MY NEW FAVOURITE WORD
I don’t remember when it occurred but I learned a new word sometime in the past couple years that recently came to mind. I actually think I know exactly who taught it to me… But can’t say for sure. Recently it sprung up in my memory and now I would say this is my new favourite word… of the month for sure, maybe even of the year… we will circle back in December.
This word, upon searching Google to verify what I thought it meant, is apparently derogatory. Haha. I think it depends on the usage. In my eyes, it’s not a bad thing to be one of these. It’s actually pretty fun. I would know, because I am one of the biggest ones I know. The word is YUPPIE!!!
WHAT IS A YUPPIE
Google’s definition:
– a young person with a well-paid job and a fashionable lifestyle
And then Google gives the example of: “Stereotypical 1980s yuppies obsessed with material objects and financial success.”
My own definition:
– common city folk who are influenced by trends things they see on Instagram or TikTok, or popular culture in general
I bring up city mice in my definition because I think that if I was still a country mouse, I would be 50% less yuppie. When I moved to Montreal in 2017 it was a major cultural shift, and my journey of becoming (a yupster) was accelerated.
Now, let me reaffirm what I said above, I am a self-proclaiming yuppie. I do not shy away from knowing that I am a big fat yuppo. In fact, I think I am the Queen of Yup Island. I might be the president of Yuppieville. Maybe even the resident singer at Yup Vegas. I was born to be a yuppie. As I grew up, I became even more yuppie-coded. The Yupification went on as I matured, and now, after a quarter century of practicing Yupism, I might be in my final form: I work at a “tech” company, I wear gore tex when I don’t need to, I frequent nice cafes for expensive coffee, and I live in Montreal’s own Yuppieville, also known as Mile End. That’s right, I am the mayor of Yuptown…
WHERE THE YUPPIES GO
This place is crawling with my kind. On weekends, I see a big long snake-like line of them on Bernard in two hotspots: Bernie Beigne (love the donuts, hate the line) and Alphabet Cafe (I never go, but I can appreciate it nonetheless as a fellow yuppie: there is a cute barista and they have iced coffee year round, yup!). We also have another hotspot here in my neighborhood: Cafe Olimpico. I don’t even think it’s worth trying to describe this place. If you’ve ever been there on the weekend you know. If not… maybe try to avoid it? And last but not least… Here in Yuptown we are blessed with the hoLy trifecta of yup-core: brick and mortar stores of lululemon, lunettiq, and livestock, all making an effort to fuel our yupfits. Honestly, no hate for those places at all, they just crack me up. They are all just doing their part in selling us an expensive alter-ego. Some just fall for it harder than others. Shout out to Yuptown!
HOW TO IDENTIFY A YUPPIE
The average yupster wears expensive sunglasses, sometimes at inappropriate times, a gore tex jacket (or maybe an Aritzia Super Puff or North Face Nuptse 700), perhaps lululemon leggings or Agolde jeans and probably has an iPhone 12 or newer. On foot, the average Yuppie is often equipped with Adidas Sambas, however not limited to trail runners, in the city, for all the concrete. 😛 This variety frequents wine bars from Thursday-Sunday and loves to indulge in a small overpriced plate of food in the name of supporting local restaurants. We love to “support the economy”.
ACCEPTING THAT YOU ARE A YUPPIE
There is nothing wrong with being a yuppie: it is harmless, and most of us are yuppie-coded in some way or another. However, it takes a certain amount of privilege to be a yupster… (Something that I feel I reek of lately… Maybe I’ll write about that next…) Maybe there are some other traits of the local yuppies that I’m missing out on, but those are what come to mind when I think of my yuppie self. Perhaps there are different strains of yuppie too that I have yet to discover. I’m looking forward to going back to British Columbia in a couple days and examining my yuppies in their natural habitat. I guess we can touch base on that another time. For now, I’ll continue to be just another yup-town girl.
Third times a charm! 