READ IT! READ IT! READ ALL ABOUT IT!, the news boys of New York used to say. People grabbed newspapers for a pence or a dime. Now they pay nothing and read on their phones.
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/04/retail-meltdown-of-2017/522384/
This article intrigued me several months ago. It amplified what I heard on the nightly news. Read it, if you didn’t already know…it’s breaking news, as well as breaking traditions of my Boomer youth.
It heralds the end of an era, something that shaped my young buyer’s years. I clearly recall when “The Mall” opened miles out of town and it became the early ’70s destination of choice. Just as cars used to drive up-and-down the main drag of small towns, now young people promenaded the malls.
That’s all changed for young people, I’m told. I’ve attended two weddings in recent months. Golden people, filled with smiles, love, joy – and beautifully appareled in online bridal party clothes. Such a deal, they extolled.
OK, fine, except the groomsmen didn’t wear jackets in the most recent event. They styled in coral shirts, pegged beige pants, and navy suspenders. Jaunty and appropriate for dancing in the potentially hot-hot-hot of a Midwest summer’s night.
This matters because the best man somehow ordered pants two sizes too small – and he hadn’t tried them when his last-minute order arrived. Oops. His lower half seemed painted into leggings, the ones favored by women of a certain age and very overlarge-size. High-water in length and ballsy, if you will. Yikes! Imagine it as if this image’s shirt was his lower half. (yes, you may howl)
Let’s not add this to Amazon’s list of crimes, peeps. These young people are growing up in an era of expensive gasoline for their not-so-new beater cars. They are college-aged with limited funds, just as I was when my friends bragged about cruising the mall. They cherish a deal as much as I do/did and they locate them easily with one-click.
I must admit I have succumbed. It’s convenient, close, and easy to locate items I desire.
Don’t judge me. An ulterior motive is that I have more time to read and write.
What are your reasons for abandoning the mall, Constant Reader? Confess, please, so I don’t feel like such a betrayer of my era, my misspent youth. Though truly, never an ardent shopper have I been, I’ll miss Sears and Penneys and Sports Chalet and —–.
Boomer Angst.
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