Bumper sticker spotted on a Corner Bakery delivery van:
It reminds me of the warnings you see on cardboard coffee cups that say things like, “The beverage you are about to enjoy is extremely hot.” Though my favorite is still one from the late, lamented* Diedrich Coffee that said, “Of course it’s hot!”
*OK, they’re not completely gone—there are still two stores left in Orange County since Starbucks bought them out and either closed or converted the rest. *grumble*
Our first night in San Diego, we picked up our badges for Comic-Con, then went out to see Avenue Q. We took the trolley back, and as we walked up the hill from the Little Italy trolley stop, we saw a pair of giant cartoon eyes looking out over the city from a balcony near the top of a nearby building. I thought they might be satellite dishes with convenient lighting, but then I remembered the number of odd publicity stunts connected to the Simpsons movie. No idea whether it’s related or not.
The shuttle route from our hotel to the con passed by this mural, which plays with the nature of the constructed reality. The wall is a newspaper page. The face is a sculpture, a painting. The hands holding the chisel and paintbrush, of course, are just as artificial as the face being created.
We noticed an interesting coincidence at Horton Plaza. Just a few doors down from the Post Office was an Aeropostale clothing store:
This bench was in front of a hotel, probably the Hilton San Diego Gaslamp. I suppose that makes the pun on dog training more appropriate, since it’s a block away from Petco Park stadium.
I’ve always figured standing out on a street in a mascot costume must be miserable, especially in summer. But how much worse to be dressed as a giant soft drink? I suppose this would go with last year’s walking sandwich.
Now, you have to wonder about AMN Healthcare. It’s clearly a set of initials…but how often do people complain about health, insurance, and the healthcare industry? It’s just one letter off from “Damn Healthcare.”
Back to the shuttle route, next to (or possibly connected to) the Martini Ranch spotted in a previous installment of this series, was this nightclub that made no pretensions about what people are going there for. Also note that it’s a “niteclub” — is that a nightclub with fewer calories?
Then there’s this place, which employed the ultimate euphemism:
That’s got to be the most convolutedly delicate way of saying “sex shop” that I’ve ever seen.
You know how tarps stretched across fences will often have holes cut in them to allow the wind to pass through, rather than turning them into sails? This fence around a construction site had half-circles cut into each segment. Someone with a sense of humor had altered several panels, though:
Which brings me to this sign spotted on the ring road at UC Irvine a few months ago:
My best guess was “No bored vampires,” but that didn’t seem likely. After walking to the other side, it became a bit more clear:
Aha! No skateboarding! Though it could easily be “No flat dollies.”
The Whole Foods market in Tustin (the only one in Orange County, as far as I can tell), is moving to the new District shopping center going in at the corner of Barranca and Jamboree, on the site of the former MCAS Tustin Marine base. Several of the big box stores are open already, but they haven’t moved yet. In fact, yesterday, they were only part way through putting up the sign:
We drove around a bit, exploring the shopping center and the two segments of road that have been completed so far. Outside the shopping center, there’s not much to see yet except for barren fields and empty lots sweeping back toward the two blimp hangars and, off in the distance, a building complex on the far side of the former base.
Southeast blimp hangar viewed from corner of Tustin Ranch Rd. and Warner Ave.
Found these posters advertising the opening of a new 24-Hour Fitness gym:
Wait, something doesn’t fit. A “big, fat honkin’ party?” Last I looked, this was a fitness center, not a fatness center!
It doesn’t help that one of the prizes is a big-screen TV. I didn’t realize “couch potato” fell under the category of “Ultra Sport.” 😀
The concept here makes sense: There are flashing yellow lights above the crosswalk and embedded in the road, and you activate them by hitting the button before you cross. In theory, this should make approaching drivers more likely to notice you.
But there’s just something amusing about the phrase, “Crosswalk warning device.”
I’m sorry, no matter how many vitamins and minerals you add to cola, it’s not going to be healthy.
Oh, crap. Suddenly, I can picture the coffee chains and smoothie chains getting together.
“One iced blended mocha, please.”
“Would you like a free boost in that?”
