Stepping out of the hipster closet

I’m pretty certain that I was born a hipster. Here is the incontrovertible evidence:

• When I was six, I thought it was soooo laaaaame the way all my classmates told our grade 1 teacher they “loved her” and would write message on the board like “I love you Miss Grimes” (yes her name was Grimes, ironic as she was lovely like Miss Honey from Roald Dahl’s “Matilda”.) Love? Really? We barely know the woman!
• Around that time I also used to read the Babysitter’s Club book series and I remember seeing a girl in sixth grade also reading the same book. I was all AS IF I’ll still be reading these books when I’m TWELVE.
• Having to choose what you want to be when you grow up and drawing a picture of it was a common primary school activity. And it used to drive me crazy that just about everyone picked either “marine biologist” or “hairdresser” (BTW I went to an all-girls school). Seriously, it was like three quarters of the grade that chose one or the other. I tried to be really original and once said “illustrator” and another time said “interpreter.”

It kind of surprises me that I was THAT young and already SO cynical and judgmental (staples for any hipster.) The only conclusion I can come to is that I was born a hipster, in the same way that people are born gay, and I have no choice but to accept this as who I am. In fact I came out of the hipster-closet a few years ago and it really has been such a weight off my shoulders to just be comfortable with that side of myself.

A friend of mine says that he’s never met anyone who says the word hipster as much as I do, but I think people are uncomfortable about it because they think I’m using the word derogatorily, when I’m not. Really I’m trying to ‘reclaim’ the word and make everyone feel that it’s socially acceptable.

YOU ARE A HIPSTER, AND THAT’S OK!

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PS. Please note that in true hipster style I am being somewhat tongue-in-cheek when drawing comparisons between hipsterism and the gay identity. It’s an exaggeration used for comic effect, but by no means do I want to belittle the struggles of gay people and all the amazing and brave steps they take in coming out of the closet. And in any case, it may be more appropriate to call me a very, very long-time hipster junkie and that a more appropriate response would be to start some sort of twelve step recovery program.