yeah, i agree that mixing it up is a good way to maximise - or at least better notice the subtleties of - the effects.
i think the sophistication (or lack thereof) in most australian cannabis cirlces (as opposed to west coast US, parts of canada or amsterdam) comes down to the size of the market and the demands of most smokers.
it's obviously hard to comment outside of your experience on these kinds of things, as it is illegal and underground, but it seems to me that a lot of smokers will take what they can get, and ask no more.
some people i know prefer 'bushies', but everyone else seems to see hydro as hydro and care little else about it. so long as it's not wet, it weighs up and smells nice, they're happy.
to a lot of people, there are two kinds of weed - not sativa and indica - but bushies and hydro!
i suppose a lot of the time, strains in australia are only really of interest to growers or small groups of educated heads, unless there is some fancy name to throw around (northern lights or whatever 'brand name' strain).
i think there is a perception amongst my group of friends that most 'bikie weed' is shit, grown to maximise profit (and little else) and harvested prematurely.
while awareness of different sorts of cannabis is starting to catch on in australia, thanks to the internet, i think we are taking a step back into the dark ages legislation-wise, having gone from decriminalisation (for possession and a couple of outdoor plants) in most states to this recent widespread banning of paraphernalia. pretty heartbreaking.
i was hoping, in that little dabble with liberalisation, that our cannabis culture would evolve a bit, but i think we will be slipping back into the shadows without having made much progress. this "oil pourer" nonsense is just infuriating.
i think the evolution of cannabis cultures in the last few decades has depended on one really important thing - where archaic laws exist, cannabis culture is stifled. people smoke out of plastic bottles with hosepipe stems and coke-can bongs because there is no interaction or meaningful knowledge shared between smokers. this only increases harm and irresponsible use.
on the other hand, when people can buy and sell beautiful smoking tools (like the spectacular american glassware you see online) and share information without fear of persecution and imprisonment, we see great advances such as the incredible vaporisers you can get nowadays. safer growing and consumption techniques are the result - less ignorance, less harm...unfortunately not what the prohibitionists want; those sadistic fuckers actually want drug users to fuck their lives and bodies up to prove their point, and they engineer this kind of things in their laws in the name of "protecting our kids" and other such manipulative piffle.
perhaps it is more of a cultural thing though? alcohol is legal and accepted here, and australians have a reputation the world over for unsophisticated drinking habits. maybe it is stereotyped cultural snobbery, but i think there is more than a little truth to it.
i would like to think that with a little guidance and education we could all move past this, but maybe that's just how aussies like to party?
either way, at the moment i'm most content when i'm lying in bed with my girl and my vaporiser.
