The pumpkins and gourds have gone to their final reward in the woods.
Well, actually they’re rewarding the squirrels and everyone else in there who’s looking for a snack. Full confession, according to the condo association rules, I’m not supposed to be putting things back there. But these will be gone by spring, and why put something in a black plastic bag to be carried off and sit in a dump when it can be feeding the critters? Who knows, next summer there may be a long pumpkin vine trailing out of the forest. We spent Thanksgiving with our
daughter and her family in New Jersey. The grandsons are 14, 19, and 21, so
there was rotating entertainment as various girlfriends came and went. We also
had a chance to catch up with delightful relatives by marriage that we see all
to infrequently, so that was fun, too.
The highways to get there and back
weren’t too awful, with only a few slowdowns along the way, but they were busy
enough that I was happy enough to stay home once I got here. No crowded malls
for me. I remember those days – juggling bags, bumping into people, too hot in
the coat I was dumb enough to wear.
We only have one mall left around
here, thirty minutes away in Holyoke, and I’ve probably only been to it twice
in the past four years. The mall that was five minutes down the road is no
more. It was a phenomenon, built in 1968, probably the first one in all of
Western Massachusetts. It was small by some standards, only one floor, but it
had a Sears, and depending on which era you’re looking at, it had a Macy’s and
a Penney’s, with a fountain, and a place for Santa to set up camp.
It’s now a rapidly growing pile of
rubble. We’ve been told there will be replacement shopping, but I’m not very
optimistic about the quality of what we’ll be given.
Meantime, I wonder what the local mall
walkers looking for exercise are doing.
What an interesting post title. I agree with you about the merits of black bagging or feeding the critters. I would opt for the second every time and to hell with the rules.
ReplyDeleteMy kind of lady.
DeleteThe same has happened to the two or three malls in Akron, Ohio. One has become an Amazon distribution center, one retains a Macy's and a few down market retailers filling old prime retail space.
ReplyDeleteAn Amazon distribution center? Talk about irony.
DeleteI am frequently astonished at the size of shopping malls in America and several out here as well. People who don't shop there regularly and learn their way around must get lost pretty often. I miss the little old corner store from long ago where you could find just about anything you could want or need and there was often a haberdashery right next door.
ReplyDeleteI find the remaining mall in our area is so large it's annoying to shop in.
DeleteWhen you live long enough, you get a great picture of change and how simple and unimportant our lives are in the grand scheme. I have not really done shopping in years, but maybe I will get in the car this holiday and drive the 50 miles.
ReplyDeleteOur mall is on its last legs, so to speak, and almost all the large stores are gone. I don't go there very often, but every once in awhile I check it out. Change is inevitable.
ReplyDelete