Dear Stoner: Does burning incense cover up the smell of weed? Or does it just make people think that you're smoking weed? As a new renter, I'm worried about the smell of my habits.
Paranoid Nostrils
Dear Paranoid Nostrils: I have nothing against incense or those who burn it, but it is not your friend when trying to cover up the smell of weed. It is only used by stoners and teenagers who don't know they're stoners yet. The only places I've ever smelled incense were smoke shops, college dorms and bedrooms where pot was being smoked. You're correct to worry about how neighbors will react, but there are plenty of ways to mask hot leaf.
For starters, smoke next to a window or balcony and refrain from joints or blunts during normal hours; consider a vaporizer, too, since the fumes don't linger as long. A towel under the door with a few strategically located candles or preemptive potpourri certainly helps without building up too much suspicion. And if all else fails, you can always throw a bag of fast food next to the door. Grease and French fries cover up anything.
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