Nancy’s Addictions

Over the course of Weeds, Nancy Botwin can be witnessed smoking the drug she peddles only one time, in the episode titled, “Must Find Toes” (Weeds: Season 2). Nancy doesn’t seem to be above addiction, though, as she can be seen drinking a latte or Diet Coke in nearly every scene prior and subsequent. According to Running & FitNews, caffeine use among American adults is highly common, because the “abundantly available” legal drug is heralded for its “ability to ward off sleep, decrease pain and fatigue, boost memory, and enhance mood” (5). The drawback to habitual caffeine consumption is dependency, and it is apparent that Nancy has developed a high tolerance for the drug. Additionally, we are introduced to her latte addiction in the very first Weeds episode, when her client, Josh, gets out of her car and knocks several empty cups onto the ground. “You should take [it] easy on the caffeine, Ms B. Don’t kid yourself, caffeine is a serious drug” (Weeds: Season 1).

Since we meet Nancy in a world where she must be the breadwinner for her family after living comfortably for many years, we can’t be sure of what her caffeine consumption patterns might have been prior to her late husband Judah’s death. However, the effects of caffeine consumption, while detrimental to health, might be considered an edge in the high stakes world of drug dealing. “Breathing tubes dilate, heart rate increases, muscles contract, and blood pressure rises,” according to Running & FitNews (5). These effects precede heightened sensory awareness, a trait that Nancy must possess as a female dealer in a violently male world. It is apparent that Nancy is not only highly tolerant of caffeine (as referenced in various episodes), but that she also self-medicates to cope with the risks in her role as a drug dealer.

Additionally, Nancy’s caffeine habit parallels the addictive nature of dealing itself, as well as a point made in Hutton’s research, that “risk is weighed up against the advantages of such a lifestyle” (552). While the risk of caffeine causing detrimental long-term effects is high, Nancy continues to use it for short-term gains; such is also her philosophy on drug dealing. Hutton interviews an Australian drug dealer named “Melanie”, who goes on to say that she is “hooked on the lifestyle side of [dealing]” (553), and the same is certainly true for Nancy. Just as she cannot seem to put down her latte, she never fully acts on the idea of getting out of the business, and keeps getting drawn back in by love, lust, money, and danger.

The fact that the portrayal of Nancy is not free from the perils and effects of addiction, despite the legality and accepted use of the substance, is a commentary about the state of the war on drugs in the United States. In an era of marijuana decriminalization, medical advances pertaining to the drug, and shifting public opinions, the legal implications of use and possession are still being tread upon lightly. According to a study by Ryan S. King and Marc Mauer, their research of marijuana arrest concludes that “the financial and personnel investment in marijuana offenses, at all points in the criminal justice system, diverts funds away from other crime types”, and that “$4 billion per year for marijuana alone, is being dedicated to minor offenses” (1). This supports the widely held belief that the war on drugs is failing, and that the focus of such a “war” should be on more harmful drugs. The juxtaposition of two widely used drugs, one legal and one not, subtly serves to get the viewer thinking about the implications of the current system, and the question why things are the way they are.