Meet the Kamloops Hipster: 'Sarcastic, egotistical and kind of funny'

A variety of tweets selected by InfoTel News and brought to you by @KamloopsHipster.

(JESSICA WALLACE / iNFOnews.ca)

May 06, 2013 - 6:56 AM

As Twitter personalities go, Kamloops' own @KamloopsHipster doesn't have the millions of followers of GrumpyyCat or the name recognition of Stephen Colbert. But all good hipsters know that's what makes him even cooler. The Kamloops Hipster isn't mainstream.

His feed is a satirical twist on hipster culture with a local flare that has attracted 407 followers so far. But it's easily one of the funnier feeds anywhere.

Getting an interview with him, however, wasn't easy. I sent his profile picture around Facebook only to find it wasn't him at all. That's part of how he stays anonymous. Another way is to flat out refuse an interview.

"The chances of us ever talking in person are none," he told me after I tracked him down. He did relent, however, to (what else?) an online chat, although 'chat programs peaked in 2003 with MSN Messenger,' he says. We talked Hasty Mart Slurpees, cargo pants and a blog about useful ways to use asparagus.

Our e-meet went a little something like this…

Jessica Wallace
Hello!

Kamloops Hipster
It worked. Amazing. I'd been avoiding Google+.

JW
You're right - this online chatting is old school...

Kamloops Hipster
It's no ICQ, but it'll do.

JW
So maybe we could start with some background. Who is this Kamloops Hipster persona?

Kamloops Hipster
The Kamloops Hipster is a freelance blogger and professional part-time barista. He pretends to hate everything but actually secretly loves all things.

JW
When did he begin online and does he appear elsewhere besides Twitter?

Kamloops Hipster
The account actually started as 'Kamloops Fail' because I wanted a place to chirp people for no reason. This was fun for about a month before I didn't want to do it anymore. I'd gained about 100 followers at that point, so I kept the account around.
A while later, I kept coming up with funny things I really wanted to say on my personal account, but they weren't always politically correct.
So the Kamloops Hipster was born. Sarcastic, egotistical and kind of funny.
I changed the account over, and it's been fun to do ever since... and no, he doesn't appear anywhere else.

JW
Always good for a laugh! What made you flip it from Kamloops Fail to Kamloops Hipster? You mentioned it being fun for all of a month before switching...

Kamloops Hipster
The Fail angle could only go so far. There just wasn't a lot of material and sometimes people would try and complain about roads or the government to me - "The fact buses only run until blah blah hour is a Fail by city council!"

JW
What are you able to get out of the new handle?

Kamloops Hipster
I think that Hipsters are an easily identifiable character, so I can get away with complaining about mundane things like being out of couscous, or mocking people who tweet about the weather. I can also tweet the absolute ludicrous, like giving people "rules" to follow that are either incredibly accurate or incredibly dumb.

JW
Haha, so are you a hipster? How can you embody them? Seems pretty spot on...

Kamloops Hipster
I think we all have hipster tendencies to a point, I just exaggerate mine.

JW
When did you start tweeting about them?

Kamloops Hipster
Hmm....I can't pinpoint an exact date, but it's probably been a year? I'll look that up...

JW
Cool, thanks. And you have managed to/wish to remain anonymous, correct? Anything we CAN know about the person behind the handle? You went to Kamloops Secondary School (KSS)?

Kamloops Hipster
July 11th last summer. First tweet was: "It's free slurpee day, hey? I bought the slurpee machine from Hasty Mart when they shut down. Can't get quality like that anymore."

JW
Hahaha.

Kamloops Hipster
I have managed to remain anonymous to a point...some of my friends picked up my sense of humour pretty quickly. KSS doesn't exist anymore, so I figured that would be a good place for a Hipster to go.

JW
'I liked SKSS before it was SKSS.'

Kamloops Hipster
Go Red Devils.

JW
I'll have to go to Value Village and find an old shirt... The photo on your account - it's not you?

Kamloops Hipster
Nope, just searched Hipster and that was the best photo.

JW
Lol.

Kamloops Hipster
It does somewhat resemble me. Not a whole lot, but a bit.

JW
For those who may not know (gasp), how would you define a hipster?

Kamloops Hipster
Someone who knows everything and will let you know it. They're ahead of you on on all things cool and won't admit when they're not. Enjoy all things vintage and ironic. Usually found on the internet blogging or in coffee shops drawing artwork into your drink.

JW
What cool trends are you predicting?

Kamloops Hipster
Cargo pants will make a comeback. And really short shorts.

JW
And I just donated my cargos to Big Bros and Sisters... there are going to be some STYLISH little brothers and sisters.

Kamloops Hipster
Totally.

JW
Do you have a bike with a basket, or is that too mainstream now?

Kamloops Hipster
Too many hills in Kamloops. I tried riding it up Columbia. That was the end of that.

JW
Haha, I used to ride from Valleyview to Lansdowne and bus up the hill to the university (on occasion... let's be honest didn't happen often). Is Hipster-(ism?) (-ness?) (culture?) a fad?

Kamloops Hipster
Probably. I think it's on it's way out. It'll evolve into something else though. Just as emo culture did before it, just as punk did, etc., etc.

JW
Do you think hipsters are trying to beat other hipsters to the next trend in order to have found the next cool thing first?

Kamloops Hipster
I think everyone does that, Hipsters just try to the find something even more obscure to brag about. Mother Mother is playing in Kamloops? Oh, they were waaay better at the Railway Club back in 2007.

JW
Do you see a lot of hipster culture in Kamloops specifically?

Kamloops Hipster
Not a lot, but it is there. Kamloops is a pretty chill town and doesn't get caught up in the minor things as much. Sure, you'll get people who brag about having a white iPhone, or girls that wear scarves in the summer. But they're not so much worried about a specific DJ, or if the chicken they're eating at Earls had an organic diet.

JW
Have you been elsewhere? Do you have anything else to compare it to? Kelowna? Vancouver?

Kamloops Hipster
I've been places, yes. I'm from the Internet though. So I have a wide range of sources.

JW
What are your main Internet sources? Do you spend a lot of time on Instagram?

Kamloops Hipster
I do go on Instagram, although the amount of selfies annoys me. There is no Kamloops Hipster Instagram, though. I'm a Redditor.

JW
What kind of response have you received from your account? Will you ever stop tweeting as Kamloops Hipster?

Kamloops Hipster
Response is mostly positive, although you're always going to get people that disagree with an opinion or a joke. I actually stopped for a bit early this year when my tweets were getting a bit negative.

JW
What happened?

Kamloops Hipster
Wasn't happy with the quality, so I figured it was time to hang it up. Couple months later too many people were tweeting about the pope and I figured I needed to resurrect it.
I'll stop one day when it isn't fun/funny anymore. Or I'll transition it into something else. Or twitter will become uncool and I'll find something else to do.

JW
Full-time barista?

Kamloops Hipster
Until my blog about useful ways to use asparagus takes off.

JW
Just wondering whether you're concerned about becoming too mainstream if we write a feature about you?

Kamloops Hipster
Not at all. Newspaper is like a vintage blog.

JW
Haha, InfoTel only posts online news! Still cool?

Kamloops Hipster
I guess I can deal. Why is there a Tel in the name, then? You sure you're not related to BCTel?

JW
We're also a vintage phonebook company.

Kamloops Hipster
Ballin'.

JW
Now I know we're cool. Favourite store in Kamloops? Worst?

Kamloops Hipster
Nature's Fare is the best. Don't think I have a worst.

JW
Can you buy LPs anywhere?

Kamloops Hipster
Not anymore.

JW
#fail

Kamloops Hipster
I miss CD stores. I still have a tape deck in my car.

JW
Haha, and mixed tapes.

Kamloops Hipster
Legitimately.

JW
Awesome. Anything else you'd like to add?

Kamloops Hipster
I make a mean organic tea.

JW
Yum, perfect... in... Kamloops summer weather. Did you find Google+ better than MSN?

Kamloops Hipster
No. The emoticon range is crap and you can't see the music the other person is listening to. Also, no room to add a message in your name.
Lame.

Can't argue that.