When the walls come tumbling down

Last fall, my mall closed. Randhurst Mall located in Mt. Prospect, Illinois shut its doors for the final time. So what, right? It's just a mall. A brick and mortar example of our insatiable consumerism. Ok, I get that.

However, Randhurst was so much more to me. I grew up in the era of the late 1970's / early 1980's. Soda pop still had sugar in it. Every summer day was spent at the pool with your best friend (and without any parents) - not online. And when you felt like being social, you went to the mall. Everything was happening at the mall and heck, all your friends were there, too. You weren't there to shop, you were there to see your friends, goof on your enemies, eat a Slush Puppy and chase boys. That was about it. Randhurst was that for me. I knew every inch of that place - every store, every place there was to eat, where ALL the bathrooms were, and what new stores cropped up in what old store's places.

My first job was at Randhurst. My junior year I got a job in Craft Corner's art store on the lower level near the moccasin shop and the Tartan Tray Restaurant. (It was more like a cafeteria from what I remember). I remember when the Tartan Tray closed down and a flood of roaches suddenly infested the art store...eww.

My senior year I got a job at Lerner on the main level of the mall (movin' up!). I liked working at Lerner, except for when older ladies would come in and want to buy their daughters something. They would say "she's about the same size as you....you know, busty". Ugh. If I had been able to suck in my boobs at that point I would have.

I was working at Lerner on Mother's Day 1984 when a former mall employee went mad and started shooting up the place in the middle of the mall. My mother called the store HYSTERICAL because it was on the news. Everyone (staff and customers) was huddled up in the dressing rooms in the dark (police orders). An hour and a half later, we were escorted out of the mall by the police after the gunman killed himself outside Chandler's Shoes.

I bought my first high school dance dress there. The shoes, too. We used to pick up WLS Top 40 Survey lists at the record store (also where I bought all my 45's - Shawn Cassidy - yow!) and eat soft pretzels from Hot Sam's.

Anyway, when I heard they were going to tear down Randhurst and put up a "lifestyle mall" (whatever the fuck that is) it made me sad. I wasn't sad to see the shops go. The mall had been struggling in the past decade. I hadn't set foot in the place in years, and I don't live that far away. I was sad because a brick and mortar part of my childhood would be totally gone.


BTW - the picture above is from early 2009. It's coming down. Goodbye, old friend.