coolKat

I think it would have been fun to be a beatnik in the late 50’s. I was alive then, but too young. (Damn, if only my parents were beatniks…maybe I could have been a baby beatnik.)

Anyway, beatniks preceded hippies…which was another generation that I just missed. Of course, I was aware of hippies, STOP the War, and John Lennon. Heck, I’m old….but I was not the age to experience it first-hand. I never went to a sit-in, stand-up, march march march. But if I could be either a beatnik or hippie…I would choose beatnik…berets down.

First of all, I love bongos. We all know that’s the beatnik’s first love. Everything sounds good with a bongo…especially poetry. I can see myself now: hanging out at a club in the village or in some underground coffee shop in Times Square listening to poetry. I’d be wearing a solid black turtleneck sweater, a beret, and dark glasses. I could have easily gotten into the beatnik counter-cultural, anti-materialistic philosophy…at least, until I became acquainted with Tiffanys.

I also love the beatnik lingo. Yea, I can still see my beatnik self: I’d be in the club, listening to some jazz, snapping my fingers to the beat saying: “I dig this jazz, man. That cat is hip.”

I love to refer to someone as cat…not because of the obvious Kat reference…but it sounds so cool. Not many people say “cat” anymore. Whoopi Goldberg still says it…and also a guy we know who has a band. Wait, this just came to me….he plays keyboards…and wears a beret during his gigs. OMG…AND he’s older than me. He could have been a beatnik at one time. Dig it! I gotta talk to this cat.

I think I might take a field trip to New York to see if there are any beatniks around the city anymore. I have a feeling though…beatniks have been replaced by rappers. Beatnik poetry has been replaced with rapper’s rhymes. The beret is replaced by the do-rag. And the trademark turtleneck replaced with baggy jeans, and bling.

So if you follow my convoluted logic…(could I have a bongo roll please here?)…the rapper is really a modern day beatnik.

This Kat…is one smart cat.