A few months ago, I was in Macy’s and stumbled upon a vending machine dispensing iPods, iTunes gift cards, headphones, etc. I thought it was an illusion. But no, I rubbed my eyes and there it stood, waiting for someone to unload its contents. Despite its cool factor, I had forgotten about the versatility of vending machines until today, when I learned about its new calling as . . .  a marijuana dispenser! Seriously.

Although you need a medical marijuana prescription and fingerprint identification just to obtain the pre-paid, prescription-encoded credit card necessary to operate the vending machine, its an ingenious concept worthy of a pilgrimage to L.A. — solely to be in its presence.