her own vegetables in a newly created garden. Crows converge on the garden, so Marge makes a scarecrow, which scares Homer away. Homer then returns and destroys the scarecrow, and the crows see Homer as their leader, following him everywhere and doing his bidding. However, when the crows try to carry Maggie, Homer turns on them and they attack his eyes. He is prescribed medicinal marijuana to deal with the searing pain he is feeling. Homer begins to enjoy smoking marijuana, and gets an unexpected bonus when his giddy-stoned happy reaction to Mr. Burns's awful jokes (which are for a speech to big investors where the SNPP will either be bailed out or have to close for good) lands him a promotion to Executive Vice President. However, a petition circulated by Ned Flanders to ban medical use of marijuana, which Homer actually signs while in an altered state, is placed onto a ballot. Homer organises a pro-marijuana rally, which is supported by rock band Phish. However, it becomes apparent during the event that the vote has already taken place, and that medical marijuana has been outlawed. By this point, Homer is cured of his medical condition and promises he will not smoke marijuana again. Burns asks Homer to help him with a speech for the crisis shareholders meeting. Homer gives Smithers his last joint, and while Smithers is smoking it, Burns apparently drowns in his bathtub. For the meeting, Smithers and Homer make Burns into a marionette, and the movement of the marionette inadvertently gets Burns's heart working again. The meeting is a success, and another financial crisis at the power plant is avoided. Burns appreciates that he was revived, but repeatedly slaps Homer and Smithers for initially pretending he was dead. Production "Weekend at Burnsie's" was written by Jon Vitti and directed by Michael Marcantel. It was first broadcast on the Fox network in the United States on April 7, 2002. The idea for the episode was pitched by former staff writer George Meyer, who wanted to make an episode in which Homer becomes addicted to medicinal marijuana. Executive producer and current showrunner Al Jean thought that the premise sounded "very funny" and assigned Vitti to write the episode's first draft. Vitti wrote the script at his home and did not participate in any rewriting sessions with the other staff writers. "[...] it's a funny bunch of people", he