It’s here! April 20th, also known as 4/20, is upon us – a day celebrated by cannabis enthusiasts worldwide. This year, it conveniently falls on the same weekend as National Cold Brew Day and National Record Store Day, creating a trifecta of paradise for coffee, music, and marijuana lovers.
But how did this seemingly ordinary day in April become synonymous with weed? Forget the rumors about hidden messages in songs or police codes. The truth behind 4/20’s origins is a bit more relatable, rooted in a classic high school experience.
From Buddies to a Bud Holiday
4/20, or April 20th, has transformed into the unofficial stoner holiday, a day to celebrate cannabis culture. The number itself, 420, has also become synonymous with marijuana, often used casually to refer to the plant and its consumption.
So, why the association? You might’ve heard some wild stories – 420 being a police code for weed, the number of chemicals in marijuana that get you high, or even a reference to Bob Dylan lyrics.
The Truth is Simpler
The real story is far less dramatic. While the exact origin remains debated, the most widely accepted explanation points to a group of high school friends hanging out after school.
Back in the early 70s, five students from San Rafael High School in California would meet at a specific time after their extracurricular activities. This group, nicknamed the “Waldos” for their meeting spot by a wall, chose 4:20 PM as their daily rendezvous time. Eventually, they started using “420” as a codeword for smoking marijuana.
One of the “Waldos,” Dave Reddix, later landed a job as a roadie for the Grateful Dead. According to Reddix himself, the band inadvertently helped popularize the term. A flyer circulated by a group of Deadheads in Oakland back in 1990 invited people to smoke at 4:20 PM on April 20th.
This flyer landed in the hands of a reporter for High Times magazine, who published it in 1991, bringing the term to the attention of cannabis enthusiasts nationwide. High Times continued to use “420” in their publications, solidifying its place in cannabis culture.
Steve Bloom, the reporter who received the flyer, later credited the “Waldos” for starting the whole thing. In his words, “they wanted people all over the world to get together on one day each year and collectively smoke pot at the same time.” And that’s exactly what 4/20 has become – a global day to celebrate cannabis culture, born from a simple high school hangout.
