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My adventures in podcasting have led me to some old hippies. I don't know what's wrong with me. I never needed to load my speech or my mind with the trappings of the peace/love identity. I dressed vaguely in the tradition, but never wholly identifiably hippie. I had a lot of friends who were definitely completely identifiably hippies, but also plenty of friends who were completely straight elitist equestrians and more who were bona fide country. Few in my orbit were generic American brand, and I can't think of a one who I'd call my friend.
As I got old enough to get into the clubs, more and more and more and more and more of them were musicians. Then, in one of my first attempts to get out of the metropolitan area, I met a club owner who had been with Lilly at Esalen. First, he'd hired me as a bartender, then he'd fired me as a bartender because his head bartender was jealous of me and wouldn't stop hassling him, then he started hitting on me, and after numerous attempts to start up a romantic relationship, we just ended up being best friends... for decades. I mention this because it shows how I know more about what went on at Esalen than most people... and despite people like Jan Irvin screaming that Tavistock owned it and so everything that has ever gone on there has been in furtherance of ruining people, I know better.
Anyway, I want to post this bit only really because of the last few minutes where they are talking about the psychedelics giving them the clue about these being states of consciousness completely accessible to humans without the aid of any substance. Psychedelics are still good for that.
