This Mexican Wants to Sell You Flowers
Posted by paulrivas on:
His name is Romualdo. He goes to the flower market in LA at 3 a.m. to get the same hard-to-find Ecuadorian stuff you see at $150,000 Santa Barbara weddings. Then he rides up to SB with other international salesmen and sells $5 and $10 bouquets from 10am until 3-4pm. He has 20-30 bouquets in buckets, a total inventory of $250. He works in town often but doesn’t know what Goleta is. He lives in L.A., and can name every Chinese, Korean and Spanish channel by number.
It was September 11, 2010, and I advised the roadside Mexican that if he were prepared for any military transiting Modoc, he might make a few patriotism dollars. While we talked about how California used to be Mexico, he sold to two cars.
If only I’d had my Servicios Culturales Rivas cards on me that day, I might have a little bisnes by now offering legitimizing consultations to ambulant vendors. ‘Cops will assume you're illegal and people will assume you don't speak English,’ I’d explain, as passing cars saw friendly flower man chatting with smiling bike rider.
A friend of mine bought Mother’s Day flowers from a border brother at an offramp and was so pleased with the transaction that he considered investing.
How long has this been going on? Have you seen the mango cart ladies at Alameda Park?
The Mexification of Santa Barbara that brought us Lilly’s Tacos also brought a class of merchants who can’t afford Lilly’s Tacos.
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4 Comments
Comment by Michael on
Sometimes you just gotta self-Mexicate.
Comment by joe.vanthyne@dcs.ucsb.edu on
Bravo. U are very astute Mr. Rivas. I see this vendor often. This is my off-ramp. I hope his buisness does well.. We buy our flowers (when the occasion arises) at the Saturdays farmers market. I was driving down Guiterez (sp?) on the East side yesterday w. so many buisness and interesting signs and names.. I was thinking how U have captured some of these signs and nuiances in Goleta and U should spread your interpetation of the Eastside in your man-about town experiences. mucho gusto
Comment by gene zandona on
That man has the hrs of a dairyman. Gene
Comment by Chris Pedersen on
Ambulant vendors are here to stay, and their customer base is hopefully including us all. The corn on the cob vendor on the East Side of town has long been one of my favorites. Lilly's tacos is too pricey for the newly afoot bouquet merchant, as you say, but the authentic fare at Lilly's and the grassroots salesmanship of the wandering flower vendor both point the way out of our chain-store chain gang shackles. We need more of the ice cream carts as well.