Remembering When….

   This time of the year always brings back memories for me. As the daylight hours get shorter, the temperatures begin to drop and the leaves on the trees change from greens to reds, yellows, and oranges, it was a reminder that summer vacation was almost over and school would be starting soon. But there were other happenings that often became part of the back-to-school routine. One that was always very exciting was the ‘back to school shopping.’ One could not really prepare for a new school year unless there were a few new clothes, and new pair of shoes and maybe even a new winter jacket. Forget about the new notebooks and the pencils and pens. It was about the clothes. And where did we get those new duds? Why it was the local mall. Where else?

   Growing up in the 1950s and 60s was very exciting for many reasons. But one of those moments was almost always the trip to the local shopping mall. In those years, new shopping malls were springing up all over the place. Northern New Jersey was a mass of shopping centers and outlet stores and it was always exciting when the day arrived to hop into the car and begin the search.

   But looking back as I grew older and my friends and I got my driver’s licenses, I discovered it was not the shopping that was the exciting part. It was hanging out with your friends. Shopping malls back then not only had clothing stores, but also food courts and some even had movie theaters. And let’s not forget about the arcades.

   What was an ‘arcade’ you ask? I’ll let you look that one up on a google search. But what I can say is that they were fun, very entertaining, a great way to waste time and money, and often a good place to find a new friend or maybe even a date for that night.

   For many years shopping malls seemed to sprout up everywhere and were provided places to shop and be entertained for the next several generations. Companies came and companies went, but the malls were able to attract new stores and companies and manage to stay alive and busy. As long as there was back to school shopping there was going to be a need.  Shopping malls had become part of the American culture and society.

   But as often happens, things change. And over time, the look of the local mall and what they offered began to change. The need to shop, whether it be a new pair of jeans for school, a new television to replace that old black and white one, or a sofa for the living room did not change. What has changed is how and where we purchase those items today.

   Today, if I were going back to school and needed to pick up a few things, I could look out the window, see the leaves turning color on the trees surrounding my house and then move to the desk or table, fire up my computer and begin to shop. There is no need to get into the car and drive to the closest mall. The truth is the malls around us have pretty much shut down. You might find a store or two still open, but the guarantee is that there will be plenty of places to park the car. These large building complexes are almost empty these days. And the question now is what will happen to those vacant spaces.

   A bit of very limited research revealed that at several location some of the parking lot areas of these now abandon mall buildings are being transformed into housing complexes. But I am quite sure there are folks out there with some new and exciting adventures for the next generations to come.

   This time of year, despite my age, I often find myself “remembering when…..” The sounds and smells of early Fall always seems to trigger some of those distant memories and I may just go out and purchase a new pair of jeans, just to help keep the memory alive. By the way. My new shoes just arrived through the mail from Amazon.