This "backstory" is a part of a collection of articles that describes some of the obstacles that Seven Days reporters faced while pursuing Vermont news, events and people in 2024. Journalism, by its very nature, requires reporters to immerse themselves in the environs they cover. War correspondents get shot at, disaster reporters choke on wildfire smoke, and sportscasters are doused with Gatorade. And occasionally, cannabis reporters get too high for their own good. Cannabis podcaster Kris Brown greeted me in his driveway in pajamas, then led me into a house filled with the pungent aroma of a freshly smoked joint. Six-foot-two, muscular and tattooed, Brown is a combat veteran and a convicted felon. He also has a friendly smile, a meaty handshake and a baritone voice that rumbles like a subwoofer. [content-1] I visited Brown's home studio in Jeffersonville to interview him about his popular weekly podcast, "Cannasations w/Kris," during which he sits down with members of Vermont's cannabis industry for blunt conversations about weed. By that, I mean, they smoke a blunt and chew the fat. Brown's interviews with local growers, processors, dispensary owners and regulators often are less about weed itself than they are meandering conversations steered by weed's intoxicating effects. After I finished my interview, Brown turned the tables and asked if he could interview me for the podcast. Initially, I balked. Getting high during work hours is generally frowned upon, even at an alt-weekly. But the big man twisted my arm, and a fresh doobie, so I donned some headphones and parked myself in front of his mic. A sit-down with WCAX this was not. With the smoke rising and Brown's digital recorder running, I began with a clarification and a precondition. First, I emphasized that anything I said, especially while high, was strictly my own opinion and did not reflect the views of Seven Days or my employers. Second, Brown had to wait to air the interview until my story about him was published a week later — what journalists call an embargo. But embargoing the podcast created a mind-altering dynamic: We started talking about the story I had written about "Cannasations" before I had even written it. "Seven Days just dropped with me in it," Brown said. "It's kinda cool to say, even though it hasn't happened yet ... Smoke weed, and you'll understand." The rest of my interview was too cringey for…