Wondering About Weed was inspired by three friends’ cannabis confusion.
After California voters legalized cannabis for all adults in 2016, Kaisha saw opportunity in the fledgling industry and started writing freelance for cannabis-centered brands. That, combined with her love of bud, inspired Kaisha to share cannabis information with friends, and eventually to present her first Cannabis 101 workshop in 2018 at Hipline, a woman-owned-and-centered dance and fitness community in Oakland.
Penny, another Hipliner, was in the audience that day. After trying to grow cannabis the previous year on behalf of a cancer patient, she needed to know more. Penny invited Kaisha on a coffee date that lasted all afternoon. By the end of 2018, Penny had a horticulture certification from Oaksterdam and the outline for her first book.
Meanwhile Penny’s fellow book club member Deirdre was fielding questions from friends about weed—but answers were hard to come by. So many people were tapping Deirdre for resources that the serial entrepreneur had an idea: a cannabis information resource to help regular people learn how to navigate weed. She shared this idea with Penny in 2018. Soon after, the three ladies got together for a meeting at Hipline, and Wondering About Weed (originally known as Let’s Sesh) was born.
In January 2019, we put on our first workshop, Cannabis 101. It sold out.
We started this company because most of the cannabis information we came across was a blend of heavy science and stoner mystique that didn’t align with who we were: cannacurious grown-ups simply trying to understand the plant and its potential benefits. While Deirdre left to pursue other ventures in 2023, we’re thrilled to still be bringing interactive educational experiences directly to you!
Whatever you’re wondering about weed, Kaisha and Penny are here to help!
Wondering About Weed is proud to be a 100% woman-owned, 50% Black owned, completely self-funded small business. OUR mission is to EMPOWER people to explore cannabis
for their wellness needs.
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Kaisha-Dyan McMillan
COFOUNDER/EDUCATOR
Kaisha-Dyan is a copywriter and journalist who has been writing for and about weed since 2016. In addition to writing content for multiple brands, her journalistic work centers the stories of women and people of color pursuing their dreams in this industry. Her work has appeared in Leafly, Our Dream Academy, East Bay Express, and The Bold Italic.
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Penny Barthel
COFOUNDER/EDUCATOR
Penny is a certified cannabis horticulturist, trained nutritionist, recipe developer and blogger. She interprets the complexities and mystery of cannabis for the home cannabis gardener. Penny’s work with cannabis is the perfect expression of her passions: gardening, recipe development, and teaching. Check out Penny’s book The Cannabis Gardener (Ten Speed Press/2021).
people ARE TALKING ABOUT Our workshops!
“I had the best time at the Kitchen Craft Workshop. Penny was so informational. The love of the plan is shown in her teachings. Thank you for creating the space for us to learn hands-on all things cannabis. Looking forward to the next event.”
— Isabel L., San Francisco
“The Wondering About Weed ladies always put on such a good workshop every time. This is my third time attending one—the growing one, Harvest & Curing, and now the Kitchen one! It’s always so informative and Penny does a great job at easily explaining the science. We have a great time and it’s always enjoyable to meet the other people :) Kaisha and Penny host such a wonderful educational experience :)”
— Sofia S., Oakland
“What a great time it was learning about weed from Penny et all…so great to go home with treats too! I highly recommend this workshop!”