Contributor: Joycelin Arnold
We’ve all been in that position, at one time or another.
You have weed, you have a piece (or papers), but you have no way of firing it up.
You scour through the couch and various pockets, all in hopes of recovering that ever-illusive lighter, but sadly, you continually come up empty-handed. You don’t have to be a seasoned stoner to know that smoking without a lighter is damn near impossible. I mean, sure, smoking weed with matches is fine, but how many of us just have spare matches lying around? Not many, I’m sure.
Need To Smoke, But Don’t Have A Lighter? No Problem. Check Out These Helpful Tricks
After exhausting every option you can think of, you are left frustrated, and wondering what to do when you have no lighter. Well, have no fear, friends, there are other flame-inducing options out there for you to try. And, honestly, I prefer a couple of these methods over the traditional pocket lighter.
Take the common magnifying glass, for example.
Now, of course, we’ve all seen that stereotypical scene of a neighborhood ne’er-do-well scorching ants on the sidewalk, via the heat created by his magnifying glass, transforming sunlight into a miniature death ray of sorts. To be frank, that sort of insect torture is a bit off-putting, but that doesn’t mean that little brat didn’t have a good idea on his hands.
That’s right, party people, if you find yourself with a packed bowl, but have absolutely no way to light it up, you can position yourself in the warming embrace of some sunlight, and expertly angle your magnifying glass, so that it transmits a hot beam of UV rays directly onto your bowl. Then, in no time at all, if you keep a steady hand, you’ll start to see your bud ignite, simply with the help of this photosynthesis-based methodology. And, in my opinion, it’s the most natural way to smoke bud.
Why, I remember when I was in college, celebrating my first 4/20 away from home, I had the privilege of using a magnifying glass to spark up, what ended up being, the most iconic smoke session of my entire life.
Allow me to describe the scene for you, if I may…
It was a typical sunny day in beautiful San Diego, and my buddies and I had already spent the morning passing around bongs and blunts. Basically, we were celebrating to the best of our ability. That’s when one friend, who we affectionately named “Stoner Kev,” told us about a legendary pipe that had been carved out of a cliffside, on the beach, by local surfers a few decades before.
It was located in a super secluded area of Pacific Beach, where you essentially had to traverse through hip-high water for a bit, and mosey around a few corners, before discovering a hidden area, fully equipped with a mini-private beach, and this aforementioned cliff-pipe.
Full of THC and curiosity, we decided to head on out for a baked adventure, solely to see if this magical marijuana oasis actually existed. Well, about 45 minutes and a few soaked basketball shorts later, we found this truly serene destination – and we couldn’t believe our bloodshot eyes. Everything “Stoner Kev” said about this place was true. Needless to say, we were stoked, and couldn’t wait to hit this cliff-pipe, as part of our 4/20 experience.
So, per the usual routine, I started to pack us a bowl in this unique, uber-organic “piece” that was jutting out of the hillside, right there on the water. I actually had a lighter at the time, but I was stopped seconds before flicking the flame by “Stoner Kev” who said, “Dude, if we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it the natural way.”
That’s when he pulled out a comically large magnifying glass out of his backpack, and like a true buddy, positioned the reflective powers of the glass in the ideal spot to expertly ignite my bowl, and I have to admit, that hit tasted better, and more pure, than any other hit I’ve ever had. I still don’t think I’ve enjoyed such a high-quality toke since that day. And to think, it was all enhanced because of the archaic heating powers of a simple magnifying glass.
So, long story short, yes, I think magnifying glasses are a super viable replacement, should you find yourself sans lighter. But that’s not the only other option – obviously. You can also invest in a hemp wick.
Yes, I understand that you’d need to have some preemptive planning in order to partake in this lighter replacement strategy, as it’s not just something you’d find around the house. However, that said, if you are unfamiliar with a hemp wick, you may find yourself inspired by its functionality. Which, I understand, sounds incredibly vague, but I think you’ll comprehend what I mean once you are familiar with what a hemp wick actually is.
So, for those unaware, a hemp wick is just a roll of hemp yarn, basically. It’s a bit sticky, but nothing adhesive or anything. You simply unfurl a tiny bit of this hemp wick from your ball, and ignite it on a stovetop. That little flame that starts to flicker at the end of your wick, will stay lit far longer than just some average string or yarn. You can then gently use this flame to light your bowl or paper.
Then, when you’re done with the flame, simply tamp it out in your ashtray, and boom, that’s it.
Now, by “inspiring” I mean you could employ the same tactic of lighting up a bowl, but with an extended cooking skewer, or something similar to that in nature. These long, wooden sticks are basically just a match without a head. So, if you meander on over to your stove, and ignite one end of a skewer, you can just as easily lay that flame atop your weed, and smoke like you usually would.
Obviously, this route is a bit more dangerous, and not as easy to control, but if you make sure to keep an eye on your flame, and how large (or small) it is the whole time, you should be able to execute a quality smoke session, without any problems whatsoever.
Another quaint smoking product that you may want to keep on hand preemptively, like the hemp wick, is a glass wand. You’d heat up one end of the wand until it is scorching hot – I’m talking like “bright red,” searing hot. Then, once it hits that desired temperature, place the hot end atop your bowl, and inhale. That heat ought to be enough to ignite your bowl, and the rest is stoner history!
And there you have it, folks. A few quick, super easy ways to remedy your lighter-less situation. That way, even if you don’t have a traditional lighter on hand, you can still get just as high without it. I guarantee it! You just have to be resourceful.
