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But you could step across the street away from the convention center's South Hall, nestle back in the shade and light up -- as dozens of devotees did.
The event was one of those modern-day meetings of the minds where medical marijuana users, cannabis growers, paraphernalia peddlers and even insurance companies that specialize in coverage for the marijuana industry rubbed shoulders to help promote medical marijuana -- and it was all legal.
Young people mingled with old. Counterculture types talked with the button-down. And anyone with a medical marijuana ID card was allowed entry to a marijuana goods emporium, which was screened off from the general crowd.
There you could meet Magic Ellingson -- also known as Henry Hemp, who wore a marijuana headdress, with a hole in the middle for his face -- and sniff various marijuana bud samples and edibles on display but not for sale.
"In the future, if it becomes legalized nationally, we will have a marijuana event," instead of a trade show, said Matthew Fox, HempCon coordinator. Like most people there, Fox is a medical marijuana user, smoking it for "everything from stress to depression." He said the three-day show is part of the movement to legalize marijuana for medical use in the U.S.
San Jose is in the midst of developing a licensing plan for medical marijuana dispensaries, and the City Council has placed a measure on the November ballot that would tax medicinal marijuana sales at up to 10 percent, which would be the highest rate in the Bay Area.
But the three-day show, while steeped in politics, also allowed for a few giggles and the display of lots of novelty items. There were also some sales of marijuana edibles -- candy or baked goods -- even though there wasn't supposed to be, Fox said.
Multiuse pipes
Tired of the same old marijuana pipe? Try Lollipipes, the edible candy marijuana pipe that comes in six flavors, including watermelon and peach. After smoking with the pipe, users can munch and swallow it.
Like to multitask while you smoke or have use of only one hand? Try the "all-in-one" pipe that comes with the lighter built in.
"Maybe you have to drive a car or mow the lawn," said Rudy Armijo, who was helping sell the pipes. "You won't find a better pipe for cheaper." At HempCon, the price is $10, $5 off the regular price.
Thousands of people moved in and out of the convention center, jamming the aisles where merchandise was displayed and filling hundreds of seats for such talks as "Your Medical Marijuana Garden" and "Your Rights as a Grower." A big draw was Ed Rosenthal, a longtime activist and author who has battled federal authorities in court. Medical marijuana is still illegal under federal law.
Rosenthal was the main reason Lizz Caplan of San Jose attended HempCon.
A self-described "closet grower" who grows one plant at a time in a closet, Caplan said she uses marijuana to help ease the pressure in her eyes from glaucoma.
"My family all has glaucoma," she said. "I've smoked since I was 12."
Caplan said her father could "really benefit" from medical marijuana, but he lives in a state where it's illegal.
"It's a substance that grows out of the ground, so it must be God-given or nature-given," she said. "But it isn't just the medicinal and the psychotropic effects that make it valuable. The uses of hemp are more varied than of any substance I know."
Easy 'recommendation'
Along with display after display of marijuana pipes, including a few that were naughty, there were brisk lines at the booths to receive medical marijuana ID cards or a "medicinal marijuana recommendation" from a doctor.
Many convention-goers filled out a few papers, signed their names, answered a few questions from a doctor and paid $35 to $80. Five minutes later, they received an official "medicinal marijuana recommendation," which ensures the right to purchase marijuana for medicinal uses from any licensed medical marijuana provider.
The higher price includes a 24-hour verification service to confirm to law-enforcement officials that you are a legal medical marijuana user.
Noel Card of San Jose said he has used medical marijuana for 20 years to treat his multiple sclerosis because it helps ease the pain in his feet. He supposed legalizing marijuana for everyone would be OK "as long as they don't drive on it."
HempCon continues today from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the door.
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