Sunday, December 21, 2008

Next Stop - The Island of Misfit Toys!

…but first we need to stop and stock up on our Vitamin C for the long trip. And here’s the perfect place to do it – Von’s! Santa pops up through the corrugated chimney while two of his tiny (white, inflatable plastic) reindeer look on. They’re joined by an attractive woman sporting the West Coast equivalent of “big hair”. From 1962, exact location unknown.

7 comments:

  1. Geez, I have never seen such a supply of endless oranges in December! Gotta love California. Beats the bitter cold we are experiencing here in Chicago today.

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  2. We're just getting some of the first nice oranges of the season now. California Oranges and Washington apples should hold us through until summer when the grapes and melons start looking nice again. (Von's produce doesn't look that good anymore, however. It's been all downhill since the Safeway buyout.)

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  3. Great "warm" photo, gotta love that mountain of oranges! In the 1980's a bunch of old "Vons" stores in Los Angeles became "Jons", closed stores reopening with different owners maybe? The signs were shameless, they only changed the "V" to a "J".....

    Are we going to the Island of Misfit Toys? If so, I'm looking for a slightly used Charlie-In-The-Box!

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  4. Didi - Illinois would never be called the "Golden State" or the "Sunshine State", that's for sure.

    Chris - It's hard to fathom oranges coming in when we in the middle part of the country have been freezing over the last couple of weeks! I know in Chicago, Safeway has tried to improve, but it's been an uphill climb.

    Tim - It does have a warm feel, and not just because of the oranges. I've seen pictures of the "Jons" stores - probably the chaepest banner conversion in history!

    And I'm looking for a train with square wheels!

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  5. This post brings back memories of a time with fruit baskets filled with oranges, tangerines, apples, nuts, grapes and bananas figured prominently into celebrating Christmas. I'm talking the bushel basket full of fruit. Goes along with the smell of a real Christmas tree and those giant non-blinking Christmas lights, albeit a potetially risky combination of a real tree and hot lights.

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  6. Dave, want me to send you a a current picture of my lemon and orange trees, heavy with ripe fruit?

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  7. Ironically, those navels aren't from California's Orange County (as many probably assume) but in fact are likely from neighboring Riverside or Redlands where the "wintertime" navels originated. (OC produced the usually inferior "summertime" valencia variety.)

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