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Welcome back to Weed Wednesday, your weekly dose of pot news. Wondering what this is about? Click. Looking for our previous marijuana coverage? Click. Got a question or tip? Email me at [email protected].

The state continues to license growers, processors and retailers — though still not as many as Colorado. The Liquor Control Board is also now releasing sales data by license number, so we can see how businesses around here are doing. Below is a breakdown of each of the five stores operating in Spokane County, with how much they've sold and, in parenthesis, how much they've paid or owe in excise taxes to the state. Unsurprisingly, the stores that opened first have done the best. (As a comparison, Seattle's first store has sold $1,321,427 of product so far, about $320,000 more than Spokane's first shop.)

Green Leaf: $1,001,855 ($250,463)

Satori: $392,528 ($98,132)

Sativa Sisters: $335,641 ($83,911)

Green Star: $165,222 ($41,305)

Greenlight: $27,537 ($6,884)

Statewide, marijuana stores have sold just under $24 million worth of pot, generating almost $6 million in excise taxes. More about where all that money will go here.

Find all the stores in our area on the map here.

A commenter last week suggested we do a story on responsible cannabis use, especially in hotels, where it's often not allowed and the smell can stick around a room. There's definitely more we could talk about here, but for now, check out our marijuana issue from this summer, where we gave some advice on how to get high without being a jerk. And remember, hotels have extra cleaning fees and they're not afraid to charge them. Know what's allowed and where. (If you're visiting Spokane or Seattle and looking for a cannabis-friendly place to stay, check out this site.)

In Airway Heights, neighbors tell KXLY they're upset about a grow operation that may soon open in the area. (One note on the linked story: I-502 passed in 2012, not 2013, though implementation didn't really begin until this year.)

The Seattle Times has the story of a woman from Chicago who moved all the way to Washington to make marijuana-infused simple syrups with flavors like coffee, chicory and strawberry.

A 24-year-old in Missoula was arrested for causing an explosion in a University of Montana student apartment building, which police say was caused by a hash oil-making operation, reports KPAX. (Making hash oil, which gets you super high, involves the dangerous process of filtering butane through marijuana and then heating the resulting product to remove the butane.) Meanwhile, the Denver City Council is trying to regulate home hash operations (Denver Post).

President Obama's top pick to head the civil rights division of the Department of Justice has said she supports decriminalizing marijuana, reports the Washington Post. This could signal a big shift in how the department views marijuana.

Rolling Stone has a list of 12 things they learned from Neil Young's recent interview with Howard Stern, but there's really only one you need to know: Neil Young's trick to avoiding pot-induced paranoia. "Try black pepper balls if you get paranoid," he told Stern. "Just chew two or three pieces. I just found this out myself. Try it."

Snoop Dogg (Lion?) is getting more and more vocal about his support of legalization and pro-legalization candidates. The Cannabist asks, "Is Snoop Dogg hip-hop's retort to the Koch Brothers?"

The Italian army is going to start growing marijuana to keep prices down for it's medical marijuana program. (Reuters)

Former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant was on the Colbert Report last week, where he handed Stephen Colbert a joint. “For the purposes of my lawyer and my network, this is a cigarette,” Colbert said with a surprised smile.