I'm not a dirty Hippie?

Dirty hippie is a pejorative term used against that particular 60's stereotype left wing political activists who also may or may not be part of the environmental conservation movement.

Washing clothes, taking baths, and keeping a shaven appearance is associated with establishment's/society's rules and thusly must be rebelled against.

I believe the image of a dirty hippie came from the days of the Woodstock concert where baths and showers were not readily available for the week long concert goers.

Due to their unintentional and sometimes intentional neglect of their personal hygiene, as well as scenes where the concert goers slid and played around in the mud, they were depicted in the media as well as works of literature, etc... to be unclean and unshaven and wore soil clothes for days/weeks at a time.


So in your example, when the housewife says she isn't a dirty hippie when she converts to an environmentally green set of habits, she's stating that saving water and using toxic cleaners doesn't mean she's giving up on the practice of keeping a clean household or dropping all good hygiene practices.