... Melrose on the fly ...

... I'm not certain how to assess the extent to which I was seduced by the typical tapestry of Los Angeles media subtlety ... the billboards were everywhere and I developed an unexpected urge to see Iron Man 2 ... on opening weekend no less ... the character of the City of Angels hasn't changed much since I lived there for a brief stint some years ago ... and while Melrose Avenue has seen significant transitions, it remains as good a place as any to get a taste of the place if time is limited ...














... three or four years flew by since I last had the luxury of an afternoon to kill in L.A. ... the ubiquitous Christian Audigier namecheck and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art banners hyping Renoir's 20th Century work served to remind me that splash is expected with any type of product here ... and ... that this is no one-horse town ...

... there are more cars in L.A. these days fo' sho ... and more people passing through from elsewhere ... I somehow knew I'd run into a familiar face ... that it happened in a vintage emporium called Wasteland means what exactly? ...














... though I've heard L.A. called a land of waste, it's not that it is an actual "wasteland" ... indeed ... here there's a penchant for re-selling used clothing and it spills out from the stores into impromptu street-marts set up in parking lots and sidestreets ...













... in this urban fame capital I saw no celebs but trod where one of the biggest of 'em all walked ... MJ loved the appropriately named quaint little landmark at 7325 Melrose ... Off The Wall Antiques and Weird Stuff ... which for all it's worth resembles a glorified ye-olde-pawn-shoppe ... or ... judging by that day's sidewalk display, perhaps that should be prawn? ...














... with so much style for sale there's no shortage of takers for a quick hit of the spotlight ... the glam lure conspires to attract everyone ... not just on screen but in print ... glossy free street mags could be found in every-other shop along my route that warm afternoon ... seems ev'rybody be lookin' for copy, bylines or portfolio ... one curbside fashion shoot invited my gaze and didn't care how long I gawked ...













... some peeps make their noise with a flashy ride and a look-at-me attitude ... no fewer than five LAPD cruisers were drawn to the driver of this white rolling statement ... just another live act in the land of showbiz ... requisite paparazzi kneeled in the middle of traffic for long-lens shots but I couldn't identify the perp ... I do know that it wasn't Rodney King or O. J. Simpson ... nor did it appear to be David Hasselhoff or a Lohan ...














... in the time it took me to walk to my easternmost turnaround point and head back westward, the billboards I had noticed earlier were screaming the release of Hollywood's next blockbuster, Sex And The City 2, electronically flipping between present hype and ever-present next big thing ...

... as if life was imitating art, I espied a scene seemingly inspired by Carrie Bradshaw herself ... fit legs, fine threads 'n' all, conjuring images of 8th Avenue in Manhattan, or Fifth ... a passing Lexus flossin' a Florida license plate underlined the American cosmopolitanism of the Golden State ...














... this guy was late for class ... perhaps very late I mused ...














... still, here's betting he knew Melrose Avenue more than I ... may've even watched the 1,200,000 sq. ft. Pacific Design Center go up in the seventies ... he prob'ly saw it get added onto in the eighties, and knew what building was there before that ...














... the structure sometimes referred to as The Blue Whale occupies a long city block ... my tired legs could attest ... fittingly the nostalgic stroll ended near there, the diversity of facilities within mirroring the diversity of sights and experiences of a few hours out 'n' about on Melrose ... I could do it again and come up with an entirely different report ...

... ah well, nex' trip ...