In a message dated 12/05/2008 9:06:43 A.M. Central Standard Time,
LISTSERV@GERRY.VANAGON.COM writes:

This has  puzzled me.

I was one, a hippie.  Kinda proud of it,  actually.  Hung out with the
counter culture, got beat over the head  by the cops  at Century City during
the one war protest I attended,  went to the Monterey Pop Festival...in my
'57 36hp South African  splittie.  Vanagons were not gonna be produced for
another what, 12-15  years when  the Hippie movement was happening.  When the
Vanagon  came along, all the hippies already shed their bellbottoms and had
real  jobs, families and mortgages..
I've had children call my '84 a  "Hippie Van" a few times
recently...Sheesh!
I remember when  one of my buddies came back from California in his
*almost* brand new Bay  window bus...All us "Hippies" kinda laughed at
him....but when it came time  to go rock climbing or kayaking, we always took
Harry's bus, not the old  beater split window hippie vans...And his would
start at -40 f, so he  always got to drive us to work during the cold spells
in Wyoming.
I guess to an outsider, one VW van is much like another...Come to think  of
it, my present van does sort of feel similar to my 57, and I do  sometimes
live in it..Maybe it IS a hippie van, still...so, does that make  me a
Hippie, still?
Don Hanson

Don,  that's one hellava insightful piece of writing !  Glad somebody stepped
to  say it caus' I have that same feeling all the time !!  Too many  figgin'
hippies still here doing what we did before - good to know really  !  Thanks !

Cheers,

Frank  Condelli
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
'87 Westy & Lionel Trains (_Collection for sale_
(http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/trainsal.htm) )
_Frank Condelli &  Associates_ (http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/busindex.html)
- Vanagon/Vanagon Westfalia Service in the Ottawa Valley
_Vanagon Stainless Steel Exhaust  Systems_
(http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/exhaust.htm)
_BusFusion_ (http://members.aol.com/BusFusion/bfhome.htm)  a VW Camper
camping event, Almonte, ON, June12 ~ 15,  2008