Sarah Morgan
This post is part of the You Write the Title series. It was suggested by Diana.
The deeply fabulous Uma-Thurman-meets-Jo-March supermom Diana wrote: “All of the ‘stoners’ (80’s term… what are they called now?) I knew in high school and college had terrariums and listened to the Grateful Dead. They followed them on tour and sold random tchotchkes at their concerts. Later, they were Phishheads. Now they have children in Waldorf schools (okay, so do I). Who are the new stoners/potheads/hippies?”
First, if this title didn’t make you start singing, go listen to this, child.
Second, one of the reasons Diana is so great is that she can spell “tchotchkes”. Take note, you Hendrix-ignorant children. Learn Jimi, and learn how to spell in Yiddish.
Now then, Ms. Santoro, if you mean, who are the disaffected young adults who don’t want to grow up or wear new clothes or bathe too often, revel in being misunderstood and anti-mainstream, annoy the crap out of anyone around them, and can’t be bothered to do anything useful…
Hipsters are the new stoners.
(Incidentally, did you know that the word “hipster” is 70 years old? That’s right, kids, you’re nothing new.)
But if you mean, who are the actual potheads of today…
Potheads are the potheads of today.
I don’t think potheads really go anywhere, do they? The more things change. We’ll be living in faraway galaxies and there will be potheads. Come on, you don’t think anybody tried to grow pot on the International Space Station yet?
But if you mean, who are the people getting all het up about environmental and global issues, who are the people getting interested in traditionally Eastern things like yoga and meditation and holistic body treatment, I actually think…
We’re all hippies.
A lot of the stoner/pothead/hippie ideas didn’t wear very well. LSD. Tie-dye. Communes. Afros. Hitchhiking. Terrariums.
But some did. Jimi Hendrix. Political awareness. Community activism. Realizing that we’re caretakers of a big planet.
Keep those. Get rid of the Birkenstocks and hemp necklaces.
