Summer’s gone, the Zuccotti Park encampment’s gone, but the spirit lives on - all around the country.

Here’s another batch of photos from the heady days in downtown Manhattan. More next week.

Looks like the occupation of Zuccotti Park is now history, but I still have photos from the halcyon days to post.

You can see plenty of shots out there of police making arrests (cover of this week’s New York magazine), but what interests me most is the vibe from the place—gentle, serious, passionate, quiet, visionary.

The answer to What do they want? always seemed to me: This is what we want. A place that reflects a new idea, new energy, new vision. That’s what was with us in the ’60s, and that’s what’s brewing up strong now. 

Enjoy my photos. 

Well, Zuccotti Park might be gone as an encampment, but my photos live on. Here’s the next set. More to come….

While we wait to see how OWS will play out now that Zuccotti Park’s been swept of occupiers, here are some more photos from palmier days down there. 

Whether the park stays extant or not, the spirit will remain.

More pics from the last month down in Zuccotti Park. We keep on rollin’.

More Flower pics from OWS over the last month. Still groovy, though gettin’ colder—and stronger. Check back soon for more photos.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted. I’ve been busy living the Flower life—goes without saying—but specifically over the last month I’ve made it to the original Occupy Wall Street encampment at Zuccotti Square in Lower Manhattan.

 What a scene! My first day there I felt the spirit of my book, Look at Flower, in as powerful a way as I’ve felt it since the glory days of the late ’60s.

 I made a point of donating copies of Look at Flower to the Occupy Wall Street Library. Here’s a librarian about to catalogue the book.

Then I took a lot more pics. For the next number of posts I’ll just be putting my photos up.

You know, I’m basically a writer—there’s that whole book of words about me—but sometimes I just gotta let my freak photos fly.

Eh, look, I’m in Toronto. And if you’re also lucky enough to be here this summer, be sure to check out Kensington Market. Back in the 60s, Toronto mayor David Crombie saved the area from demolition. Thankfully the locals have managed to keep it diverse and authentic. During the 60s Kensington attracted American hippies and diverse immigrant populations. Today the area still attracts artists of all kinds.

On the last Sunday of each month (from May to October), the streets are closed off to traffic, making the area even more pedestrian-friendly than usual. When I’m visiting friends up here, I love walking around taking in the sunshine and all of the sweet sounds of the street music. I also love biking around Kensington to pick up fresh fruits and veggies, and awesome secondhand knick knacks. There are plenty of vintage and secondhand clothing stores, antique furniture shops, bakeries, and even a few army surplus stores. (Does Canada even have an army? Well, they have surplus.) Overall, the area has a great vibe and a perfect balance of locals and tourists.

When I get hungry after all of that shopping, I’ll usually grab a bite at Hibiscus Cafe (238 Augusta Avenue).

They have the most delicious vegan crepes, fresh mango juice, and great, friendly service too. They’ve always got good reading material to keep your mind occupied while you wait for your yummy, eco-friendly treats.

 Another great place to grab some grub is Urban Herbivore (64 Oxford Street).

They have freshly squeezed fruit juices, delicious desserts and the best tempeh sandwiches you’ll ever taste. For such a small area, Kensington has a whole lot of selections when it comes to dining.

On whole, Kensington is a little hippie haven within the city. There are so many cool, colorful Victorian houses and lots of vibrant street art. A lot of the storefronts are attached to the houses themselves. There’s even a brightly decorated car that has been converted into a giant plant pot.

You can check out the official Kensington Market website here:

www.kensington-market.ca

 Or you can just head down there and explore.

            I came across some backpackers the other day, and it must have been the insane summer weather ‘cause we connected immediately and started talking. They were telling me how they had been at some music festival all weekend in Vegas, started with an E, yeah, EDC that’s it: Electric Daisy Carnival.

            That made me start thinking about music festivals, such a far out concept. The unity of tens of thousands of people coming together, using art as their means of liberation.

            Maybe you’ve been there, roaming green fields of dry grass crunching under your toes; grooving to different sounds all around you, coming from here, coming from there; soaking up the sun’s rays, sweat drops glistening on your skin; then floating into the night, surrounded by good music and people you love, people who love you back. Euphoric.

            The progression of festivals is unreal. Decades ago we had Woodstock, of course.

There’s also the occasional Zeppelin arena show, maybe a folk festival here and there. But today? I couldn’t even list all of them: Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Warped Tour, Outside Lands, Vegoose, Sasquatch….

            I don’t get to as many of these as I’d like, though as a lover of music I can totally embrace the concept. Let the vibes of the modern day music scene take over me.

            It really is an amazing thing that in today’s world, with the amount of poverty, political controversy, and even political and social corruption, that people can share these wonderful moments in time together. When a community of music festival goers come together, it seems like all else disappears. Even if at times it seems we don’t have much to celebrate, here are these people, young and old, from all different places, coming together and simply spreading love … love art, love music, love positive energy, love each other.

Back in the day, we were totally into wild colors and forms (all those light shows), and naturally we tried to wear the psychedelic experience as much as possible—so we tie-dyed our clothes. Now that we’re deep into summer, I thought it’d be cool to tie-dye something. I pulled out an old white scarf and got right to it.

Anybody else doing this now? Turns out they are. I’ve found a couple sites that gave me great advice on how to do it. http://www.wildflowerdyes.com/howtotiedye.html and http://www.dharmatrading.com/info/soda_soak.html.

And here are some ideas for tie-dyed clothes I found online:

And a groovy guitar.

If you have any great tie-dyeing you’d like to share with us, please post it to our comments page.