When I was a college student at the University of South Florida, Tampa, back in '00 - '01, I accidentally started a relationship that would last for many years. It was what used to be called a "pen pal" relationship, meaning the two parties sent letters back-and-forth (in our case, email).
I recall I was searching for information on low carbohydrate diets. Having just lost a lot of weight on the Atkin's Diet I was keen to learn more. This was the days before Google. I don't even remember what search engine I used - probably Yahoo!, or even AOL. But I somehow found myself on a unique webpage.
It was the website of one Augustus Owsley Stanley III, AKA Bear. His essays on the all meat diet, and on weight training, got my attention. I emailed him some questions and he was gracious enough to respond. That was the beginning of a many years pen pal relationship. It wasn't until some time had elapsed in our communications that I became aware enough to put two and two together, amd realize that my pen pal was the man who was the LSD producer of the late 1960's acid scene in San Francisco! This man practically, single, handedly manufactured enough LSD to power the entire counterculture, rock-and-roll, scene, of the late 1960s -1970s. Truly, a legend.
But I didn't know any of that at first. For me he was an interesting sounding man who knew a lot about the all-meat diet, and bodybuilding. Thanks to Bear I learned about Mike Mentzer, and developed an interest in lifting weights for strength, and bodybuilding. He was such an intelligent man a genius I would say - that he also taught my about Hermetics, and The Kybalion.I want to preserve his memory and his work and that is why I am sharing this information. Maybe one day, depending on the interest generated by the Harmonic Strength Collective, I might publish some of email communiques between Bear and me.
In the meantime here is a link to a Wikipedia article about his life. Bear on Wikipedia
Here is his old website, preserved on the Wayback Machine. The Bear's website.
And finally, a great presentation Owsley gave late in his life. Reflections on Life, LSD, and DMT.
RIP Bear. You were a wise mentor who will be missed.