By Jonathan Martin
Seattle Times staff reporter

Maybe even a little before 12:01 a.m. Thursday, Washingtonians started celebrating — on sidewalks, in parks, outside bars and on their own comfy couches — a new marijuana law that is among the most liberal in the world.

The festivities culminated with a big, hazy party Thursday night at Seattle Center, 79 years and a day after the 21st Amendment, repealing alcohol prohibition, was ratified.

Unlike that repeal, Washington's new law starts with a messy conflict with the federal ban on marijuana, sure to grow messier once the state begins licensing marijuana grow farms and retail stores next year.

Until then, this will be "the year of the magical ounce," as one activist called it. Adults 21 and over can have that much for recreational use, but until the marijuana stores open, there's nowhere to legally buy it. Nor is there any legal place to use it, except behind closed doors

rest of the article: State's pot era lights up to smoke, dreams, uncertainty | Local News | The Seattle Times