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As a regular "waker-and-baker", I'm always looking for a great strain with which to start the day. I want that first hit to kick my brain into gear, get it focused and ready to dive deeply into whatever I'm working on. My baseline sativa day-starter is Durban Poison. That delivers a clean, wide beam of pure focus. Very even-feeling. Some sativas have another gear in them. There's focus plus another level of focus that wants to bore in on whatever it's pointed toward. Super Boof does that for me. That makes it an excellent day starter. Super Boof is lovely on the nose. It's comforting almost. It's sweet, vanilla-y with a hint of fruitiness. The smoke itself was inoffensive. Toasty on the exhale. I'm always about the effects more than smell and taste. That's where Super Boof caught my attention. The onset is Durban Poison like. Rising euphoria. Atop the euphoria is focus. Feels like it's rising up from somewhere inside my conscienceness. Suddenly, I'm several minutes into jotting notes about one of my ongoing creative projects. I can't remember when exactly I started jotting but there are now several pages of very good thoughts. That's what I'm after - a sativa that facilitates my creative process. Super Boof absolutely lives up to its "Super". The "Boof" is entirely ironic.

There are reasons some strains become classics. Chemdawg is a big hitter -- not for the paranoid or otherwise 'faint of heart'. It brings lots of warm euphoria, mental energy, laser focus and even some giggles. Earth, pine, whatever - this could taste like the underside of a shoe and I would still go there cos the buzz is so awesome. I guess that's why it's a classic.

White Buffalo doesn't do subtle. It's named after a buffalo for a reason, I guess. The smoke is a warm and leathery with citrusy notes. And the onset of euphoria is quick. Like a buffalo at speed. The feeling is warm maple syrup slowly pouring down through your brain, melting away anxiety. And then when it's time to work? It focuses like a laser beam. No wonder it's a classic.

A very good strain. The high is floaty -- euphoric and soft -- almost rolling across your mind in gentle waves. What I would call a 'blisser'. Great for the end of the day as you transition from your work strains into your evening or sleep strains.

In a lot of ways, Blue Dream epitomizes where cannabis is heading. It's a crowd pleaser. It works. It's reliable. The truth is, that makes Blue Dream a little 'boring'. Staid almost (like anything cannabis can be 'staid'). It definitely isn't sexy. If we were comparing it to red wine, we'd call it a 'quaffing wine'. Great for a party, maybe not the top choice for a gourmet dinner. But if you're having a burger instead of filet mignon? Blue Dream is perfect. The euphoria comes on quickly. It's not a Big Euphoria -- but a Distinct Euphoria. It's great for working, doing errands, hanging out. Life's equivalent of 'quaffing'.

The Sauce's GG4 genetics make themselves known with a quickening that comes over the top of your head then plunges down into your consciousness with a strong sense of well-being and focus. Definitely a day time strain -- great for work or hanging with friends or taking on the world. A hint of lime fringes the diesel on both the nose and the taste buds.

This one had me at 'Hello'. The nose is intriguing - a hint of fuel but mostly toast and a spice you can't quite put a name to but you know it. The smoke is dense but even. And when the head high comes on -- it's a treat. Starts as a lovely, Peaceful feeling of Calm that seems to ask 'Where ya want to go?' One could answer, "The couch, dude". To which the Peaceful Calm would say, "Let's go become one with the couch." But you could also answer, "Let's go write" or "Let's go hike" or "Let's go see what happens" and the Peaceful Calm would say, "Let's go do that". And that would be the perfect answer. That's what Godzilla Glue feels like. That makes it awesome. But -- caveat -- it is strong, heady stuff. If you have a tendency toward paranoia, this one could be trouble (it's that heady). Otherwise? Do what Godzilla says.

Not merely a good strain -- a GREAT strain. On a normal working day (I write for a living), I line up the strains -- GG4 to begin the day (always) then onto Blue Dream (almost always) then onto Durban Poison and/or White Widow (depending on the flow of thoughts). It's a virtually foolproof flow of warm feelings and intense, damn-the-torpedoes ideas, notions, bits of character & dialogue or whatever's on the docket. And then SOME writing days are REALLY special -- and they deserve an extra special gear. That's when I break out the TRAINWRECK. It's pure awesomeness -- with a head high that comes on strong and effervescent. Great for multi-tasking. Great for staring intently at things and understanding how they work on a nuts n bolts level. Great for bringing out the very best in you.

In a World of Cannabis 'specialization' (with growers getting better and better at heightening THC and CBD numbers all while fine tuning particular flavor notes), OG Kush feels, smells, tastes -- and delivers -- like old school 'reefer'. It's piney and diesel-y, its smoke dense and present and the onset of bridge-of-the-nose-centered euphoria is quick and direct. It's a simple, happy high -- no good for working but awfully good for working one's way through a bag of potato chips either engrossed in some music or a game of college hoops. With OG Kush -- it's all good, man... OG Kush is an 'old reliable'. In a world where sexy alternatives come and go -- OG Kush ain't going nowhere. Good thing, too.

Thin Mint is a perfect 'blisser' -- a strain you'd reach for at the end of a working day to transition you from work to sleep (over the course of an evening filled with sparkling conversation, big thoughts, and a lovely, head-filling sense of contentment. The Durban Poison gives it focus that's softened to a glorious luster by the OG Kush. One could go outside and gaze at the stars with an air of profundity... or, just as eaily (and happily) curl up for a nap. That's a good strain. No -- a great one.