Halloween Deli

The pumpkins are out in abundance in New York City for Halloween. A typical Korean corner deli on 57th Street and 9th Avenue.

Lilac Season

It's lilac season right now and these very fragrant flowers are available in small bouquets at all the Korean delicatessens across the city. Technically, it's part of a shrub or bush known as Syringa (Lilac) which prodces pale purple flowers every year, at least according to Wikipedia. In the language of flowers, lilacs symbolize love. I like to think that tulips are my favorite flower, but then I'm reminded of how much I like the smell of lilacs. They only last a short time and right now they are in bloom and they're the best.

My sister and I used to drive to New Jersey every spring around this time when she still lived in the city. We'd go shopping at the mall on a Saturday afternoon and have a great lunch at Friendly's and then we'd drive around until we would find a lilac patch on the side of the road where they grow wild. After locating an especially bountiful patch, we would jump out of her car and run and grab as many as we could possibly carry in our arms. We would rush back to her car after picking what seemed like enough lilacs to fill her entire trunk. Since my sister doesn't live anywhere near New York any longer, I would appreciate it if anybody reading this who knows anyone in New Jersey to please tell them to fill up their car with lilacs and deliver a boatload of them to my apartment. They make everything smell so nice. They used to have lilac soap at Neiman Marcus that my mother would get me for Christmas. I'll take a case of that too!

Lunchtime

Somewhere downtown.

I just realized that I haven't been posting so much lately which is odd because I seem to be taking a lot of pictures. I used to post at least once a day which doesn't seem like that much, but it actually takes a lot of effort to find worthwhile things to shoot or talk about. Also, it seems like a few of my regular viewers fell off the face of the map too. Not sure what happens to people, but it appears they might be out shopping for shoes or otherwise busy with whatever preoccupies them. I suppose if the right shoe fits, might as well wear it until a better one comes along.

Afternoon Soup

A typical Manhattan deli. This one is tucked away on 58th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. Not sure what's going on in this picture, but I gather they are discussing the finer points of Chicken Gumbo.

The Flower Thief

You can't really nail down the flowers so they are prone to random acts of street thievery, but I've never seen a store so blatantly post the pictures of the crime in action. Not sure if this is a strong deterrent since not too much detail is evident from the pictures, but I'll give them credit for trying. Sign seen posted on the outside of a deli on Madison Avenue in the 30s.

I do like a bunch of fresh flowers -- a nice bouquet really brightens up the place.

Deli Rules

Typical Manhattan Deli.

Multicolored Flowers

Some flowers at a deli in Midtown. Always a good idea when you want to surprise a special someone.