Guest Davka Posted September 12, 2009 Share Posted September 12, 2009 I've been to about 10 of these things since 1979. It's an interesting phenomenon, to say the least. Pagans, Krishnas, Christians, Atheists, New Age Flakes, Stoners, Punks - you name it, they're hanging out in the woods for a month or so each summer. Most Gatherings have between 10,000 and 20,000 people. Check out the short video on this page. Peace, man. Like, groovy. Totally far out. What??? It's 2009? Whoah - good fuckin' weed, man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator florduh Posted September 12, 2009 Super Moderator Share Posted September 12, 2009 Can I get free pot and a hand job without having to sing Kumbaya? I guess I'd sing it if I had to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Davka Posted September 12, 2009 Share Posted September 12, 2009 You can get free pot, acid, and sex in exchange for Snickers bars. As long as you say "groovy" when you hand them out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super Moderator florduh Posted September 12, 2009 Super Moderator Share Posted September 12, 2009 I'm NOT giving up my Snickers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godlessgrrl Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 Spouse was at a Rainbow Gathering in central Europe in 1999, for the last total solar eclipse of the 20th century. He had a great time. He describes the experience as "being in the woods with five thousand naked tree-huggin' hippies." The coolest thing he spoke about was that almost all 5000 people formed a single spontaneous circle when the eclipse passed over. Sounds like something to experience at least once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Davka Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 Definitely something to experience at least once. Put it on your bucket list. I've never been to Burning Man - they charge money. Rainbow doesn't charge money, although they do pass the hat for donations for food, which is free to all comers. This year's Gathering will be somewhere East of the Rockies, and four of the possible locations are very near where I live: Tennessee, West Virginia, Kentucky, and North Carolina. If they decide on one of these four (out of six possible) I will probably be going. Different groups set up kitchens and tea houses and whatnot, places to hang out and enjoy. If it's close to Tennessee, I am seriously considering setting up an ex-Christian coffee house. If I had the cash, I'd buy some solar panels and marine batteries and set up an internet coffee house. As it is, I think I'll just go with a Lucy-style booth: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shyone Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 Rainbow doesn't charge money, although they do pass the hat for donations for food, which is free to all comers. Sounds like the miracle of the Loaves and Fishes. People sharing what they brought with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight-mindwanderings Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 Sounds freaking awesome I would love to go to something like that sometime! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vigile Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 I'm wondering how healthy it is for the woods to have 5000 environmentalists gathering in one spot for a month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Autonomous Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 Oh wow I really need to go to one of those, I could take my djembe too . Looks like crazy fun to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Davka Posted September 13, 2009 Share Posted September 13, 2009 I'm wondering how healthy it is for the woods to have 5000 environmentalists gathering in one spot for a month. There's a hardcore group that stays afterwards to clean up. They take pickaxes to the paths that were created, as well as any other heavily-impacted land, and spread seeds of indigenous wildflowers. Some of the Rain-Bozos are pretty clueless, and need baby-sitting. One year some folks decided to hold a smaller "regional" Gathering at Mt. Shasta, in California. I got there pretty early, just in time to see people setting up camp in an alpine meadow. If you know anything about alpine meadows, you know they are extremely fragile environments. I tried to convince people that it was a bad place to camp, and that they should move into the nearby woods. The answer I got was "it's cool, man, the earth will repair itself." I went on a total rant, picking up people's stuff and throwing it as far as I could towards the edge of the meadow. Then I left in disgust. Later that day the Forest Rangers came in and moved everyone off the meadow, then taped it off with warning signs. Some people just want to love the earth to death. Oh wow I really need to go to one of those, I could take my djembe too . Looks like crazy fun to me. It is crazy fun. I always bring my flute, and sometimes a guitar too. I'll keep people posted on next summer's Gathering. The peak time is always July 4th, but there's something going on from early June through mid-August. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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