I am trying to stay active these days and I was all set to go walk somewhere the other day when it started raining. So not wanting to get wet, and possibly melt, and also not wanting to do the gerbil thing on a treadmill I decided to go mall walking so I set off to Tulsa’s remaining shopping mall, Woodland Hills Mall.
It was surprisingly busy but not overly so. Most everybody was wearing a mask and it was easy for me to socially distance. So off I went. It has two levels so I did a loop on the lower level and and another loop on the lower level. I also looped into the three major department stores.
Anybody besides me think that carousels are spooky. I do, I was scared of them when I was a kid. Son Logan rode this one plenty when he was little. He seemed to like them.
The Apple Store is still closed. You have a problem with your iphone, you are basically on your own. I always found the people at the Apple Store to be helpful. The Microsoft Store is also closed, but who cares right? Unless you worked there, then you care plenty.
At the far end of the mall I came across these dudes. All staring at their phones. What are they looking for? Time drags when waiting on somebody else shopping. I always find something else to entertain myself.
The department stores sell furniture. We buy furniture from time to time but it has never occured to buy furniture there. It would seem that the overhead was pretty high. Right before this section I passed some recliners. A woman was in one of them fully reclined. I told her that she looked pretty comfy, She said that she was thinking of buying one. I told her that I bought a recliner exactly like that one and loved it. She said, “really.” I said yes, it has worked out well. I was lying to to her big time but I learned in MBA school that it was important for people to be happy with their purchases.
They had this bar for sale also. It’s kind of cool.
Way back when, when work clothing was more formal, coats and ties. I used to love buying and wearing that stuff. What made it work was experienced clothes salesmen who could figure out what kind of clothes looked best on a particular person. They got replaced by people who were selling lawn mowers last week. All they could say, no matter how bad something looked, was “that looks good.” The good places always had a good selection of ties and one particular person that could match ties and shirts to a suit. That was the best part. You could tell those places by their displays. I found the displays of ties and shirts on my mall walk to be pretty dismal. Oh well, I don’t have to worry about any more.
This was a welcome sight. Are short skirts and dresses making a comeback? I was in high school during the golden age of short skirts back in the late 60’s and early 70’s. It was wonderful. I’ve read that hem lines go up and down with the economy. Is this a forerunner of better times then?! I hope so.
The perfume counters, I hate those things. Somebody wants a particular brand of cologne then you had to search around these areas forever.
Bath and Body Works. How do people stand working in there. So many scents and smells that all meld together in a ugh.
Jerseys. I don’t have any sports teams jerseys. I think it is creepy to get a jersey with somebody else’s name on it. I have Dallas Cowboys shirts but they don’t have any player’s name on them. I actually pop in here to see if they have team caps on sale. I got a very cool Mexican national soccer team cap in here one time for $5. Nothing on sale today though so time to move on.
Ah yes, my favorite sporting goods store, Victoria’s Secret.
The mall has a new (to me) store featuring Native American themed goods. All very nice and very colorful. I’ll be back, I like that kind of stuff. Photos are free!
This shirt doesn’t apply to me. I am as white it gets. Anybody else do the DNA thing with Ancestry.com? I got mine and it is fun and interesting and all that but what gets me is how they send updates to your ancestors origins. Mine has swung all over the place. Used to be a lot of Danish involved, the latest one has no Danish but lots of Irish, British, northern Europe generic, Sweden, and Norway. Used to be rumored that there was a little Native American but nope, not a drop. Don’t worry I am not a white supremacist, I hate those people, just stating facts. Oklahoma has lots of Native Americans and many of them are blue eyed and whiter than me so I think the shirt is aimed more toward them. The various Tribes all have the right to determine who is member of the tribe and who isn’t so one has to be careful claiming to be a little bit this tribe or that tribe.
So anyway, I did my laps and got about 1.6 miles in, and stayed dry! Didn’t buy a thing either.
I am linking with Our World Tuesday.
My mom and dad would drive to the nearest mall every Saturday and walk. During the week they’d walk at the hospitals outside loop. It was a tough one, going up a hill and back down, but my dad acted like it was nothing.
A few of the malls in nearby towns have closed or only have a few stores still open. Makes me sad!
I haven’t been in a mall for a long time – I bet at least 6 years. When we had a house in Denver, I was within walking distance of a ritzy one. I’m not much of a shopper and Bob is even less of one. When the grandkids were little, I loved going into kid’s stores and toy stores. Not so much now. I see some of the old standby shops are still in the mall. And the same old guys seem to be lounging.
I remember walking with my daughter in a local mall. I did home day care. It was so much fun! She’s 40+ now!
Good for you ~ getting a walk in despite the rain ~ I love carousels ~ don’t do Malls anymore though ~ If it is raining then I stay in ~ Do Yoga everyday and meditate everyday ~ Went for a walk today with Angel but it was a bit messy due to the sun and snow ~ Angel did well though.
Fun post and photos ~ but rather see snow covered trees ~ LOL ~
Moment by moment,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Nice to get out and about. Even though it feels like some in between limbo. I like to window shop and people watch.
I don’t think I have been to Northwest Arkansas Mall in over a year. It’s our only real indoor mall. The outdoor mall is busy. Apple Store is closed. I think they got tired of answering question that should have been handled by Apple tech support but you can’t reach them.
Like you, I tend to find my own entertainment in the mall rather than park myself in the dude square. Dillard’s still has a couple of excellent men’s clothing salesmen. I have my own game of putting appropriate ties on the shirts that are folded and displayed.
Nope, I could never work in Bath and Body Works. I suppose you get used to all of the fragrances, but I don’t see how.
This post makes me happy seeing people in the mall. I am not a mall person, but I remember the times when the mall was the place to be and I was there too. I haven’t been inside one in years.
Worth a Thousand Words
We have been told not to go into shopping centres, so it’s been a year since I was last in one!
We used to do plenty of mall walking before the pandemic. Nowadays, we walk on the streets around our house and shops in the early morning with less people around.
Now that I’m Older I used to avoid The Mall like the Plague, except when the Grandchild insisted I take her. Now during an actual Plague, we found ourselves doing The Mall Walk for exercise too, how ironic, huh? *LOL* Anyway, many of ours in Phoenix have Closed over the Years and that makes me Sad, but I think the buying Public have moved on to Online Sales addiction and having shit delivered to their doorstep so they don’t have to expend time or energy going anywhere or having an ‘experience’? Your Images make me realize the designers/architects of these Malls make them similar everywhere, that Mall could be one here. The Not As White As I Look Tee would be great if they just left it at that and not just designated to Indigenous mixes… our Family is a Heinz 57 blend of Races and the Light ones would enjoy a Shirt like that so that Supremecist Types wouldn’t say something Offensive to them assuming they’re White… which happens. As a lark, and with my Dreadlocks, I once had a MAGA Customer say something terribly offensive about people of Color while I was waiting on him… he looked at me and said , “You know what I mean?” And I deadpanned, “Yeah… I’m Black” and walked off, you should have seen his Face! A real Oh I just shit the Bed moment for him! *Bwahahahahaha* I’m not Black, but I am Mixed Race so found him terribly Offensive and vile, so I enjoyed shocking him and making him mebbe think twice before he makes incorrect assumptions based solely on Appearance or Eye Color.
I love your commitment to walking. But glad not to be near any shopping malls.
“mall walking” that is a strange way of getting your exersize. 🙂 Well, better then nothing I guess. 🙂 🙂