After Peter set up for Wizard World LA last weekend, he realized he was missing a few cables. I hate LA, but at least it’s civilized enough to have Fry’s, because Peter’s unhappy if he has to go anywhere else for his technology needs. And this time, for once, I was driving, because now I have a big new car with plenty of room for my family and a roomy trunk as well. And so I drove us to the nearest Fry’s, which turned out to be in the City of Industry east of our hotel, on the Pomona freeway.
As we drove up to it, Peter and Neil gave out shouts of glee. We’d already seen the Invasion of the Worlds Fry’s in Burbank, which is a pop culture masterpiece. This one was just as good, in a different, but just as delightful way: its design was all about gears. I only had my cell phone to take pictures, but it had to be captured. Here’s a blurry picture of the amazing gear front of the store:
A 19th century gear-and-cogs theme echoed through the store, from the gears that marked each aisle, to the girders and industrial workers mural at the back of the store:
The customer service counter even looked like it came out of steampunk work of fiction:
The Fry’s in Northern California have themes, but it seems the architect for the LA Fry’s went all out in creative nerd-culture-embracing enthusiasm. And personally, I like it a lot.
I am going to have to find an excuse to drive out to this Fry’s! I’ve been to the Burbank classic-sci-fi one, but the nearest one to where I live is the classical Roman one in Fountain Valley.