San Pedro- beneath the skin...

[trucha]

I'll take your word for that. Some researchers take it to total dryness specifically to lessen their issues with slime. Some use only the outermost layers for the same reason.

If given a choice I would opt to a nice green tea full of vegetable vitality and life rather than reducing it.

A fast prepped lime tea seems to cause little or no nausea compared to something processed or even taken to totally pure. Everyones mileage may vary of course.

Edited August 19, 2007 by trucha

[Osprey]

If given a choice I would opt I'll take your word for that. Some researchers take it to total to a nice green tea full of vegetable vitality and life rather than reducing it.

A fast prepped lime tea seems to cause little or no nausea compared to something processed or even taken to totally pure. Everyones mileage may vary of course.

By that, do you mean tea from a whole plant,and not just the outer layer?

Exactly how would a "fast prepped lime tea" be prepared?

little or no nausea sounds attractive.

I was under the impression it had to cook for a long time

Is a significant amount of alkaloid contained in the white part?

If the center is mostly slime,and not much alkaloid,why bother with it?

Just smelling it cooking for several hours can cause nausea in some researchers

I saw it prepared two ways when I was in Peru

Some Brazilian surfers I metjust used the green part,and some Peruvians Indians cut it like cucumber slices.

I wish I would have asked the Indians a few questions,as they prepared it and brought it to me.

Edited August 22, 2007 by Osprey

[teonanacatl]

mucilage has been found useful for pollution and stuff so there is reports on mucilage content of cacti and how that varies with environment or preparation i believe.

[chilli]

@trucha and Osprey

Exactly how would a "fast prepped lime tea" be prepared?

little or no nausea sounds attractive.

I was under the impression it had to cook for a long time

I think trucha is talking about using lime juice (for the citric acid) to help extract the mescaline from the cactus, which apparently speeds up the process greatly... I have read three 20min pulls are as effective as many hours of boiling

trucha, would you elaborate a little more on this method, especially as it relates to yours or FOAF's experience of nausea in comparison to longer brews, cheers.

Edited October 17, 2007 by IllegalBrain

[nitrogen]

First of all, don't blend up the fresh cactus - chop it up real small and boil it like that...

3-4X quick boils will get most all the alkaloids I believe - you can test and see by chewing on some of the cactus chunks after straining it and seeing if they're still bitter...

Doing it like that seems to reduce the slimyness a good bit, and brings over less cactus material so the nausea is less...

[paddyboomsticks]

Long time reader, first time poster.

I just want to say how incredibly useful I, as a newbie tric grower and virgin consumer find all this information, and the non-judgemental way in which it is dispensed.

In some forums I have been very reluctant to post because I feel I will either be lambasted as somehow not spiritually pure enough for not necessarily wanting/believing in communing with a spirit, so much as an opportunity to recharge my batteries and engender some different thinking about myself and the world I live in, or ridiculed for even wanting that much when I should be focussed on just blowing my head off in the most intense way possible. Not that I judge that, whatever gets you through the night.

With so much information available it's nice to read the experiences of relaxed, happy people in Australia and other countries. I'm excited, and slightly nervous about my upcoming weekend where a portion of my pach will be brewed and consumed, and the information I read here reassures me that I'm in for an interesting weekend.

A reports welcome on SA, and if so, which section would they be added in? If anyone would be interested to hear the results of the weekend, I would be more than happy to add them, for any other newbies cruising by, or most likely the amusement of the more established members! I would consider a very small repayment for the knowledge I've received from SA.

Thanks,

Paddy.

[Monk]

Bioassay reports are one of the things that folks do best around here ! Often, they are done in the third person anonymous in order to adhere to the posting rules i.e. 'Do not incriminate yourself or others.' It seems this rule is to protect members and the site from unwanted attention, so I recommend adhering to it, but to each his own.....I usually post reports of this type in existing threads (if they apply) or create a new thread if it's something unique. About the reasons for experience, I think you'll truly find all types around here and some folks who fit into multiple categories However, if you want to be my friend, I expect you to have experiences with absolutely nothing but the purest hedonistic intent possible None of that hari krishna-Freud-Jung-Buddha-I-love-Jesus-and-science cry baby crap! Obviously, I'm kidding. Welcome, paddyboomsticks.

[chilli]

In some forums I have been very reluctant to post because I feel I will either be lambasted as somehow not spiritually pure enough for not necessarily wanting/believing in communing with a spirit, so much as an opportunity to recharge my batteries and engender some different thinking about myself and the world I live in, or ridiculed for even wanting that much when I should be focussed on just blowing my head off in the most intense way possible. Not that I judge that, whatever gets you through the night.

Bah, humbug... its all just chemicals.

Isn't it?

[teonanacatl]

;) for me the chemistry represents the spirit of the plant

welcome paddy :D

[blangschpeer]

Hey paddy,

I hope QLD stands for Quantum Leap Dimension, I've heard it's illegal to eat trichs in queensland

Let us know how it goes in your dimension enjoy, I know I would if I could.............................................

[paddyboomsticks]

Well, a friend of mine tried San Pedro for this first time on the weekend. His overall impressions were positive, though it was not like what he expected!

prep: His prep was pretty simple, roughly two and a half feet of san pedro, diameter approx 8-10cm (for two people) was cored, and chopped. Attempts were made to peel the cactus, but he gave that up pretty quick because it was so damned fiddly.

Chopped cactus was boiled in 4 litres of water for roughly 4 hours. A tablespoon of citric acid was added. After four hours, chopped cactus was strained through a t-shirt, and resultant "stock" was reduced to about 800mls. Two glasses of stock were left.

t 0:00 - Two tablets of dramamine, and two buscopan were taken as pre-emptive action against stomach troubles. Glasses were drunk very slowly over the course of an hour. My friend was surprised, having heard much about the horrid taste of the cactus, to find that it was only slightly more bitter than grapefruit juice. Not delicious, but by no means horrible, he speculates that maybe it was because of the large amount of citiric acid he added? He told me it was stronger towards the bottom, but some tropical fruit juice as chaser was more than enough to deal with the problem.

t 1:00 - Effects were definitely felt, though my friend would be hard pressed to put his finger on what exactly. He said it was like having maybe two alcoholic drinks, slight feelings of unco-ordination, but that's all.

t 2:00 - Effects of unco-ordination/mental vagueness increasing. My friend was feeling nauseous by this stage, though nausea was not like car sickness (thank god!), but more that his gorge was rising, felt it would have been easy to throw up, but not as unpleasant as usual. My friend was very happy about this, because he has extremely difficulty throwing up, and it looked like it wouldn't be necessary. Concentration was becoming more difficult, friend felt, not sleepy per se, but soporific, kept drifting off mentally.

t 3:00 - My friend had the peak of unpleasantness here. He felt sickish, and out-of-it. No visuals whatsoever, just nausea, concentration and co-ordination difficulties. His other friend was in the same state. They put the new Thom Yorke album on repeat and closed their eyes. Couldn't say if they went to sleep or not.

t 4:00 - Both friends got up had an a bite to eat. Feeling much better, though still quite lazy. They were both desperately hoping for visuals but seemed to be thwarted! Grass has an interested textured quality in peripheral vision, but when looked at directly, everything appeared normal. Both felt very comfortable and very lucid. Surprised by how lucid and mentally clear they felt.

t 5:00 - More music. Listening to music was excellent, though visuals still sadly absent. Occasionally my friend said the walls seemed to be moving in and out ever so slightly, but again, direct focus negated all these effects.

t 5:00 - t 8:00 - Both my friends retired to the bedroom, where they were able to listen to music and watch the sun set over the verandah. They both found listening to music quite great. Not intense or anything, just really really nice, and they liked particular albums a lot more than they usually do. Sunset was very beautiful, and they found themselves quite meditative, minds drifting off and back and off again. Time seemed very dilated (much like their pupils!) - five minutes seemed like forty - but because everything was so nice it was a good thing for them.

t 8:00 onwards - effects seamlessly wore off. Friends felt relaxed and happy. Very pleased w/ their first time overall, though disappointed they didn't "see the music!" etc. Both have vowed to try again, with a higher dosage (probably a half again) next time.

Highlights were the taste of the cactus (not too bad), the lucidity (amazing, they felt like the could have gone to work, done crossword, whatever), and the enjoyment of the music.

Lowlights were the absence of strong effects, the two hour "breaking in" stage. And that's it!

[Monk]

Due to the threshold effects, it sounds likely that your friends simple extraction wasn't as efficient as it could have been. Folks usually recommend doing 3 successive acidic boils with fresh water and combining the liquids before concentrating. Whispers around these parts say to just dry, powder, and cap it up. I heard something about less loss, no flavor, but needing a strong, voluminous stomach. The words 'digestive enzymes' were also in there somewhere.

[paddyboomsticks]

THanks for the tips Felonius, my friend figured his extraction attempt must have been too piss weak. I'll pass that info on to him.

[Jesus On Peyote]

i couldent find a defenete answer on any other threads, but has the verdict come in on weather the core woody bit is worth putting into a boil? or that it holds any comparable majik content to the skin and flesh?