CRABBY COFFEE : Stefan Egan Joins The Show To Chat Cannabis Chaos In Minnesota

Summary

Garage Logic: CRABBY COFFEE – "Cannabis Chaos in Minnesota" with Stefan Egan

Release Date: December 11, 2025
Host: Gamut Podcast Network
Guest: Stefan Egan, Cannabis Consultant, Bella Blommy

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the convoluted rollout of Minnesota’s adult-use cannabis laws, featuring cannabis consultant Stefan Egan. The hosts, Jay and Kenny, unpack the regulatory missteps, market chaos, and real-world headaches for consumers and business owners alike—blending serious critique with the show's signature sardonic, common-sense humor. The conversation alternates between policy analysis, personal anecdotes, and homegrown gripes, all centered around the current state (and future) of legal weed in Minnesota.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The State of Legal Weed in Minnesota

• Spending and Market Size: Americans spent an estimated $31.4 billion on legal marijuana in 2024, with the total market (legal and illicit) estimated at $100B annually. Minnesota is now part of that booming market.

  • Kenny: "We love our weed. And that's what we're going to talk about today…" [02:26]

• Current Law Recap (as of Aug 1, 2023)

  • Over 21? You can possess up to 2 oz in public, up to 2 lbs at home, 8 grams concentrate, and some edibles.
  • Home grow: Up to 8 plants (maximum 4 flowering), enclosed and locked at a primary residence.
  • Kenny: "If you think to your old days... we're talking a lot of weed that you can possess..." [05:34]

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2. Legislative Blunders and Market Dysfunction

• Licensing & Business Barriers

  • Lawmakers aimed to help small businesses—but execution made it nearly impossible unless you have serious cash.
  • Stefan: “If you don’t have access to a half a million dollars or more, like this isn’t the game for you." [08:17]

• Supply Chain Debacle

  • Retail licenses were issued before cultivation licenses, so stores have no product—except what they can buy from tribal growers, often lower quality at high prices.
  • Stefan: “…the tribes are in a position of power and they can charge astronomical amounts of money for their subgrade quality product and these retailers are forced to pay it or... not be able to pay rent..." [08:17]

• Failure to Learn from Other States

  • Michigan cited as a success template, but Minnesota refused to copy it, citing constitutional and infrastructure differences.
  • Jay: “…when I went to Menominee, Michigan... there would, I think, at least six or eight dispensaries right on the main drag… In Minnesota... we just have a handful, if that. So we're way behind schedule.” [12:11]
  • Stefan: “We wrote this bill in a way to ensure that it’s no longer criminalized, to give people access… But let's get this product growing as quickly as possible.” [14:21]

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3. Micro, Meso & Macro Licensing Explained

• Definitions & Tiers
  • Micro License: 5,000 sq ft grow canopy, 1 retail store, extraction, processing.
  • Meso License: 15,000 sq ft, 3 retail stores, vertical integration.
  • Macro: Large/bulk cultivators.
  • Focus was meant to be on "micro" and "meso" to help small operators, but capital requirements are crushing.
  • Stefan: "The small business focus, at least from my perspective has been the mezzo, micro stuff." [10:22]

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4. Social Equity Provisions—Good Intent, Bad Results

• “Social Equity” Licenses
  • Intended to help those harmed by old cannabis laws; in reality, lacked support to succeed, especially financially.
  • Kenny: “…are they going to be a front for people who do have money, or are they going to get the license and then sell the license, if it's possible, to bigger corporations?” [16:00]
  • Stefan: "After they rolled out the qualifications for social equity… 70% of the state’s population qualified... so, like, how is that really helping anyone?" [17:04]
  • Out-of-state investors are actively exploiting this loophole, offering to buy licenses off social equity winners.

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5. Medical vs. Recreational—Uneven Playing Field

• Medical Dispensaries’ Advantage
  • Large medical operators (e.g., Green Goods, Rise) given special regulatory leeway, allowed to “grandfather” in and sell recreational, while new retailers wait for supply chain.
  • Stefan: “Now they [medical companies] were the good old grandfather clause, right? Like you're already established, you have the infrastructure. Maybe we just let you start selling...” [19:53]
  • This undermines small business competition; "Before he can even... open the doors, he's screwed." [21:57]

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6. Black Market Still Thriving

• Loopholes and regulations are keeping the illicit market alive and well—most people are still buying from “their buddy that grows weed” for vastly less money.
  • Stefan: "It's not at all how they thought it was... another example how the state... is extremely out of touch with the constituents..." [20:59]

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7. The Home Grower Revolution (and Demise of the Medical Program)

• Home Grow as the Big Win
  • Despite all mismanagement, the right to home grow is transformative, especially for medical patients.
  • Stefan: “The real win… was the homegrown side of things. Giving people the access, the ability to cultivate their own at home was an amazing win...” [33:50]
  • Many medical patients are now home-growing and leaving the medical program, helping each other via informal “grow clubs.”
  • Jay: “The medical guys are doing this on their own because it’s cheaper than going to the dispensary for their meds.” [37:41]

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8. Consumer Experience: Price and Potency Woes

• High Prices & Weak Edibles
  • Retail cannabis is overpriced: $100 for a quarter ounce (often double what one would pay on the street).
  • Low-potency edibles (5–10mg max), compared to much higher strength products in states like Colorado and California.
  • Kenny: “The gummies… even though if you're a regular user… not that powerful. But if you can't sleep... it's changed my life.” [25:56]
  • Anticipation that rules will loosen: “The adult use market is going to allow higher milligrams in those beverages and gummies.” [29:57]

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9. How it All Went Sideways: Lobbyists & Lawmakers

• Changes to the Bill
  • The version written by stakeholders was "solid," but legislative wrangling and lobbying changed and diluted it, favoring big business.
  • Stefan: “The bill was initially designed and written to help small businesses… What came out allowed current operations to flourish rapidly while stifling small businesses. It… absolutely destroyed all of the low dose and hemp operators..." [32:56]

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10. If There Was One Thing They Got Right…

• Home grow wins, hands down—a consistent bright spot amid all the bureaucratic clouds.
  • Stefan: “The homegrown guys, from my perspective, was for all this and the rest of it is like, cool, we might… make some money… but at the end of the day, Home grow is providing everyone the apps they need if they choose to take that path.” [33:50]

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11. Oddball Moments & Garage Logic Banter

• On Old-School Home Growing:
  • Kenny (on growing weed in the 80s): "It's not like it was, you know, back in the 80s and 90s. It's pretty easy these days." [34:39]
• On Smoking vs. Vaping in Coffee Shops:
  • The hosts muse about starting a “Crabby Coffee Shop” where you can smoke weed inside, but smoking cigarettes would get you kicked out. [39:22]
• A Bird Flew Through Jay’s Window:
  • Unexpected digression as a grouse crashes through Jay’s window in the woods—leading to comic lamentations about winter repairs and plans to eat the offending bird.
    • Jay: "What kind of bird is it? I'm eating it when I get home tonight. I'm that mad. … A grouse. How does a grouse go through a window? Seriously?" [48:44]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "If you don't have access to a half a million dollars or more, like this isn't the game for you."
  —Stefan Egan on capital requirements for new cannabis businesses [08:17]

• “Where there's a will, there's a way, where there's a gap, it will be exploited.”
  —Stefan Egan on the realities of the social equity loophole [17:04]

• "The real win... was the homegrown side of things. Giving people the access, the ability to cultivate their own at home was an amazing win for everyone that’s a cannabis induced or patient."
  —Stefan Egan [33:50]

• “Tons of really good hemp operators... had to close up shop because the state decided to roll this out. I mean, this thing destroyed people very, very quickly.”
  —Stefan Egan [32:56]

• "It's not going at all how they thought it was. Another example how the state is extremely out of touch with the constituents of the state."
  —Stefan Egan [20:59]

• “The medical guys are doing this on their own because it’s cheaper than going to the dispensary for their meds.”
  —Jay [37:41]

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Important Timestamps

• [03:00] Introduction to Stefan Egan & background
• [05:34] Overview of Minnesota’s cannabis laws & possession limits
• [06:58] Black market’s continued dominance post-legalization
• [08:17] Small business challenges under current licensing scheme
• [12:11] Michigan as a "template" for a functional market—why didn't MN copy?
• [16:00] Social equity licenses & their unintended consequences
• [19:53] Medical dispensaries’ advantage over new recreational entrants
• [20:59] State’s out-of-touch approach and black market boom
• [25:56] Consumer prices, demographics, and the allure of edibles
• [29:57] Future potency of edibles and beverages
• [32:56] How the rollout devastated low-dose and hemp businesses
• [33:50] Home grow: the “real win” of legalization
• [37:41] Impact on the medical program and rise of home grow co-ops
• [48:44] Jay's story: a grouse flies through his cabin window

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Summary

Overall, this episode is a candid, sometimes exasperated assessment of Minnesota’s bumpy road to cannabis legalization—spotlighting legislative blunders, the complex licensing landscape, black market persistence, and the enduring saving grace of home cultivation. Stefan Egan’s insights, alongside Jay and Kenny’s everyman gripes and gallows humor, render a picture both instructive and entertaining for anyone interested in the real-world impacts of marijuana policy gone sideways.

If you want to understand why Minnesota's much-heralded weed rollout feels like chaos for entrepreneurs and everyday stoners alike, this is an essential episode.

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Transcript

[Jay]

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[Stefan]

Hey, Garage Logic fans. I do a podcast on the Garage Logic Network that comes out every Wednesday and Friday. Now twice a week. But here's an important caveat. There is zero logic available in my show. In the formal definition of logic, of course, life is a yin and yang kind of thing. There's the logic side and then there's the what the hell side, which needs to get its exercise. So come for the what the hell and stay for the. You've got to be kidding me. Mishki. Now, Wednesdays and Fridays, twice a week.

[Kenny]

J. Coles. Kenny, listen to this. In 2024, Americans spent an estimated 31.4 billion on legal marijuana. Total spending on both legal and illicit sources. That's your buddy that sells weed. Is significantly higher with some estimates. It's hard to nail down, but the copy here says some estimates placing the overall market size at over 100 billion annually. Holy.

[Jay]

That's just the U.S. we're talking.

[Kenny]

We love our weed. And that's what we're going to talk.

[Jay]

About today on Crabby and then Kenny, just to make sure. So you're talking 100 billion, just us, right? So not even Canada, Mexico. All our friendly neighbors.

[Kenny]

I would hope that makes us the global leader. I mean, we got to win at something. Let's hope it's weed, huh?

[Jay]

Well, we can't be far behind at second place at all. If we're at 100 billion. We can. We got to be at least top five.

[Kenny]

You know what, Amsterdam, you can suc. Jamaica, you're amateur.

We've had a guest. We have A guest, Jay?

[Jay]

Yes, we do. Stephan Egan is his name. He's really nice to join us because we were able to reach him yesterday. And so it's kind of short notice, but Stefan's our weed guy. Any questions you want to know about weed, he'll try to answer, but I can tell you right now, after doing a couple of news stories with him at Channel 5, he can answer your questions. Stefan is a marijuana, cannabis, however you want to phrase it, consultant nationwide. And he's one of us. He's right here in Minnesota.

[Kenny]

Cool.

[Jay]

So Stephan's traveled the country, knows other states, laws and regulations, what they've done well, what they haven't done well, what Minnesota's done well, what Minnesota hasn't done well. And Stefan, plug the name of your consulting company, because I had it in my notes, and I, as you heard, I'm dealing with some crazy stuff. They're sitting in the car. Tell them the name of your. Let's give a little plug first for your company, your consulting business.

[Stefan]

Well, thank you, Jay. I appreciate the introduction. So the company is Bella Blommy, stands for beautiful flower. Yeah. We are a cannabis consulting firm as well as a licensed meso operation within the state of Minnesota.

[Jay]

Oh, okay.

[Stefan]

Meso, meaning.

Meso, is a vertically integrated license type under the Minnesota's cannabis program.

[Jay]

Gotcha.

[Stefan]

Gives us 15,000 square feet of canopy, free retail stores and extraction, processing, manufacturing.

[Jay]

Got it.

[Kenny]

Okay. I want to establish. I want to give some background for listeners and viewers who might not be fully aware of what's been happening. You know, weed is legal, and that's about all you know. I want to talk about what we can do, what you can do as a Minnesotan right now. And this was established and started and went into effect on August 1, 2023, if you're over 21. You may use, possess, or transport cannabis paraphernalia. You can possess or Transport up to 2 ounces of weed in public places. And here's where it gets really interesting. You may possess up to £2 of weed in a person's private residence. Now, if you think to your old days, and maybe some of you are in your 40s, your 50s, your 60s, and you used to buy, like, say, a quarter ounce or an ounce at a time. There's 16 ounces in a pound, so. Right. Yeah. So we're talking a lot of weed that you can possess, and it loses me when it goes to grams. You can possess or Transport up to 8 grams of adult use concentrate, and you can possess or transport edible cannabis or Products lower potency. Hemp edibles infused with a combined 800mg or less of THC. I don't know what that means, I'm going to be honest, but I do want to read something about growing weed. If you want to grow weed in your basement, you can have up to eight plants with no more than four being mature or flowering. So. And that all depends on light cycles. Flowering plants may be grown at a single residence as long as it's the primary residence and you're 21 or older, and those plants must be enclosed, locked, et cetera, et cetera. So that's kind of where that is where we're at right now.

But.

From what I can tell, the lawmakers have screwed up every. Every opportunity they possibly can. In my opinion, and Stefan, you might disagree with me, I think the current laws on growing and possessing has made the black market flourish. And I don't know how any retail outlet is supposed to compete with your buddy that grows weed. Am I off base there?

Not at all.

[Stefan]

You're accurate.

It's going to make retail very, very difficult. At the end of the day, you know, they're going to be paying more for their products coming from the retails, exponentially more than what they are paying from their friend down the street. Sure, the quality will likely be better in theory through the testing program. It will be a safer product to consume, but at the end of the day, money is tight for everybody right now, and people are going to be looking to secure their cannabis as cheaply as possible.

[Jay]

You know, you said you agree with Kenny that the lawmakers didn't do their job very well. I think Kenny said screwed up. Can you.

[Stefan]

Yeah, you know, part.

[Jay]

Did they screw up, Stefan?

[Kenny]

Everything.

[Stefan]

Well, I would say what. What was, what wasn't screwed up would probably be easier at the end of the day. And I say that knowing that it is extremely difficult to take nothing and then create an industry from that. Nothing. Right. I get that the feat was. Was big. It was a lot of work to get it done. But at the end of the day, the bill itself was. Was written with the intent of helping small business. And the way it was rolled out, it stifles small business. So that's. That's one aspect.

[Jay]

How so?

[Stefan]

I think.

[Jay]

Stephan. Let me stop you there. Let me stop you there. How does it stifle small business?

[Stefan]

Cannabis is extremely expensive to operate, to start up. Extremely, extremely expensive. And the way that they've set up this licensing and all these requirements for the licensing, you know, if you don't have access to a half a million dollars or more like this isn't the game for you. So if you are coming in with a social equity license, chances are you went and you got a micro license and you said, you know what, I will then start a retail operation so I can make some money. And then, then I'll build out micro and then I'll build out the rest of my business. Well, because the state chose not to front load cultivation and supply chain and they started issuing these retail licenses, we have all these stores popping up with no supply chain. Now they can get their product from the tribes, but the tribes, the product first off isn't as quality as it needs to be for the market. Secondly, the tribes are in a position of power and they can charge astronomical amounts of money for their subgrade quality product and these retailers are forced to pay it or they sit on their lease and not be able to pay rent for the next six months until the market supply chain catches up.

[Kenny]

Let's back up a second. Stephan, describe for those who don't know micro versus macro, there's two different options if you want to grow and sell or just grow. Could you describe that for us?

[Stefan]

Yeah. So there's several license types within the state's program. You know most of what's being talked about are the two.

License and that micro license allows you 5,000 square feet of mature plant canopy. It allows you one retail store. It allows you extraction, refinements and consumer product manufacturing. The meso license is essentially a step above that which gives you 15,000 square feet of mature flowering canopy, three retail stores and then also that vertical production stuff within it as well.

[Kenny]

Okay.

[Stefan]

And now there's other, there's other more advanced license, larger licenses like bulk cultivators. They're both retail. At the end of the day the small business focus, at least from my perspective has been the mezzo Microsoft.

[Kenny]

So Jay, if we were going to start doing this at the crabby coffee shop, I think we would apply for a micro.

[Jay]

Yes.

[Kenny]

And we've got a lot of empty basement space. We'll just make a grow room downstairs and we'll do and we'll just sell minute, maybe just single rolled cigarettes to our customers.

[Jay]

I'm fine with that. The only problem is I might use it all before I sell it but.

[Kenny]

Well, hold on there. And Stefan.

Can these micro businesses also get a license to use the product on the premises? So you could get a cup of coffee and a doobie?

[Stefan]

Yeah. So there's an endorsement available for on site Consumption and endorsements available.

For having events or holding events as well. But my understanding is it's not a constant thing. It's something that has to be applied for in advance of your intended time.

[Kenny]

Yeah. And then renewed on a yearly basis.

[Stefan]

Yes.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

Yep. Exactly. Exactly.

[Kenny]

Jay, do you have anything. I've got a million questions, but I want to let you in here if you have any questions at all.

[Jay]

Well, because I know you had mentioned you'd done a bunch of research over time, because I was going to let you carry most of that because you got a lot of questions. The only thing I wanted to ask Kenny. I think I've asked Stefan this before in the stories I've done with him. I don't understand why Minnesota couldn't take an example like Michigan, where it seems to me has done a very good job. Why don't you just. That's your template. Why don't you take what Michigan did and just copy it and get it up and running? Because, Stephan, when I went to Menominee, Michigan, I crossed the bridge from Wisconsin, from Marinette over into Menominee, and there would, I think, at least six or eight dispensaries. Right on the main drag. Yeah, right.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And I had choices galore. I had price differential. I had options. And I started talking to, you know, naturally, as I talk too much, I started talking to the people that were working there, and they explained how they did it and how Michigan did it and how well it's been working. And there's stores everywhere in Minnesota. We were. We were told we would have all these options and dispensaries by 2025. We're going into 2026, and we just have a handful, if that. So we're way behind schedule. The taxes are outrageous. Stefan, I don't. Is that where a mistake was made? Where we just didn't copy and paste something like what happened in Michigan?

[Kenny]

Well, that's one mistake, Jay.

[Jay]

But. Yeah, you know what I'm saying.

[Stefan]

I'd say that's a mistake. Yes. But if you remember last year.

[Jay]

And why wouldn't you start.

[Stefan]

Last year we did an interview and I told you.

[Jay]

Yeah, right.

[Stefan]

And I totally agree. You know, we did the interview last year. I told you we're not going to see any movement in the market until maybe end of Q1, 2026.

[Kenny]

Wow.

[Stefan]

That's when things will start maybe catching a little traction. It's not at all what the state told or promised people.

[Jay]

No.

[Stefan]

And it's an unfortunate reality. And you know, my conversations with the state like they've said this multiple times. You know, there's something within our constitution that doesn't allow us to just pay. Right. And I get that, I get, you know, you want to have your own thing and stand on your own laws, but that doesn't mean you can't reword it.

[Jay]

Right.

[Stefan]

Just doesn't mean you can't use it as a template in a blueprint and move that forward.

[Jay]

Right.

[Stefan]

And then their, their response rebuttal to that is, you know, these other states had. Had infrastructure in place to allow them to scale into a recreational market. And to some extent that's truthful. You know, Michigan had their caregiver program and medical and then they scaled into adult use recreational. So there was some infrastructure that could supply that product to the recreational market.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Stefan]

And I'll tell you guys, we pushed hard as stakeholders right after this bill passed to get the state to understand, like, look, supply chain is going to be a problem. We wrote this bill in a way to ensure that it's no longer criminalized, to give people access, to give veterans like myself affordable access to quality health care at the end of the day. So let's get there and we need to ensure that supply chain is available. Let's front load. So if everyone who applies for a license gets that pre approval process, they're allowed to start their process immediately and then we'll catch up. Right, the state will catch up and finalize these licenses.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

But let's get this product growing as quickly as possible.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

And I tell you, we got a phone call. I'll never forget this. It was a Friday afternoon at 4:15. I was headed into a family member's wedding and we get a phone call or an email requesting an immediate stakeholders meeting from Charlene Briner, who was the director at the time. Now it's 4:15 on a Friday. The government says it's time to have a stakeholder. Yeah, got it. This can't be good. So she gets us all together on the phone and she.

And she's like, I just want to let you guys all know that we, we can't approve the early cultivations. And that was the end of it. And then it was never talked about again. And then, you know, the two med companies stepped in and said, we'll provide the product. And then the tribe said, we'll provide the product. But the reality is they're functioning businesses. So they may want to provide the product, but they're also going to be in control and selective on how they roll that product out because They've got businesses. Yeah, yeah, exactly, exactly. So it's been. It's been a mess since the beginning.

[Kenny]

One of the things that I thought was really fascinating and maybe pretty stupid was the social equity portion of the applying for licenses. And I say that because. And the social equity thing was if you were convicted or you had issues with marijuana laws in the past, or if you fit a certain demographic, you jump to the head of the line. And the reason I had a problem with that is because in my mind, those people, and I know I'm painting with a broad brush here, and I'm sorry if I'm wrong, those people don't have money. They don't have the startup capital to do that. And I started thinking and concocting scenes in my own twisted mind that now, okay, so then are they going to be a front for people who do have money, or are they going to get the license and then sell the license, if it's possible, to bigger corporations? How is that? Am I on track there? Or is that completely wrong?

[Stefan]

You're not, you're not off base, Kenny. You're not off base. I mean, at the end of the day, it's. It's business in America and it's no different than any other business. Where there's a will, there's a way, where there's a gap, it will be exploited. You know, I would say after they rolled out the qualifications for social equity, I think it was something like 70% of the state's population qualified for social equity. Right. So, like, how is that really helping anyone? Yeah, I'm not, I'm not sure.

[Jay]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

And then by constitution, we weren't allowed to not include people from out of state. Right. So then we've got out of state people that are applying.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

I'm familiar with operations that were out of state backing and saying, hey, we'll cut you $100,000 check once you get licensed.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

There was all kinds of stuff happening in the background. And at the end of the day, like, you have no choice but to rely on the regulatory agency to be the ones to step up and enforce things. And I'll be the first one make eyes. Like, I'm very familiar with the other side of things before regulation came out, right?

[Kenny]

Oh, sure.

[Stefan]

And I see this as an opportunity for people such as myself, people that come from that world to step in, into a legitimate business, utilize that skill set, make some money, provide for their families, but also offer quality controlled products to consumers. And it's totally doable, but at the End of the day, there's not many that have access to the capital that's required to get this done. It's not cheap, it's extremely expensive. And I feel like the way that they rolled this out set people up to get their dreams and hearts crushed and their life savings destroyed.

[Kenny]

Okay, I want to tell you about a friend of mine. A friend of mine my age ran a very, very successful business with high end clients. He was able in the last few years to sell that business, retire, but then he has now become a partner in a cannabis store in one of the suburbs. He was lucky enough and he currently has a business that's selling the gummies and the other stuff that's legal to sell. Right, but he was lucky enough to be chosen in this lottery and granted a dispensary license. But he can't start selling flowers and other products until the state says it's okay. Right? Meanwhile, and I just learned this from talking to him, there are medical marijuana dispensaries around the metro in the state that are already selling flowers and other products over the counter to consumers. How is my buddy with his operation supposed to compete against a business also in his suburb that's already selling flowers over the count? How do you compete with that?

[Stefan]

You don't. At the end of the day, your buddy should have paid 40 grand a month to a good consultant or a good lobbyist, right? At the end of the day, yeah. It all started with the medical provider saying, or the state saying, medical providers, you can only allocate 30% to your current canopy to the adult use market. And then some things happened and what was written turned into 50% of their canopy can now be allocated for the adult use market. And that was never talked about, discussed beyond the state and those stakeholders, which changes the entire dynamic of the industry as it stands now, they were the good old grandfather clause, right? Like you're already established, you have the infrastructure. So maybe we just let you start selling under the guise that it's going to curve black market consumption or black market purchases. Reality is, it's just, it's not, it won't even put a dent in it, you know, Since August of 2023, Minnesota's consumption on the books has doubled. Went From I think 800,000 metric tons to 1.4 metric tons a year consumed in one year since legalization. Like, it's not, it's not going at all how they thought it was. Another example how the state that is extremely out of touch with the constituents of the state that's Just the way it is.

[Kenny]

Yeah, Jay. For instance, with this issue, I googled earlier today how many medical cannabis stores are in Minnesota? The AI answer. Minnesota has around 16 physical locations for medical cannabis dispensaries. The main provider. There are two main operators, Green goods and Rise. Yep. So these two companies control all these medical outlets. And not all of them are selling flowers over the counter, but there's a good number that are. So the guys that want to do legitimate business, small businessmen, just wants to, you know, have his hands in business and make some money.

[Jay]

He's.

[Kenny]

Before he can even open, throw the shingle out front and open the doors, he's screwed.

[Jay]

He's already behind the eight ball. And when I covered the medical marijuana stuff and I talked to Stefan about this in one of my stories, they set it up this way. Where there could only be two license holders. Correct, Stefan? There can only be two. And before it was rise, it was something else. What was it called before it was Rise?

[Stefan]

Leafline. So it was originally Vireo and Leafline were the two.

[Jay]

Yeah. And now it's rise. And why would we, Kenny, Why would we start that.

In a free marketplace? Why do we start with just two? Who decided just two was gonna be the answer?

[Kenny]

That's the opposite of free market.

[Jay]

That's the opposite of free market. And now as we roll into what you're talking about, Kenny, we set up, this is the way. This is what drives me nuts. We could have easily just had the template from a Michigan or pick another state that's had success. And I'm not saying there wouldn't be bums, probably would be. But to me, this has been an. And Stephan, correct me if I'm wrong, I feel like to this point. And how many directors of the cannabis office have we had? How many interim directors? Three, four now. Right. So we can't even get any continuity into who's running it for the state. To me, I would say so far, this program has been an abject failure.

[Kenny]

Yeah. Without a doubt.

[Jay]

For the consumer, for the business guy, for investors. Everything has been so clouded and so screwed up. And here's another interesting thing, Stefan. I've been told that the tribes will import a lot of their stuff. Is that accurate? Some of their weeds coming to a lot of state. Not all of it.

[Stefan]

I don't want to speculate.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Stefan]

You know, but I would say that supply chains are supply chains and they've been well established for a long time.

[Jay]

But look at this, Stefan. It only would stand to reason because we don't have enough supply in Minnesota. Did you not tell me that? Okay, so we're speculating. We're speculating. So if Minnesota doesn't have enough in the supply chain, do the tribes have enough where they can sustain all of their own product? Or at least in the beginning they.

[Stefan]

Had to be bringing their current cultivations. No, no.

[Jay]

So again, we're speculating. But. Okay, so they're got to be getting their weed from across the state line. Now that doesn't meet the regulatory requirements. Right. We don't know what.

[Stefan]

But they're not required to meet those regulatory compliances.

[Jay]

So another messed up loop in this. The way it was. The law was written. I think I just got, I think I just want to vent more than anything else today.

[Stefan]

Well, I'm here for you, man. You can use my shoulder anytime.

[Jay]

And look at, I told Kenny this. I go, I take care of a friend of mine, couple of strokes, she needs the weed. I go up to the dispensary in Duluth. I'm like, I'm only an hour away. I got some doctor appointments up there now. I walked out of there, Steph, and I couldn't believe what an ounce was. A half ounce was over $200 with taxes.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

What I go down the street.

[Stefan]

Like I said, it's not going to be cheap. It's not. And we're fortunate in the way that we approach things and the way I guide my clients, Clients to approach things. It's, it's farming. At the end of the day, margins matter. And you should be, your focus should be creating the highest quality crop you can for the lowest input cost you can. That's, that's your baseline. Because at the end of the day, the consumers, they need access to quality, low cost product.

[Kenny]

I asked my buddy about this. I asked him why. I'm very curious about the demographics and who would actually pay at a retail store and how much they would pay. And he said, right now, the pricing, it matches what you said, Jay. The pricing on medical cannabis dispensaries is about 100 bucks a quarter. And so, you know, that, that makes sense. His demographic seems to be older people who don't have a buddy or they haven't smoked or partaken, you know, in 20 years.

So. But I think.

There'S so many people growing weed and I know they're paying a lot, lot less than $100 a quarter. I mean, it's like the old days where you were paying 25 a quarter. That's how cheap it is right now. But you brought up Your girlfriend. And during Thanksgiving, I'm sitting around with my family and these are straight laced, God fearing, church going people. And they have all had gummies. And the gummies, even though if you're a regular user of weed, the gummies, not that powerful. But if you can't sleep, if you have problems getting to sleep, you eat a gummy 45 minutes an hour before bed and you actually get the privilege of sleeping eight hours. It's amazing. And I'll admit it, I've done it, because I have. I have a hell of a time getting to sleep and these things. About three times a week I get a full night of sleep and it's changed my life.

[Jay]

Yes, 100%. Same here. And Kenny, I don't apologize anymore for using weed and eating gummies. You want to know why? It's legal, damn it. So I don't run around and pretend like I don't. I don't really smoke a lot of it, to be honest with you. I prefer the gummies. I do for the reason you talked about. So, you know, to me, this is something that there's a consumer demand, it's legalized with a consumer demand, and we've done everything within our power to screw it up. Not to mention, Stephan, I want to know how much tax revenue are we missing out on by having it so set up so poorly? It's got to run into the tens of millions of dollars, if not hundreds of millions of dollars. Am I right?

We lose him.

[Stefan]

Yeah, I don't think he.

[Jay]

Might have lost him.

[Kenny]

I think we might have lost him.

[Jay]

Maybe have him shut her down and bring him back up.

[Kenny]

Stefan? Yeah. If you can log on or reboot or do something. Meanwhile, Jay.

The Minnesota gummies are not powerful. And my next question for Stefan was, is that going to change? Because if you go to Colorado or California, their gummies individually are much more powerful than they are here in Minnesota.

[Jay]

Because I think ours are 5 milligrams 10. Well, 10. But you. But, but you. But, but I think you. When I buy it at the dispensary, I get the 10, but I have to cut it in. How's that work?

[Kenny]

Yeah, they're 10. They should be most of them. They can be less than 10, but they can't be any more more than 10. Right? Yeah. And same with the drinks, too.

[Jay]

That's it.

[Kenny]

Yeah. Yeah. So if you're a regular user, you're not eating and you want to party, you're not eating one gummy, you're taking a ham.

[Jay]

If you want to use it to party yet.

[Kenny]

Yes. And the prices are outrageous.

[Jay]

And that's primarily why I told you the other day on the phone. I use it like you. I like to sleep with it. I really do. You take it around 7, 8 o' clock at night and by 9, 10, you're ready to go nighty night. And you sleep really well.

[Kenny]

Yeah, but that's why you do. You don't take any more than that. You guard them because.

[Jay]

Right.

[Kenny]

You know, I need to get to sleep here. You're not going to be partying with my gummies. You. Because I. My sleep is more important than partying. I think we have Stefan back. Are you there, sir? No, we don't.

[Stefan]

There we go.

Yeah, I switched from Internet to cell phone, so hopefully that work. Yeah.

[Kenny]

No, you're very. You're very skinny on your.

[Jay]

Lost some weight.

[Kenny]

Your box is really narrow, but you sound really good.

[Stefan]

Yeah.

[Jay]

As long as we got you.

[Kenny]

So we were just talking about gummies and do you. For what do you see the future of gummies and edibles and drinks? Right now we're at. Is it 10 milligrams per? Will that go up?

[Stefan]

Yeah, well, the rec market is going to. The adult use market is going to allow higher milligrams in those beverages and gummies.

[Kenny]

So you'll.

[Stefan]

You'll see concentrations on that stuff go up exponentially. Yeah. You know what I've seen in other markets? You know, things like the drinks. There's a. It's a novelty of access thing. They were popular in Minnesota because we had nothing else and people could buy them. Yeah, but in other markets you kind of see the demand for those fall off once they have access. Cannabis products.

[Kenny]

Sure.

[Jay]

So when I go to the dispensary, I was trying to figure this out with Kenny. They give me gummies and it's weird. Mine come 10 milligrams, but I have to split them in. I have to split them in half because they can only do. So it's like 10 gummies for 50. What's the difference? They can sell them at 5 milligrams or 10. Right. But am I right about that? It just can't be more than 10. Is that the whole deal? That's why I get a weird.

[Stefan]

It has to be a 5 milligram. Yeah, a 5 milligram single. Right.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Stefan]

So that's the max it can be right now.

[Jay]

Okay, got it. Oh, I got it. It can only be five.

[Stefan]

So right. Under the low dose rules. Right. You had single dose, could not be beyond 5 milligrams. So that, you know, terror line essentially was put on the gummy to make a bigger gummy that's more potent. But at least they told you to break it in half and there was a way for you to break it in half.

[Jay]

That's what I was trying to tell Kenny. That's what I was trying to tell Kenny. They said, hey, if you want a 10 milligram, here you go, but you got to break it in half. Well, I don't do that. I just take the 10. But it's still the same as if I took two fives. But it's trying to, you know, it's just easier and it's so stupid.

[Stefan]

Yep. Like.

[Jay]

It is.

[Stefan]

It's. The rules are insane to me. And I really feel. There was a group of us that helped write HF100, which is what, you know, ultimately led to the adult use build going forward. And we, the stakeholders that put that initial build together, man, like, it was solid. It was a solid representation of what the market wanted and what could lead to a flourishing market. And by the time it got to the actual legislatures and some lobbyists got their hands on it, it changed drastically. And this is kind of what we've been left with.

You know, at the end of the day, like, we're here and we'll make it work because businessmen and people that also are passionate about this, we'll figure it out.

[Kenny]

What was their reasoning for changing things. And they're given good, solid advice. I don't understand why they didn't take it.

[Stefan]

Yeah, I think it came down to, you know, at the end of the day, certain lobbyists have better relationships and they're lobbying for specific entities to make sure that they maintain the stronghold and give themselves some Runway.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Stefan]

The bill was initially designed and written to help small businesses in Minnesota succeed into a new market, a new industry. And what came out was a bill that allowed current operations to flourish rapidly while stifling small businesses. Getting even split up did. I mean, look at low dose market everything that the way they route absolutely destroyed all of the low dose and hemp operators in the state. They're closing up shop left and right. The only ones that are still breathing are the ones that had enough capital in their bank account to withstand this. And that's not many. You know, there's. There's tons of really good hemp operators that had quality product on the loto side that had to close up shop because the state decided to roll this out. I mean, this thing destroyed people very, very Quickly.

[Kenny]

Wow. Well, did the state do anything right?

[Stefan]

Yes. Yeah. I firmly believe the real win with the passing was the homegrown side of things. Giving people the access, the ability to cultivate their own at home was an amazing win for everyone that's a cannabis induced or patient. And I think at the end of the day, no matter how bad the market rollout is, the real win is people being able to take their care and their own wellness into their own hands and not rely on the state or insurance or anything else to provide that wellness or help for them. So the homegrown guys, from my perspective, was for all this and the rest of it is like, cool. We might be able to do some business and make some money and provide for our families, but at the end of the day, Home grow is providing everyone the apps they need if they choose to take that path.

[Kenny]

And homegrown, I mean, Jay, if you wanted to grow your own, it's so easy. Right now all you do is go to the Internet and the Internet tells you they'll provide you with every little thing you could possibly think of from finding a place to do it and the room and the temperature and the lights and the plants and which plants. I mean, on and on and on. The. The Internet really helps out. It's not like it was, you know, back in the 80s and 90s.

[Jay]

It's when it was your closet.

[Kenny]

Yeah, yeah, it's. Yeah, yeah, it's. It's pretty easy these days.

[Jay]

Stefan, thanks. We appreciate it.

[Stefan]

Capitalize on that, Kenny. Absolutely. Real quick, just to cap the cost for you to go buy four apes.

Current market. You spend that money and buy yourself a home that handles everything you need to grow your own cannabis in your basement or in the closet or in a shed at home. So it's very, very cost effective to grow your own product at home safely. And as much as you want, or at least up to £2.

[Jay]

We're all taking notes.

[Kenny]

You, you. You broke up there. But I think. Are you making reference to grow tents where you can just go into a store and buy virtually everything you need to set up an operation? Is that what you're.

[Stefan]

These tents, these kits for 500 bucks.

Gives you everything you need and instructions you need to grow. It's so cost effective, it's cheap.

[Jay]

All right, that's good. Good stuff, Stefan.

[Kenny]

Thank you, Stefan.

[Jay]

Well, we'll have you on again.

[Kenny]

Yeah. And hopefully we'll have a better connection. Jay, let's take a break and then you and I need to chat for a minute. We'll be right back.

That was frustrating, Jay.

[Jay]

Yeah. Because he had good stuff.

[Kenny]

Breaking up. Yeah, I was really, like I said, I mean, look at this. Look what I've got here.

[Jay]

I know.

[Kenny]

Look it. I got a whole file.

[Jay]

But, you know, I've been saving this.

[Kenny]

Stuff ever since they pushed it through.

[Jay]

Awesome. I'm glad you did. We needed it today.

[Kenny]

They've just made mistakes along the way. Every single thing they've done seems like a mistake. And like Stefan was saying, he was breaking up really bad. But it's hurting the small businessman.

[Jay]

Yep.

[Kenny]

And the only people that are surviving are people that are putting their life savings into this just to stay close to in the black.

[Jay]

Right. And risking. Really.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

They're putting it all up. And it's a roll of the dice right now.

[Kenny]

Right.

[Jay]

Here's another interesting thing we couldn't even get into with him. Kenny. I'm pretty tight with the medical marijuana guys. Patrick McClellan, just like Stefan, helped write the whole law, the whole nine yards. He's got Ms. Many of the medical people in the medical patients in the program, now that this law is passed, they're growing their own because they can have up to. What did you say, £2?

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

What was it?

[Kenny]

Yeah, something like that. Four plants. The deal with that is nobody's doing that. Well, nobody's growing four plants. Everybody's growing 16 or 32.

[Jay]

And the medical guys are doing this on their own because it's cheaper than going to the dispensary for their meds.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And so that's another ripple to this. And layer to it is the medical guys are leaving the medical program.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And doing their own thing and then helping their buddies out.

[Kenny]

And the medical thing. I know it's got a bad rap, like, especially in California for years and years and years where everybody all of a sudden has, I got a problem, doc. Weak. It's not like that. I mean, you live. You're caring for somebody who absolutely needs. For people with cancer, people that have had strokes and on and on and on. It really, really helps.

[Jay]

It does. And it's usually the oils, and they're taking it in oil form, a lot of them. Yeah. Kenny. It undeniably science has proven that medical doctors will show up and testify at the capitol. But we've now, with this new law, Kenny, to your point that it's been messed up from day one. This new law that's been messed up from day one also kind of has now messed with the medical part of it. And that's sad, because so many People need that help. And now who knows what the future is?

[Kenny]

What I would do if I had a medical need for this, I would get together with a few other people that have a medical need for this.

[Jay]

Right.

[Kenny]

And we could have a grow club and we'd supply each other. And like you said, if you have enough of it, you don't have to smoke it.

[Jay]

Correct.

[Kenny]

Come on, who wants to smoke it? And I didn't even get into the smoking aspect. I really wanted to ask him about. So the Krabby Coffee Shop, when we decided to start selling doobies, and we got to come up with a really wacky, funny name for our doobies.

Are you. Are you're saying. And I was asked, Stefan. So we. You could twist up one and smoke it in the Crabby coffee shop. But if you smoke a Marlboro, I'm kicking you out. Yeah, 100%.

Because that's Sushiray's big deal. He's going, wait a minute. So you can smoke weed, but you can't smoke cigarettes?

[Jay]

But you'd have to probably most likely to get around any. You know, what the cities and counties have done, and no smoking areas. Well, they just extend it to marijuana. Right.

[Kenny]

So.

[Jay]

But if you get the vape. Yeah, if you get the vape, you can do it. So you could bring a vape in here and smoke weed at the Crabby Coffee Shop. I think there's a subsidiary of Crabby Coffee Shop in Amsterdam, actually, because they have the coffee shops with the pot.

[Stefan]

Brownies and everything else.

[Jay]

So perhaps we can open an American version of the Crabby Coffee shop in the red light district. Well, remember, we're minimal effort, maximum glory. That sounds like a lot of ambition.

[Kenny]

Have you been to the fair lately?

[Jay]

No. I don't know.

[Kenny]

Everywhere you go, weed. Yeah. Yeah. You get caught in a traffic jam in the Lowry Hill Tunnel in the summer, you're high before you get to the other end. Just a free high. Just pull in here, drive one miles an hour. By the time you get out of that tunnel, it's a whole new world.

[Jay]

Well, what did Stefan say? The use has gone up. By how much? Yeah. In the state of Minnesota.

[Kenny]

Because it's illegal now.

[Jay]

Because it's legal. And thank God, it should be. It's the dumbest thing ever, but. So the Lowry Hill Tunnel.

[Kenny]

Yeah. No, my boss called me with that. He goes, I was stuck in the tunnel the other day. The whole thing, the whole tunnel smelled like weed. Everybody's sitting in there with their cars.

[Jay]

Road rage is gonna go way down you would think.

[Kenny]

You would think. So let's be honest with everybody.

[Stefan]

Yeah.

[Kenny]

We didn't come up with or you. We, meaning you found Stefan.

[Jay]

Yeah.

[Kenny]

And thought about this yesterday.

[Jay]

Yes. Yeah.

[Kenny]

That's why he was on a video link and not in studio.

[Jay]

Yeah, he said next time he'd come down and join us. Ken.

[Kenny]

Yeah. So if we ever talk about it again, we'll have him in studio because I do have a million questions, but you had yourself a hell of a day and I think you need come sit down on my couch, Jay.

[Jay]

What I need is.

[Kenny]

Tell me about your life.

[Jay]

Roll a doobie for me.

[Kenny]

I don't have any of that. Tell me about your life, Jay. How's your day going?

[Jay]

It was as effed up as you could imagine. Is it for the birds? It's for the birds. Good one, Robbie. Thank you. But, you know, the thing is, I still have my freedom. Okay. I haven't. I didn't have a heart attack today, so maybe it's not that bad, but I don't know. Kenny, Good lord, you got a truck with 240,000 miles. So I had the thermostat go out on it.

[Kenny]

Where were you?

[Jay]

Fortunately, believe it or not, I had to do something for TV yesterday. So I knew I was doing the podcast today. And with the storm coming, I stayed at Lindsey Brown's place. Lindsey Brown, Channel 5 anchor? Yeah, she's got an in law apartment across the street from where she lives, right over here in Como. Over by Fraterloni's.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

Well, Ned. Who runs the Ned, the owner. Ned and Paul own or Ned owns it and Paul's the chief mechanic. They have a service station, gas station right next door to that apartment complex. So I.

[Kenny]

Lucky you're not allowed to complain about this. No, that's how lucky.

[Jay]

Well. Well, it's okay. There is some luck. But damn, I mean, I.

[Kenny]

What happen?

[Jay]

So they allowed me to park in their parking lot while I stayed at Lindsey Brown's last night to avoid the storm so I could get here for the podcast. They said, just leave your keys in it so we can move it. And they moved it, and then it was dead. And what they've discovered was they're like, hey, when you got out of it last night, was the fan blowing real hard on it? I go, yeah, it was. But then I just ignored it, thinking it would go off, you know, turn off at some point. He goes, oh. The fan probably kept running to cool your engine because the thermostat's busted. So it was reading it as if the thermostat was busted. It didn't want to overheat. That killed your battery. So your battery shot and you need a new thermostat. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Kenny]

So.

[Jay]

Okay. No way it gets better. Okay. There's. There is a silver lining. You're right. I was in the goddamn service station parking lot when it happened. Yeah.

[Kenny]

And you're so close you could walk.

[Jay]

I was five steps from it. But. But. Okay. So fine. But still, I had things I needed to do today. I couldn't go anywhere. I was stuck in Lindsey's apartment. It's a nice apartment, don't get me wrong. But. So then I come back when they're done with. They go, yeah, thermostat, you know, new battery, oil pumps going, Jay.

[Kenny]

Oh, no.

[Jay]

Yeah. Starting to. So he said.

[Stefan]

Oh.

[Jay]

Yep. Oh. So I went from 600 bucks for the thermostat, and Ned and Paul were like, you should probably get a new one. You just. I would drive this one. They said, right now you're good for. They said, don't go more than a month or two. Get a new truck.

[Kenny]

But you have to. Yeah. You may as well give up on that thing. You have to drop the pan or lift the engine.

[Jay]

Yep.

[Kenny]

That's surgery.

[Jay]

That's major surgery. That's like a open heart surgery.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And with 250,000 on it now, that's no point. But you know when you have no payment on it, you're going to run it till it dies, isn't it?

[Kenny]

No payments. I can't say enough for Gnome. I'll drive anything.

[Jay]

Me, too. Yeah, well, you should have seen I was battered by a deer. I ran into a post out here in the parking lot. No, I've seen embarrassing of the posts out here in the parking lot. All my red paints on the post out there. I'll show it to you.

[Kenny]

When I see that car, I. I get embarrassed.

[Jay]

Mine.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

Well, you shouldn't be, because I was told in Burnett county that's a working man's car. That's what I was told.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

We're working man up here.

[Stefan]

If you're.

[Jay]

I didn't do any. I didn't do any work. I just totaled it.

[Kenny]

You know, so if your day isn't bad enough.

[Jay]

So then I find out. Okay. Yeah, right. So now it's $600 repair, and I'm told, get ready for another car payment. Okay. That's. I. I hate that. So it starts off bad.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And then 10, 15 minutes before I could tell you I'm Pulling in to come in here.

[Kenny]

We tape at 3 o'.

[Jay]

Clock. Yeah.

[Kenny]

At quarter to three we should all be sitting down talking to each other.

[Jay]

Yes, yes.

[Kenny]

I'm like, where's Jay? Where's Jay? Five, two. Where's Jay? It's one minute two. Jay walks in and his hair is. What little Harry has left is on fire.

[Jay]

On fire. Because, you know, I've told you, I have disabled girlfriend I take care of. So she sends me a text as I'm. I was pulled in at like 2:40 is when I pulled in.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

And I literally two minutes outside this door. Yeah. And she's trying to communicate as best she can. Right. It's short and not very lot of detail. The picture of a bird on the ground with my dog staring at it. And she goes, this just flew through our window.

[Kenny]

In the house?

[Jay]

Yeah, in the house. I'm sorry, in the house. In my cabin up in the woods. And I'm panicking. What do you mean it flew through the.

[Kenny]

What was it, a turkey? It's gotta be pretty big.

[Jay]

I'm thinking something big. Yeah. Like what? But again, she's had a couple of strokes, so cognitively so I said, what do you mean it through? I said, you mean it went through the window? Like all the way through? Right. And she writes back, yes, all the way through. I go, which window? She tells me which window. I go, wait, so is there a big hole in where this window was? Yes, there is, Jay. And there's glass everywhere. I'm like, holy schnit.

[Stefan]

What?

[Jay]

It's going to be 20 below tonight up there. Whatever the hell. It's going to be cold air. So I can't have a bird fly through my damn window in July. No, no. And if it's going to happen in December, it's going to be with the polar effing vortex. Yeah.

[Kenny]

A little bit of cardboard isn't going to keep cold out.

[Jay]

And I. And listen, I ain't Mr. Fix It. I've told you, I put a doorknob on upside down one time.

[Kenny]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stefan]

Literally.

[Kenny]

I don't doubt that.

[Jay]

Okay. That's me and I own it. I don't give a. I don't care. I don't know how to fix it. Now you.

[Kenny]

A window.

[Jay]

I. I can't put in a window. I don't know what to do.

[Kenny]

So did you call Wimpy?

[Jay]

No, Wimpy got my. But I asked her, I said, is Wimpy bend? Is Wimpy got. Because I've got 22 inches at my House right now.

[Kenny]

Yeah, Wimpy's the plow driver.

[Jay]

Yeah. So Wimpy, my plow driver, he came, he got me all. I'm good. Everything's off my driveway.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

But I do have over 20, I got like 22, 23 inches at the house. So I called my buddy Lee Canal. He's a construction guy, he's a contractor up there. I go, lee, I got an emergency. I'm down in the cities doing a podcast with Kenny. I got a blown out window. And he goes, jesus Christ.

[Stefan]

What?

[Jay]

I go, yeah, bird flute. He lives in a cabin on Sand Lake. He's five minutes from me. He goes, what do you mean a bird flew through it? I go, a bird flew through my window? Cat or Lee. He goes, my dad's been up here in this cabin. We've been up here for over 50 years. We never had plenty of birds flew into the window.

[Kenny]

Holy you.

[Jay]

That's what he said. He goes, but not one through. He goes, but I believe it happened to you. I go, yes. I said, lee, if I had any luck at all, would I have. If I didn't have bad luck, would I have any luck at all? He goes, no, you really. He goes, I'm gonna get over there right now. He goes, is Kimberly okay? I go, she's fine, but I gotta. And I said, lee, where do I get a window guy who comes and puts in a window up there? I don't even know. He's in construction. He goes, I don't, I'm have to figure that out for you.

[Kenny]

Especially after 3 o' clock on a day where everybody's trying to get plowed.

[Jay]

Out and it's going to be 30 below in Burnett County. You think anybody's going to want to work when it's 30 below? Hell no. Hell no. It's not like down here.

[Stefan]

No.

[Jay]

They're going to be like, jay, we'll see you next week. So, Kenny, I'm sitting there with a blown out window. You want to know what kind of bird it is? I got a photo of it. I'm eating it when I get home tonight. I'm that mad.

[Kenny]

What is it?

[Jay]

A grouse.

[Kenny]

No kidding.

[Jay]

How does a grouse go through a window? Seriously?

[Kenny]

I think I, I can tell you. I can tell you how it sees the reflection of what's behind it.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Kenny]

And thinks he's fly. He's just gonna keep flying into this nice wilderness. But how it breaks the window.

[Jay]

That's what I'm. That's my question is how does a grouse that big break through. Didn't crack my window.

[Kenny]

The size of a Nerf football.

[Jay]

Yeah, right.

[Kenny]

Blue.

[Jay]

Through. Through the window. There's no window in my house right now.

[Kenny]

I think had a head of steam up.

[Jay]

Son of a biscuit, man. Son of a biscuit.

[Kenny]

When I was a kid, I had a grouse that would walk up to my bedroom window and peck at it.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Kenny]

And I think he thought he was fighting himself.

[Jay]

Yeah, I've seen that. Listen, you know what else has happened in my cabin? So I get that. Let me tell you why.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

I'm upstairs. I got a downstairs finished basement and sliding glass door that goes out. Right. Typical.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

All of a sudden I hear this and I'm like, you know, doing one of these, going, where's that coming from? I turned to Kimberly. That's a lot of help sometimes, right? She goes, I don't know, but I hear it too. I go, I think that's downstairs. I said, usually we hear the woodpeckers on the wall, whatever on the outside. I go, but what's that? I said, it sounds like it's hitting glass down there. Yeah. I said, I wonder what's down. Like, it's wintertime. There's no bear.

[Kenny]

Is there no window?

[Jay]

Well, we don't have a window. Well, so I go down the steps and there's five turkeys, gigantic turkeys. And one lead turkey just pounding away at my. My sliding glass door with his beak. Just pound, bam, bam, bam, bam. Trying to get through my sliding glass door. I charge that window. I think I was in my tighty whities. And I charged that glass window and said, you mfers, get out of here. Chased him all the way, but he was pounding so hard. Kenny. I did think to myself, can he break that thing and get in? I don't know. I doubt it. But now that a grouse went through my window. Ken, why couldn't a turkey peck out my sliding glass door?

[Kenny]

I have a firearm at every door and every window that opens. And I've got a lot of trespassers up here.

[Jay]

Oh, you really?

[Kenny]

Yeah. And they're all four legged.

[Jay]

Okay.

[Kenny]

Or they have wings. They all want to mess with old Kenny.

[Jay]

Do you just settle that dispute right there.

[Kenny]

The pheasants. I have educated the pheasants to the point where I have these old Anderson windows that you crank out.

[Jay]

Yeah.

[Kenny]

And they've got the lever lock.

[Jay]

Yeah, that's right. Yep.

[Kenny]

When I. And the pheasant could be 50 yards away and I click that lock to unlock, they Fly away. They don't even see me. They just hear it.

[Jay]

They know.

[Kenny]

Oh, hell, Hell is coming. We gotta get out of here.

[Jay]

The executioner, the Grim Reapers here.

[Kenny]

Yeah, well, you gotta train these things.

[Jay]

I gotta train them. So, Kenny, you know, I, I, I, I've had plenty of birds since I've lived up there. Fly into the windows and die. I, in my whole life, I, I, I said to my buddy Lee, who's lived up there way longer than I said, you ever heard birds go through? He goes, jay, you're the first person I've known up here has had a bird go through the window and break the glass.

[Kenny]

Can I put a positive spin on this before we go for you?

[Jay]

Yeah.

[Kenny]

Let me put a positive spin on this.

[Jay]

Is there one?

[Kenny]

Yeah. There's no more grouse here where I live, west of Alexandria. Douglas County. Angriest county in the state. We don't like you don't come here. There's no more grouse. And we used to hunt grouse. Grouse all the time, so that's a good sign. You have grouse?

[Jay]

We have a lot of grouse.

[Kenny]

Number two. You know what you're gonna have for supper tonight? The grouse tastes so good. Grouse and pheasant. Oh, my Lord.

[Jay]

I like grouse better than pheasant.

[Kenny]

Yeah.

[Jay]

So I was so angry. I told Ali, I said, lee, make sure that thing stays right on that counter. I said, if you would do me a favor, grab it by its feet, you know, yank its breasts out and clean it up for me.

[Stefan]

You know what?

[Jay]

I might clean it out for you.

[Kenny]

That's the third positive thing. Grouse and pheasant, the easiest bird to clean.

[Jay]

Yeah, just put your feet on their wings and take their feet and yank the breast right out, man. That's what I'm doing. I'm eating that son of a biscuit. I don't know. What is that gonna cost me now? I said 600 bucks for the damn truck this morning, plus the headach the street. And then I told, I got to go get a new truck. What is it? What is a new window like?

[Stefan]

It's.

[Jay]

It's got to be four feet by this. This cabin. When they built it, they did it right. There's windows everywhere. This is not a small window like a bedroom window. It's like out here. What's that going to cost me?

[Kenny]

I. I think you may. You should stop at a dispensary on the way home.

[Jay]

I got some, I have some gummies in the truck, actually.

[Kenny]

Robbie, you got that closed. Music ready?

[Jay]

Damn it.

[Kenny]

Get out of here.

[Jay]

I gotta go, guys.

[Kenny]

Jake, have. Have a good day.

[Jay]

Have a good evening.

[Kenny]

Yeah, we'll come up with something for next week. Sorry about our video connection today.

[Jay]

Yeah, luck of the draw.

[Kenny]

Yeah, but he was good.

[Jay]

He was good.

[Kenny]

He was really good. Thank you anyway for listening to the Krabby. Coffee.

[Jay]

Yeah. Take care. See you next week. Peace.