It was back in the later 1960s and early 1970s that the Hippie Movement was in full swing. I remember those days pretty well, as those were my high school and college years.

I guess you could say I was a pseudo-hippie, of sorts. I wore my hair long, mainly because I could not afford a haircut. Grew a beard, of sorts, mainly because I was too lazy to shave. I wore ratty blue jeans and T-shirts because, well, that was about all I had to wear. And, I really did like listening to rock and roll music of all kinds.

Plus, I didn’t think much of the Vietnam War. That was mainly because my friends were being forced to go there to fight, get wounded and die in a war no one seemed to know anything about and everyone seemed to be questioning why we were fighting in the first place.

So maybe I was a hippie. Of sorts.

Hippies were described in the Britannica Dictionary as “a usually young person who rejects established social customs (such as by dressing in an unusual way or living in a commune) and who opposes violence and war, especially: a young person of this kind in the 1960s and 1970s.”

It doesn’t mention anything about drugs, but yes, there were a lot of drugs. That part of hippie life I did not partake in, and neither did my friends.

The hippies of the 60s and 70s thought they could change the world – get rid of violence and war and make the world a better place.

Unfortunately, they failed. All one has to do is watch the morning news on TV, and see that there is always at least one war going on somewhere in the world, with the threat of even more. And, gun violence, especially in the U.S., has become the norm, with mass shootings occuring nearly every day.

The hippies failed to make the difference in the world they thought they might be able to accomplish.

Pretty sad state of affairs we are in. Maybe the hippies will make a comeback someday.

These days I have become a different kind of hippie, or should I say hippy.

I joined the ranks of many folks my age (or even younger) and had hip replacement surgery. That was four and a half weeks ago and I am getting a bit better every day.

I learned a few things by becoming a hippy. First, modern medicine is amazing, in that they can replace a femur and hip joint with a titanium man-made hip. And they even refer to it as routine. Still major surgery, but they do this practically all the time now.

I mean, I was in the hospital one night, and two days.

Second, I learned that, once again, I feel blessed that I could have this surgery done at UHD Hospital in Blue Earth, just a block from my home. We should all feel pretty lucky to have such a facility here in Blue Earth and Faribault County.

I have often said it is amazing to have such an excellent hospital and clinic, so very well staffed, and have it locally operated.

And the third thing I learned is that the human body is pretty amazing. Just the fact that an artificial hip can be inserted inside your leg and your body can recover relatively quickly and heal is fairly miraculous, I think. Don’t you?

So, I guess I can once again be called a hippy, 50 years after the first time I was called one. Maybe there will be a time real soon where I can even dance the “Hippy, Hippy Shake.”

Are you old enough to remember that song? Yeah, it was not exactly the top number one seller of all time, and the lyrics were a bit dumb at best. But still, the tune was pretty catchy.

The Beatles sang it and recorded it, but I found out once some time ago, that they did not write it, nor were they the only ones to record it. The song was written by Australian Chan Romero in 1959, and recorded by such “well-known bands” as The Swinging Blue Jeans and The Georgia Satellites. OK, I have never heard of them either.

I have always thought the original word ‘hippies’ came from the word ‘hip,’ which of course, meant you were cool and really with it. And that is probably true. The word hip was used even in the 1950s with the Beatniks, and maybe even before that.

Most of us from the 60s and 70s still think of ourselves as cool and hip, even if we are a tad old. Especially those of us who have a brand-new titanium hip to prove we are pretty hippy.

Or maybe I am just an old hipster. But at least I’m one with a new hip.

Yeah, pretty cool, man. Far out.