Life, and all its stores

[vovat]

Yesterday, I went to my mom's house for lunch. On the way, I stopped by the King of Prussia Mall to buy some tickets. The lady who was working the ticket counter had never actually done any ticket selling before, and she had to call someone on the phone to walk her through the whole process. I get the feeling that they don't think they need to staff the Ticketmaster outlet whenever it's open, because not that many people buy tickets there. I think it's actually cheaper to get them from there than to use Ticketmaster online, though.

I didn't do anything else at the mall, since I figured I was running late (although it actually turned out my mom was running even later), and I don't usually like to shop for much other than auditory and visual media (which are often cheaper to order online anyway) and food (which, since I was having lunch at my mom's, I had no need for). I believe that mall is (or at least was) the second biggest in the country, but every time I go there I think of things it used to have that it no longer does, including:

• A display of flags in the elevator area, including the Gadsden flag
  
• Olga's, a fast food place that served what I think were actually lamb pitas, although they just called them Olgas
  
• One Potato Two, which was apparently in other malls as well. I've never been too keen on potatoes, but other people in my family liked them, so I remember going there a few times. They had a picture of dancing potatoes hanging on their wall.
  
• Some place that sold corn dogs, unless that was actually at another mall and I'm conflating my memories. The name "Das Dawg Haus" sounds familiar, but that might have actually been a place at Busch Gardens in Virginia. I don't think I've had a corn dog since college.
  
• The ramp that I used to run up and down. When I was a kid, I probably figured the whole purpose of this ramp was for kids to run up and down; I didn't think of wheelchairs or anything. If I remember correctly, the ramp was outside Gimbels, which of course is long gone. I think they might have taken out the ramp when they put in an elevator.
  
• Bamberger's, an anchor store that I only really remember because I wrote and drew a little book about losing Mommy at Bamberger's (which was based on a true story). I think it might have become a Macy's, and that was the first time I'd heard of Macy's, which implies I hadn't been watching the Thanksgiving Day Parade.
  

Now, however, they have stores with names like "Diesel" and "Juicy Couture." Now THOSE sound really classy, don't they?

My mom made me a ham and Swiss cheese quiche and a spice cake, two things I always enjoy. And then, after going on a walk around my old hometown, I drove back home. I used to drive between my mom's house and the area where I live now quite often, and now I wonder how I managed to do that so often.

Comments

[bec-87rb.livejournal.com]

Busch Gardens in VA!!

The fond memories I have of their Festhaus, where it's just like Oktoberfest in Germany, only the beer is weak, and the food is no good. XD

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I think I remember going into the Festhaus once. I haven't been to Busch Gardens since I've been of legal drinking age, so I never had occasion to try the beer. It was more common for me to eat in the Italy section.

[yosef.livejournal.com]

Gimbels is gone, Marge, long gone. You're Gimbels!

I always saw girls with Juicy Couture clothing at my last school. It was usually very short shorts being worn with Ugg boots (shudder).

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I think that particular Gimbels might have changed into a Bloomingdales, but I might be confusing things. There are, like, ten different anchor stores at that mall now.

[bethje.livejournal.com]

I can't even explain how hilarious Juicy Couture sounds to me. I just can't.

[rockinlibrarian.livejournal.com]

I grew up assuming that Macy's was only in New York City. Now my sister works at Macy's. Every year I point out that if she lived in NYC then she'd get to be in the parade, but she'd probably also get a different job then.

[kristenjarrod.livejournal.com]

Bamberger's = Macys. As of late 2006.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

There were some Bamberger's stores that held out that long? I think the one at King of Prussia switched over to being a Macy's in the late eighties.