Tel Aviv Hipsters

Pictured above is a genuine NYC hipster. I don’t know his name but I recognize his aura. The shaggy straight hair that slips over one eye, the outfit equipped with the requisite thin tie, and the fact that this photo was lifted straight from the MisShapes website. And you know that, unless you’re a Hipster, you can’t party at MisShapes. Seriously, the bouncer at Don Hills won’t let you in, no matter how much you beg or how many cigarettes you try to use as a bribe. I actually think this photo was taken at Luke + Leroy’s, but no matter really.

I want to meet Hipsters in Israel, I want to walk the streets of Tel Aviv and run into a shaggy haired, heroine thin physique, Franz Ferdinand listening, cigarette smoking, graphic designer, closet songwriter, guitar player, friend of Ultragrrrl, great literature loving, bonafide Hipster! And a Jewish one would just be the icing on the cake!

At this point in time, I’ve actually managed to meet 1 in Tel Aviv!

But where the hell are the rest of the Israel dwelling Hipsters? I’ve been here for almost 2 1/2 weeks now and the only one I’ve met, and had the priviledge of tossing back a few (ok, I think it was really just one but I don’t remember), was an Aussie named Simon. His friends also lovingly refer to him as “Trainer” for the simple reason, I assume, that Trainer is his last name. But, you know what they say about assumptions.

So why, you may ask, would I peg Simon as a Hipster?

Here are the facts:
1) Hipster Hair – long, shaggy and a little wild courtesy of the Tel Aviv humidity, one dollop of some anti-frizz gel and you would transform that do so that it hangs over his eyes and obscures his vision of, well, everything
2) Hipster specs – Square. Black frames. Spotted a bit which reveals his extremely nonchalant, low-maintenance attitude. Quite frankly, THE fashion accessory for any Hipster male.
3) Hipster musical taste – Hello, Wolfmother! ‘nuff said.
4) Hipster tale - As you know, a true hipster is only a hipster if he/she has a tale. For Simon, that tale involves spending a week stuck at the airport in Amsterdam because he was broke. I won't continue with the story now, you'll all just have to buy his book when it's published. But it's a good one.
5) Hipster attitude - Laid back, chill, takes life one day at a time, aspires to see the world (and party/drink) his way through it, has some sort of angst (we didn't get that far but give me another two weeks and I'll have him pegged) and super, super nice

Simon has given me hope. Now all I need to do is meet a couple more, and I'll be set!

Song of the day is My Brother Chris by Apartment. Don't worry, if you're a Hipster, you know this song.