Frightened Rabbits Live in San Francisco

The (Mainstream) Hipster

i'm not sure if it was during the week that latfh.com (Look at this fucking hipster) became my favorite blog (this was before tfln.com came into my rotation), one solid year embedded in San Francisco or perhaps my recent travels to other Hipster hot beds such as St. Louis, Chicago, Southern Illinois and New York when it hit me. Most likely a combination of all three, during which my eyes were exposed to an amalgamation of our country's youth (ages 16-45) into one (former) ironic body of vomit induced ugliness.

How has the hipster movement become so mainstream i kept asking myself? Hipsters used to be cool, different, fringe. Something most liked to look at, maybe envy or partially copy, but never fully go there. It was too hard to achieve, too much to ask of oneself. You needed to go over the cliff to get there and that was the part that kept the masses restrained and the hipsters hip. Today it seems like you only have to walk up to the vista and look out beyond the cliff and you've made it into hipsterdome.

The pure idea of being a hipster meant that there had to be a limit, crossing a threshold towards a mass movement would make the hipster extinct, and by God if we haven't crossed that line yet i don't know where you are drawing your line.

Where does this contemporary subculture of irony go now that their non-mainstream fashion, culture, music and films are....wait for it....mainstream!

A true hipster would revolt.

Hipsters out there, this isn't the evolution the O.G. hipsters had in mind.

By taking the hipster movement to the fullest and throwing it into the mainstream, anything hip about its way of life has been crushed. And irony please. Ironic Tees are now a multi-million dollar business and it appears white sunglasses are on their way there too.

My travels from coast to coast and up and down the Midwest have shown me just how mainstream hipsters have become. Everywhere i turn, everywhere i go i see it all around me. And i'm not saying this is a bad thing. i love people watching and the hipsters are making it more fun each day.

But what i do take issue with is the hipsters thinking they are ironic, unique, cool and 'hip' when it appears their movement has become a magnificent mass of sellouts.

i love Urban Dictionaries take on hipster. Here is a small sampling:

- Probably tattooed. Maybe gay. Definitely cooler than you.
- Has a closet full of clothing but usually wears same three things OVER AND OVER (most likely very tight black pants, scarf, and ironic tee-shirt).
- Always on the list.

i cannot wait for the day of reckoning, when irony becomes visible only though button down polo shirts, loafers and docker stain defender chinos.

In the meantime i'm gonna throw on my straight leg Dickies with my Toms (sans socks), tuck my u-lock into my ripped boxers, and ride my fixie to critical mass before I head to the 18th grand opening of an organic wine bar.

p.s. hope you caught the irony of my lower case i's throughout...fucking sweet

Is Everyone in the Bay Area a Tri-Athlete?

I didn't start this blog to rant and rave, but each time I am not sharing a video or pictures I feel like I have am ranting about something. Well...

The more time I spend in San Francisco, as opposed to the Peninsula and S. Bay, I find I run into a lot, and I mean A LOT of triathletes. Great right, what's the big deal? The big deal is these triathletes seem to view themselves and their Tri posse as above and better than the non-runners, cyclists, and swimmers of the world.

At times not being a triathlete almost feels like smoking in SF (I don't smoke, but I know how you San Fransicans are). You are immediately looked down upon and judged when someone finds out. This active judging is really starting to frustrate me, and I have no idea why judging is going on in the first place.

You, Mr. or Mrs. triathlete, are not showing me something amazing. In fact, tri-athletes perform three of the most basic "athletic" functions, just for a long amount of time.

Running: Over 99% of the population can do this

Cycling: To be kind I will say 90% of the population can do this; the other 10% are too young, still with training wheels, or too old

Swimming: Only the extremely skilled 75% of the population is up to this feat

Yes, I understand that a triathlon is an extreme test of endurance and it takes a lot of training and dedication. I totally appreciate that. I would also never do it. Training for the three most boring "sports" (not sure if I would consider running a sport) is not my cup of tee. BUT I could do it without issue. Give me two months to train and sign me up for finishing in the top 10% of any triathalon.

But really sign me up for surfing, where some balance and shifting of body weight, stamina, and paddling skills come in handy; along with knowledge of the ocean and the weather.

Or How about Soccer? I played Division 1 in college so I feel like I can somewhat call myself an athlete. Soccer takes extreme endurance, the ability to turn, sprint, stride, and avoid the opposition with the ball on your foot. There is also a very strategic, chess-like aspect to soccer (Americans are not aware of this).

I could write a laundry list of sports here, but I am sure you get the point.

And of all the amateur athletes who participate in athletic events and activities I find tri-athletes to be the most uppity about their achievements and prowess to train and participate in the three most basic "sports".

Keep doing what you're going triathletes, let's just work on being cool...

Oh, and one more thing. I don't need to know how many miles you ran, biked or swam the other day. You are training for a triathlon so it is obviously going to be a lot.