Since firing up their Instagram account for the first time just four weeks ago, Sue and Lee of @420oldfatlesbians have already amassed more than 73,000 fans of their video content, delighted with their deadpan delivery of mom jokes alongside some champion-level weed-smoking. Some of their homemade smoking devices include an empty prune can, a snowball, and a K-Y Jelly container.
With a decorative “INSPIRE” sign serving as the backdrop to most of their videos, shot in their home in Maine, where recreational cannabis has been legal since 2016, the weed-loving duo challenges the idea that being fat, gay, and a stoner is anything but wonderful.
By simply documenting themselves loving and spending quality time with each other over some cannabis, Sue and Lee — who prefer to use their first names only until cannabis is legal federally — are a refreshing antidote to the corporate, anti-stoner messaging so prevalent in legal cannabis advertising — and the tired, slick filters of most influencers on the ‘Gram.
“We think people can relate to us,” Sue wrote in an email. “Pot is not a bad word. Nor is old, fat, or lesbian.”
Pot is not a bad word. Nor is old, fat, or lesbian. Click To Tweet
We caught up with the Maine couple to find out more about what they’ve learned in their first month on the social media platform.
Q: Tell me more about the cannabis scene in Maine, where you live. What’s working, what isn’t, and are you growing your own?
Lee: It’s pretty laid-back here. Cannabis grow shops and dispensaries are fairly common in our neck of the woods. We’ve heard of individual towns setting limits on the state laws, but for the most part, cannabis is a part of the culture here where we are.
Sue: We grew our own [in 2018] after moving here. Shorter grow season [than in Florida], but the plants seemed to thrive!
Q: What is it like to be in a committed, loving homosexual relationship in President Donald Trump’s America? Do you see legalization becoming a real election issue in 2020?
Sue: We have been in a loving relationship through three presidents now. Each of us has found our twin soul and love doesn’t get any better.
Lee: I’m not sure if weed will be on a national ballot in 2020 or not. We would like to see it but that’s right around the corner and I’m not sure if everyone has their ducks in order to accomplish that.
Q: I understand that Lee started smoking weed as an alternative to opioids after neck surgery. Does cannabis have potential untapped power when it comes to trying to help people impacted by the opioid crisis?
Lee: I think cannabis can make a huge impact on the opioid crisis, but that would take Big Pharma stepping down and relinquishing control. It’s big business and billions of dollars that would be lost in prescription drug sales.
Q: You’ve started building sponsorship relationships through your Instagram account. What kinds of cool products have you gotten? Any advice for Instagrammers who are just starting out?
Sue: Well we are also just starting out. Four weeks is the time we’ve had our account open — but the best advice is, just be yourself. To try to be something different only leads to heartache in the long run.
Lee: We’ve received some cool products and we can’t believe the kindness and generosity out there. Someone is currently making us a custom dab rig and we are over the moon about it — that someone would take the time to do that for us. We are humbled.
Q: At times, the new legalization wave can feel homogenous and heteronormative, could the cannabis industry use some “queering up?” How can we make the post-prohibition era more inclusive?
Sue: I think the cannabis industry could be a shining example of “No Discrimination” across all lines. The healing powers of this plant effect so many different people in a positive way. Perhaps we, in the cannabis community, can be a shining light to the rest of the world that acceptance is the great equalizer.
Feature image: @420oldfatlesbians
