I guess you haven’t met anyone who uses it unironically. Some people feel the need to feel they are still sober even if they are actually self medicating with another substance. Every California Sober person I know is a wake and baker not an occasional user. Those are only those that are vocal about it so it’s a self-identifying group. I only mention it to the OP because I know for many that are sober, being sober is very important and they don’t want to do anything to change that.
Unless you mean that’s how they self identify, you can’t possibly know that. You’ve also claimed that you can identify all heavy users by their smell. I’ve known plenty of wake and bakers with a problem but they are a tiny percentage of the occasional to moderate users. Do you think everyone who you come across disclosures their pot consumption habits to you?
My friends? Mostly. Yes I mean how they self identify. Random strangers? No. I don’t know how random strangers identify.
IIRC you are a heavy user. You are not the best judge of how easy it is to smell on someone. Just like a cigarette smoker isn’t a good judge of how much cigarette smoke smells. Neither am I now but that’s a recent development due to Covid.
None of that has to do with the OP who is now saying he has the concerns I was talking about.
I take one or two puffs maybe twice a month at most. I can go several weeks without smoking at all. In the days of my heaviest usage when I was in college in the 80s I smoked one or two puffs most evenings and more at parties on the weekends but I never in my life had a wake and bake day.
I go to concerts two or three times a week on average and most of my friends are from that scene so I am around a lot of pot smoking. I am a significantly better judge of this than you are.
I don’t drink at all because I never cared for alcohol. I’m technically California Sober but I don’t describe myself as such.
My mistake then. I was confusing you with another poster.
No worries. We all sound alike. 
Back to the OP. One thing that I don’t think has been mentioned is that there are different strains that can be broadly classified as indica and sativa (and also hybrid which is a mix). Any edibles will tell you which type you are buying.
I can’t personally tell the difference but many people can. Sativa is supposed to be more of a mental high and indica more of a body high. So indica is used more for pain management and as a sleep aid and sativa for enjoyment and listening to music. Everyone has an opinion on this similar in a way to wine or beer experts. You may find that you much prefer one type over the other.
So first off, the effect varies from person to person. And you build tolerance over time. My wife is a medical user and she takes up to 50mg per day to control glaucoma and associated pain. Me? I smoked in college, liked it a bit too much, went cold turkey, and didn’t touch the stuff for about 15 years until it was legalized in my state. And i can only handle about 5mg as an edible or 1 hit of the flower my wife uses
Second, there’s a strong interaction between alcohol and THC. If you’ve been drinking, weed in any form is an accelerant, so if you’re pleasantly buzzed and then take a hit, my experience is that you don’t get buzzed + high, you go just get really drunk. So if you plan to imbibe, be aware of what else you’re partaking in socially.
Third, method matters. Smoking flower is the fastest onset and shortest duration. Passing a joint will give you a lower dose than a pipe or a bong. Vape is easier on the lungs, but much stronger because it’s a concentrated extract rather than the whole plant. Effects take a little longer (1-2 min for flower, 10 min for full effect fromvape) and last longer (30 min for flower vs 1 hr for vape). Edibles are slow to take effect (45 min is typical) but last a long time (3 hr).
Fourth, type and strain matters. Sativa will male you active (think sativa is sunny). Indica will calm you down (indica = in da couch). Hybrids are in between, mostly mellow.
Then if you want to get into the weeds (ha ha ha) you consider terpene profile. Limonene is citrusy and perky, myrcene is earthy and mellow, carophyllene is peppery and will tend to lower blood pressure (so be aware if you’re on BP meds). Those are the ones i know off the top of my head. There’s a wide variety now available and a good dispensary will help you find the right product for you.
If you smoke it and you do not like the high, you will be back to normal in about 20 minutes. If you eat it, it will take awhile to get any effects, and when it kicks in, hold on to your seat, because it may last for hours.
Oh! And if you do get on the wrong end of a dose, and start feeling paranoid, anxious, or your heart is racing, you had too much. But don’t worry, it’s almost literally impossible to OD, so just try to calm yourself and in a while you’ll be fine.
I’ve never had weed wear off in 20 minutes. It’s two hours, that’s my benchmark. I haven’t smoked it in a long while, that’s how I always consumed it, anyway.
An … interesting … typo I expect. 
I’ve heard MJ is good for a lot of things, but never for that.
Got me there!
I was a former regular user of “street” weed, who stopped for over a decade and recently tried some from a legal dispensary. I asked for the weakest Indica strain, as they produce the least paranoia and that was the reason I stopped smoking. I found it to be an ok experience but it was sort of physically dehabilitating. Like, you absolutely can get up, but you really do not want to. I recommend taking 1 or 2 hits, having some music and food ready, and being prepared to chill out for an hour once it kicks in. ETA Yes I will add on to people who caution about edibles. It is easy to get way too high eating weed.
Too late to include in my last post, I just noticed the relevance of your username to that comment.
A common theme of most experienced posters’ comments is “This isn’t the weed of your youth. Stuff is waaay stronger now.”
OK, why? Ref @WellHelloThere just above, he finds the weakest current strains about all he can stand. So who is buying the “ultra-robusto extra dark roast whatchamacallit rocketship to the max?” And why?
Is it simply a matter that kids can handle more than fogeys? That regular long-term users build up such a tolerance to THC that they need a brickbat over the head to get a buzz? Or is it simply a side effect of agribusiness breeding for max chemical potency for making max saleable THC extract from min square footage, and when those high yield plants are instead sold for smoking, well, it’s too much of a good thing for anyone but an utter loadie pothead?
Yes, the booze industry makes Everclear & 151. But it remains a very minority purchase. And almost nobody drinks that stuff neat. What’s going on here in the corresponding potly situation?
Flopnoodle is mostly on point. Especially Points #2 & #3. #4 engenders much debate among people who use and people who study. There is some strong evidence that there is no such thing as “sativa” and “indica,” that all weed is the same species. But it is true that different strains can have different effects on people. The problem is everybody is different. That Skywalker OG may put you right out, while it makes me want to get up and clean the litter boxes before I dust the yard. Be aware that edibles produced a completely different high than smoking, as some have mentioned. The chemical process by which the THC gets into and interacts with your system is totally different. Your best bet is to talk to your budtender. They can steer you in the right direction. Gummies are a good start. Like mentioned, start with maybe 5mg. Tomorrow examine your experience and adjust. For me, 15mg is the sweet spot. One square of chocolate isn’t quite enough, two is too many to enjoy. Take it slow and listen to some Allman Brothers. (How many are old enough to get that SNL reference?)
Come back and report how it goes.
I didnt mean to imply that weed is stronger. It may be, or may not. I reported my limited experience with an indica strain. Which was unlike anything I had ever had. Other posters in this thread know way more than me. I used it several more times afterwards. It took some practice, and a few alcoholic drinks helped as well
Me either. Even the old skunk week got you high for a couple hours. I smoked almost every day until I was in my 50s and just kind of stopped. I decided I’d like to try it again (I’m 68 now) and a friend of mine gave me a couple joints a few weeks ago. I take two hits and I’m high as a big dog for 5 or 6 hours. It is potent. Which is why I’m not going to smoke it much. I’d prefer to just be high a couple hours. 5 or 6 hours is more than I want to devote to it, fun as it is.
I started using some pot after I retired about the same age as the op. 65, I do everything statistically including my pot. I use gummies. I am eating my one gummy for the day as I type and will report back when it starts coming on., it is 6:50 pm. For some reason they come on a lot quicker now than they did when I first started using them. I am going to guess 15 minutes. I would suggest between 25 and 50 MG no more than one time per day. Even the slightest overuse greatly diminishes the effects and will have you going back for more that does almost nothing. I would suggest that you pick a time of day that you like to set aside for creative thinking and use it then. I get a solid 8 hours out of 25 MG. If I overuse I get less than 1 hour. and I have to skip at least one day to reset my tolerance level. I often go through periods where I micro-dose. about 15 Mg in the morning. It gives me just a nice creative thought pattern for the better part of the day. The key is use the least you can get away with and don’t use it more than once a day. After about 10 years I have not built up any tolerance to it at all.