The weekend is finally here! Hooray! Three days off... ah. I am definitely taking my long drive to Onyx on Monday. Tomorrow is Errand Day. I do want to start with the
Flower Market downtown, as I haven't been there in ages.
Los Angeles has a great flower market, with unbelievably low prices and a huge selection. The catch is that you have to get there early - they open to the trade at 4 a.m. and to the public at 6 a.m. It's fun to go really early and wander around with a coffee. It's a huge warehouse with cement floors and a lot of individual booths/assigned spaces. Some of the sellers specialize in exotics (orchids or tropical plants) and some do a lot of the basics; one or two just sell roses. It's incredible to see all the colors of roses available for sale there. I once bought some lovely candy-striped tulips, red and white, that looked just like peppermint.
Equally fun is the people watching. You may see a woman buying flowers for her dinner party, or a Latino family buying flowers for a quinceria (a fifteenth birthday party), or anything in between. Upstairs is a huge crafts and decorating store with decorations for every season in the year; right now I'm expecting to see a lot of Valentine's stuff. You can find confetti in the shape of Easter bunnies and eggs, or farm animals, or shamrocks, or anything else your heart desires; votive candle holders; giant Christmas ornaments a foot across; all the fake fruit you could ever use; every width and color of ribbon; and my favorite find, back in a corner, styrofoam wreath forms in the shape of Rotary Club and Lions Club symbols. Yes, apparently people still buy these things.
posted by Dr. Alice at #
