 00:10:32.698
I mean, in 20, I wanna say it was 2019 a bill passed that allowed outside money in, so for the longest time, they couldn't be owned by publicly traded companies.

00:10:32.698 --> 00:10:32.788
Mm-hmm.

00:10:33.028 --> 00:10:34.649
You had to be a Colorado resident.

00:10:35.009 --> 00:10:40.798
Um, so there was a whole lead up of many years, maybe seven or eight years, where that was limited.

00:10:40.889 --> 00:10:41.038
Gotcha.

00:10:41.068 --> 00:10:49.693
So once outside money was able to come in, that's when we start seeing these large, massive multi-state operators, um, coming into the space, you know, flooding lots

00:10:50.668 --> 00:10:52.229
more products, uh, a lot of products, lots more concentrates, things like that.

00:10:52.889 --> 00:10:54.028
And like bigger facilities.

00:10:54.028 --> 00:10:54.239
Right.

00:10:54.239 --> 00:10:58.619
And with bigger facilities, you have, uh, in my opinion, somewhat less lesser quality.

00:10:58.619 --> 00:10:58.859
Right.

00:10:58.889 --> 00:11:02.408
'cause you're not, you're not having these smaller batch places just like, just like Right.

00:11:02.408 --> 00:11:02.484
Like a

00:11:02.484 --> 00:11:04.168
craft brewery versus Budweiser kind of.

00:11:04.168 --> 00:11:04.649
Exactly.

00:11:04.649 --> 00:11:05.489
You took the words outta my mouth.

00:11:05.489 --> 00:11:05.938
Exactly.

00:11:05.938 --> 00:11:06.208
Right.

00:11:06.448 --> 00:11:10.678
So, but that said, it's just like every industry, just like, everyone's like, oh, you know.

00:11:11.374 --> 00:11:13.533
Are all these small shops being pushed out?

00:11:13.533 --> 00:11:17.344
Well, just like, you know, in alcohol, just like in alcohol, just like in soda.

00:11:17.344 --> 00:11:19.833
Just like in any in industry.

00:11:19.864 --> 00:11:19.923
Yeah.

00:11:19.953 --> 00:11:22.083
You're gonna have your big players, you're gonna have your small players.

00:11:22.083 --> 00:11:26.193
And yes, they are in the same industry, but are they really competition for one another?

00:11:26.254 --> 00:11:26.313
Yeah.

00:11:26.494 --> 00:11:26.764
Yes.

00:11:26.764 --> 00:11:26.943
And no.

00:11:26.943 --> 00:11:28.504
Economics of the game is different for what?

00:11:28.504 --> 00:11:29.193
Absolutely.

00:11:29.193 --> 00:11:29.943
Absolutely.

00:11:29.974 --> 00:11:30.423
Fair enough.

00:11:30.514 --> 00:11:30.813
Okay.

00:11:30.813 --> 00:11:33.333
So there's still room in for the little guys out there.

00:11:33.394 --> 00:11:39.214
There are, and especially because in Colorado and many other states did it this way, you have to have a state license and a local license.

00:11:39.214 --> 00:11:44.764
Just like your bar here in Fort Collins, you have to have a liquor license from the city of Fort Collins and from the state of Colorado.

00:11:45.063 --> 00:11:48.693
So there were local governments that said, we're not opting into this.

00:11:48.724 --> 00:11:50.374
And I did this research literally today.

00:11:51.153 --> 00:11:51.933
Well, and Fort Collins was in, and then it was out.

00:11:51.938 --> 00:11:53.283
Fort Collins was in and then it was out.

00:11:53.283 --> 00:11:53.703
Right.

00:11:53.703 --> 00:11:53.913
Right.

00:11:53.913 --> 00:11:55.203
And then they haven't touched it since then.

00:11:55.354 --> 00:11:55.474
Right.

00:11:56.073 --> 00:11:56.374
You know.

00:11:56.374 --> 00:11:56.494
Fair.

00:11:56.823 --> 00:11:59.614
Um, but yeah, like there's some local governments that still.

00:12:00.124 --> 00:12:01.504
That ban is on the books.

00:12:01.533 --> 00:12:04.803
Um, you know, some more rural areas, more on the eastern plains.

00:12:04.803 --> 00:12:08.193
But you know, Sterling Colorado, that's pretty far east of here.

00:12:08.254 --> 00:12:08.433
Yeah.

00:12:08.494 --> 00:12:10.323
Uh, halfway between here and Nebraska.

00:12:10.354 --> 00:12:12.634
They just legalized this past year.

00:12:12.693 --> 00:12:12.994
Oh, interesting.

00:12:12.994 --> 00:12:14.344
To allow for dispensaries.

00:12:14.344 --> 00:12:14.403
Yeah.

00:12:14.433 --> 00:12:15.964
So, you know, 12 years in, what were the

00:12:15.964 --> 00:12:16.803
residents doing?

00:12:16.803 --> 00:12:19.129
Were they coming like all the way to Fort Collins or something?

00:12:19.129 --> 00:12:24.094
Or was there like a little town between there where there were like two houses and a weed shop or,

00:12:24.124 --> 00:12:29.193
yeah, I mean, alt Colorado legalized so alt, um, they, but they just a unique little

00:12:29.193 --> 00:12:29.328
town.

00:12:29.399 --> 00:12:29.688
Yeah.

00:12:29.688 --> 00:12:30.448
Unique little town.

00:12:30.783 --> 00:12:33.964
They just legalized, um, also within the last couple of years.

00:12:33.964 --> 00:12:34.083
Gotcha.

00:12:34.083 --> 00:12:37.984
So yeah, people were coming to Fort Collins, um, or Larimer County.

00:12:37.984 --> 00:12:45.214
Those are considered two separate like jurisdictions, but Fort Collins is known for being like the least taxed in the state, actually.

00:12:45.274 --> 00:12:45.423
Oh really?

00:12:45.423 --> 00:12:48.004
So our taxes are really low on, on retail marijuana.

00:12:48.663 --> 00:12:48.913
By the city.

00:12:48.913 --> 00:12:48.943
By the city.

00:12:48.943 --> 00:12:49.328
Because it's

00:12:49.328 --> 00:12:50.374
a state tax and a city tax.

00:12:50.644 --> 00:12:50.724
Is that right?

00:12:50.724 --> 00:12:50.849
Yeah,

00:12:50.854 --> 00:12:55.744
the city has, um, really, they didn't, they didn't treat it differently, miraculously.

00:12:56.403 --> 00:12:57.448
Well, one thing I've noticed

00:12:57.548 --> 00:12:58.009
is like.

00:12:58.999 --> 00:13:15.649
Prices have actually come down over the last 10 years for like retail to the point where it's like basically the same price as it was when I was 20 years old in college for the compressed Mexican brown that I was getting off of my, you know, neighbor across the street.

00:13:15.708 --> 00:13:17.058
And back then you got what you got.

00:13:17.058 --> 00:13:17.208
Right?

00:13:17.208 --> 00:13:17.448
Totally.

00:13:17.453 --> 00:13:20.208
Or, or in other states where it's not legal, you get what you get.

00:13:20.269 --> 00:13:24.558
Um, but yeah, now there's all kinds of options and, you know, the prices have come down.

00:13:24.558 --> 00:13:27.558
There is comp, you know, more competition, so there's more opportunity.

00:13:28.009 --> 00:13:34.278
Um, so yeah, and you can, you can wholesale it too, like when it was just medical, the medical dispensary had to grow their own bud too.

00:13:34.788 --> 00:13:34.818
Mm.

00:13:34.879 --> 00:13:45.469
When they, when they, um, came out with adult use in 2012, they, they changed that model and said, well, you know, we can, you can now wholesale it and you can get it from a grow facility, can sell it to multiple different stores.

00:13:45.499 --> 00:13:45.859
Interesting.

00:13:45.979 --> 00:13:47.509
So the pros and cons of both.

00:13:48.019 --> 00:13:56.298
So kind of with the market being more stabilized now, that's probably, it was probably 80, 90% of your business for a while, but as.

00:13:57.573 --> 00:13:57.663
Right.

00:13:57.663 --> 00:14:01.413
Things change and there isn't as many like rapid developing situations.

00:14:01.413 --> 00:14:05.374
I assume that that portion of your business is lesser, but still significant.

00:14:05.403 --> 00:14:05.673
Yeah.

00:14:05.673 --> 00:14:08.884
I mean, it was like 95 to a hundred percent of my business for a long time.

00:14:08.884 --> 00:14:08.943
Wow.

00:14:09.094 --> 00:14:11.793
And especially during the pandemic, cannabis was deemed essential.

00:14:11.793 --> 00:14:19.504
So they had, they were open, they were operating, they were navigating public health orders, um, figuring out how to make this make sense.

00:14:19.533 --> 00:14:19.563
Mm.

00:14:19.594 --> 00:14:27.813
But you know, there, it was a boon time for sure during the pandemic for, um, cannabis industry because they were allowed to stay open, unlike other industries.

00:14:28.144 --> 00:14:29.344
Um, so that did

00:14:29.344 --> 00:14:30.394
new ones open a lot too.

00:14:30.573 --> 00:14:31.864
Some opened, yeah.

00:14:31.864 --> 00:14:32.974
A lot of'em expanded.

00:14:32.974 --> 00:14:36.364
I mean, at that time I think a lot of investors were feeling good about it.

00:14:36.484 --> 00:14:36.663
Right.

00:14:36.813 --> 00:14:39.033
And in the commercial world, a lot of time.

00:14:39.798 --> 00:14:40.458
To back up.

00:14:40.458 --> 00:14:44.119
I mean, cannabis companies can't get financing from the bank.

00:14:44.418 --> 00:14:44.568
Oh, right.

00:14:44.629 --> 00:14:49.548
Banks will not loan the money, even if it's like a mortgage on their, and it's secured by real estate.

00:14:49.609 --> 00:14:50.178
Really?

00:14:50.328 --> 00:14:52.489
They won't, most of banks will not.

00:14:52.489 --> 00:14:54.499
So you gotta have coin to get started.

00:14:54.499 --> 00:14:54.889
Gotta have period

00:14:54.948 --> 00:15:02.839
or relationships, uh, hard money lending, bridge loans, um, you know, all kinds of other interesting financing arrangements.

00:15:02.839 --> 00:15:10.908
And so, um, yeah, so, you know, a lot of notes that were given in 2020 when things were looking great had a five year term.

00:15:10.908 --> 00:15:16.038
So those notes are coming due now and, you know, so we're seeing a lot of consolidation.

00:15:16.038 --> 00:15:17.149
We're seeing Yeah.

00:15:17.149 --> 00:15:17.178
People were like,

00:15:17.208 --> 00:15:18.948
I can't pay this loan, really?

00:15:19.068 --> 00:15:19.729
And so we're seeing some

00:15:19.729 --> 00:15:27.288
receivership actions, you know, we're seeing issues in the IRS, but we're also seeing some companies really thrive, um, who are doing it right.

00:15:27.288 --> 00:15:30.528
And not just, you know, going off and trick, well, you spending money left and right.

00:15:30.528 --> 00:15:30.619
Well,

00:15:30.619 --> 00:15:31.308
if start a shop with.

00:15:31.678 --> 00:15:34.078
Loan shark money, like that's gonna be a problem.

00:15:34.168 --> 00:15:35.489
It's hard get off from that.

00:15:35.494 --> 00:15:37.619
Your costs are too high compared to everybody else's, you know?

00:15:37.859 --> 00:15:38.249
Right.

00:15:38.249 --> 00:15:40.769
And a lot of those costs you can't write off, um, at this.

00:15:40.828 --> 00:15:41.038
Right.

00:15:41.038 --> 00:15:43.198
And the margins, I'm sure aren't what they used to be.

00:15:43.288 --> 00:15:43.528
Right.

00:15:43.528 --> 00:15:45.448
For the growers or the sellers probably.

00:15:45.509 --> 00:15:45.599
Right.

00:15:45.599 --> 00:15:52.168
Like I said, there's still, there's still plenty of businesses that are doing great and you know, especially here in Fort Collins, I don't think we've seen hardly any dispensary shutdown.

00:15:52.168 --> 00:15:52.318
Well, the

00:15:52.318 --> 00:15:53.399
diversity of products.

00:15:53.764 --> 00:15:54.693
Diversity of products.

00:15:54.693 --> 00:15:55.234
Absolutely.

00:15:55.234 --> 00:15:57.249
It's crazy, you know, so many different kinds of edibles and different things.

00:15:57.394 --> 00:15:59.344
I'm a boring, like flower guy.

00:15:59.479 --> 00:15:59.769
Same.

00:15:59.974 --> 00:16:00.274
Same.

00:16:00.453 --> 00:16:11.793
The coolest part though that I have noticed is like just when people come to me and they're like, I have this idea for a product or a business venture or whatever, and it's like, it's just something that's never existed in the world before because this is all very new.

00:16:11.793 --> 00:16:14.254
So like marijuana lounges and other, other ideas.

00:16:14.464 --> 00:16:14.614
Yeah.

00:16:14.703 --> 00:16:18.813
Um, you know, I'm hearing from people here in town that like, wish that they could, they maybe it would be

00:16:18.813 --> 00:16:20.854
nice to be a more social kind of thing.

00:16:21.274 --> 00:16:21.333
Yeah.

00:16:21.333 --> 00:16:21.994
Like the Amsterdam

00:16:21.994 --> 00:16:22.833
coffee shops, you know.

00:16:22.833 --> 00:16:22.894
Yeah.

00:16:23.224 --> 00:16:23.344
It's,

00:16:23.494 --> 00:16:29.884
if you've ever been, I mean it's a lot, it's a lot of fun and um, especially for those who don't really, um, drink as much or want alternatives.

00:16:30.214 --> 00:16:33.994
Um, we're seeing, you know, alcohol consumption's going down or seeing cannabis consumption going up.

00:16:33.994 --> 00:16:37.413
So, you know, giving people more options, um, would be great

00:16:38.464 --> 00:16:41.313
if I'm a would be operator.

00:16:41.683 --> 00:16:41.864
Yeah.

00:16:42.193 --> 00:16:47.683
Of let's start with a, a retail shop and then I wanna back it up to the production side maybe.

00:16:47.714 --> 00:16:49.634
'cause you, I'm sure you work with both.

00:16:49.693 --> 00:16:49.964
Oh, yeah.

00:16:50.234 --> 00:16:59.624
What's what's the circumstance, let's say right here in Fort Collins and, um, right now, so if I wanna start something in February.

00:16:59.803 --> 00:17:00.104
Yeah.

00:17:00.734 --> 00:17:01.994
Uh, which I don't, I'm sorry.

00:17:01.994 --> 00:17:02.354
You can't.

00:17:03.254 --> 00:17:03.494
Okay.

00:17:03.553 --> 00:17:04.183
Unfortunately.

00:17:04.304 --> 00:17:06.284
So that's, that's part of where, you know, um.

00:17:07.173 --> 00:17:08.493
So they're maxed out already or something?

00:17:08.493 --> 00:17:09.034
They're maxed out.

00:17:09.034 --> 00:17:09.183
Yeah.

00:17:09.189 --> 00:17:09.338
Okay.

00:17:09.344 --> 00:17:09.814
So, like

00:17:09.814 --> 00:17:13.384
I said, uh, Fort Collins has not looked at their regulations since 2013.

00:17:13.384 --> 00:17:15.334
I wanna say 2012 or 2013,

00:17:15.364 --> 00:17:17.193
whatever, when they fuck changed it back to, yeah.

00:17:17.378 --> 00:17:17.459
Okay.

00:17:17.459 --> 00:17:18.034
And so what they

00:17:18.034 --> 00:17:25.114
did then is they, they tied the number of dispensary, re adult use dispensaries, um, available licenses Okay.

00:17:25.114 --> 00:17:27.903
To the number of medical marijuana patients that were registered.

00:17:27.903 --> 00:17:29.763
So Oh, completely arbitrary.

00:17:29.854 --> 00:17:32.223
Um, rule I wasn't around Right.

00:17:32.223 --> 00:17:32.673
As probably less

00:17:32.913 --> 00:17:38.673
medical registrants now, because people are like, well, I could just pay at retail and I don't have to worry about

00:17:38.794 --> 00:17:38.973
Right.

00:17:38.973 --> 00:17:39.963
Kurt having some

00:17:39.963 --> 00:17:41.973
kind of problem with my insurance in the future.

00:17:41.973 --> 00:17:42.513
'cause I said I'm a

00:17:42.784 --> 00:17:43.354
maybe.

00:17:43.354 --> 00:17:43.653
Right.

00:17:43.653 --> 00:17:44.433
Who knows not, right?

00:17:44.433 --> 00:17:44.584
Yeah.

00:17:44.584 --> 00:17:48.963
Or they don't want to, they don't, maybe they, you know, maybe they have concerns about concealed carry or other things.

00:17:49.054 --> 00:17:49.263
Right.

00:17:49.534 --> 00:17:52.743
Don't wanna be on a list of medical, um, marijuana, um, registry.

00:17:52.743 --> 00:18:04.114
But, uh, yeah, so it, it, it was an arbitrary thing and they sort of capped the number and so, um, we've been stuck at this number of dispensaries and meanwhile there's like over 500 liquor licenses in Fort Collins.

00:18:04.114 --> 00:18:04.778
And so, and

00:18:04.778 --> 00:18:05.019
how many.

00:18:05.868 --> 00:18:07.153
Retail marijuana licenses

00:18:07.278 --> 00:18:08.509
like 15.

00:18:09.048 --> 00:18:09.618
Really?

00:18:09.618 --> 00:18:10.068
Yeah.

00:18:10.128 --> 00:18:10.398
Yeah.

00:18:10.729 --> 00:18:11.523
So, oh, interesting.

00:18:11.628 --> 00:18:13.578
So they get to keep a good, pretty good margin, right?

00:18:13.584 --> 00:18:13.673
Right.

00:18:13.794 --> 00:18:15.858
It's, it's right now like the current operator.

00:18:15.858 --> 00:18:20.239
So I'm not trying to make any problems for the current operators, you know, some of which are my clients.

00:18:20.479 --> 00:18:22.338
Um, but uh, you know's, definitely

00:18:22.338 --> 00:18:23.449
very anti-competitive though.

00:18:23.449 --> 00:18:23.568
It's

00:18:23.568 --> 00:18:24.229
anti-competitive.

00:18:24.259 --> 00:18:25.038
Exactly right.

00:18:25.038 --> 00:18:25.699
It's exactly right.

00:18:25.729 --> 00:18:28.669
And um, you know, especially when there's just so much innovation.

00:18:28.939 --> 00:18:37.848
You know, I just talked to a, a, a woman who wants to open this really well, not wants to, they are opening a very novel concept, restaurant bar place.

00:18:37.848 --> 00:18:40.128
And um, I'm just really excited for'em.

00:18:40.128 --> 00:18:43.848
It's in the old town area and so, you know, I've been able to pivot.

00:18:44.358 --> 00:18:50.419
All of my expertise in the cannabis licensing world to help other people who are highly regulated, like you mentioned.

00:18:50.419 --> 00:18:56.628
So like short-term rental licensing, liquor licensing, now natural medicine or psychedelics licensing.

00:18:56.749 --> 00:18:56.778
Mm.

00:18:56.778 --> 00:18:59.449
Those are all very, somewhat similar processes Right.

00:18:59.449 --> 00:19:01.999
When it comes to approaching the, the, the government.

00:19:01.999 --> 00:19:02.058
Yeah.

00:19:02.058 --> 00:19:02.673
And getting those, and especially in

00:19:02.673 --> 00:19:07.729
the process of being defined in some cases, like the regulation says this, and so you have to honor that.

00:19:07.788 --> 00:19:08.898
Right, right, right.

00:19:08.898 --> 00:19:09.048
You know,

00:19:09.348 --> 00:19:10.038
or pivot to it.

00:19:10.249 --> 00:19:10.848
Definitely.

00:19:10.848 --> 00:19:18.949
So, you know, being able to think in that way and help these highly regulated businesses has helped in other areas.

00:19:18.949 --> 00:19:19.249
Right.

00:19:19.249 --> 00:19:27.979
So like, if a bar gets shut down for, um, one reason or another, like how I can, you know, come in and help resolve that issue and get them back open for it.

00:19:27.979 --> 00:19:28.219
It's so

00:19:28.219 --> 00:19:28.548
funny.

00:19:28.548 --> 00:19:35.058
All the attention that Colorado spends on making sure kids don't buy alcohol these days.

00:19:35.058 --> 00:19:39.259
Like if I go to seven 11, I wanna buy an odells IPA.

00:19:40.173 --> 00:19:45.933
Like that's, I'm guaranteed to get carted even when I was rocking my giant beard that I just got shaved off this morning.

00:19:45.963 --> 00:19:46.084
Oh, yeah.

00:19:46.413 --> 00:19:51.183
Because they're scared to death that somebody's planting a mole and trying to get them in trouble.

00:19:51.304 --> 00:19:51.634
Oh, yeah.

00:19:52.084 --> 00:20:01.503
But my perception of the, like high school culture and stuff, and Jill and I host exchange students regularly and stuff is 90% of kids don't care at all about alcohol.

00:20:02.193 --> 00:20:02.403
Yeah.

00:20:02.403 --> 00:20:20.013
You know, it's weird because I would love to know what the actual, like, we know, we know if you, if you go on to the city of Fort Collins every month they have a liquor board meeting and every meeting they, um, their liquor enforcement team talks about what the percentages of underage sales happened.

00:20:20.044 --> 00:20:20.314
Okay.

00:20:20.433 --> 00:20:22.354
Um, on like stings that they do.

00:20:22.923 --> 00:20:23.554
Okay.

00:20:23.554 --> 00:20:29.433
And, um, don't quote me on this, but I wanna say it's somewhere between like 80 and 95, 80 and 90% that

00:20:29.433 --> 00:20:30.153
are successful

00:20:30.243 --> 00:20:31.263
of, of success.

00:20:31.263 --> 00:20:36.993
So like, so 80 to 90% that are successful, but that means like 2010 to 20%.

00:20:37.999 --> 00:20:40.338
Are people who are making these sales to underage.

00:20:40.338 --> 00:20:41.064
Oh, I see what you're saying.

00:20:41.148 --> 00:20:41.628
You know what I'm saying?

00:20:41.808 --> 00:20:42.229
So yeah.

00:20:42.229 --> 00:20:42.663
So like, so

00:20:42.669 --> 00:20:43.999
they reject the sale, right?

00:20:43.999 --> 00:20:51.499
So the city, so the city comes out and they do these stats and they say, oh, you know, this month we did this many, you know, sting, just like you talked about.

00:20:51.499 --> 00:20:51.778
Yeah, yeah.

00:20:51.798 --> 00:20:54.409
And this, this is how many people have passed and this how many.

00:20:54.528 --> 00:21:00.409
So every single month you'll see there are always some license on there who's getting some fine or something.

00:21:00.409 --> 00:21:03.798
Getting ganged slapped on a slapped on a wrist for having sold to underage.

00:21:03.888 --> 00:21:05.838
Um, it feels like they spend about as

00:21:05.838 --> 00:21:11.028
many resources trying to bust people as they collect in sales taxes from all those stores.

00:21:11.028 --> 00:21:11.628
Probably.

00:21:11.628 --> 00:21:12.378
Like, I'm curious too.

00:21:12.378 --> 00:21:13.788
It can't be an efficient mechanism.

00:21:13.788 --> 00:21:14.479
Maybe I'm wrong.

00:21:14.479 --> 00:21:14.598
That's

00:21:14.624 --> 00:21:14.703
interesting.

00:21:14.703 --> 00:21:16.189
Well, and like you said, like what?

00:21:16.429 --> 00:21:19.519
But what would it be if it was like actual teenagers?

00:21:19.638 --> 00:21:19.818
Well,

00:21:20.058 --> 00:21:23.179
and you know, one thing that's not explored is like every time they.

00:21:23.239 --> 00:21:31.608
You ask me to pull out my wallet'cause I wanna buy a 22 ounce Odell IPA, like that's, you know, an extra minute or something outta my day.

00:21:31.608 --> 00:21:38.868
What's the collective cost of all those hours of all those people fucking around in the seven 11 when they're rocking a big beard and you know, they're not, anyway.

00:21:38.929 --> 00:21:40.098
Yeah, no, I feel you on that.

00:21:40.098 --> 00:21:45.528
Voluntary to me kinda, I mean, that being said though, on the marijuana side, I mean they are consistently over 95% pass rate.

00:21:45.528 --> 00:21:52.098
I mean it's, it is less, oh they, yeah, way less in alcohol or, uh, I'm sorry, marijuana underage sales than in alcohol sales.

00:21:52.098 --> 00:21:52.189
Sure.

00:21:52.189 --> 00:21:56.989
But because there's the stigma against cannabis, because cultural element come from, right.

00:21:57.138 --> 00:22:00.769
They have to continually dump resources into doing these underage things.

00:22:00.773 --> 00:22:00.834
Yeah.

00:22:00.834 --> 00:22:01.548
I don't think I've

00:22:01.548 --> 00:22:03.558
ever not been carted at the weed store.

00:22:03.979 --> 00:22:04.398
No.

00:22:04.669 --> 00:22:05.298
Three times.

00:22:05.298 --> 00:22:05.598
Right.

00:22:05.604 --> 00:22:08.118
Totally at the door, the register, you check it out.

00:22:08.118 --> 00:22:08.929
Yeah, absolutely.

00:22:09.288 --> 00:22:14.749
So, um, you know, it's, they really felt like, you know, let me back up.

00:22:14.898 --> 00:22:31.608
So back in like, I wanna say it was 2014, we had this Cole memorandum that said, like, from, from the feds that said like, as long as the states are doing these, like eight things, like preventing underage sales, preventing growing on federal property, preventing like money going to drug cartels.

00:22:31.878 --> 00:22:33.979
Oh, you know, there was like eight like real

00:22:34.159 --> 00:22:34.338
Yeah.

00:22:34.398 --> 00:22:35.239
Priorities.

00:22:35.239 --> 00:22:41.358
And if the states could set up a system that would prevent those things, then like the feds would then we won't screw, sort of leave you alone, right?

00:22:41.358 --> 00:22:41.419
Yeah.

00:22:41.568 --> 00:22:44.328
They, it was definitely not like immunity, but they were like, all right, we know.

00:22:44.538 --> 00:22:51.019
So that's kind of where we came out the gate, like zealous, um, you know, strict regulations.

00:22:51.558 --> 00:22:51.648
We fought hard for.

00:22:52.233 --> 00:22:54.064
30 years to get these rights.

00:22:54.064 --> 00:22:56.134
Let's not be dumb asses and lose'em somehow.

00:22:56.249 --> 00:22:57.153
Right, right.

00:22:57.153 --> 00:22:59.463
But you know what it's like the story of chicken little, right?

00:22:59.463 --> 00:23:00.663
Like the sky has not fallen.

00:23:00.753 --> 00:23:05.284
It is 13 years and we need to be treating these like the small businesses that they are.

00:23:05.584 --> 00:23:18.513
I hear like on the, on the Twitter chatter and stuff, I hear a lot of times the, call it the anti weed crowd or whatever, saying that the experience here in Colorado has been bad.

00:23:18.574 --> 00:23:25.624
Like there's a, you know, a lot more use and a lot more problems with it and kids dropping outta school and stuff like that.

00:23:25.624 --> 00:23:28.923
And I, I guess what would you as an industry insider.

00:23:29.568 --> 00:23:33.169
Say to that or, or what's, my observation hasn't been, yeah.

00:23:33.169 --> 00:23:35.419
That, but I'd only have a very limited data pool.

00:23:35.419 --> 00:23:35.659
Right.

00:23:35.659 --> 00:23:42.199
And I think like terrible teachers and COVID policies are more responsible for dumb kids than weed shops.

00:23:42.199 --> 00:23:42.709
But Yeah.

00:23:42.713 --> 00:23:43.173
Uh, I

00:23:43.173 --> 00:23:43.578
mean Right.

00:23:43.578 --> 00:23:47.118
I think people are gonna cherry pick whatever data that, you know, supports.

00:23:47.118 --> 00:23:47.328
Supports, yeah.

00:23:47.334 --> 00:23:47.413
Right.

00:23:47.538 --> 00:23:48.709
Supports their position.

00:23:48.949 --> 00:23:50.479
You know, I don't wanna pit alcohol.

00:23:51.233 --> 00:23:52.493
Marijuana against each other.

00:23:52.523 --> 00:23:53.933
'cause I do think they're very different.

00:23:54.173 --> 00:23:58.913
Um, but we know, we know what the stats are on alcohol's impact on Sure.

00:23:58.973 --> 00:24:02.243
Public health and safety and, you know, drunk driving and although

00:24:02.243 --> 00:24:03.683
alcohol consumption's way down too.

00:24:03.834 --> 00:24:04.493
It's way down now.

00:24:04.493 --> 00:24:05.243
Right, exactly.

00:24:05.243 --> 00:24:05.304
Yeah.

00:24:05.334 --> 00:24:07.163
So it's like, what's, what's the cause of that?

00:24:07.163 --> 00:24:08.003
Is it marijuana?

00:24:08.003 --> 00:24:08.963
Is it other things?

00:24:08.963 --> 00:24:09.023
Yeah.

00:24:09.443 --> 00:24:13.463
Um, you know, so, you know, we have so many different statistics that we could look at.

00:24:13.463 --> 00:24:19.943
I mean, the statistics I would pull in comparison to that is like how many people are off of their, um, you know, prescription medications.

00:24:19.973 --> 00:24:20.153
Totally.

00:24:20.183 --> 00:24:21.773
Because they're, you know, doing this Yeah.

00:24:21.773 --> 00:24:23.304
Are doing that instead of,

00:24:23.304 --> 00:24:23.634
right.

00:24:23.634 --> 00:24:32.423
I mean, my dad's one of those, he's a medical marijuana patient in Florida and he was on opioids for fusion neck surgery and like neck pain for 15 years.

00:24:32.423 --> 00:24:35.874
He was on opioids and got off him, um, from being a medical marijuana patient.

00:24:35.874 --> 00:24:36.009
And did he have.

00:24:36.844 --> 00:24:42.003
Other health issues that arose from his opioid situation, or did he have addiction challenges?

00:24:42.128 --> 00:24:42.604
It was, yes, it was

00:24:42.604 --> 00:24:43.743
dependence, absolutely.

00:24:43.743 --> 00:24:44.403
Yeah, dependence.

00:24:44.403 --> 00:24:47.163
And then of course, you know, the finances that come along with that.

00:24:47.259 --> 00:24:47.548
Sure.

00:24:47.614 --> 00:24:50.314
So, yeah, I mean, he was able to successfully get off of that.

00:24:50.314 --> 00:24:56.193
And that's, those, those are trends we're seeing not, you know, anecdotally, those are trends we see across every state that is legalized.

00:24:56.193 --> 00:24:58.953
Where opioid deaths are down opioid, ah, interesting.

00:24:58.983 --> 00:24:59.943
Incidences are down.

00:24:59.943 --> 00:25:06.243
And now we're seeing, like you said, alcohol use is also going down and other, even, even like, you know, uh, prescriptions for arthritis.

00:25:06.243 --> 00:25:14.794
You know, like people are using CBD and other like tinctures and topicals that, um, so they don't have to like, and, and that's backed up by like Medicare claims, right?

00:25:15.124 --> 00:25:15.903
Like Right.

00:25:15.903 --> 00:25:17.253
You know, a lot of seniors not, there's actual data.

00:25:17.519 --> 00:25:18.689
There's actual data, right.

00:25:18.689 --> 00:25:22.709
So I mean, I think that there's good and tricky parts to Sure.

00:25:22.798 --> 00:25:28.169
This kind of pro, you know, program and, um, all of that being said, I'm excited to see what's gonna happen with natural medicine.

00:25:28.199 --> 00:25:28.979
'cause we are, it's been more

00:25:28.979 --> 00:25:30.868
successful than the wolves thing for sure.

00:25:30.868 --> 00:25:31.378
For Colorado.

00:25:31.828 --> 00:25:33.778
Yeah, that's what I hear what I just read yesterday.

00:25:34.138 --> 00:25:36.749
They had to like bring a wolf back from New Mexico or something.

00:25:36.749 --> 00:25:41.459
It's interesting'cause like wolves are not like beholden to state, like

00:25:41.969 --> 00:25:42.358
Right.

00:25:42.358 --> 00:25:43.078
Totally lines.

00:25:43.138 --> 00:25:49.138
Well in none of the other states that have wolves, like Idaho has so many wolves that they barely have any elk or deer anymore.

00:25:49.618 --> 00:25:57.659
But because of the politics of it, and Polis is such a voice for the Democratic party these days and stuff, and Idaho has literally got way too many.

00:25:57.659 --> 00:25:58.138
So they Right.

00:25:58.169 --> 00:25:59.338
But they're like, nah, screw you.

00:25:59.638 --> 00:26:00.568
We're not gonna see you Idaho.

00:26:00.808 --> 00:26:01.888
How do we, how do we lure them?

00:26:01.888 --> 00:26:02.098
Right?

00:26:02.403 --> 00:26:02.443
I

00:26:02.453 --> 00:26:02.804
right.

00:26:02.969 --> 00:26:03.419
Yeah.

00:26:03.778 --> 00:26:05.159
Uh, just some cows, we'll

00:26:05.159 --> 00:26:06.749
trade you some elk for some wolves.

00:26:06.749 --> 00:26:07.288
But it was,

00:26:07.294 --> 00:26:14.818
was the, the amendment thing when it was voted on, uh, proposed to cost of, uh, around$800,000 per year.

00:26:15.229 --> 00:26:15.499
Hmm.

00:26:15.588 --> 00:26:16.759
Do you know what they spent last year?

00:26:17.088 --> 00:26:17.659
What, twice that?

00:26:17.989 --> 00:26:18.828
3.5.

00:26:18.919 --> 00:26:19.519
Wow.

00:26:19.608 --> 00:26:22.249
That's before they had to go down to New Mexico, so it's probably, oh boy.

00:26:22.519 --> 00:26:23.959
Coming up on four now this year.

00:26:23.989 --> 00:26:24.229
Yeah.

00:26:24.229 --> 00:26:25.068
That makes, I mean,

00:26:25.699 --> 00:26:25.939
yeah.

00:26:26.239 --> 00:26:28.608
So it's only five times as expensive as they said.

00:26:29.479 --> 00:26:30.679
3.3 mil.

00:26:30.919 --> 00:26:31.189
I mean,

00:26:31.519 --> 00:26:32.298
what's 3 million?

00:26:32.328 --> 00:26:33.229
What's, you know Yeah.

00:26:33.528 --> 00:26:34.189
Drop in the bucket.

00:26:34.189 --> 00:26:34.398
Just

00:26:34.398 --> 00:26:36.709
feed school kids lunch for one county or two.

00:26:36.709 --> 00:26:36.798
Right.

00:26:37.459 --> 00:26:48.808
Um, so overall, your perception is it hasn't been, uh, you know, the world isn't necessarily way better for it, but it also has some, uh, significant benefits and especially in terms of in.

00:26:49.834 --> 00:26:52.203
An alternative to alcohol or prescription drugs.

00:26:52.413 --> 00:26:54.394
I think the world is way better for it, in fact.

00:26:54.394 --> 00:26:54.423
Okay.

00:26:54.423 --> 00:26:57.513
I mean, cannabis use has been documented for millennia.

00:26:57.513 --> 00:27:00.784
People have been using it across the world.

00:27:00.784 --> 00:27:02.673
So, um, it's nothing new.

00:27:02.673 --> 00:27:08.433
It's just, uh, you know, aligning our state, our laws and regulations along with what people are already doing.

00:27:08.433 --> 00:27:11.763
You know, prohibition does not stop cannabis use.

00:27:11.763 --> 00:27:13.294
It just makes it illegal.

00:27:13.354 --> 00:27:13.594
Right.

00:27:13.594 --> 00:27:14.284
And so, and then

00:27:14.284 --> 00:27:15.483
the bad people make money.

00:27:15.844 --> 00:27:16.413
Well, right.

00:27:16.413 --> 00:27:18.094
I mean, enterprising people who don't, right.

00:27:18.094 --> 00:27:24.663
Who aren't gonna contribute back to taxes and aren't gonna be above board and above ground and show themselves in, in, in town.

00:27:24.663 --> 00:27:25.068
So, you know, what's

00:27:25.068 --> 00:27:28.564
funny is, uh, I've, I've saved for a lot of different topics.

00:27:28.713 --> 00:27:32.163
The more government tries to fix something, the more it generally fucks it up.

00:27:32.913 --> 00:27:40.233
Um, and one could make the argument that things like the marijuana prohibition and all the focus on.

00:27:41.463 --> 00:27:45.003
You know, jail time for cocaine and heroin and stuff.

00:27:45.003 --> 00:27:58.683
And then kind of turning the blind eye as opioids became a real crisis and all those factors, and especially the pro marijuana prohibition, like led to where we are now, which is drug boats being bombed, coming from Venezuela.

00:27:59.044 --> 00:27:59.253
Yeah.

00:27:59.253 --> 00:28:03.094
Like in a very unclear Yeah.

00:28:03.153 --> 00:28:05.479
Ethical or like world.

00:28:05.528 --> 00:28:06.769
We're on drugs, we're on drug

00:28:06.814 --> 00:28:08.943
rate, really created a lot of problems.

00:28:08.973 --> 00:28:09.334
Right.

00:28:09.334 --> 00:28:10.173
Um, you know, which is, if

00:28:10.173 --> 00:28:21.719
we could've just had some weed, maybe we'd have just not even had to have the Miami vice season with all the cop cocaine and the heroin addiction and people like bending over and stuff on the streets in New York and Right.

00:28:21.723 --> 00:28:22.413
And Loveland.

00:28:22.413 --> 00:28:23.193
And Loveland.

00:28:23.374 --> 00:28:23.614
Yeah.

00:28:23.614 --> 00:28:24.513
No, no shade to Loveland.

00:28:24.513 --> 00:28:29.854
But no, I mean, yeah, I mean there's the opioid addiction and then everything that's come from that.

00:28:30.183 --> 00:28:32.884
Um, has really caused such, such big problems.

00:28:32.884 --> 00:28:38.074
And, you know, again, like people getting addicted to those, then moving to heroin, fentanyl, fentanyl,

00:28:38.074 --> 00:28:40.953
a thing that's like 10 times stronger than fentanyl coming around now.

00:28:41.134 --> 00:28:41.554
Wow.

00:28:41.554 --> 00:28:42.304
Absolutely.

00:28:42.304 --> 00:28:42.574
Right.

00:28:42.574 --> 00:28:48.334
And it's, it's horrifying because people, you know, we know there's a mental health crisis in this country, in this world.

00:28:48.544 --> 00:28:57.273
There's a lot for people to deal with and think with, think about, and people trying to heal themselves or numb themselves in one way or another, um, you know, it absolutely can go too far.

00:28:57.273 --> 00:29:00.544
And so, you know, I think it's, it's important to come back, especially with cannabis.

00:29:00.544 --> 00:29:02.253
Like, you know, we have medical marijuana.

00:29:02.253 --> 00:29:14.673
Like there I have heard amazing stories of people who, you know, could not, you know, PTSD or you know, seizures amp stuff that sometimes puput who have like, right, like phantom pain, it feels like their hands on fire, they don't even have a hand.

00:29:14.824 --> 00:29:14.943
Right?

00:29:14.973 --> 00:29:18.453
And the only thing that stops it is smoking this one kind of cannabis.

00:29:19.308 --> 00:29:20.959
Like I've, I've heard amazing stories.

00:29:20.959 --> 00:29:21.259
Lets do it.

00:29:21.348 --> 00:29:21.679
Yeah.

00:29:21.679 --> 00:29:22.939
People changing their lips now.

00:29:23.118 --> 00:29:26.298
Of course we have, we've heard the stories where it's also ruined people's lives, right?

00:29:26.304 --> 00:29:26.344
Sure.

00:29:26.348 --> 00:29:30.949
And I think that's, um, you know, there's definitely, it's important to keep those things in mind.

00:29:30.949 --> 00:29:44.388
But, um, I definitely think that we, and have, having adopted this and being the pioneer of, um, you know, legalizing marijuana for adult use and then now psychedelics for people trying to heal themselves is, uh, is is a bold move.

00:29:44.419 --> 00:29:46.398
And, um, I think it has paid off.

00:29:46.398 --> 00:29:52.608
And I think Colorado has, listen, if it wasn't a bold move, then 33 other states wouldn't have legalized after

00:29:52.608 --> 00:29:52.818
us.

00:29:52.818 --> 00:29:53.304
Right, right, right.

00:29:53.479 --> 00:29:53.598
The

00:29:53.598 --> 00:29:54.598
cat's outta the bag at this point.

00:29:54.598 --> 00:29:54.983
Is that what It's

00:29:54.983 --> 00:29:56.028
now 34?

00:29:56.028 --> 00:29:56.298
I believe It's

00:29:56.298 --> 00:29:57.108
34 now.

00:29:57.108 --> 00:29:57.169
Wow.

00:29:57.229 --> 00:29:57.558
Right.

00:29:57.558 --> 00:29:58.104
And so interesting.

00:29:58.104 --> 00:30:02.328
So, you know, there's, there's so many states and medically too, so I think there're, we know and why not serve

00:30:02.328 --> 00:30:05.778
folks in some of those newer states and stuff with your expertise?

00:30:05.838 --> 00:30:06.499
So I did.

00:30:06.499 --> 00:30:06.769
Because it's a

00:30:06.769 --> 00:30:08.719
pain in the ass to get the bar stuff point, you know?

00:30:08.719 --> 00:30:09.108
Yes.

00:30:09.259 --> 00:30:10.098
I thought about that.

00:30:10.098 --> 00:30:14.568
I was like, you know, do I want to branch out into other areas of law here in Colorado?

00:30:15.364 --> 00:30:16.983
Helping other businesses essentially.

00:30:16.983 --> 00:30:22.683
I, I'm a business attorney, regulatory attorney, um, could help any type of business in the work that I do.

00:30:22.683 --> 00:30:23.403
Transactional work.

00:30:23.409 --> 00:30:23.459
Sure.

00:30:23.493 --> 00:30:29.374
I don't go to court or anything, but doing contracts, doing real estate, you know, buy and selling businesses, that kind of thing.

00:30:29.673 --> 00:30:33.064
And uh, back in 2022 I was like, you know what?

00:30:33.064 --> 00:30:35.193
There's momentum for other states legalizing, right.

00:30:35.463 --> 00:30:39.903
Um, the Midwest legalized so many states in the Midwest, but I've never been, and I have no ties there.

00:30:39.903 --> 00:30:46.503
But yeah, I'm originally from Philly and they, Pennsylvania has still only a medical program, but New Jersey legalized for adult use.

00:30:46.503 --> 00:30:46.564
Yeah.

00:30:46.564 --> 00:30:48.183
And I have cousins and family.

00:30:48.183 --> 00:30:51.483
A friend grew up going down the shore and I, and so I was like, okay, you know what?

00:30:52.054 --> 00:30:53.973
I'm gonna stick with cannabis is I'm gonna double down.

00:30:54.243 --> 00:30:56.013
I'm gonna get licensed in New Jersey.

00:30:56.013 --> 00:30:57.753
We're gonna help some, um, businesses there.

00:30:58.354 --> 00:31:02.044
Just like in Col, Colorado, how they legalize it.

00:31:02.044 --> 00:31:06.003
And then it took about two, three years to really get the wheels turning, you know?

00:31:06.243 --> 00:31:06.304
Yeah.

00:31:06.394 --> 00:31:07.443
The same thing happened there.

00:31:07.443 --> 00:31:17.794
So like, you know, there was a few folks that we helped out of the gate, open dispensaries and stuff, but local governments were so slow, like the state, the state control cannabis control board, like they knew what they were doing.

00:31:17.794 --> 00:31:18.364
Just like here.

00:31:18.364 --> 00:31:21.604
Marijuana enforcement division, that's all they do is marijuana licensing.

00:31:21.604 --> 00:31:21.693
Right.

00:31:21.693 --> 00:31:23.433
So that's, they're the experts at this.

00:31:23.699 --> 00:31:27.314
As far as regulators, but local governments, they have every fish to fry.

00:31:27.314 --> 00:31:27.433
Yeah.

00:31:27.433 --> 00:31:28.888
It's like, I don't even know everything to do

00:31:29.038 --> 00:31:30.209
what we're supposed to do, start with.

00:31:30.213 --> 00:31:30.628
Right, right.

00:31:30.628 --> 00:31:30.868
So

00:31:30.868 --> 00:31:46.739
like, we're expecting these local folks, plus bridge needs to be replaced down on Forest Street plus COVID or whatever else, you know, so that, that, that kind of slowed things down, especially for hospitality, because at the state level in Colorado, hospitality was legalized in 2019 saying, oh, here's how you guys can start smoking together.

00:31:46.798 --> 00:31:50.818
And then 2020 happened where it was like, you can't do, can't be anything together.

00:31:51.358 --> 00:31:51.659
Right.

00:31:51.719 --> 00:31:53.909
So that really put the kibosh on.

00:31:53.913 --> 00:31:54.074
So

00:31:54.074 --> 00:31:54.993
is that coming now?

00:31:55.199 --> 00:31:57.028
Like, is Denver, are there some smoking lounges?

00:31:57.028 --> 00:31:57.778
Oh, Denver has

00:31:57.778 --> 00:32:00.179
some amazing smoking lounges right now.

00:32:00.239 --> 00:32:02.519
And, uh, so, uh, Denver's doing it.

00:32:02.759 --> 00:32:06.179
Longmont looked at it and they, um, were in the process.

00:32:06.179 --> 00:32:07.588
I think they, they did allow it.

00:32:07.588 --> 00:32:09.179
I'm not sure of where we're at in Longmont.

00:32:09.179 --> 00:32:10.888
That's been kind of gone back and forth.

00:32:10.888 --> 00:32:11.159
But the big

00:32:11.159 --> 00:32:19.594
challenge is probably around, like, there isn't, aside from like a physical testing, there's not really a, a good system to figure out if you're too high.

00:32:20.358 --> 00:32:20.808
Smoke.

00:32:21.288 --> 00:32:21.888
That's true.

00:32:21.894 --> 00:32:22.374
Or to drive rather.

00:32:22.374 --> 00:32:22.653
Right?

00:32:22.659 --> 00:32:23.118
That's true.

00:32:23.118 --> 00:32:23.749
That's true.

00:32:23.808 --> 00:32:27.528
Um, but it's, I mean, same, same for going to a bar, right?

00:32:27.528 --> 00:32:29.328
Like the limitations should Yeah.

00:32:29.328 --> 00:32:29.719
Then they can put

00:32:29.719 --> 00:32:30.558
an arbitrary thing in.

00:32:30.949 --> 00:32:33.078
Well, with the bar, they're just like, you know, it's, it's 0.06

00:32:33.078 --> 00:32:34.489
or 0.08 or 0.10.

00:32:34.489 --> 00:32:34.729
You know,

00:32:34.788 --> 00:32:35.929
but the bartender doesn't know that.

00:32:35.929 --> 00:32:36.169
Right.

00:32:36.169 --> 00:32:39.648
They just know like how you're acting and know and how many you drinks you've had.

00:32:39.648 --> 00:32:39.769
Yeah.

00:32:39.769 --> 00:32:45.048
But they can throw you in jail and take a bunch of your money if you're over 0.08, you know, in Colorado.

00:32:45.048 --> 00:32:45.499
Whereas

00:32:45.588 --> 00:32:45.858
true

00:32:46.189 --> 00:32:50.058
if you just got red eyes, but there's not really a dependable,

00:32:50.179 --> 00:32:51.828
I mean, there's still DUI for marijuana.

00:32:51.919 --> 00:32:52.759
There is, there is, but

00:32:52.759 --> 00:32:56.749
there isn't really like a, it's, it's a lot a more arbitrary, isn't it?

00:32:56.898 --> 00:32:57.334
Or not, you

00:32:57.334 --> 00:33:02.898
know, I'm not a criminal defense attorney, so I'll back up, but I think that there is like an actual percentage of marijuana in your blood that you're allowed to have.

00:33:02.898 --> 00:33:03.048
Oh, really?

00:33:03.048 --> 00:33:05.088
Before it's like presumptively, A DUI.

00:33:05.328 --> 00:33:07.098
So it's a sim It honestly is similar.

00:33:07.338 --> 00:33:07.519
Oh, I

00:33:07.519 --> 00:33:07.969
didn't realize.

00:33:08.028 --> 00:33:08.179
And

00:33:08.179 --> 00:33:11.328
the state put in so many regs that were like, you know, you have to post.

00:33:11.778 --> 00:33:18.378
You know, ride sharing information, you have to post like resources of, you know, they have to not oversell you or whatever.

00:33:18.528 --> 00:33:23.598
So there are a lot of limitations put in the regs and you know, I think that there is a good system in place.

00:33:23.838 --> 00:33:28.788
Like I said, there's some really wonderful places in Denver that are just kicking ass on the, the hospitality.

00:33:28.939 --> 00:33:28.999
Yeah.

00:33:29.209 --> 00:33:32.179
And so it's just a matter of time, I think for Fort Collins to do that.

00:33:32.179 --> 00:33:33.409
But I have, I have a dream.

00:33:33.409 --> 00:33:34.578
I have a dream of opening.

00:33:35.088 --> 00:33:35.148
I have a dream.

00:33:35.148 --> 00:33:35.898
Do you wanna hear my dream?

00:33:35.903 --> 00:33:36.114
Sure.

00:33:36.259 --> 00:33:42.469
I wanna open a Jamaican restaurant here in Fort Collins because I lived in Florida for 20 years.

00:33:42.469 --> 00:33:42.528
Yeah.

00:33:42.528 --> 00:33:44.179
There's amazing Jamaican restaurants in there.

00:33:44.179 --> 00:33:44.239
Yeah.

00:33:44.239 --> 00:33:45.828
There's nothing like that here.

00:33:45.828 --> 00:33:45.888
Do

00:33:45.888 --> 00:33:47.209
you know about RAA Pasta?

00:33:47.719 --> 00:33:50.209
I've heard of RAA Pasta.

00:33:50.209 --> 00:33:53.778
So when, when I moved here, RAA Pasta was an institution.

00:33:53.778 --> 00:33:57.949
It was right on the corner of Walnut and Pine, I believe.

00:33:58.009 --> 00:33:58.338
Mm-hmm.

00:33:59.088 --> 00:34:01.429
Um, was there like a cider shop there or something?

00:34:01.429 --> 00:34:02.179
No, I forget.

00:34:02.598 --> 00:34:06.048
Anyway, right in that kind of downtown span, what happened?

00:34:06.078 --> 00:34:06.409
Tota

00:34:06.499 --> 00:34:07.009
pasta.

00:34:08.329 --> 00:34:08.943
I'm not really clear.

00:34:09.018 --> 00:34:11.748
They actually also had one in Colorado Springs.

00:34:11.748 --> 00:34:11.778
Okay.

00:34:11.838 --> 00:34:14.838
Um, but anyway, Rasta Pasta was like a, a super fast.

00:34:14.838 --> 00:34:17.298
Like they already had the, the pasta noodles kind of precooked.

00:34:17.298 --> 00:34:17.329
Okay.

00:34:17.659 --> 00:34:18.858
So they would just steam'em real quick.

00:34:18.858 --> 00:34:23.239
And then they had nine different, uh, sauce toppings.

00:34:23.239 --> 00:34:28.369
You know, everything from a jerk chicken sauce on your pasta noodles to a traditional marinara.

00:34:29.509 --> 00:34:30.168
Whatever.

00:34:30.199 --> 00:34:30.798
Okay.

00:34:30.858 --> 00:34:35.539
Uh, and they had all the weed style branding, all the Jamaican things.

00:34:35.838 --> 00:34:35.878
Oh, okay.

00:34:35.878 --> 00:34:35.918
That was the brand.

00:34:35.918 --> 00:34:36.079
Okay.

00:34:36.079 --> 00:34:36.708
That's the hook.

00:34:36.739 --> 00:34:36.798
Okay.

00:34:36.798 --> 00:34:43.429
And that was, but I think they closed like shortly into the marijuana is legal kind of tenure.

00:34:43.639 --> 00:34:44.088
Yeah.

00:34:44.208 --> 00:34:49.009
SNF sort of filled the, but I think there's room like for a long, the marijuana branding for

00:34:49.009 --> 00:34:52.278
an extended season, that was an institution for like at least 10, 15 years.

00:34:52.278 --> 00:34:52.313
Oh man.

00:34:52.434 --> 00:34:52.673
I have

00:34:52.673 --> 00:34:55.398
to say I've never had pasta when I went to Jamaica, but yeah.

00:34:55.614 --> 00:34:57.833
Be that as a me, more of a rice and beanie kind place, right?

00:34:57.833 --> 00:34:58.309
Yeah, exactly.

00:34:58.309 --> 00:35:03.048
The goal is to like jerk chicken, take it upstairs to the rooftop deck and smoke slips up there.

00:35:03.048 --> 00:35:03.708
That's my goal.

00:35:03.708 --> 00:35:05.418
So just upstairs you can be outside.

00:35:05.418 --> 00:35:06.079
It doesn't have to be.

00:35:06.079 --> 00:35:06.498
So

00:35:06.648 --> 00:35:09.079
yeah, it could be an outdoor, I mean, I think it could happen.

00:35:09.378 --> 00:35:10.728
Him, Fort Collins City Council.

00:35:10.789 --> 00:35:10.938
Yeah.

00:35:12.123 --> 00:35:13.494
I'll talk to him about it if I get the chance.

00:35:13.643 --> 00:35:13.934
Yeah.

00:35:14.719 --> 00:35:28.998
I'm trying to gather, I'm trying to gather, uh, anecdotal stories from people who are already operating small businesses here in town that have a vision of how they could incorporate marijuana into their business model and sort of take that to the council and be like, listen, it's not just about a room of people smoking weed.

00:35:29.208 --> 00:35:29.358
Yeah.

00:35:29.358 --> 00:35:31.938
It's about, it's about experiences.

00:35:31.938 --> 00:35:31.998
Yeah.

00:35:32.003 --> 00:35:32.094
Yeah.

00:35:32.099 --> 00:35:39.528
Just like people want to go out and have experiences here in town, like why can't you have a consumption friendly, um, escape room, build business?

00:35:39.648 --> 00:35:41.539
There's a, a consumption friendly nail salon, a

00:35:41.539 --> 00:35:45.289
passionate couple that I wanna say they're like Russian and.

00:35:46.233 --> 00:35:51.003
Japanese or something like that where they're both places where they do a lot of saunas of various sorts.

00:35:51.003 --> 00:35:51.239
Oh, yeah.

00:35:51.244 --> 00:35:51.514
Yeah.

00:35:51.514 --> 00:35:52.864
And so they want to have like a, yeah.

00:35:52.954 --> 00:35:54.278
Sauna, kind of a cannabis facility.

00:35:54.518 --> 00:35:55.114
Cannabis kind of thing.

00:35:55.114 --> 00:35:55.293
Yeah.

00:35:55.293 --> 00:35:59.914
But you, yeah, you can puff down before you hit the sauna, and then the cold plunge, and then the,

00:36:00.188 --> 00:36:01.438
this sounds great to me.

00:36:01.708 --> 00:36:02.719
This sounds great to me.

00:36:03.123 --> 00:36:03.273
You're a

00:36:03.273 --> 00:36:03.903
member already.

00:36:04.233 --> 00:36:04.563
I'm, yes.

00:36:05.014 --> 00:36:05.643
You're ready to sign.

00:36:05.643 --> 00:36:05.884
Find me up.

00:36:07.233 --> 00:36:07.474
Yeah.

00:36:07.478 --> 00:36:07.559
But

00:36:07.659 --> 00:36:08.958
so anything on the.

00:36:09.829 --> 00:36:24.528
Like radar for that, aside from like, it sounds like cities in general, Fort Collins, even Longmont, like they're not really receptive to some of the changes in regulations available to them or the, you know, having marijuana lounges and stuff.

00:36:24.858 --> 00:36:26.179
I wouldn't say they're not receptive.

00:36:26.179 --> 00:36:30.228
The problem is it's not, they're not gonna come up with these ideas on their own.

00:36:30.378 --> 00:36:30.648
Yeah.

00:36:30.648 --> 00:36:30.829
And

00:36:30.829 --> 00:36:32.958
they really just need people to come.

00:36:33.949 --> 00:36:35.989
Say that this is what they want in their communities.

00:36:36.199 --> 00:36:36.259
Yeah.

00:36:36.259 --> 00:36:37.458
I mean, it really can can't, that sounds

00:36:37.483 --> 00:36:45.018
like a, a, a, a tab on your website where you're like, sign the petition to, uh, approve marijuana lounges in Fort Collins.

00:36:45.048 --> 00:36:45.469
Yeah.

00:36:45.648 --> 00:36:45.858
Yeah.

00:36:45.858 --> 00:36:46.818
I mean, yes and no.

00:36:46.818 --> 00:36:49.009
It doesn't, you don't necessarily need a petition.

00:36:49.099 --> 00:36:50.179
Um, well, I, no, but yeah,

00:36:50.239 --> 00:36:52.009
if you did that, you could kinda edit Oh, right.

00:36:52.009 --> 00:36:53.449
And then bring that with Sure.

00:36:53.449 --> 00:36:53.809
Yeah.

00:36:53.809 --> 00:36:54.469
Absolutely.

00:36:54.648 --> 00:36:58.009
No, I mean, uh, I joke about my marijuana lounge for, I don't joke.

00:36:58.009 --> 00:36:59.358
I, it would be great.

00:36:59.358 --> 00:37:01.159
I think I'd really just wanna patronize that place.

00:37:01.159 --> 00:37:02.059
I don't know if I wanna run it.

00:37:02.449 --> 00:37:02.568
Yeah.

00:37:03.079 --> 00:37:05.083
I, I've, I've had my law firm for 10 years, but that would be

00:37:05.083 --> 00:37:07.579
a side hustle, or that would be potentially your main thing.

00:37:07.579 --> 00:37:08.298
If you could have it,

00:37:08.418 --> 00:37:09.708
it would be a side hustle.

00:37:09.708 --> 00:37:10.489
It's a dream.

00:37:10.518 --> 00:37:11.164
It's definitely a Dr.

00:37:11.298 --> 00:37:13.278
It's Rachel's Jamaican Dream Cafe.

00:37:13.708 --> 00:37:16.378
Um, I love my law firm.

00:37:16.378 --> 00:37:16.978
How about Jamaican

00:37:16.978 --> 00:37:17.668
dreams?

00:37:17.818 --> 00:37:18.088
Yeah.

00:37:18.088 --> 00:37:19.858
Uh, because that kind of cues into the

00:37:19.858 --> 00:37:21.148
Jamaican Dreams Cafe.

00:37:21.148 --> 00:37:21.929
I love, I like that.

00:37:22.349 --> 00:37:23.878
I, I'm in, sign me up.

00:37:24.148 --> 00:37:25.528
I'm, I'm getting hungry now.

00:37:25.528 --> 00:37:29.278
I mean, as a, as an attorney, you know, law firms are highly regulated.

00:37:29.369 --> 00:37:37.168
This's, why I tell my clients all the time is like, you think you're the only one that's regulated, and whether that's a liquor licensee, you know, or even just a restaurant, right?

00:37:37.168 --> 00:37:38.789
You have to get your food licenses.

00:37:38.818 --> 00:37:38.909
Sure.

00:37:38.909 --> 00:37:40.483
And inspections and da, da, da.

00:37:40.768 --> 00:37:45.059
You know, I can only operate in one state where I operate, where I have my license.

00:37:45.059 --> 00:37:46.438
So I'm licensed in three states.

00:37:46.438 --> 00:37:48.028
So those are the places I can operate.

00:37:48.268 --> 00:37:52.199
You know, I spend a ton of money investing in getting my legal degree, right?

00:37:52.228 --> 00:37:52.978
Passing the bar.

00:37:53.128 --> 00:37:53.668
I have to

00:37:53.938 --> 00:37:54.809
Big barrier to entry.

00:37:54.809 --> 00:37:55.108
Big barrier

00:37:55.108 --> 00:37:55.858
to entry, right?

00:37:55.918 --> 00:37:57.659
Um, tons of licensing fees.

00:37:57.659 --> 00:37:58.498
Well, if you do something like.

00:37:59.583 --> 00:38:02.554
Child trafficking or something like that, you're subject to losing your bar.

00:38:02.643 --> 00:38:05.193
I mean, I'm subject to losing my bar if I don't call clients back.

00:38:05.463 --> 00:38:05.884
You know,

00:38:05.884 --> 00:38:07.503
like, I gotta, I gotta call clients back.

00:38:07.653 --> 00:38:07.893
Don't even

00:38:07.893 --> 00:38:09.184
have to get to the level of child trafficking.

00:38:09.184 --> 00:38:11.284
I, no, it doesn't even matter if you Yes.

00:38:11.284 --> 00:38:13.503
Does not even rise the level of committing a crime.

00:38:13.503 --> 00:38:14.884
And they could take my law license away.

00:38:15.184 --> 00:38:22.923
So, yeah, I mean, it's, I'm used to living by lots and lots of regulations and being an ethical attorney, I like to think I was scared straight when I was in law school.

00:38:23.164 --> 00:38:25.114
I, uh, interned at the Florida Supreme Court.

00:38:25.114 --> 00:38:26.764
I, I did, uh, law school in Florida.

00:38:26.853 --> 00:38:27.123
Okay.

00:38:27.244 --> 00:38:30.483
And all the cases I did that semester were all attorney discipline cases.

00:38:30.483 --> 00:38:34.954
So I was like front row, scared straight, like all these attorneys that were getting in trouble.

00:38:34.954 --> 00:38:37.353
I was like, I will never do anything interesting to.

00:38:37.833 --> 00:38:41.193
You know, to ab in, in any way imperil my law license,

00:38:41.349 --> 00:38:45.184
my, uh, my colleague from my rotary club, uh, do you know Daniel St.

00:38:45.184 --> 00:38:45.543
John?

00:38:45.574 --> 00:38:46.684
I'm so happy for Dan.

00:38:46.684 --> 00:38:48.543
I can't even tell you how happy and excited.

00:38:48.548 --> 00:38:49.264
He's a, he's a new judge.

00:38:49.503 --> 00:38:53.224
I, it makes me feel a little old because I'm like, oh God, my peers and contemporaries are coming.

00:38:53.224 --> 00:38:56.193
Judges I thought we'd get here.

00:38:56.583 --> 00:38:57.963
But yeah, he's gonna be an excellent judge.

00:38:57.963 --> 00:38:59.224
I'm really, really, really excited for, yeah, he seems

00:38:59.224 --> 00:39:00.244
like a pretty level headed guy.

00:39:00.423 --> 00:39:00.753
Yeah.

00:39:00.813 --> 00:39:01.143
Yeah.

00:39:01.143 --> 00:39:06.153
He's, uh, he's also a parent of young children and so, uh, we kind of commiserate a little bit there together on Cool.

00:39:06.153 --> 00:39:06.423
I dig it.

00:39:06.514 --> 00:39:08.403
Having, uh, you know, do all the lawyers know each

00:39:08.403 --> 00:39:09.153
other pretty much.

00:39:09.664 --> 00:39:13.023
A lot of lawyers know each other, especially in, you know, in a small community like this.

00:39:13.023 --> 00:39:14.344
So it's been really wonderful.

00:39:14.344 --> 00:39:15.934
It's Larimer County Bar Association's.

00:39:15.934 --> 00:39:16.414
Great.

00:39:16.443 --> 00:39:23.764
And the attorneys here are just, it's, it's a pretty small town here, so it's, it's really nice to know one another and be able to pick up the phone and talk.

00:39:23.824 --> 00:39:26.494
So let's talk about some of your other activities.

00:39:26.498 --> 00:39:26.648
Yeah.

00:39:26.849 --> 00:39:28.088
Uh, jazzer size.

00:39:28.534 --> 00:39:28.833
Yeah.

00:39:28.833 --> 00:39:29.463
Uh, distributor.

00:39:29.568 --> 00:39:30.289
Yeah, that's

00:39:30.289 --> 00:39:31.168
my real job instructor.

00:39:31.168 --> 00:39:33.724
That's why I tell people that's my real job and I'm a lawyer for fun.

00:39:34.143 --> 00:39:42.094
Um, yeah, I teach, I became a jazzer size instructor two weeks before I graduated law school because I felt like I started taking it in law school.

00:39:42.148 --> 00:39:43.773
'cause I was just sitting all the time reading Right.

00:39:43.773 --> 00:39:44.943
And not doing anything.

00:39:44.943 --> 00:39:53.793
And, um, someone told me it was, there was a Groupon and I was like, okay, if I just go to two classes, I will have earned the Groupon and I won't feel bad about buying this$35 Groupon.

00:39:53.884 --> 00:39:54.903
And I became hooked.

00:39:54.903 --> 00:39:56.523
I really loved, it's just dancing.

00:39:56.523 --> 00:40:00.094
It's music, it's fun, it's, you know, room full of people doing it together.

00:40:00.094 --> 00:40:09.184
So, um, you know, was an, was a customer for a couple years and then right before law school graduation, I was like, if I don't become an instructor and make this an obligation, I will quit and go to happy hour.

00:40:09.213 --> 00:40:09.273
Yeah.

00:40:09.603 --> 00:40:10.588
And I'll never ize again.

00:40:10.864 --> 00:40:16.324
That's what I was, I I I, I've been a runner and I know a lot of cause-based runner, like they have to be training for a race

00:40:16.384 --> 00:40:16.773
Right.

00:40:16.804 --> 00:40:18.003
To like run, to run Right.

00:40:18.003 --> 00:40:18.469
For you, you're like.

00:40:18.903 --> 00:40:20.253
I have to be the teacher.

00:40:20.253 --> 00:40:21.903
I'm an instructor, so I have to teach the class again.

00:40:21.903 --> 00:40:24.063
I can't let myself get too heavy between classes.

00:40:24.063 --> 00:40:24.273
Like

00:40:24.273 --> 00:40:24.963
absolutely not.

00:40:24.963 --> 00:40:25.563
Absolutely not.

00:40:25.773 --> 00:40:31.023
So, yeah, so I've been an instructor for, um, you know, like I said, I, I became a certified instructor 10 years now.

00:40:31.023 --> 00:40:32.974
Almost shoot, uh, longer, I mean,

00:40:33.153 --> 00:40:33.454
yeah.

00:40:34.083 --> 00:40:35.074
13 years.

00:40:35.403 --> 00:40:36.844
Um, you know, and how do

00:40:36.844 --> 00:40:38.253
you practice it, your trade?

00:40:38.554 --> 00:40:41.704
Okay, so we have a jazzer size studio here in Fort Collins.

00:40:41.704 --> 00:40:41.733
Okay.

00:40:41.824 --> 00:40:42.934
That's a locally owned business.

00:40:42.934 --> 00:40:45.034
So Jazzer size is a, is a worldwide franchise.

00:40:45.034 --> 00:40:45.793
Do you wanna shout'em out?

00:40:45.793 --> 00:40:46.048
Yeah, yeah.

00:40:46.264 --> 00:40:46.983
It's called Jazzer Size.

00:40:46.983 --> 00:40:47.523
Fort Collins.

00:40:47.523 --> 00:40:47.643
Okay.

00:40:47.643 --> 00:40:51.454
We're in the, um, Midtown Commons Plaza where ARC thrift store is Oh, sure.

00:40:51.454 --> 00:40:52.143
In the Dollar Store.

00:40:52.293 --> 00:40:52.384
Yep.

00:40:52.384 --> 00:40:53.673
We're kind of tucked in the corner there.

00:40:53.824 --> 00:40:55.778
I teach Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 8:30 AM Okay.

00:40:56.523 --> 00:40:57.664
It's the funnest class.

00:40:57.753 --> 00:41:00.074
I love all the other instructors, but mine's, mine's definitely fun.

00:41:00.074 --> 00:41:00.329
It's the best one.

00:41:00.349 --> 00:41:00.873
The most fun.

00:41:01.114 --> 00:41:01.594
Yeah.

00:41:01.599 --> 00:41:02.168
Yeah, it is.

00:41:02.168 --> 00:41:02.403
Well, so

00:41:02.403 --> 00:41:06.784
if you're listening to this and you go to Jazzercize, make sure you mention too.

00:41:07.188 --> 00:41:10.369
Rachel that you heard about it on the local Experience podcast.

00:41:10.369 --> 00:41:11.179
Absolutely.

00:41:11.179 --> 00:41:11.958
Absolutely.

00:41:12.168 --> 00:41:13.608
Um, but yeah, I love it.

00:41:13.608 --> 00:41:15.768
They, they give us new choreography every month.

00:41:15.768 --> 00:41:18.349
Brand new songs, brand new choreography.

00:41:18.588 --> 00:41:19.264
Um, how fun.

00:41:19.309 --> 00:41:20.298
Yeah, so very supportive.

00:41:20.298 --> 00:41:20.539
It's like a

00:41:20.539 --> 00:41:21.978
constantly changing thing and Totally.

00:41:21.978 --> 00:41:24.108
Do you mostly have regulars then in your classes?

00:41:24.108 --> 00:41:26.748
You build relationships or is it kind of drop in or both?

00:41:26.929 --> 00:41:27.469
Little bit of both.

00:41:27.469 --> 00:41:29.958
I have a, I have a ton of regulars at the eight 30 class.

00:41:29.958 --> 00:41:31.668
I mean, that's kind of a particular time, right?

00:41:31.668 --> 00:41:32.929
Like you can't have a regular like

00:41:33.108 --> 00:41:33.378
Sure.

00:41:33.438 --> 00:41:33.679
Entre.

00:41:33.679 --> 00:41:34.759
It's a good entrepreneur class.

00:41:35.239 --> 00:41:36.889
What's the, what's the dude chick mix?

00:41:36.918 --> 00:41:38.809
Oh, we have one, one Token male.

00:41:38.809 --> 00:41:38.838
Okay.

00:41:38.898 --> 00:41:40.824
Um, he is, he heckles I've been to a

00:41:40.824 --> 00:41:43.878
number of yoga clubs over the years and it's usually, usually the token man.

00:41:43.878 --> 00:41:44.088
Yes.

00:41:44.298 --> 00:41:46.128
He heckles the shit outta me, but I love him.

00:41:46.188 --> 00:41:46.699
Um.

00:41:46.918 --> 00:41:47.159
Yeah.

00:41:47.159 --> 00:41:48.838
And I, we, we dance together.

00:41:48.869 --> 00:41:53.548
Um, but yeah, it's mostly women and women from ages twenties to seventies.

00:41:53.548 --> 00:41:57.239
I mean, it's, it's a really wide, wide gap of, of women who are there.

00:41:57.599 --> 00:41:59.429
Um, but yeah, it's just, it's supportive.

00:41:59.429 --> 00:42:00.119
It's dance.

00:42:00.179 --> 00:42:03.418
Um, people ask like, what makes it different than other group fitness classes?

00:42:03.449 --> 00:42:09.748
I literally, I'm on a stage, I'm wearing a microphone, I'm looking at you, I'm dancing with you, I'm telling you jokes and I'm telling you safety things.

00:42:09.748 --> 00:42:10.378
It's like the body

00:42:10.378 --> 00:42:13.228
pump thing that my wife does at home on looking at the tv.

00:42:13.259 --> 00:42:13.559
Right.

00:42:13.559 --> 00:42:13.978
At the tv.

00:42:13.978 --> 00:42:14.789
Exactly.

00:42:15.083 --> 00:42:15.898
Right, right.

00:42:15.989 --> 00:42:19.349
So some other, some other ones, they kinda make it up as they go and Yeah.

00:42:19.349 --> 00:42:23.009
You know, just don't really tell you, but kind of do like some hands, hands gesturing.

00:42:23.009 --> 00:42:28.378
So we are like telling you what to do and it's, I feel really supported because they give us choreography.

00:42:28.378 --> 00:42:29.068
We don't make it up.

00:42:29.068 --> 00:42:37.318
So if you take a class here or you take a class in Japan and we're doing the same song, it's gonna be the same choreography and they have like an exercise, um.

00:42:38.028 --> 00:42:41.898
Exercise scientist who like approves all the choreography, make sure we're not like doing anything crazy.

00:42:41.903 --> 00:42:42.103
Yeah.

00:42:42.108 --> 00:42:42.289
Yeah.

00:42:42.318 --> 00:42:44.418
So yeah, it's, it's, I love it.

00:42:44.418 --> 00:42:45.168
It's so fun.

00:42:45.168 --> 00:42:47.449
It's, it's definitely Rachel in her raw form.

00:42:48.889 --> 00:42:51.588
Just gimme a microphone and an hour on stage it feels

00:42:51.588 --> 00:42:51.858
like.

00:42:51.858 --> 00:42:53.599
And how mu how much room do you have?

00:42:53.599 --> 00:42:55.818
Like, do you have room for another dozen more attendees?

00:42:55.909 --> 00:42:56.478
Oh yeah.

00:42:56.539 --> 00:42:56.898
All right.

00:42:56.958 --> 00:42:57.378
Oh yeah.

00:42:57.378 --> 00:42:57.528
All right.

00:42:57.528 --> 00:42:57.648
I'll

00:42:57.648 --> 00:42:58.429
be spreading the word about you.

00:42:58.429 --> 00:42:58.639
Yeah,

00:42:58.639 --> 00:42:59.179
come on out.

00:42:59.179 --> 00:42:59.568
It's fun.

00:42:59.568 --> 00:43:04.639
We do, we'll do like party your team talk classes during holidays and that's when it gets pretty, pretty crowded.

00:43:04.639 --> 00:43:06.079
But otherwise, yeah, we got room.

00:43:06.079 --> 00:43:06.409
Come on out.

00:43:06.443 --> 00:43:08.824
The, uh, adjunct law professor for who?

00:43:08.824 --> 00:43:08.943
Yeah.

00:43:09.753 --> 00:43:11.614
Um, that's at DU Law down in Denver.

00:43:11.673 --> 00:43:11.704
Okay.

00:43:11.704 --> 00:43:11.793
Yep.

00:43:11.853 --> 00:43:13.083
They let me do it from home.

00:43:13.083 --> 00:43:24.364
So, uh, I work at the externship program, which I love because it's all, um, supervising law students who are placed in private law firms and learning like on the job.

00:43:24.963 --> 00:43:26.164
Learning, uh, yeah.

00:43:26.164 --> 00:43:31.864
You know, like apprenticeship style, which, you know, there is no formal requirement of an apprenticeship in the law.

00:43:31.864 --> 00:43:32.164
Sure.

00:43:32.164 --> 00:43:33.273
Which I believe there should be, but it's

00:43:33.273 --> 00:43:33.963
super useful.

00:43:34.083 --> 00:43:34.474
Oh my gosh.

00:43:34.474 --> 00:43:36.184
It's because you don't know shit when you get outta law school.

00:43:36.184 --> 00:43:36.514
It changed

00:43:36.514 --> 00:43:36.994
my life.

00:43:36.994 --> 00:43:45.634
When I went to, after the first year of law school, I was so overwhelmed with like, I, you should be on law review, you should be on moot court, you should be on mock trial, you should be doing all of these things.

00:43:45.724 --> 00:43:51.304
And I remember calling my mom and she was like, didn't you go to law school to help someone, like go get a job at a law firm helping people?

00:43:51.634 --> 00:43:52.804
And I was like, yeah.

00:43:52.804 --> 00:43:53.043
Yeah.

00:43:53.043 --> 00:43:54.994
That like helped me, you know, really wake me up.

00:43:55.054 --> 00:43:58.233
And before I went to law school, I was in the food service industry.

00:43:58.233 --> 00:44:00.454
So I met my husband making pizza, a pizza parlor.

00:44:00.454 --> 00:44:00.543
Nice.

00:44:00.963 --> 00:44:04.023
You know, I, I managed a Longhorn Steakhouse, so I went to meat school.

00:44:04.028 --> 00:44:04.048
Nice.

00:44:04.054 --> 00:44:06.003
I knew about cutting stakes, I knew about service.

00:44:06.003 --> 00:44:06.273
Love it.

00:44:06.393 --> 00:44:07.804
I had never worked in an office.

00:44:07.804 --> 00:44:09.034
I had never done.

00:44:09.509 --> 00:44:11.699
Dealt with a phone or scheduling Right.

00:44:11.699 --> 00:44:12.659
You know, a hearing,

00:44:13.168 --> 00:44:14.219
put an, an appointment on a calendar.

00:44:14.219 --> 00:44:14.458
Right.

00:44:14.458 --> 00:44:14.548
I'm

00:44:14.548 --> 00:44:15.119
aging myself.

00:44:15.119 --> 00:44:18.509
I never used a postage meter or a copy fax machine.

00:44:18.809 --> 00:44:20.429
Um, but I had to learn all that stuff.

00:44:20.429 --> 00:44:20.518
Right.

00:44:20.518 --> 00:44:25.018
So, you know, working, working as a a law student, um, changed my life.

00:44:25.018 --> 00:44:32.219
And so when I got the opportunity, you know, years later to now work with those students on behalf of the school and just, and it's great.

00:44:32.219 --> 00:44:34.318
'cause I don't have to, you know, I don't have to do seminars.

00:44:34.318 --> 00:44:35.248
I don't have to do a ton.

00:44:35.429 --> 00:44:36.389
It's minor homework.

00:44:36.389 --> 00:44:36.449
Yeah.

00:44:36.449 --> 00:44:38.278
It's like, what are your goals for this semester?

00:44:38.278 --> 00:44:40.079
How are you gonna, so I get to be like a pep rally.

00:44:40.898 --> 00:44:50.108
It, it's a great feedback loop because they, um, honestly just, it's so great to see people at the beginning of their career and they're just like, they're not jaded, right?

00:44:50.108 --> 00:44:51.878
They don't, they haven't seen a few things.

00:44:51.878 --> 00:44:54.458
They're like, they're very excited to learn.

00:44:54.458 --> 00:44:55.818
They're just like, you know, they're cool.

00:44:55.818 --> 00:44:56.349
So you don't teach

00:44:56.349 --> 00:44:57.489
classes necessarily.

00:44:57.489 --> 00:45:00.643
You're mostly just a spirit guide for them as they navigate this kind thing.

00:45:00.643 --> 00:45:00.744
I like that

00:45:00.744 --> 00:45:02.259
spirit guide, adjunct professor, spirit guide,

00:45:02.324 --> 00:45:03.244
A spirit and ethics guide.

00:45:03.278 --> 00:45:03.518
I mean,

00:45:03.579 --> 00:45:04.179
yeah, yeah.

00:45:04.179 --> 00:45:04.568
Totally.

00:45:04.719 --> 00:45:06.338
I, I mean, I make them ethics guide.

00:45:06.489 --> 00:45:09.099
I make them, um, meet with me in the middle of the semester.

00:45:09.128 --> 00:45:14.349
So, you know, at the beginning of the semester, they have to gimme the three goals that they want and like how they plan a game plan to get there.

00:45:14.438 --> 00:45:14.559
Yeah.

00:45:14.559 --> 00:45:17.289
Not, not just like, and then mid semester we check in, how you doing?

00:45:17.289 --> 00:45:18.579
Do you have to, have you had to pivot?

00:45:18.608 --> 00:45:21.159
Have you, you know, what's, what's going right, what's going wrong?

00:45:21.159 --> 00:45:21.789
How can we fix it?

00:45:22.119 --> 00:45:25.869
And then, um, you know, and at the end of the semester, like, what went right, what went wrong?

00:45:25.869 --> 00:45:26.318
Same thing.

00:45:26.318 --> 00:45:27.458
So really just a lot of like.

00:45:27.813 --> 00:45:28.713
Introspection.

00:45:28.713 --> 00:45:28.773
Yeah.

00:45:29.103 --> 00:45:30.034
Reflection

00:45:30.333 --> 00:45:33.873
how, and you're not staff at du, you can kinda give a little more perspective.

00:45:33.994 --> 00:45:34.954
Yeah, exactly.

00:45:34.954 --> 00:45:37.563
And being in private practice, I think, you know, have a really Yeah.

00:45:37.563 --> 00:45:37.713
Start.

00:45:37.713 --> 00:45:37.893
Totally.

00:45:37.983 --> 00:45:41.793
So I, you know, every semester I get a few students who are like, I really wanna open my own firm.

00:45:41.793 --> 00:45:45.559
And so that, you know, they get to sort of see the experience of running firm and they're like, I wanna

00:45:45.559 --> 00:45:46.474
get in family law.

00:45:47.014 --> 00:45:47.313
Yeah.

00:45:47.554 --> 00:45:49.639
Like, and I'm like, could that lemme tell you about my experience with family law.

00:45:49.639 --> 00:45:49.893
No, I can't.

00:45:49.893 --> 00:45:50.373
I can't.

00:45:50.373 --> 00:45:50.614
Right.

00:45:50.614 --> 00:45:54.184
I can't ruin it for, I have to just keep it to myself really.

00:45:54.184 --> 00:45:55.233
So I do, I do.

00:45:55.684 --> 00:45:56.884
Wait, we need family attorneys.

00:45:56.884 --> 00:45:57.423
You know, we do.

00:45:57.423 --> 00:46:02.224
Because the ones who've been around a long time, some many have get burnt out, right?

00:46:02.224 --> 00:46:02.403
Yeah.

00:46:02.494 --> 00:46:03.153
Do other things.

00:46:03.153 --> 00:46:03.514
Super jade.

00:46:03.903 --> 00:46:04.233
Yeah.

00:46:04.233 --> 00:46:05.523
But people, people need that help.

00:46:05.523 --> 00:46:10.804
And you know, Colorado, uh, is one of the few states that have allowed, we have this thing called like a license.

00:46:11.164 --> 00:46:16.054
Paraprofessional thing where paralegals can now help people in certain areas of law.

00:46:16.054 --> 00:46:16.114
Yeah.

00:46:16.114 --> 00:46:17.164
Especially family.

00:46:17.344 --> 00:46:21.514
And that's important because there is this gap of access to lawyers.

00:46:21.634 --> 00:46:21.693
Yeah.

00:46:21.693 --> 00:46:28.713
When you're in family law issue, I can't tell you how often I see on like the Facebook groups, you know, the, the, the local Fort Collins or Loveland Facebook groups.

00:46:28.713 --> 00:46:28.724
Sure.

00:46:29.134 --> 00:46:34.594
You know, I really need a pro bono attorney and we have a really high conflict divorce and so many issues.

00:46:34.594 --> 00:46:36.873
And I'm like, that is a hard ask.

00:46:36.873 --> 00:46:37.983
That's a really hard ask.

00:46:38.014 --> 00:46:38.074
Yeah.

00:46:38.074 --> 00:46:44.494
And I, I don't admire, you know, I feel for anyone who has to face a legal situation and not a lot of cash to deal with it,

00:46:44.494 --> 00:46:49.623
it's, uh, well, and well, how do I wanna say it?

00:46:49.623 --> 00:46:49.893
Right?

00:46:49.893 --> 00:46:57.103
Like, what's that role when it's, it starts with an m when you try to like get to a reasonable outcome, A mediator outcome.

00:46:57.103 --> 00:46:57.123
A mediator.

00:46:57.123 --> 00:46:57.298
Mm-hmm.

00:46:57.753 --> 00:46:59.673
And there's a few of those kind of folks around Yeah.

00:46:59.673 --> 00:47:02.103
That just try to attempt to be the mediator Yeah.

00:47:02.103 --> 00:47:04.204
Of a, of a reasonable agreement kind of thing.

00:47:04.594 --> 00:47:08.523
And I really respect that sense of mentality because in part.

00:47:09.469 --> 00:47:17.719
Like whoever wins when the lawyers get the spurs out and start spurring, spurring, spurring, uh, the, the kids always lose.

00:47:17.838 --> 00:47:17.929
Oh, yeah.

00:47:17.934 --> 00:47:19.579
And the kid and the lawyers always win.

00:47:19.579 --> 00:47:27.648
And I've seen too many reasonably amicable divorces turn into a flaming dumpster fire shit show.

00:47:27.648 --> 00:47:28.653
Because guess what?

00:47:28.728 --> 00:47:31.668
The lawyers make more money when we fight longer and harder.

00:47:31.728 --> 00:47:31.998
Right,

00:47:32.358 --> 00:47:32.748
exactly.

00:47:32.748 --> 00:47:32.929
And it's

00:47:32.929 --> 00:47:33.648
just so yucky.

00:47:33.858 --> 00:47:34.818
Yeah, no, I feel that.

00:47:34.818 --> 00:47:36.739
And, um, anyway, that's why I soap bucks.

00:47:37.173 --> 00:47:40.789
I, I, I a hundred percent that, that's part of my sales pitch to my clients.

00:47:40.818 --> 00:47:42.469
Um, and, and not in the family world.

00:47:42.469 --> 00:47:47.869
But, you know, I certainly get my fair share of clients who are like, fight, you know, business arrangements going awry and I'm like, let's

00:47:47.869 --> 00:47:48.934
get this contract right on the front.

00:47:49.128 --> 00:47:49.998
Let's get it right on the front end.

00:47:50.059 --> 00:47:51.739
Or let's just say they did.

00:47:51.768 --> 00:47:55.938
You know, more often than not, I have clients who, they started a business on their own.

00:47:55.938 --> 00:47:58.398
They copy pasted some bylaws from the internet.

00:47:58.818 --> 00:48:02.599
You know, the thing about bylaws and like shareholders agreements and operating agreements is that like.

00:48:03.018 --> 00:48:05.478
If things are going fine, you never take it out of the drawer.

00:48:05.509 --> 00:48:05.853
It's right.

00:48:05.884 --> 00:48:07.728
It's like the, I call it the corporate prenup.

00:48:08.028 --> 00:48:15.259
It's like you never look at it, it's never issue thing, but when things do go sideways, that's where you're like, okay, we made these rules when we were getting along.

00:48:15.259 --> 00:48:15.438
Totally.

00:48:15.438 --> 00:48:16.429
We need to follow these rules.

00:48:16.759 --> 00:48:21.918
So most, a lot of companies don't have them, or just copy, paste didn't really take any, you know, interest in Yeah.

00:48:21.918 --> 00:48:22.548
Making them,

00:48:22.608 --> 00:48:24.349
yeah, what they want.

00:48:24.438 --> 00:48:25.728
Some people play dirty too.

00:48:25.728 --> 00:48:29.659
They're like, oh, according to this operating agreement, if we do a capital call

00:48:30.349 --> 00:48:31.969
and you can't fulfill and you can't do it right,

00:48:32.028 --> 00:48:32.628
then you're out.

00:48:32.748 --> 00:48:33.559
Well, here's the thing, like

00:48:33.918 --> 00:48:37.998
anyone who's ever filled out our questionnaire and it says, do you wanna have that requirement?

00:48:38.478 --> 00:48:41.778
Before I prepare the operating agreement, it's usually a no, right?

00:48:42.469 --> 00:48:43.849
A normal person wouldn't want that.

00:48:44.088 --> 00:48:45.943
But it's built in as like boiler plate standard.

00:48:45.943 --> 00:48:47.179
Boiler plate to certain, totally.

00:48:47.179 --> 00:48:47.239
Yeah.

00:48:47.298 --> 00:48:50.539
Or people who are pulling, ripping it off the internet or finding a form, or if

00:48:50.539 --> 00:48:53.809
the majority partner wants to be able to have that power and has

00:48:53.898 --> 00:48:54.048
Yeah.

00:48:54.048 --> 00:48:55.039
If it's negotiated.

00:48:55.039 --> 00:48:55.338
Sure.

00:48:55.338 --> 00:48:55.548
Right.

00:48:55.699 --> 00:48:56.088
Yeah.

00:48:56.239 --> 00:49:03.768
I mean, so I mean, my big part is listen, if you're gonna go to litigate, number one, you're not gonna get a lawyer as fun or cool as me'cause I'm not going to court.

00:49:04.309 --> 00:49:08.358
And number two, like you went into business to be.

00:49:08.748 --> 00:49:11.119
The boss to be the master of your domain.

00:49:11.119 --> 00:49:22.818
If there's any Seinfeld fans here, so like if you, if you wanna maintain control over your life, then part of that is having the hard conversations when disputes happen and solving those problems yourself.

00:49:22.818 --> 00:49:26.509
Because if you do have to go to court and you do have to get a litigators, number one.

00:49:26.574 --> 00:49:27.534
They're not as cool as me.

00:49:27.744 --> 00:49:29.844
Number two, they're three times more expensive than me.

00:49:29.893 --> 00:49:30.134
Yeah.

00:49:30.143 --> 00:49:30.414
Number

00:49:30.414 --> 00:49:33.204
three, you're not gonna get a resolution for about a year, probably

00:49:33.384 --> 00:49:33.594
right.

00:49:33.594 --> 00:49:33.893
Number

00:49:33.893 --> 00:49:37.733
four, it's gonna be decided by a guy in a robe who, you know what?

00:49:37.824 --> 00:49:44.034
God forbid, it happens before they're on lunch hour and they don't care whatsoever about your deal and they're starving.

00:49:44.304 --> 00:49:44.784
So like.

00:49:45.074 --> 00:49:45.403
I like your

00:49:45.403 --> 00:49:45.974
cynicism.

00:49:46.123 --> 00:49:46.664
That's really solid.

00:49:46.664 --> 00:49:46.784
Quite

00:49:46.784 --> 00:49:53.204
frankly, I'm just a business owner and I don't want to hand over decision making authority for my business to a complete stranger.

00:49:53.264 --> 00:49:53.534
Yeah.

00:49:53.653 --> 00:49:55.273
Um, a year down the road, somebody

00:49:55.273 --> 00:49:57.614
was like elected and then got reelected a bunch of times.

00:49:57.943 --> 00:49:58.903
Uh, Dan, if you will, nobody knows.

00:49:58.903 --> 00:49:59.114
I'm kidding.

00:49:59.114 --> 00:49:59.414
Anything.

00:49:59.833 --> 00:50:01.244
Dan's gonna be an excellent judge.

00:50:01.273 --> 00:50:01.963
He'll never be reelected.

00:50:02.023 --> 00:50:03.284
He'll be wonderful way.

00:50:03.313 --> 00:50:07.981
The fact that he rides his scooter to Rotary Club on a regular basis and like it's like 7:00

00:50:07.981 --> 00:50:08.318
AM Right.

00:50:08.443 --> 00:50:11.744
And like stops in the ace hardware for free popcorn sometimes and stuff.

00:50:12.224 --> 00:50:17.264
It all has me very suspicious that he may in fact be a marijuana consumer himself.

00:50:17.474 --> 00:50:19.574
Uh, but you probably couldn't tell me even if you knew.

00:50:19.574 --> 00:50:19.603
I

00:50:20.653 --> 00:50:25.423
don't know that about Dan, but if he did, I wouldn't hold it against him because it's legal in Colorado.

00:50:25.423 --> 00:50:25.483
Yeah.

00:50:25.574 --> 00:50:25.844
But he's a

00:50:25.844 --> 00:50:26.684
judge now.

00:50:27.103 --> 00:50:28.994
I mean, there's nothing against judges.

00:50:30.164 --> 00:50:32.173
I mean, as long as I'd rather my judge was not doing it on the job.

00:50:32.173 --> 00:50:33.074
Smart and prudent.

00:50:33.074 --> 00:50:33.523
Right.

00:50:33.523 --> 00:50:33.614
Right.

00:50:34.304 --> 00:50:34.514
So,

00:50:34.514 --> 00:50:35.353
I mean, listen, I.

00:50:36.063 --> 00:50:48.634
It's, I think it's funny that this conversation has gone from like, how awesome a judge to like, don't deal with judges, but really, I mean, like you said, like it, a lot of times it's, it's not the business that's gonna benefit from spending.

00:50:48.634 --> 00:50:48.724
Yeah.

00:50:48.903 --> 00:50:51.184
You know, multiple tens of thousands of dollars of litigating.

00:50:51.184 --> 00:50:54.844
So you get into litigation, your client gets into litigation, you just tap out, you're like, I tap out.

00:50:54.844 --> 00:50:55.983
I have to refer them.

00:50:56.349 --> 00:50:57.128
Oh, you have to.

00:50:57.369 --> 00:51:00.728
Well, I, I have to'cause that I am not competent in going to court.

00:51:00.789 --> 00:51:01.418
Oh, okay.

00:51:01.418 --> 00:51:01.509
Like,

00:51:01.599 --> 00:51:07.329
I've made a choice to not be good at going to court to not know about objections and cross examinations.

00:51:07.329 --> 00:51:07.509
And

00:51:07.509 --> 00:51:09.463
you should not hire me as your litigation attorney.

00:51:09.463 --> 00:51:09.684
That's what I do.

00:51:09.684 --> 00:51:11.168
No, I focus everything on fair.

00:51:11.259 --> 00:51:12.699
All my homework on the, but legally

00:51:12.699 --> 00:51:13.898
you could, you got the bar, whatever.

00:51:13.929 --> 00:51:14.139
Oh, I

00:51:14.139 --> 00:51:15.278
totally could.

00:51:15.489 --> 00:51:15.818
Yes.

00:51:15.818 --> 00:51:16.929
Legally I could if they

00:51:16.929 --> 00:51:22.059
wanted to lose, because you get all emotionally tied up in the whole process and defensive or whatever.

00:51:22.059 --> 00:51:22.208
Wear

00:51:22.208 --> 00:51:23.168
my sneakers to court.

00:51:23.469 --> 00:51:24.369
Yeah, exactly.

00:51:24.579 --> 00:51:27.369
Um, you know, I, it would not, it, it's not a good look.

00:51:27.369 --> 00:51:29.708
And, and again, I like, I love staying in my lane.

00:51:29.708 --> 00:51:36.338
I tell my, especially my marijuana clients, like when I start, I joke'cause I say, when I start growing the weed and you do the paperwork, like everything's gonna get messed up.

00:51:36.338 --> 00:51:36.489
Right?

00:51:36.489 --> 00:51:36.548
Yeah.

00:51:36.548 --> 00:51:42.219
So like, I'll do the paperwork, you grow the weed and everyone stay in their lane, but regardless, like staying in your lane, right.

00:51:42.219 --> 00:51:43.059
Knowing when.

00:51:43.384 --> 00:51:46.653
When you can help people with your professional services and or when you should

00:51:46.653 --> 00:51:47.793
tap out and Right.

00:51:47.793 --> 00:51:48.543
Tap somebody else in.

00:51:48.664 --> 00:51:49.173
That's right.

00:51:49.173 --> 00:51:49.534
Exactly.

00:51:49.539 --> 00:51:54.664
I, I tell people, tell me what your, what your issue is and I'll let you know if I can help you and I'll let you know if I can help you.

00:51:54.813 --> 00:51:55.804
We'll get you in good hands.

00:51:55.864 --> 00:51:58.864
Is it State Farm or something where they have the backup?

00:51:59.523 --> 00:52:03.304
Quarterback or the backup, this or that, uh, enter the game.

00:52:04.293 --> 00:52:05.943
I don't know if you've seen those commercials.

00:52:05.943 --> 00:52:06.128
I'll miss that commercial.

00:52:06.128 --> 00:52:07.009
They're relatively recent.

00:52:07.239 --> 00:52:25.954
They, it's like the husband is like trying to explain to his kids the birds and the bees, and he is like, well, sometimes, you know, when a man and a woman really love each other and, and they all tap in like some backup quarterback, like that's semi-famous, whatever he is like, you see Johnny and it's like, perfect.

00:52:25.958 --> 00:52:26.704
Right, right, right.

00:52:26.704 --> 00:52:28.204
Anyway, um, yeah, exactly.

00:52:28.204 --> 00:52:29.014
That's what we're talking about here.

00:52:29.074 --> 00:52:33.603
You know, if it's in my, if it's in my realm, I think I'm the best person for it.

00:52:34.043 --> 00:52:40.403
You know, uh, one thing I like to tell my clients too, especially the entrepreneur clients, is, you know, I own an firm, I'm a business owner.

00:52:40.409 --> 00:52:40.458
Yeah.

00:52:40.463 --> 00:52:48.054
I have had to make payroll, I have had, I have folk, I have faced these many of the same, you know, decisions that other entrepreneurs make.

00:52:48.384 --> 00:52:58.103
Um, you know, if you go to a big law firm and you work with, uh, a lawyer who has only ever collected a paycheck and doesn't know the things that go into running a business Yeah.

00:52:58.103 --> 00:53:04.014
Then you just, it's, you're just not doing yourself that favor of having someone who really knows what exactly it is you're going through.

00:53:04.014 --> 00:53:04.074
Yeah.

00:53:04.074 --> 00:53:05.543
And has lived that experience.

00:53:05.903 --> 00:53:12.324
Um, and another thing too about like some of these larger law firms is, you know, kind of like you talked about is they, they have to make their billable hours, right?

00:53:12.324 --> 00:53:12.503
Totally.

00:53:12.503 --> 00:53:13.403
They have to make, make their money.

00:53:13.463 --> 00:53:16.494
And if they don't hit their billable hours, they're not gonna get their big bonus.

00:53:16.494 --> 00:53:18.054
Or they're not, they're not gonna keep their job.

00:53:18.204 --> 00:53:20.844
Like, I don't have a billable hour requirement'cause I own the firm.

00:53:20.844 --> 00:53:23.034
I get to decide what cases I wanna take on.

00:53:23.364 --> 00:53:25.884
And as a small business owner, I understand.

00:53:26.193 --> 00:53:31.233
That you don't have endless money for the, for the bus, for the, the legal budget.

00:53:31.474 --> 00:53:34.773
Um, there should certainly be a legal budget to protect your business.

00:53:34.773 --> 00:53:43.264
But, um, you know, so, so that said, I'd much rather have my reach be much wider than, you know, than just bill one client to death.

00:53:43.443 --> 00:54:01.983
So if I can turn a client's matter, you know, for, you know, under$5,000 or under$3,000 and they're protected moving forward, and it enables them to earn 80,000 or a hundred thousand dollars for that work, I'd much rather that is, that is like why I'm in this business, is to help other small business owners.

00:54:01.983 --> 00:54:12.273
And so it's especially important to me now because I started my firm in Denver 10 years ago, and I moved here five years ago, but I didn't tell anyone that I moved here as far as my business.

00:54:12.304 --> 00:54:12.333
Okay.

00:54:12.333 --> 00:54:14.643
Like, I still had my firm headquartered in Denver.

00:54:14.643 --> 00:54:14.793
Denver

00:54:14.793 --> 00:54:15.719
was the focus of your client base

00:54:16.474 --> 00:54:16.583
and all that.

00:54:16.583 --> 00:54:17.373
It kind of was.

00:54:17.373 --> 00:54:17.759
And Well,'cause

00:54:17.759 --> 00:54:18.934
we were all zooming, zooming, zooming.

00:54:18.934 --> 00:54:19.923
We were zooming in.

00:54:19.923 --> 00:54:20.974
Right, exactly.

00:54:20.974 --> 00:54:21.393
And then.

00:54:21.853 --> 00:54:29.114
You know, so like, uh, now that I've got kids that are like in sch in elementary school here, you know, I, uh, I bought my house here.

00:54:29.384 --> 00:54:34.389
I, um, I moved my office to Midtown, uh, here in Fort Collins, and I'm like, I wanna help people.

00:54:34.389 --> 00:54:34.748
So you're gonna be

00:54:34.748 --> 00:54:37.873
selling cookies to support the local, your, your daughter's.

00:54:37.873 --> 00:54:38.773
Uh, oh God.

00:54:38.773 --> 00:54:38.983
Whatever.

00:54:38.983 --> 00:54:39.824
Brownies Club.

00:54:39.853 --> 00:54:39.974
Oh

00:54:39.974 --> 00:54:40.333
my God.

00:54:40.514 --> 00:54:43.543
Uh, I'm, I'm not on the PTA, that's the one thing I say no to.

00:54:43.543 --> 00:54:44.954
I'm like, just tell me where to write the check.

00:54:45.554 --> 00:54:46.213
I'll write a check.

00:54:46.213 --> 00:54:46.423
Fair enough.

00:54:46.489 --> 00:54:46.789
All day.

00:54:46.789 --> 00:54:47.068
Fair enough.

00:54:47.083 --> 00:54:48.614
Um, I want to call a short break.

00:54:48.733 --> 00:54:48.914
Yeah.

00:54:49.034 --> 00:54:52.423
And when we come back, we haven't talked about, uh, what is it?

00:54:52.423 --> 00:54:53.114
Harsh Shalum.

00:54:53.119 --> 00:54:53.389
Yeah.

00:54:53.393 --> 00:54:53.954
Yeah.

00:54:53.954 --> 00:54:54.284
I wanna ask.

00:54:54.284 --> 00:54:55.003
It's a good community.

00:54:55.003 --> 00:54:56.233
You were wearing your Hanukkah earrings.

00:54:56.233 --> 00:54:56.923
Yes.

00:54:56.923 --> 00:54:57.164
Yes.

00:54:57.164 --> 00:54:58.094
Second night of Hanukah.

00:54:58.514 --> 00:54:59.054
It is.

00:54:59.143 --> 00:54:59.949
Let's, let's,

00:55:00.134 --> 00:55:00.764
let's light it up.

00:55:00.764 --> 00:55:01.184
Be right back.

00:55:51.331 --> 00:55:52.561
As a business owner, you really.

00:55:53.460 --> 00:55:56.701
I tend to find myself feeling like I'm on an island sometimes.

00:55:56.731 --> 00:55:56.820
Mm-hmm.

00:55:57.331 --> 00:56:02.041
You don't have, like, the board of directors necessarily help, you know, to bounce ideas off of or whatever.

00:56:02.340 --> 00:56:05.731
Um, and so you have to find those things and so mastermind's great for that.

00:56:05.911 --> 00:56:08.851
I'm, I'm part of an organization called Wolf Women-Owned Law Firms.

00:56:08.880 --> 00:56:09.121
Okay.

00:56:09.210 --> 00:56:09.900
Colorado Wolf.

00:56:10.050 --> 00:56:11.940
And it's a bunch of small women owned law firms.

00:56:11.940 --> 00:56:11.951
Yeah.

00:56:12.001 --> 00:56:12.061
Yeah.

00:56:12.061 --> 00:56:15.811
And it's, it's different than just women attorneys because we all own the business.

00:56:15.900 --> 00:56:15.990
Right.

00:56:15.990 --> 00:56:19.081
And we're in the same sort of field, so it's like, how do we crowdsource that?

00:56:19.085 --> 00:56:19.195
You'll

00:56:19.195 --> 00:56:20.251
still have kind of common blind spots.

00:56:20.521 --> 00:56:21.061
That's true.

00:56:21.420 --> 00:56:22.740
That's, uh, which is why you should join a local chapter.

00:56:23.155 --> 00:56:23.356
I know.

00:56:23.360 --> 00:56:24.001
I need to join a

00:56:24.001 --> 00:56:24.840
local chapter.

00:56:24.840 --> 00:56:28.351
I, well wait, lemme get off the board of Harsh Shalom and then that'll be my next thing.

00:56:28.380 --> 00:56:28.710
What?

00:56:28.710 --> 00:56:30.300
That and leadership for Collins.

00:56:30.306 --> 00:56:31.755
I'm doing leadership for Collins right now.

00:56:31.775 --> 00:56:31.996
Now.

00:56:31.996 --> 00:56:32.235
Well,

00:56:32.235 --> 00:56:32.731
that does count.

00:56:32.971 --> 00:56:33.360
Yeah.

00:56:33.661 --> 00:56:36.420
Um, so, but you're our kind of people I guess I'd have, you know.

00:56:36.570 --> 00:56:36.871
Oh, thanks.

00:56:36.931 --> 00:56:37.021
I

00:56:37.021 --> 00:56:40.231
wanted to ask a potentially inflammatory question or curious question, right.

00:56:40.231 --> 00:56:40.590
I call it.

00:56:40.590 --> 00:56:42.210
But do you feel.

00:56:42.795 --> 00:56:46.096
Have you felt historically antisemitism in Fort Collins?

00:56:46.096 --> 00:56:51.106
And do you feel like that could be like, in a rising kind of weird way and like what, yeah.

00:56:51.646 --> 00:56:52.306
Great question.

00:56:52.516 --> 00:56:54.076
Do you feel like discriminated against you

00:56:54.195 --> 00:56:54.826
personally?

00:56:54.976 --> 00:56:56.715
I have never felt that way in Fort Collins.

00:56:56.775 --> 00:56:56.956
Okay.

00:56:56.956 --> 00:56:58.425
I've been here, I'm not, I haven't been here that long.

00:56:58.425 --> 00:57:00.195
I've been here five years, but I That's long

00:57:00.195 --> 00:57:01.726
enough to know though, if it was That's true.

00:57:01.755 --> 00:57:02.326
Regular.

00:57:02.385 --> 00:57:04.005
I personally have not experienced it.

00:57:04.846 --> 00:57:10.695
Um, as far as I know, we have not experienced that at Harsh Shalom.

00:57:11.596 --> 00:57:14.746
Um, I think we'd certainly get emails from weirdos.

00:57:14.896 --> 00:57:17.715
Um, there's like emails like on the, on the, like.

00:57:18.840 --> 00:57:23.490
On the website probably, you know, that they probably, um, but I'm not really in a position to get that.

00:57:23.490 --> 00:57:25.951
So like our executive director, she is vigilant.

00:57:25.951 --> 00:57:33.150
She is, she does every single training that there is available, there is a secured action network that immediately, you know, I

00:57:33.150 --> 00:57:37.036
wasn't thinking so much in the threat of violence, but more like just action, like, just feelings.

00:57:37.036 --> 00:57:37.590
People hiring you.

00:57:37.951 --> 00:57:38.490
Oh, people hire me.

00:57:38.760 --> 00:57:42.570
I mean, yeah, I've had that concern in that thought, but they're, they're just not for me.

00:57:42.601 --> 00:57:45.510
Like in Phil and in, in Florida there's probably a, it's

00:57:46.081 --> 00:57:46.650
depends, really.

00:57:46.650 --> 00:57:47.251
It's everywhere.

00:57:47.251 --> 00:57:49.800
I mean, northern color, Northern Florida is like southern Georgia

00:57:50.371 --> 00:57:51.420
Fair, so.

00:57:51.481 --> 00:57:51.871
Oh right.

00:57:51.871 --> 00:57:55.681
So if you there that up to Tallahassee, which ist really northern, but it feels northern.

00:57:55.686 --> 00:57:56.315
It is in some comparison.

00:57:56.416 --> 00:57:56.655
Oh, it is.

00:57:57.030 --> 00:57:57.210
Yeah.

00:57:57.240 --> 00:58:00.630
So, and was your, oh, your husband was, it's like the armpit of Florida, really?

00:58:00.811 --> 00:58:01.920
What was his other parent?

00:58:02.820 --> 00:58:03.811
She's Christian,

00:58:03.960 --> 00:58:05.130
something Christian, Catholic something.

00:58:05.130 --> 00:58:05.251
Yeah.

00:58:05.251 --> 00:58:07.496
So like, he grew up celebrating Christmas and like Gotcha, gotcha.

00:58:07.530 --> 00:58:11.101
He, um, loves Christmas, uh, not like from a religious sense.

00:58:11.101 --> 00:58:11.190
Sure.

00:58:11.190 --> 00:58:12.541
But like, we have a Christmas tree.

00:58:12.661 --> 00:58:13.800
That's my husband's Christmas tree.

00:58:13.806 --> 00:58:14.056
Right.

00:58:14.070 --> 00:58:15.331
And like, so, and you've got

00:58:15.331 --> 00:58:17.775
the Hanukkah candles or whatever do, we've got it all menorahs, whatever.

00:58:17.940 --> 00:58:18.271
Oh yeah.

00:58:18.271 --> 00:58:18.451
And

00:58:18.451 --> 00:58:19.891
like my in-laws are like so sweet.

00:58:19.891 --> 00:58:24.420
Like, and she like, has gotten me like, menorah, like ornaments on, on the tree.

00:58:24.420 --> 00:58:25.681
And so it's a riot.

00:58:25.681 --> 00:58:26.161
I mean, love it.

00:58:26.581 --> 00:58:27.661
It's all in good fun.

00:58:27.871 --> 00:58:27.931
Yeah.

00:58:27.931 --> 00:58:28.800
I, I'm okay with it.

00:58:28.860 --> 00:58:29.400
Um.

00:58:30.016 --> 00:58:32.835
You know, so my kids kinda get to experience a little bit of both.

00:58:32.835 --> 00:58:32.896
Yeah.

00:58:32.896 --> 00:58:34.365
But it's mostly from a tradition

00:58:34.606 --> 00:58:34.876
perspective.

00:58:34.876 --> 00:58:36.465
I'm, I'm just glad to hear that individual you haven't felt thing.

00:58:36.706 --> 00:58:37.516
No, I have not.

00:58:37.516 --> 00:58:50.956
I've always, you know, it's, it's certainly out there and it's something that we just, you know, you, it, even in south Florida, like I was in kind of west of West Palm Beach and it's, it was pretty, um, it was, there was, it was closer to much rural, more rural areas.

00:58:50.956 --> 00:58:50.965
Gotcha.

00:58:50.965 --> 00:58:51.465
And less Gotcha.

00:58:51.646 --> 00:58:57.646
Less, uh, you know, a lot of dirt roads and less, um, tolerant individuals or less, um, you know, open-minded people.

00:58:57.646 --> 00:58:58.096
And so

00:58:58.335 --> 00:58:59.175
I think people,

00:58:59.235 --> 00:59:06.226
yeah, so I, I have not personally experienced it, um, thank goodness, but, you know, um, there's a lot of idiots in the comments section.

00:59:06.226 --> 00:59:06.496
Well, so,

00:59:07.275 --> 00:59:08.985
you know, I'm on X sometimes and stuff.

00:59:08.985 --> 00:59:09.226
Right.

00:59:09.226 --> 00:59:10.996
Like, and it's just a weird place out there.

00:59:10.996 --> 00:59:11.266
Like,

00:59:11.326 --> 00:59:11.565
yeah.

00:59:12.135 --> 00:59:12.615
I don't know.

00:59:12.766 --> 00:59:17.925
Like, I think it's just obvious to me that the, like having the common values and a shared understanding of.

00:59:18.360 --> 00:59:22.141
What the rules are and and the consequences if you don't follow the rules is like,

00:59:22.380 --> 00:59:22.650
yeah,

00:59:22.710 --> 00:59:23.791
we kinda gotta get back to that.

00:59:24.090 --> 00:59:24.451
Yeah.

00:59:24.451 --> 00:59:25.800
Your, your feelings be damned in some ways.

00:59:25.800 --> 00:59:26.085
You know,

00:59:26.090 --> 00:59:28.380
so many people are craving community and craving connection.

00:59:28.380 --> 00:59:34.771
And the shitty part about what's going on right now is that people are finding com community and connection over hatred.

00:59:34.800 --> 00:59:34.891
Mm-hmm.

00:59:35.161 --> 00:59:35.550
And

00:59:35.550 --> 00:59:38.940
like, dislike and like all these negative things.

00:59:38.940 --> 00:59:44.610
And you know, uh, my mom taught me like, if you had nothing nice to say, like, don't say anything.

00:59:44.731 --> 00:59:44.791
Yeah.

00:59:44.851 --> 00:59:49.411
And like, that is just not really a rule that people are doing right now.

00:59:49.471 --> 00:59:58.110
And you know, obviously it's like speak out, say, you know, say what's on your mind, but also like, if it's not kind, you don't, you could, you don't, you can keep it to yourself.

00:59:58.110 --> 00:59:58.231
Sure.

00:59:58.231 --> 00:59:58.411
Your mouth.

00:59:58.516 --> 00:59:58.755
Yeah.

00:59:58.920 --> 00:59:59.161
Yeah.

00:59:59.280 --> 00:59:59.550
Right.

00:59:59.550 --> 01:00:02.371
Like, you don't have, you can just scroll on pass or, you know, whatever.

01:00:02.371 --> 01:00:02.431
Yeah.

01:00:02.670 --> 01:00:07.141
So, you know, it's, it's tricky being, um, an ultra minority in the sense Yeah.

01:00:07.141 --> 01:00:08.880
But also hiding in plain sight.

01:00:09.240 --> 01:00:12.331
Um, but no, I mean, yeah.

01:00:12.360 --> 01:00:14.221
What's, what I think what I face more is.

01:00:14.775 --> 01:00:17.686
If someone wants to hire a woman attorney versus a male attorney.

01:00:17.690 --> 01:00:17.780
Really?

01:00:17.780 --> 01:00:17.981
Yeah.

01:00:18.090 --> 01:00:18.380
Okay.

01:00:18.675 --> 01:00:19.306
And, uh, that was

01:00:19.396 --> 01:00:20.085
my backup question.

01:00:20.085 --> 01:00:20.686
No, actually, yeah.

01:00:20.686 --> 01:00:21.166
No, no.

01:00:21.556 --> 01:00:21.735
My

01:00:21.735 --> 01:00:25.186
colleague Brian, I haven't spent any time talking about him, but he's, he should phenomenal.

01:00:25.186 --> 01:00:27.735
He, uh, he's the other attorney in my law firm.

01:00:27.795 --> 01:00:28.996
He lives in Grand County.

01:00:29.001 --> 01:00:29.221
He brings

01:00:29.221 --> 01:00:29.820
the Riz too.

01:00:29.960 --> 01:00:30.181
He

01:00:30.181 --> 01:00:31.606
brings the Riz for sure.

01:00:31.666 --> 01:00:36.615
Um, he's also Jewish, but he's a man and sometimes people wanna hear from a man.

01:00:36.646 --> 01:00:39.856
Um, so no, Brian's great though.

01:00:39.856 --> 01:00:46.965
And he, if, if anyone here does plays hockey, um, he, you may have heard of the Grand Lake Pond Hockey Classic.

01:00:46.965 --> 01:00:47.025
Yeah.

01:00:47.085 --> 01:00:48.766
It's on their ninth or 10th year.

01:00:48.976 --> 01:00:54.315
It's a huge fundraiser they do in Grand Lake, on the lake, um, uh, hockey tournament.

01:00:54.315 --> 01:00:54.376
Yeah.

01:00:54.436 --> 01:00:56.686
And he's the Commis, he started that thing.

01:00:56.686 --> 01:00:56.806
Oh, cool.

01:00:57.076 --> 01:00:58.306
And he, it's all for, oh, how fun.

01:00:58.306 --> 01:01:01.335
It's all for charity for the town, and, um, I love it.

01:01:01.425 --> 01:01:01.786
Yeah.

01:01:01.786 --> 01:01:02.565
It's real wholesome.

01:01:02.565 --> 01:01:03.195
Good time.

01:01:03.195 --> 01:01:03.405
Fun.

01:01:03.405 --> 01:01:04.780
He, I'm like, so who, like, does

01:01:04.780 --> 01:01:08.115
he do the same kinda legal work as you or does he specialize in something different?

01:01:08.244 --> 01:01:08.570
I, it's like

01:01:08.719 --> 01:01:09.619
heaven on earth.

01:01:09.860 --> 01:01:11.269
It's so amazing.

01:01:11.449 --> 01:01:12.679
You're, it's carefree, you know.

01:01:12.949 --> 01:01:17.360
Well, and what was wild too is again, I went for the first three years when I was like young and stuff.

01:01:17.360 --> 01:01:21.710
And it was like, there was no Facebook, there was no right email on your phone.

01:01:21.739 --> 01:01:23.525
There was, it was the, what happens on Jam Cruise?

01:01:23.525 --> 01:01:23.724
Cruise.

01:01:23.724 --> 01:01:24.204
Cruise stays.

01:01:24.255 --> 01:01:24.920
Stays on Jam Cruise.

01:01:24.920 --> 01:01:25.219
Totally.

01:01:25.489 --> 01:01:32.599
Well, and then, so then I didn't go from like for like 10 years and then I went even more than 10.

01:01:32.599 --> 01:01:33.769
It was like 15 years.

01:01:33.920 --> 01:01:38.900
And so on that fourth year, even though I felt like I was new,'cause it was like Jam Cruise in the new era,

01:01:38.989 --> 01:01:39.289
right.

01:01:39.409 --> 01:01:42.199
I got my robe, I was a lifer.

01:01:42.199 --> 01:01:42.445
And what year

01:01:42.449 --> 01:01:42.860
was this?

01:01:42.875 --> 01:01:43.445
Tell me this.

01:01:43.449 --> 01:01:45.500
That was 2022.

01:01:45.559 --> 01:01:45.916
Okay.

01:02:29.221 --> 01:02:32.911
So after the shock and awe of the whole industry stuff.

01:02:32.911 --> 01:02:33.876
And we like, you know what?

01:02:33.936 --> 01:02:34.155
And

01:02:34.155 --> 01:02:35.431
we know it might've been 23.

01:02:36.001 --> 01:02:37.510
It's like in January it's hard to things down

01:02:37.510 --> 01:02:37.846
enough.

01:02:37.846 --> 01:02:38.956
It's not crazy.

01:02:38.956 --> 01:02:40.606
I'm gonna do some jam cruise.

01:02:40.635 --> 01:02:41.206
Oh man.

01:02:41.206 --> 01:02:46.786
So much so and so, yeah, my best friend who was living here, she was afraid she was gonna lose her federal job.

01:02:46.786 --> 01:02:51.916
So she took another federal job in California just recently and she's my jam cruise buddy too.

01:02:51.976 --> 01:02:55.666
And um, we've been trying to, man, we're like jam crews 27.

01:02:56.445 --> 01:03:00.286
Well if you, uh, if you hear this and you buy your jam cruise tickets, it's the craziest time.

01:03:00.286 --> 01:03:04.275
Don't forget to mention that you heard about it on the Loco experience in the comment section,

01:03:04.275 --> 01:03:06.346
Loco Experience and Riz Legal.

01:03:06.346 --> 01:03:07.726
We can write this whole thing off.

01:03:07.905 --> 01:03:08.266
We could.

01:03:08.626 --> 01:03:14.626
I'm not a CPA, don't quote me on that, but I feel like, feel we could work some business we'll contracts right

01:03:15.735 --> 01:03:15.976
on trackers.

01:03:16.126 --> 01:03:16.635
Yes.

01:03:16.905 --> 01:03:18.045
That's a crazy good time.

01:03:18.106 --> 01:03:18.795
I will see you there.

01:03:18.795 --> 01:03:20.235
Maybe not until 2027.

01:03:20.235 --> 01:03:21.106
What month is this?

01:03:21.376 --> 01:03:21.527
27.

01:03:21.527 --> 01:03:21.547
What month?

01:03:21.547 --> 01:03:21.735
It's

01:03:21.735 --> 01:03:23.025
usually like February.

01:03:23.025 --> 01:03:23.235
That's what

01:03:23.235 --> 01:03:23.565
I was thinking.

01:03:23.565 --> 01:03:26.476
It should be a February, kind of a Tuesday kind of style thing.

01:03:26.476 --> 01:03:26.746
You know,

01:03:26.746 --> 01:03:28.106
I lived in Florida for 20 years and I.

01:03:28.846 --> 01:03:33.376
Didn't realize how amazing it is that you need to get away in February when you work living in Colorado and

01:03:33.376 --> 01:03:35.115
they have like jerk chicken and stuff too on the menu.

01:03:35.115 --> 01:03:35.416
Probably.

01:03:35.536 --> 01:03:38.280
Probably seems like they should, but you don't go on jam cruise for the food.

01:03:38.351 --> 01:03:38.840
I'll tell you that.

01:03:38.840 --> 01:03:39.090
It's a cruise bun.

01:03:39.090 --> 01:03:40.081
Yeah, right.

01:03:41.001 --> 01:03:41.440
I dig it.

01:03:41.536 --> 01:03:41.865
Yeah.

01:03:42.016 --> 01:03:42.766
Thanks for being here.

01:03:42.826 --> 01:03:43.155
Thank you.

01:03:43.155 --> 01:03:43.996
It's wonderful.

01:03:44.001 --> 01:03:44.280
Been enjoy.

01:03:44.641 --> 01:03:44.760
Absolutely.

01:03:44.860 --> 01:03:45.280
Got speed.