I love Target. I can't help myself. And my new favorite Target is the one in West Hollywood at La Brea and Santa Monica Blvd. It is not the easiest for me to get to, but if I happen to be in that part of town, which I am frequently, I never find it a hassle to shop there, even at times of the day that should totally suck. Though I guess I never go on a weekend afternoon, which is actually the worst time of day to do anything errand-y in Greater Los Angeles. And avoid the 101 through The Valley. You have been warned.

Why This Target Is Better

Underground parking. It is free for the first hour, and I'm usually efficient enough to get out of there in time. As someone who didn't have A/C in the car for a long time, parking in the cool cement shade of an underground parking lot is a big perk. And there are giant elevators and escalators to take you up to the store levels.

Target is just one of the anchors. Not a mall, but a much better designed shopping plaza. It also has Best Buy, a bunch of small stores I don't care about, eateries, a Bev More! and AAA. It is Lunchtime Errand A Go-Go!

Somehow, less screaming children. It might be the neighborhood, but compared to the Burbank, Eagle Rock and North Hollywood locales, the ratio of screaming children to other customers is much lower. They still represent, of course. TANTRUM in the HOWWWSSEEEE! The ratio of arguing old Eastern Europeans couples is much higher, though.

(I was once in a Target in suburban Austin TX with Paul Hungerford on a Saturday afternoon, and he cocked his head and said "Listen!" "What? I don't hear anything," I replied. "Exactly!!!!" he chortled. We marveled in that moment. A quiet, clean, uncrowded Target on a Saturday afternoon. We heart Austin.)

Drag Queens and Tranny Ho's. This is what puts it over into fabulous for me. Not only as customers, but as employees. It always does my heart good to receive excellent customer service from a young man with no eyebrows, smooth skin and certain flair. The Tranny Ho's are not quite as good with customers, but as giggly bunches of patrons, they add a bit of variety to the already diverse clientele.

The store is all on ONE LEVEL. I hate the two level Targets. It is kind of cool to use the cart escalator in the middle of those stores, but other than that, they always suck. They always seem to be darker, and whatever I came in for is inevitably on the other floor. Eagle Rock is probably my closest store by actual mileage, but I never, ever go to it because of the two levels.