The Choice Deli on the corner of 8th and 65th St NW is evidently known for carrying smut magazines:
Most convenience stores only stock well-known adult publications like Playboy, Penthouse, and Hustler. Then there are a few more daring spots that also offer titles like Barely Legal and that magazine with naked women on motorcycles. But the grand prize for convenient smut has to go to Ballard’s Choice Deli and Grocery. Choice carries over 25 titles—like Big Butt, D-Cup, Fox, Cuddles, and Young and Tight—and they don’t hide them behind the counter. Such free commingling of porn with milk, bread, and jerky may signal a significant slip in civilization’s decline or may be seen as a welcome rebuke to our nation’s puritanical mores.
But what I know about them is from their marquee that I drive by each day. Let’s follow the evolution of the sign since my first days of living in Ballard (all dates are from memory):
Spring 2001
The was the innocent beginning, with a Henry Weinard’s 6 pack on special.
HENRY WEINHARDS 6 PACK $4.99
June 2001 - October 2001
I’m not sure if this was the doing of a disgruntled employee taking advantage of a non-native English speaking storekeeper, or whether some high school kids rearranged the letters that just weren’t changed for months. The store is right next to the Ballard High School. This message was up there for the entire summer.
HARD WEINER 69 PACK
November 2001
After a short hiatus we were given this much more direct communication.
ME PENI HARD
March 2003
I don’t know what was on the sign between November 2001 and February 2003, but it was nothing memorable. Maybe it was the length of time between the wait that made this sign so great as a reference to earlier eras, or the short amount of time that it was up (1 day), but I giggled for hours after driving by.
ME PENI STILL HARD
March 2003 - Present
The day after the aforementioned title, it was suddenly changed to this, probably on the request of an upset neighbor. I can only wait and hope that the legend of the sign will continue to brighten my days.
ME STILL OPEN