Stuart Scipione started smoking weed before it was legal, and, if need be, he will smoke if it no longer is.
That being said, it’s not a world he’s anxious to return to. The 43-year-old recalls “a lot of white-knuckle purchases” back when he started lighting up as a twenty-something in Sharon. Those were the days of clandestine meetups behind a 7-11 or in a Jordan’s Furniture parking lot, baggies full of seeds and stems, and evading run-ins with cops — a far cry from the simple dispensary transactions he has since grown used to.
“It was a nightmare,” the Foxborough resident said. “I don’t honestly miss any part of what it was like back in the day.”
A ballot question this November, however, could bring back those hush-hush handoffs. If it passes, Question 8 would make Massachusetts the first state to dismantle its recreational weed market. Not only could consumers no longer buy it, they would not be allowed to grow it at home, either, and the legal limits on possession would be scaled back. The prospect has Scipione considering how he might navigate a rollback on the down-low — without giving up his highs.
“I think I’d probably be hanging out behind a 7-11 somewhere, hoping I’d find someone that looks shady enough to sell me a bag,” he said.
It’s a potential dilemma for many of the state’s regular dispensary customers, who have had eight years being able to buy weed as easily as a bottle of wine or a lottery ticket. The Globe interviewed more than two dozen consumers, and many said they would turn to a patchwork of workarounds — legal or otherwise — if Question 8 were to pass.
Some, like Scipione, said they would revert to the illicit market. Others said they would trek to recreational dispensaries in states such as Maine or Rhode Island, seek a medical card, or flout the rules and grow their own.
Many said legal cannabis helped them live fuller and happier lives. Among nearly all of them, one thing was certain: They weren’t going to let a referendum keep them from their reefer.
“One thing I love saying is, ‘If there’s weed, there’s a way,’” said Joshua DeLillo, an employee at a dispensary in Boston who said he would likely cultivate his own marijuana plants, as he’s done in the past.
Recent polling indicates the ballot measure could be a longshot. But if it passes, the changes would likely force plenty of tough decisions. A recent report by the Cannabis Control Commission found that, between 2019 and 2023, about 14 percent of Massachusetts residents surveyed reported using cannabis daily or nearly every day.
“It’s really a valuable part of my life,” said Arlington resident Maddy Webster, 79. She said she smokes weed or takes gummies at least every two weeks, when she gets together with friends to play “bad guitar and bad ukulele.”
Walking away from weed for good, she added, would “be like never going to a movie again.”
For some, the ballot question evokes images of the speakeasies and bathtub-brewed gin of a century ago, when the sale of alcohol was banned in the US during Prohibition.
“I have great-grandparents who were bootleggers in the South,” said Willie Burnley Jr., a former Somerville city councilor and a weed advocate. “So I have no doubt that if this were to pass, it would do very little to stop the consumption of cannabis.”
Of course, some of those Prohibition-era outlaws got arrested, and the same fate could befall those who refuse to stop consuming cannabis if Question 8 goes through.
The underground market has historically embroiled its participants in legal trouble, with people of color being disproportionately targeted. The law that protected higher limits for home possession would disappear. And crossing state lines with cannabis runs afoul of federal law, though some are skeptical that would mean much.
“That would be very difficult to enforce,” said Alanna Moss, 41, of Malden, who said she would likely go to Maine for her cannabis.
Wendy Wakeman, spokesperson for the Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, the group behind the ballot question, said the measure was intended to improve public health amid concerns of impaired driving and potential mental health impacts. If it passes, consumers must decide whether or not they want to follow the new law of the land, she said.
“Their business is complying or not complying, and facing the consequences,” Wakeman said.
The underground market has other risks as well, including marijuana of questionable quality, or even laced with other dangerous substances. Even so, the report by the state cannabis commission found 24 percent of people who had used cannabis in the past 12 months reported sourcing their weed from an underground dealer between 2019 and 2023, despite the availability of dispensaries.
Kelly Moriarty, a 27-year-old who works at a dispensary in Webster, said she thinks she would be able to navigate the illicit market safely, but worries about people less familiar with the underground terrain.
“That’s when it’s going to start getting kind of scary, especially with the influx of other drugs,” said Moriarty, adding that she would likely seek a medical card for chronic back pain. “It feels silly to take steps back in that way.”
For those who qualify, the tax-free medical market is one legal route the ballot question would not touch. In that respect, Henry Mayper, 30, is ahead of the curve.
The ballot measure, Mayper said, “was finally the kick in the butt” he needed to get a medical card to help him manage his anxiety, depression, and fibromyalgia. He was referred to Leafwell, a health-tech platform that advertises its ability to help patients be “approved for your medical card online in minutes.” The effort cost less than $100.
The only problem? There are no medical dispensaries nearby him in Lynn, and Mayper doesn’t drive. So for now, he’s sticking with recreational. The medical card offers him “a level of security,” he said, though if Question 8 passes, “it will still screw me up.”
All the potential hassles raise a somewhat obvious option: If the ballot measure prevails, why don’t people just quit? It’s a complicated question, particularly as a recent national study showed problem use of cannabis is on the rise.
A number of people told the Globe their use of the drug is woven into everyday routines — a port in the storm they’re not willing to give up.
Jackie Sawicky, 46, has ADHD and says she takes edibles daily to help her focus. Dan Reynolds, 64, finds smoking roughly every other day has helped him drink less alcohol.
“I don’t see it being the type of thing that I would just be like, ‘Well, OK, well, so much for that,’” said David Parillo, 45, adding that he would likely get another medical card for back pain. Taking gummies or vaping once a week or so, Parillo said, has become “part of my routine.”
Noah Risley, 24, takes edibles three to four times a week. “Sometimes my mind is racing, and it helps me get into a more relaxed state,” said Risley, who uses they/them pronouns. Risley said they have considered whether a repeal would, in fact, compel them to just stop.
“Maybe, but I think out of spite, probably not,” Risley said. “I think like any consumer, you take something away, I’ll get it somewhere else.”
Dana Gerber can be reached at dana.gerber@globe.com. Follow her @danagerber6.