I use free apps every day, and I write about them constantly. In many cases, they’re genuinely great. Some of the most useful software on my phone and computer doesn’t cost me a cent upfront. But that doesn’t mean it’s actually free.

Waze has started a wider rollout of previously announced road alerts, navigation improvements, and personalized routing, enhancing driver awareness and safety after delays since 2024.

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Navigation apps can make your journey smoother when you personalize certain settings that allow for trips with no roadblocks. I like to constantly tweak settings on the app to make my navigation easier, and here are five changes I believe all Google Maps users should check out and change now.

Tech company Weedmaps is a connector at its core, best known for helping consumers find and order from dispensaries carrying their favorite cannabis products. But that theme of connection extends far past the screens, as Weedmaps moves from traditional to experiential marketing, building authentic moments rooted in the creativity and spirit of the cannabis community. Their 2025 collab with premier sneaker designer Ceeze is just one example of how the tech platform continues to find memorable, made-you-look ways to drive their mission forward.

“Sneakers have long served as a canvas for cultural storytelling, especially across art, streetwear and music—spaces where Weedmaps naturally lives,” says Jonathan “JJ” Jones, Weedmaps’ senior vice president of markets and culture. “Through this collaboration, we were able to highlight how cannabis inspires creativity while showcasing the diverse voices and artists that shape the culture. It also created a physical, limited-edition artifact that fans could connect with—something that doesn’t happen often in the cannabis space.”

The limited-edition sneakers, called the 420 1s, were released ahead of the 4/20 holiday and include detailed stitching that represents the evolution of cannabis legalization, paying homage to those who fought so hard for it. Hidden coordinates on select pairs mark the birthplace of San Francisco’s Cannabis Buyers Club, the first medical dispensary that helped push Prop 215 into law in 1996. The California cannabis warning symbol, introduced in 2018, is stamped on the heel and Weedmaps’ logo is featured on a custom woven tongue, marking the brand’s own spot on the cannabis timeline as pioneers in consumer access since 2008—the height of the fight for cannabis.

The Ceeze collab set the creative tone for Weedmaps’ entire 2025 cultural marketing campaign and into 2026, as they offer more elevated ways for people to connect with cannabis culture beyond the retail experience and into the realms of lifestyle, art and music. In Jones’ words, “Each activation reinforces our mission to celebrate cannabis as part of everyday culture.”

This story was originally published in issue 52 of the print edition of Cannabis Now.

The post This Sneaker Is So Right Now appeared first on Cannabis Now.

NFL star quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be a featured speaker at a psychedelics conference to be held in Denver this summer, less than a year after Colorado voters decriminalized the therapeutic use of psilocybin mushrooms. Touted by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) as the “largest psychedelic gathering in history,” the Psychedelic Science 2023 conference will take place in June at the Colorado Convention Center.

Last year, the Green Bay Packers star quarterback revealed that he had traveled to South America to try the psychedelic ayahuasca on more than one occasion. Rodgers said that the experience changed his mindset and had a positive effect on his mental health, crediting the drug with helping him subsequently be selected as the NFL’s most valuable player two seasons in a row. In December, he added that using ayahuasca and psilocybin mushrooms has helped him cope with a strong fear of death he has had since he was a teenager.

Rodgers has been very open about his use of psychedelics and has said he hopes that sharing his experience can help dispel the stigma attached to the powerful compounds. And in June, he will be one of more than 300 speakers to address the Psychedelic Science 2023 conference in Denver. Presented by MAPS, the gathering has been hailed by the psychedelics research and advocacy nonprofit organization as the “definitive event of the psychedelic renaissance.”

“Aaron Rodgers will be interviewed by Aubrey Marcus at Psychedelic Science 2023 about his experiences with Ayahuasca, which he’s previously spoken about on Aubrey’s podcast,” said MAPS founder and executive director Rick Doblin. “We’re delighted Aaron is open to sharing his views at what will become the world’s largest psychedelic conference ever.” 

Psychedelic drugs including LSD, psilocybin, and ayahuasca have received renewed interest from researchers for their potential to treat a wide range of mental health conditions including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance misuse disorders. In November, Colorado voters took new steps in psychedelic policy reform with the passage of Proposition 122, a ballot measure to legalize the possession and therapeutic use of certain natural psychedelic drugs including psilocybin mushrooms, DMT, ibogaine and mescaline, for people age 21 and older. The measure also authorizes the establishment of “healing centers” where adults can obtain access to natural psychedelics for therapeutic purposes. The measure, which passed with more than 53% of the vote, is now in the process of being implemented by state officials.

Aaron Rodgers And Psychedelics

Last weekend during an appearance on the The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers said that he would make a decision about retiring from professional football after he takes a four-day “darkness retreat” later this month. The 18-year NFL veteran said that the retreat will include “‘sensory deprivation isolation’ that will simulate the drug DMT with the potential for hallucinations,” according to a report from CBS Sports. 

“It’s an opportunity to do a little self-reflection in some isolation and after that, I feel like I’ll be a lot closer to that final, final decision,” Rodgers said on Tuesday. “I’ve had a number of friends who’ve done it and they had profound experiences.” 

In August, Rodgers revealed that he had traveled to South America to take ayahuasca before being selected as the league’s most valuable player in back-to-back seasons, saying the traditional psychedelic brew changed his thinking and significantly improved his mental health. Rodgers made the revelations about ayahuasca experiences during an appearance on the Aubrey Marcus Podcast, saying that the psychedelic drug helped him find self-love and mental wellness.

The Super Bowl champion quarterback said he made the trip to South America before winning the MVP award for the third and fourth time. Following the ayahuasca experience, he said, he “knew that [he] was never going to be the same.”

“For me, I didn’t do that and think ‘oh, I’m never playing football again,’” Rodgers said, as quoted by USA Today. “No, it gave me a deep and meaningful appreciation for life. My intention the first night going in was ‘I want to feel what pure love feels like.’ That was my intention. And I did. I really did. I had a magical experience with the sensation of feeling a hundred different hands on my body imparting a blessing of love and forgiveness for myself and gratitude for this life from what seemed to be my ancestors.”

The Psychedelic Science 2023 conference takes place at the Colorado Convention Center from June 19 through June 23. Other featured speakers include Doblin, groundbreaking researcher Robin Carhart-Harris, wellness guru Deepak Chopra, and Amanda Feilding, the executive director at the U.K.-based psychedelics advocacy organization the Beckley Foundation.

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