Fresno Famous

Yoshi Now! is the hipster mecca of all things cool, collectible, kitschy and vintage.

The warehouse-sized store is crammed full of chairs and couches, clothes, collectibles, tables and lamps, records (the LP kind), books, magazines, shoes, tables, knick-knacks and bric-a-brac, signage (of the neon beer variety), local music (CDs), wall art and all kinds of crap you'll probably never use, but will somehow feel you need.

So watch where you walk.

The place is international — vintage hounds visiting from Japan and England have been known to make stops in town just to shop at Yoshi — but still has love for all-things Fresno, including an ultra rare (and therefore super cool) Fresno Famous women's tee, with glittery letters and all.

Even the music pumped through the store's stereo is Fresno, from local bands like Blake Jones and the Trike Shop.

"Hey, hey light rail," indeed.

To that end, the store kicks off its annual series of monthly parking-lot flea markets from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 21. It's your chance to buy the best local music, vintage LPs, retrowear, SoulCrafts and handmade art, not to mention sno-cones, Empanadas and tamales, all from local vendors.

There will also be live music from Abel Mouton and the Tastemakers, the aforementioned Jones (he's bringing the theremin, don't worry), Poplord and DJs James and Raina.

In anticipation of the event, I took $20 and an hour of browse-time to visit the store.

This is what I came away with:

Lime green short-sleeved shirt from Sears

To match the long-sleeved one I have at home. This will be my springtime green shirt. It's got a big '70s collar and it's Perma Press, which, according to the tag, means I can wear it without ironing.

"Invisible Jet-Ski's"—Argyle Pimps

Yoshi has a shelf-full of local music, which it sells on consignment. But they don't take any profit, which means the store doesn't get much more than the knowledge it's helping foster local art. Until Rasputin's gets up and running, Yoshi might be the place for locals. The selection is smallish, so far, though they do have Bradley "The Dudeboy" Rogers, the whole collection of Blake Jones and the Trike shop, and a certain punk-rock band called It'll Grow Back. This was my big purchase, ($10), but I've been meaning to buy the Pimps for awhile, so it worked nicely.

The Kingston Trio's self-titled debut album

Yoshi Now!'s selection of LPs isn't record-store great, but there are some gems if you don't mind spending the time to look. I'm a sucker for harmonies and no one does it better than the Kingston Trio (well, maybe the Beach Boys). This album, released on Capital Recordsin 1958, has folky classics like "Tom Dooley" and
"Sloop John B".

Triangle Stations "magic" watch

I'm not sure if it's really magic, or even if it runs (although it does tick), but the watch face does this crazy thing where its color fades in and out like a mood ring. I'm not sure how it works, but it's totally worth $2.

My roommate hated everything I bought. Especially the shirt.