Is Austin "hip"? And, if it is, is it necessarily such a great thing? (Portland: land, cities)

[capcat]

Originally Posted by readymade

I think of that word as something a 50+ year old person in a pantsuit...

You've just described Hillary Clinton, but no one else I can think of in the past 3 decades.

[sliverbox]

Hipsters seem to be a relatively new phenomena of late. They all have that... same... "ironic" look, meaning they're probably from upper middle class families and yet they all dress like they drive a truck for a living, or they're from the 19th century ( steam punks) or basically anyone except for themselves. In other words, it isn't cool just to be themselves. Its much better to come up with a costume and be something your not.

Pisses me off because ever since I was a kid I wore T-shirts forever and inherited baseball caps from my Uncle because he was a dairy farmer and got all these cool farming hats with John Deere and Milk companies on them. This was in the 80's. Now I see people wearing fake hats that are new and made to look like they're from the 80's.

I dunno... they're obnoxious. They dress to look like trailer trash. I grew up in trailer trash territory. They in turn poke fun of rednecks yet some of them dress like rednecks. Hence- ironic. The hipster movement seems to have taken hold nation-wide. There was definitely a big hipster scene when I visited my folks over the summer.

[mlassoff]

I wanted to be a hipster, but couldn't fit in to the jeans.

And, I don't like looking like a douchebag.

[L3XVS]

I think Austin employs a very narrow definition of what it means to be "hip". It means you're a white twenty-something in too-tight jeans and a flannel shirt who goes to off the wall indie-rock shows every other night of the week, sports several tattoos, is staunchly anti-commercialism, and shops at Buffalo Exchange.

Sometimes I feel like this quest to be "different", has actually led many Austinites to be the same. Don't fit into this definition of "hipness"? Then, you're an outcast, and that goes against the initial point of being different in the first place.

Of course there are other sub-sects of "hipsters" in Austin, such as the yuppie/psuedo-pretentious kinds, commonly found in and around 2nd street, 4th street, and parts of 6th street. You know, the over-styled blonde with 50 necklaces, heels, a tight black dress, and too much make-up. Or the buff, spikey haired meathead in torn True Religion jeans, a graphic tee, and those long leather shoes which curl at the toes.

Personally, I find it all ridiculous.

[eepstein]

Ever heard the phrase "it's HIP to be square??"

Originally Posted by inthecut

I don't think Austin is so hip that it stands head and shoulders above the hipness of most/average metros.....actually, it is extremely overplayed in the media.....

first off, you have to define "What IS hip"?.... actually a song by Tower of Power back in the early 70's.....and what IS it? An attitude? A self-absorbed pre-occupation with trends, that all themselves will become outdated when the younger folk holding them dear age, long with every other type of "hip"?.....just youth/being young itself, and the excitement of being young and experiencing things for the first time? Surely youth is a huge factor, though the Austin myth is that 40-65 somethings can be "hip" as well, though I don't think one that is 42 will be either hanging around with 22-year-olds on a regular basis or be accepted by them as hip.....is there a hip "cut-off" point? Can seniors be "hip"?....Is hip just in the mind, and essentially a meaningless mental construct?

Finally, is hip lasting? Can one build a urban metro with institutions and an ethos that lasts long into the future based on what is cool/hip? Or must a great metro move beyond, far beyond "hip", to ideas/creations that can last the test of time, if it aspires to be a truly "future" orientated, trend-setting metropolis?......

I say hip is effervescent froth, and dissipates back from whence it came quickly, as new ideas/fashions come into play....only the lasting and real can be used as a foundation for a truly outstanding future-orientated metro.....cool metros will just flow back into the nothingness from whence they came, like Disco and Polyester......

I end with the lyrics to T o P's song "What is Hip?"...

So you wanna jump out yo trick bag,
Ease on into a hip bag.
But you ain't just exactly sure what's hip.

So you start to let your hair grow.
Spent big bucks on your wardrobe.
But somehow you know there's much more to the trip.

What is hip? Tell me tell me, if you think ya know.
What is hip? And if you're really hip, the passing years will show,
You into a hip trip, maybe hipper than hip.
But what is hip?

So you became part of the new breed.
Been smoking only the best weed.
Hanging out with so-called hippest set.
Been seen in all the right places,
Seen with just the right faces.
You should be satisfied,
But still it ain't quite right.

What is hip? Tell me tell me if you think you know.
What is hip? And if you're really hip.
The passing years would show,
You into a hip trip, maybe hipper than hip.
What is hip?

Hipness is
what it is!

Hipness is
what it is!

Hipness is
what it is!

Sometimes hipness is what it ain't!

You done went and found you a guru,
In an effort to find you a new you.
And maybe even managed to raise your conscience level.

As you're striving to find the right road,
There's one thing you should know:
What's hip today might become passe'.

What is hip? Tell me tell me if you think you know.
What is hip? And if you're really hip, the passing years would show
That you into a hip trip. Maybe hipper than hip.
WHAT IS HIP?

Think about it y'all!





Think about it, Y'all indeed!

[inthecut]

Originally Posted by llkltk

I like when people say Austin is a hip, young town. What will happen when the young and hip get old. Will they move or will it become a old, unhip town?

Most interesting pondering......ever see Logan's Run(movie)?......read the wiki entry on the same before continuing reading...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logan%27s_run

"In the world of 2116, a person's maximum age is strictly legislated: twenty-one years, to the day. When people reach this Lastday they report to a Sleepshop in which they are willingly executed. A person's age is revealed by their palm flower — a crystal embedded in the palm of their right hand that changes color every seven years, then turns black on Lastday."

So the quick answer is Sleepshop, or Carousel in the movie, conveniently located on 6th and Congress, for the old, unhip people that hit thirty(though in the novel it is 21)........the few that are extremely hip can postpone Carousel as long as they maintain their hipness. Someone like Timothy Leary or Williie Nelson may never have to see Carousel.....

Sorry, but that's the only answer to the aging of the former "hip"...


I hope you folks can see that I'm being totally ridiculous here.....

[oldtoiletsmkgdflrpots]

Hip is the part of the body that gets replaced when it's wore out.

[inthecut]

Originally Posted by sliverbox

Hipsters seem to be a relatively new phenomena of late. They all have that... same... "ironic" look, meaning they're probably from upper middle class families and yet they all dress like they drive a truck for a living, or they're from the 19th century ( steam punks) or basically anyone except for themselves. In other words, it isn't cool just to be themselves. Its much better to come up with a costume and be something your not.

Pisses me off because ever since I was a kid I wore T-shirts forever and inherited baseball caps from my Uncle because he was a dairy farmer and got all these cool farming hats with John Deere and Milk companies on them. This was in the 80's. Now I see people wearing fake hats that are new and made to look like they're from the 80's.

I dunno... they're obnoxious. They dress to look like trailer trash. I grew up in trailer trash territory. They in turn poke fun of rednecks yet some of them dress like rednecks. Hence- ironic. The hipster movement seems to have taken hold nation-wide. There was definitely a big hipster scene when I visited my folks over the summer.

Well, I guess it's safe to pull out my Billy Joe Bob teeth.......

[inthecut]

Originally Posted by capcat

You've just described Hillary Clinton, but no one else I can think of in the past 3 decades.

I don't want to see Hillary Clinton in anything, including a pantsuit....per seeing her naked, I would have to imbibe 8 Miller Lites, a half-pint of Jaggermeister, and a few spliffs just to gaze for a few seconds on that uncomely visage......and have a convenient container to vomit in.......

[oldtoiletsmkgdflrpots]

Originally Posted by inthecut

I don't want to see Hillary Clinton in anything, including a pantsuit....per seeing her naked, I would have to imbibe 8 Miller Lites, a half-pint of Jaggermeister, and a few spliffs just to gaze for a few seconds on that uncomely visage......and have a convenient container to vomit in.......

And you think she would give you the time of day? Seriously, what's with the Hillary Clinton bashing?