Mad Men and St. Marks' Place... and HIppiedom

Check out my letter to the NY Times (online) that was published the other day and received some attention....

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/10/the-east-village-of-mad-men-and-the-real-1960s-one/

Mad Men has no sense about the Sixties as it related to people who were -- either on purpose or because they had no choice-- living without money.

The Hip world is a mystery to them. The only part they have done well is the Hare Krishna episode, though I never saw anyone like "Mother Lakshmi" among them. I once had an argument with their leader, the Yogi on 2nd St and 2nd Ave. (I can't remember his name-- their main man?)

about Buddhism vs. HInduism....

Ladybelle

I was 15 at the time. Irving was there too and very proud of me. 

I realize now that I actually didn't have much reason to argue with the yogi, but I felt that chanting was a way of driving the person away from enlightenment. No peace and silence in which to reveal it.

This was when we had the Gallery Gwen on E. 4th and 2nd Ave...

"Off St. Marks Pl." as a friend of mine said today, is what? "On 2nd Ave?" That is what is "off St. Marks."

 

Pisces Begins...

It really is almost the beginning of Spring when Pisces (begins approx. Feb 20-21) starts and the farmers and sugar makers are beginning the chores that lead up to the huge and hopeful effort of making maple syrup. It's been a strangely snowless winter... so far. It feels almost like another season altogether. The stars at night are clear and glorious as ever in Winter. Radiant, shining, perhaps no longer even present in the Universe. I think of Irving when Pisces rolls around... how can I not? He was a "Pisces' Pisces" if there ever was one. "Feed my lambs," he said, going off to Florida-- he referred to the wild cats that lived in and under his house. He also used to feed the mice that ran along the rafters, something I keep in my mind when I occasionally long to be rid of the ones that scamper up and down from the third floor study to the bedroom. Don't worry, spiders: I keep house Casually -- Issa