I Can Smell the Auntie Anne's Pretzels
Growing up in the suburbs of Charlotte, malls were my version of Disney World. It was an all-day adventure with every amenity that I could ever need: My mom would make me search for school clothes, I would get to eat my favorite Chinese take-out in the food court, and on my birthdays I would get to have my party hosted at the Build-A-Bear.
The atmosphere and the "junk space" was what made the mall so grand to me through the lens of a child. Fun neon ads graced the mezzanines and the smell of freshly baked pretzels would hit my nose as we approached the Auntie Anne's.
I think I was one of the last generations to basically live at the mall on the weekends. Just like the movie "Mall Rats." Therefore, a lot of nostalgia is associated with the "junk space" of the Mall. It is what set the atmosphere and made the building (in my opinion) a great building. It was not the actual built design, it was the false atmosphere created from the accumulation of junk.
Jessica, I love this. It is so true as I also have so many memories at the mall. I think again of the quote "Junkspace cannot be remembered," but we do. It is so hard to think now of something we once had is now not there anymore. I feel old saying that. Thank you for the great memory!
ReplyDeleteI think one of the most important things about your post is the lack of description of which mall you were in, but I could visualize exactly where you were. In contrast to Kimani's comment, "Junkspace cannot be remembered" still holds true because it isn't about the space you were in. It could have been anywhere. If we had Auntie Anne's and all the stores surrounding us, but we were in a field in Kansas, we would still experience the same effect as the mall in Charlotte or Tampa or Phoenix or London. It can't be "remembered" because it's a memory without a place.
ReplyDeleteJessica, I love your take on junkspace. I think it helps that kids don't need order or structure or reasoning for a place to be special. Junkspace changes as fast as their attention spans in the most exciting way possible.
ReplyDeleteNothing like Carolina Place to start a good weekends a kid. There was a hot dog place I really liked called Frank and Steins…..Anywho, there seems to be a Plutocrian idea that,”….something that can be anything is nothing…” and in this case, a place that can be anyplace is no place. The strange thing is, we seem to change as people while the place remains the same. As a kid….when I was a teenager….now as adults. I suppose I am making an argument to say, not all the spaces associated with junkspace are in fact junkspace. I try to imagine an endless suburban neighborhoods with perfectly manufactured green lawns and within that context an auspicious lot that is a natural oasis. Like a picturesque scene with wild plants, natural ponds, real biodiversity. This space would not be junk space, because although it exist within a context, the behavior it exhibits is different. I will not be mistaken for “anyplace”. I has a real identity, established through its historical context and the rules that govern its existence are different. That’s what Frank and Stein’s is to me, within the context of Carolina Place Mall.
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