Black Friday Opening: Neon Museum Gift Shop

Get an eyeful of the glowtastic Glendale spot's new gift shop and lobby.

The end of Daylight Saving Time has an immediate knack for reminding us all that, for at least half of each 24-hour cycle, a concept called "night" exists.

It's not that we don't notice the nighttime in the summer, but when our nearest star drops below the nearest horizon at an earlier hour, the darkness and shadows come to the forefront of our consciousness, as well as what lights up the night.

In Los Angeles, a lot of that night-lighting is performed by classic neon. So classic is this form of illumination, 'round these parts at least, that we have a full-on institution devoted to it, the Museum of Neon Art.

The museum, better known as MONA, left downtown a few years back, with an eye on a new Glendale home, and it looks as though its incandescent dreams are about to finally become a reality, with an official, honest-and-true opening.

The museum isn't quite to its big reveal yet -- hold whatever horses you may have, lovers of lights -- but the debut date absolutely draws closer. Look to the completion of the outdoor Paseo, which is just next to the Brand Boulevard destination, and look to the fact that the brand-new gift shop will be open for business as of Friday, Nov. 27.

Black Friday? Call it Neon Friday. No, really, try it; the biggest shopping day of the year is getting some fresh spins nowadays, such as Gray Friday (in honor of prime whale-watching).

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You can also pop into the museum's lobby and admire a collection of tube-and-glow clocks in the "It's About Time" collection. Neon clocks once ruled the open-all-night diner scene, so call them a stunning slice of Americana. (Speaking of Americana, The Americana at Brand is just across the street, so holiday shoppers will likely call upon the museum's gift shop, in solid numbers, to get a first look.)

As for the long-coming, longed-for opening date? MONA promises that "(r)egular daily museum hours will be posted when the full museum opens later this year (dates to be announced)." Yay that.

So it turns out that Daylight Saving Time ending and all of this mid-afternoon darkness does have a few perks. One benefit? It reminds us, when we're out and about, to keep an admiring eye on the vintage and historic signs that still give our region that retro, colorful glow after sundown.

A glow that's very soon to continue at a Glendale institution devoted to it.

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