Now THAT's a thought

I had seen this bumper sticker on a car on the Beltway several months ago. I laughed out loud to see it, because it conveyed a truth that I think I need to learn. So often it is easy to complain, to whine - to bitch - but not have the courage to do something about it. I finally got one of these stickers, and the accompanying t-shirt, this week.

I was on an errand to get a piece of equipment for work when I came across a buxom young blonde in a spaghetti-strapped top with this slogan on it. She was standing near the E-street Theatres on 7th St. NW in DC, and I told her "I have got to have one of those. How much are they?"

The young woman, who was wearing camo pants, the t-shirt, boots and gold eye shadow, smiled and said "they're free, but we ask for a donation."

Seems that Zendik.org is an artistic farm commune in West Virginia. The Washington Post did a slide show and story on it in the January 22nd Style section this year. I tried to look it up on Washington Post.com. I also found an on-line article from Washington City Paper, which you can read here. Also there is the Wikipedia entry here.

But what did fascinate me was the philosophy embodied in the bumper sticker. (I know - simple ideas are on bumper stickers - like "My Karma ran over your Dogma"). But something about the phrase stuck with me - stop bitching, start a revolution.

The phrase apparently has a whole series of workshops and other stuff that go with it, but the idea is pretty simple and that's what appeals to me about it. Stop bitching - stop complaining, stop thinking that somebody else is going to make your life work, stop thinking that your being screwed up is somebody else's responsbility to fix, OWN your life.

Start a revolution - a revolution is something that upsets the status quo, it confronts the way things are and says "let's do something different." I like that.

(NOTE: My agreeing with the slogan in no way implies an endorsement of the philospophy of Wulf Zendik, the Zendik Art Farm, its affiliates or associates. I have not read Wulf's book, nor do I necessarily support the ideas contained therein; however, I do think he came up with a cool phrase).

Okay so now that the NSA can call off its watchdogs ... apparently the Zendiks started a commune in West Virginia to live out their philosophy. Wulf Zendik wrote a book AQuest Among the Bewildered which is largely autobiographical in its content when he lived in Paris and California in the 1950s. He was part of the beat generation, and mingled Christian ideas with Buddhism and beat philosophy. You can see photos of Wulf, Arol and others at the commune here.

PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! Make sure you spell the name right. If you happen to type in Zendick you go to a porno site that features "adult entertainment." And that's the LAST thing I would want to point you to.