Customers lined up to make their first legal purchases of marijuana as dispensaries across the state opened for business early Thursday morning.

Charles Pfeiffer, of Scotch Plains, was glowing with excitement after making his legal purchase of recreational marijuana from Zen Leaf in Elizabeth this morning. On this historic day in New Jersey, Pfeiffer said he was "going to go open it and smoke it in about 20 minutes" when he got home.

Suzanne, of Cranford, was equally if not more ecstatic. She was the first individual to purchase marijuana when the doors opened this morning at 6 a.m. "I felt it was my obligation," she said. "This is a major moment in history, and I wanted to be a part of it." 

Suzanne, Charles, and others waited upward of two hours this morning for the chance at purchasing recreational marijuana. But some, including New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Committee Vice Chair Sam Delgado, think that today was a day worth waiting for. "I spent four days in prison, in jail, in county lockup up in Orange County, New York, for possession of an ounce of marijuana, and here we are 47 years later and you can see the lines here."  

The excitement, cheers and lines today brought a lot of attention to Zen Leaf in Elizabeth. Sonny Achrekar, the general manager of Zen Leaf Elizabeth, and his team were ready, bringing in double the staff to handle the demand. "It was several, several vans over several weeks that we have been preparing for this. It even happened last night, so it has been non-stop here." 

Zen Leaf in Elizabeth is open for recreational sales going forward - every day of the week.