Remember, if you will, when Town Centre Mall was constructed? At that time it was a pretty big deal. The Mall was then the largest in-city mall in the United States, and people had a lot of opinions about it. Me, I thought it was great, seeing as how I was a kid and all. 

I can recall the splendid feeling that one can get, especially when one is a child, that the entire universe consists of your world, and that world is made completely out of colorful products that you can buy. The Mall seemed endless, a perpetual dawn of the euphoria that comes with holding a newly purchased product in your hand. Just don't run out of money.

At the time of its construction, there was a sort of general outcry that the Mall would draw customers away from long-established downtown businesses which would eventually go under. Maybe this happened, maybe it didn't; I'm not sure. It seems to me that the Mall may have helped the downtown area as much as it ever hurt. After all, Captiol street is pretty kickin' nowadays, especially in the summertime. And local businesses there such as Taylor Books and Ellen's Homemade Ice Cream seem to be doing quite well, thank you. But in deeper truth, the Mall has become as much a part of downtown, at least in my eyes, as any other place. I have memories, real recollections with significant emotional content, that involve the Town Center. Playing hackey-sack under the steps of the Civic Center (yeah, that's right, I was one of those dudes, though I thankfully had enough sense to eschew the chain wallet). I worked at the Mall during one year and developed a deep and lasting friendship with a fellow who works at Vitamin World, Rob Coles (one of the coolest human beings you'll ever meet, equally knowledgeable in both spiritual matters and strength training). Indeed, Rob and I have been very good friends for six years now, and we have never once hung out anywhere but Vitamin World in the Mall (and yes, I think that's significant enough to merit the italics).

So the Mall was vilified as the harbinger of a fiery corporate death for local businesses, but now folks, we see who the real enemy is: Southridge. Compared to the Southridge Shopping complex—sprawling, unaesthetic, relentless, discouraging of socialization, and way outside of town—the Mall looks like a model citizen. Sure the Mall is populated by mostly chain stores, but who fucking cares? It is a unique structure unto itself, it's a place where people can actually socialize (Southridge is not; you are either in a store or in your car going to or from a store), it's weird in an interesting way (Southridge, by contrast, is weird in a horrifying, shitty way), and it has a waterfall inside it! When I go to the Mall these days, I find myself in some ways actually pleased to do so; not overjoyed, but sort of happy about it. When I go to Southridge, it is only out of absolutely necessity, and there is no part of it that brings me joy.