You may have heard that today is something called [checks notes] “Black Friday.” I quote Wikipedia here:

Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the United States, traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season…On this day, many retailers open very early, often at 4 a.m., or earlier, and offer promotional sales to kick off the shopping season.

To me, it sounds like a nightmare, but hey — to each his own.

Why not support your local small businesses by shopping with them tomorrow on the brand new tradition of Small Business Saturday? You know there are many business in your neighborhood that you love and want to keep around.

One of my personal favorites is The Traveler’s Bookcase. They are tiny but carry  so many amazing books — cookbooks, art books, travel guidebooks, travel writing and many awesome accessories for all your travel wants and needs. They may not be able to offer steep discounts, but they will offer personal service and a lovely inviting atmosphere. (Their couch is a comfy place to fantasize about your next adventure.)

Why should you support small businesses? Here are some interesting facts* that I just learned:

• For every $100 spent at local small business, $68 returns to the community.
• Small businesses employ half of all private sector employees.
• Small businesses represent 99.7% of all employer firms.

In these wacky economic times, keeping small businesses in business is more important than ever. If you can, please consider supporting your favorite small businesses this holiday season!

*I learned this on the Small Business Saturday website and you can learn more about the effort there too.

Taken today, Thanksgiving 2010. Walkers in white are part of the annual Turkey Trot.

While much of the country enjoys the snow or endures snow-less freezing weather, here in Los Angeles we enjoy a beautiful clear day.  The water here in Long beach is so calm, it could easily be mistaken for a lake.  While I admit that I could do with it being a bit warmer, I am NOT complaining.

Today, I am thankful to live in Los Angeles.

Next Wednesday, December 1, Help A Mother Out is having a diaper drive in Glendale and you can join in the fun and give help to those parents and kids in need. At 10am there will be a morning social to kick off a two week diaper drive. The sponsors of the drive – the Glendale Domestic Violence Task Force, Glendale Rotary Club at Noon, and PATH/Achieve Glendale – will be on hand to tell you more about how diaper needs affect the community. Here are some tough facts to start:

• Nearly 4,000 families in Glendale earn less than $10,000 per year and it can cost up to $1,100 per year to diaper a baby.
• Diapers are not covered under food stamps or WIC. Babies left in dirty diapers face great risk for diaper rash, staph, and urinary tract infections.
• At any given point there are 42 women and children in Glendale homeless due to domestic violence. Homeless families in crisis need diapers.

You can get your free ticket to the morning event here. Please make sure to get your ticket so that the organizers know how many people will be on hand. Please also bring a package of diapers and/or wipes to the event. There will be additional drop off sites around Glendale (and I’ll follow up with more info on that in a post next week.) Or if you can’t make it but would still like to donate diapers, you can donate to PATH Achieve Glendale right here. For more info on Help A Mother Out, click here.

HAMO Glendale Diaper Drive
Glendale Police Station
Wednesday December 1, 10:00am
131 North Isabel Street
Glendale, CA 91206

Please do what you can to help families in need. I will post more info about this diaper drive next week!

To all my busty sisters out there! Jenette Bras is having a HUGE sale this coming Friday. She’s calling it “Black Bra Friday” and you must go.

From 10am to 6pm everything black in the store is on sale – bras, panties, camis, slips, corsets, you name it. Discounts range from 20 to 40% off. If you have been waiting to buy some gorgeous support for your gorgeous rack, head on over to Jenette’s.  While others will be muscling through crowds to get the latest electronics, you will be shaping up nicely in a beautiful new bra, aided by the expert care of Jenette and her crew.

Gents! Don’t think you aren’t invited. If you have a lovely busty gal in your life, gift certificates are 20% this Friday as well.

Black Bra Friday
Jenette Bras
Friday, November 26
10am – 6pm

“Where the Alphabet Starts at D!”

Halloween detritus -- my favorite kind

L.A., how was your Halloween?  I went to the 4th annual Halloween party held by one of my writer’s group friends.  We had amazing dj music courtesy of the big outdoor Mexican wedding next door.  And we had an always enjoyable theatrical bent to many of the costumes.  These included:

–Maleficent from “Sleeping Beauty”
–The Cure’s Robert Smith as a goth zombie, or “Gombie.”  I didn’t realize how much he looks like Edward Scissorhands.
–A pink Crayola crayon
–A Renaissance Vampirella
–Waldo
–A Killer Bee
–The Bride of Frankenstein
–A crazed Laker fan (aren’t they all?)
–Charlie Brown
–Eddie Munster

Surprisingly, we had no “Jersey Shore” cast members, and no politicians.  But we had some topical characters, including a Chilean miner and a couple from “Dancing With the Stars,” albeit with a fishnet twist.  And, perhaps appropriately, our costume contest winner was a tv character: Tina Fey/Liz Lemon from “30 Rock,” including rectangular glasses, clipboard, and bag of Sabor de Soledad Mexican cheese puffs.

So, how about you? Any standout costumes at your Halloween wardrobe (mal-)functions?

Every October, my inner Linus gets the urge to find the most sincere pumpkin patch. Not so much to wait for The Great Pumpkin, but to see, photograph, and perhaps even select a fabulous pumpkin to display.

In the past I’ve visited Lombardi Ranch in Saugus, Pierce College’s Halloween Harvest Festival, the Calabasas Pumpkin Festival, and even a lovely farm in Ventura County. All of these places had marvelous pumpkin patches, but the most sincere? Hard to say.

This year, I stuck closer to home and checked out Forneris Farms in Mission Hills. The pumpkins there were okay, but what they really have going for them is their fantastic corn maze. You can see an aerial view of it on their website and it’s pretty impressive. It’s large, family friendly and has an optional scavenger hunt. If I didn’t have a navigator, I’d still be wandering around the stalks of corn. While most of the pumpkin patches and farms that are still open close tomorrow, the corn maze at Forneris Farms is open through November 7th.

What are your favorite local pumpkin patches to visit? It doesn’t hurt to start planning for next year!

Nothing says Halloween like a traditional game of bobbing for apples at the old Cock ‘n’ Bull Tavern on Sunset. Go get ‘em, Diane.

The year was 1949.

Photo from the Los Angeles Public Library

Halloween is serious business in this town. It seems to be a sort of sub-industry: when I first moved to LA, I was completely taken aback by the sheer number of one stop Halloween shops that seem pop up around the city at this time of year. Who knew that there was such a huge market for plastic pumpkins, animatronic talking skeletons, and Sexy Donut costumes? Who knew indeed. And LA has its fair share of scary stories – from the Black Dahlia to Lizard People and everything in between – making it a particularly evocative place to be for the spookiest holiday of the year.

As the end of October approaches, we’re hotly anticipating that time when the heady aroma of smashed jackolanterns will once more waft through the air. So check in with us over the next week and a half as we bring you a variety of perspectives on navigating Halloween in Los Angeles – from LA’s spookiest places, to ghostly events, to more Lizard People coverage than you ever thought you’d need (and believe me, you do actually need it). Bookmark this post, because I’ll be keeping an archive of all our Halloween posts. And please comment below and let us know about your favorite scary sights, haunted houses and local Halloween festivities!

The Creepy Beneath Our Feet:  Kevin’s ongoing expose on the Secret Lives of Lizard People (and possibly the greatest run of posts this site has ever known)

LA’s Lizard People

The Patron Saint of the Lizard People

The City with Scaly Shoulders

Lizard People and the Bigger Picture

Passages to the Underworld

Lizards in Disguise

The Real (and Not Actually Creepy Thing

And because all good things must, sadly, end, the Wrap-Up.

Other, less lizard-oriented Halloween posts:

Navigating street closures at the West Hollywood Costume Carnival

Seriously Corny

Hide Your Silly String Tonight

Halloween Wardrobe Mal-Function

Sunshine Gothic

I’ve got Tickets to Give Away again, Kids!
Not just One Night but TWO!!

Spend Halloween Weekend with Nick 13 and TIGER ARMY!

Tiger Army shows are always awesome, and their Halloween shows are Legendary.
They’ll be at The Grove in Anaheim, on October 30th with Jack Grisham & The West Coast Dukes and Throw Rag
and on Halloween October 31st with Mad Sin and Hillbilly Casino.

Not to be Missed!

I have Four Pairs of Tickets to each show to Give Away! And a surprise Extra Pair for one of the nights! Ooooo…Bonus! Which night? Well, you don’t know, do you? Is it a Trick, or is it a Treat?

To enter the contest leave a comment on this post, and make sure to let me know what night you want to go. If either night is fine, let me know that. (That’s a good way to get an edge in the contest, I’m not gonna lie.) Winners will be selected randomly, or perhaps capriciously. It amounts to the same thing.

Oh, and no one will be getting tickets to both nights,  so don’t ask. Seriously.

Have Fun and Good Luck.

Tiger Army Never Die!

Get your scary on, Blogging.la readers, I have it on good authority this year’s Queen Mary Halloween event: Dark Harbor is the best yet, and we have tickets for you. Horror aficionados don’t need the explanation, but for the rest of you: each year, the Queen Mary gets transformed into a  fun, scary Halloween party? event? park? There are bands and food, and this year there are five apparently ridiculously scary mazes. Their site boasts “more than 45,000 scares per hour” courtesy of 160 monsters and 20-foot tall flames. (It’s sounds a little like a Burning Man afterparty if you’re sober, but I’m promised it’s even more scary than that.)

Tickets are regularly $35, discounted to $29 ($25 for students) for the next two weekends (Oct. 8-10, 15-17), but I’ve got two pairs of freebies for this Friday or Sunday if you can get your clever on and provide a caption for the photo below in the comments. Keep reading for details.

Click me twice to make me bigger

So leave your best/funniest caption  in the comments below, and don’t forget to supply an email address where I can reach you. Winners will be selected sometime after midnight (of course) Thursday night by a committee of two (me and a PR guy–now you’re really scared aren’t you?). Watch your email late Thursday night/early Friday morning. If you can’t make this weekend, they can raincheck your tickets for next Friday or Sunday.

Of course, if you plan to go, you should check out the website for all the details. I’m a blogger, not your mother. Go. Have fun.

[Also, if you want to hedge your bets, the Queen Mary is giving away tickets to the best caption for this pic. Tweet your caption to @TheQueenMary with the #DarkHarbor hashtag.]

Some rights reserved by Veronica Jauriqui, used under a Creative Commons license.

Sorry, kids. There will be no bitching about how tack the DWP’s Holiday Light Festival this year. No arguing about how bike or pedestrian friendly it should be. That’s right – Santa Claus Tom LaBonge has cancelled the annual event.

Unfortunately, this isn’t some sort of mandate against the DWP for rate hikes and an aversion to accountability and transparency, but simply a matter of practicality. From LaBonge’s weekly update: “Due to the cost and amount of time need to halt a major construction project – the installation of a major water line, the River Supply Conduit – as well as the installation of the new zoo parking lot, it is in the public’s best interest to cancel this year’s event.”

However, LaBonge still hopes for “an alternative location for this great, free, family-friendly event,” and to contact his office if you have any ideas. Heck, leave a comment below and will nudge his staff to keep an eye on this thread.

You like fireworks? We got fireworks!

Los Angeles, you may have noticed, is a large place, so there are many spots to see fireworks this weekend. Click here for a full list of viewing places, times and prices (if applicable). And the fireworks are not only on the 4th. If you need to get your pyrotechnic needs filled early, here are some of the spots you can see fireworks tonight, July 3:

Catalina Island at Isthmus Cove 9:00 PM

Home Depot Center (Carson) during the Chivas USA vs. Philadelphia Union match (Game at 7:30, fireworks following the match)

Norwalk has 2 spots, both at 9:00 PM:
Cerritos College (11110 E. Alondra Blvd.)
North City Library – Parking Lot (12350 Imperial Highway)

Long Beach
The Queen Mary is having a weekend full of food, music and activities for an admission price. Each evening ends with fireworks at 9:00 PM.

Lawndale
Luezinger High School, Field (41118 W. Rosecrans Ave.) 9:00 PM

To help you remember what all the fuss is about, why not read the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution (including the Bill of Rights) again?

Tomorrow, the 4th of July, there are larger events (that include fireworks) happening all over town: LA Coliseum, San Fernando Recreation Park, Pomona Fairplex, Hollywood Bowl, The Rose Bowl. Again, click here for details on each of these big events and a full list of fireworks shows throughout the weekend.

Here are a few highlights for neighborhood shows.

Artesia
Artesia Community Park
12000 block of South Street / Elaine
Admission is free
9:00 p.m.

Carson
Home Depot Center
LA Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders Soccer Match (LANDON DONOVAN ALERT!)
Game at 7:30, Post game fireworks

Cerritos
Cerritos High School
12500 E. 183rd Street
9:00 p.m.

Downey
Downey High School
10410 Brookshire (Brookshire and Firestone)
5:00 – 8:30 p.m. Food and Family Fun
9:00 p.m. 25-minute Fireworks Show

Huntington Beach
City Beach (between Main and Beach Blvd.)
$10 tickets on pier seating (hb4thofjuly.org for tickets)
Free on beach

La Habra
La Habra High School (Baseball Field)
801 Highlander
9:00 p.m.

Walnut
Walnut High School
South end of Baseball Field
21207 La Puente Road
9:00 p.m.

A quick reminder for anyone (anyone who doesn’t celebrate Easter, that is) looking for something to do tomorrow: April 4 is the local celebration of Songkran, the Thai New Year.

Outside of Thailand itself, LA is home to the largest collection of Thai people in the world. Each year the Songkran festival is held in Thai Town, along Hollywood Boulevard between Western and Normandie — the only Thai Town in the world. It takes place between 8 AM and 9 PM, and includes a pretty huge variety of food, entertainment, shopping and drinking. But why listen to what I have to say when you can read the English version of the official Thai New Year website:

It is exciting time when you will have experience in all aspects of Thai such as, ancient crafts and arts, remarkable culture, Thai heritage and ancient-unique traditions, delicious Thai food, apparel, martial arts, the world-class beautiful tourist attractions, Thai sophisticated manners, warm hospitality, and friendliness of Thai people.

So: Have fun at Songkran. And watch the peripheral traffic on Sunset and Franklin if you’re driving through Hollywood or Los Feliz.

We may be in the final rainy throes of winter, but in the rear parking lot of Cinema Secrets in North Hollywood, Spring’s eternal harbinger is peeking out a window, assessing the terrain.

Gentlemen! Are you looking for a fab Valentine Day gift for that special zaftig someone in your life? Always wanted to buy her sexy lingerie that you know SHE (and you) would like? Ever feel kinda creepy walking into Victoria’s Secret – alone?

Jenette Bras is here for you.

This Thursday, Friday and Saturday Jenette Bras is hosting Men-Only evening events from 6pm to 8pm. From their invite:

We’ll pour you a drink, then get to work helping you select the perfect gift: beautiful brassiere and pantie sets, slips, corsets and gift certificates for a custom bra fitting. And if your honey is already a Jennette Bras gal, then we’ve got her stats and you’ve got it made. Painless.

If your special someone a gorgeous, curvy gal, this is the shop for her. And you.

At Jenette Bras, the Alphabet Starts at D — ask your woman, she’ll know what that means.

(Full disclosure, I’m a very satisfied customer of Jenette Bras so I know what I’m talking about.)

Jenette Bras
4308 Melrose Ave.
323-665-7490
Right around the corner from Scoops!