A not-so-fun fact: Outdoors, I almost always melt like butter when it’s hot and humid and the Sun is relentlessly glaring. This has been true for quite a few years, though I melt quicker now than ever before. None of this is surprising, because, as I’ve often noted on this publication’s pages, I’m old as hell and not improving with age.
Which brings us to Monday morning of last week. When I stepped out at 7:45 to retrieve the newspaper that had been tossed on my driveway (my wife and I subscribe to The Philadelphia Inquirer), I was stunned by the heat, the heaviness of the air, and also by the Sun’s intense brightness. Any thoughts that I might have had about doing yard work at some point during the day immediately disappeared. Man, we are in the middle of what has been a very tough summer here in southeast Pennsylvania, USA.
However, two and a half hours later, feeling restless, I decided to get out of the house. And being one who attempts to keep his cardiovascular system in proper running order, I wanted to exercise too, something I hadn’t done in two or three days. But where and how? Well, as had been the case many times before, I turned to a local resource: the three-level, air-conditioned shopping mall (Willow Grove Park) within walking distance of my home. I didn’t walk to it, of course, as succumbing to sunstroke and/or heat exhaustion wasn’t part of my plans for the day. So, I hopped, figuratively speaking, into my car and drove there. And spent the next 40 minutes moving my legs at a pretty good clip upon the gigantic structure’s floors.
I was in a bit of a blue mood when I arrived at the mall, thanks to a couple of personal worries simmering in the back of my mind. Figuring that a themed walk through the complex might raise my spirits, I came up with the idea to seek out (and photograph) those establishments whose business-name signs were illuminated in red. Though I think of red as the most eye-catching color for advertising purposes, there were fewer such signs than I expected. I counted nine, though maybe I missed one or two. Anyway, I grabbed pictures of the nine and have placed three of the photos within this story.
Here’s the thing: The themed trek did not lessen my blue mood. Actually, it upped it a little, largely because there weren’t a heck of a lot of shoppers in the mall. The lack of human vibrancy chilled the atmosphere and made me more aware than I would have been of the mall’s vacant spaces and of the several stores that, though fully stocked, had not opened for the day. Willow Grove Park once was a thriving place of business. But thriving hasn’t fit its description in a long while, certainly not since Covid descended upon Planet Earth in 2020. Is the mall doomed? It might be. I’ve read that its ownership group has had significant financial issues. What a potentially sad situation. If the mall goes under, hundreds of people will be out of work.
Let me be the first to say that, without a shadow of a doubt, the red-sign pics in this article are dull as f*cking dishwater. Meaning, it now is incumbent upon me to add something that’s red-related and also deliciously lively. What instantly comes to mind is one of my favorite songs by the insanely talented Prince Rogers Nelson, the guy known simply as Prince, who left us in 2016 at age 57. The world would be a better place were he still among the living. And so, I present to you Little Red Corvette, a magnificent rocker about a one-night stand. The recording (which Prince made with his band, The Revolution) came out in 1982 and in no time was shaking the world mightily. It is great.
Yeah, Another Blogger 
I totally understand about the heat sensitivity. Another of the systems that begin to go down as we age is the internal temperature regulator. Ugh. Sorry to hear that you have some worries going on, Neil. And yes, Prince was a gift.
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Prince didn’t even make it into his 60s. His passing was hard to believe.
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Thank you, Neil, for your entertaining writing, as always. We have high temperatures here, too, while in Australia it was snowing so much that the children built a huge snowman. I keep a few small bottles of water in the freezer, wrapped up, and put them at night in my bed. The thought that people might be losing their jobs is indeed depressing. I do hope, Neil, that any problems you are worried about will be resolved soon. Thank you for the red signs and the music.
Joanna
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Hi Joanna. The world is heating up. And it’s probably too late to slow down that trend significantly, let alone reverse it.
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Thank you, Neil, we should focus on “probably” as it is still possible to combine our efforts to minimise the results of climate change, and adapt.
Joanna
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I have a friend who walks every day. I’m more of a three day a week walker. He swears by the mall. I had to laugh because he knows where everything is in a big store like Walmart.
My wife and I used to occasionally walk inside the mall before the stores were open. It struck me as odd that people all walked inside the mall in the same direction. I tried to convince my wife to be a bad sheep and go against the grain, but she wouldn’t do it.🤣
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Hey there, Pete. I’m pretty sure that people walk in different directions at the mall near me. Or maybe it’s just me who walks in a different direction!
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great choice of song, Neil. When it’s hot or rainy and I don’t feel like doing gym, I do what you do and head down to the enormous shopping centre: I walk its floors, climb up and down its stairs and escalators — I don’t ride escalators: I climb up and down their moving steps. after twenty to thirty minutes of this I treat myself to an apricot yog or a cappuccino, Life is good 🙂
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You’re dedicated and in good shape!
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We have one modest-size mall in my Nebraska town. Like your mall, there are many vacant spaces. It does have perhaps three or four illuminated red signs, not counting the Target Store logo.
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Target’s logo is very catchy. I like Target. The Target near my home greatly expanded its grocery department about seven years ago. I guess that was a smart decision.
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I’ll shop Target over Walmart any day.
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Fabulous choice of song! I first saw Prince perform this number at The Camden Palace night-club astride a red motorbike in the early 1980s, been a fan ever since.
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It’s great that you got to see him in person. He was a huge talent.
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Indeed he was. Gone but not forgotten.
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Your mall observations are interesting. We have two not far from us, one indoors and the other outdoors. Both struggle to retain shops, particularly the outdoors one which has purposely gone “down-market” having lost its anchor tenant (Printemps) which is to become a bowling alley. The indoor one appears to be more successful in replacing shops and better quality ones.
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To me, a bowling alley isn’t something that’s an obvious good idea. Maybe bowling is more popular than I realize, though.
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TBH I wouldn’t know, not much of a bowler
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Air-conditioned walking sounds like a good idea to me, particularly at the moment. The last three days have been a long hard day’s working in the garden, a long cliff walk with a long swim afterwards and, yesterday, a long beach/sandhills walk. I slept ten hours last night, proof of the state I was in. Your mall sounds very pleasant in contrast – long may it last.
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You’ve been getting a lot of exercise. So, you deserved ten hours of sleep!
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And, it improves my mood!
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Prince popped his clogs at round about the same time as the comedian Victoria Wood (and the world would also be a better place if she was still in it). Should you ever need cheering up, look up The Ballad of Barry and Freda on YouTube.
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I watched it a few minutes ago. Real good!
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Hi Neil – I wonder if malls’ fortunes will improve as summers become hotter and hotter? Walking outside in the brick and concrete canyons can be pretty unbearable. The malls can cover the huge parking lots with solar panels to power the AC and to shade the cars, so your dashboard doesn’t melt while you’re walking.
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As I’ve said before: I like the way you think!
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Likewise !
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If a Prince song can’t lift your mood, nothing can!
Sadly, malls are dying all over. The one closest to me shut down pre-COVID and was recently turned into state office buildings. All the folks that used to walk in the A/C there now have to find somewhere else to go.
I think your red adventure was worthy, but I can see how the lack of appropriate signage could be discouraging. But try again with a different strategy!
Have a great day, mate.
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Hi, Richard. I’m into themed walks. They perk me up!
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I like your red sign photos. I think that when you photograph something, it frames it in a new. meaningful context. As an aside, I’d never realized before that so many signs were red!
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Me either. I never paid much attention to that till I went on the walk I write about in this story.
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The summer’s been a bit weird where I live, too. I’ve never thought about this before, but I think I’m not completely surprised by the lack of red lettering. Red does seem to conjur up energy and excitement, but it also the color of danger, warning, anger, and agression. What’s interesting to me is what these reds are paired with: black (I think that’s supposed to make me think this is a classy establishment), glass (probably excitement), and a blueish white (I don’t know what that is. Probably also exciting, but futuristic.)
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Hey there, Jeff. Colors induce various emotions. It’s kind of amazing that we’re wired that way.
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I was a Company Commander in Germany in ‘82. My First Sergeant introduced me to Prince. Something for which I’ve been eternally grateful.
and thanks for the memory
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I remember when the Purple Rain movie and album came out. They were smash hits.
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During Canadian winters our malls are full before they open with mall-walkers. But I think for shopping, malls are a dying breed too. Keep up your walks, maybe yellow next time 😊 Maggie
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Hi, Maggie. Yeah, malls, in general, probably are in trouble. Online shopping has hurt stores everywhere a lot.
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Next time it is hot and you want exercise go to the Y. You can walk the track inside and try a couple of machines. Give it a try. Always like your song choices.
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Hi Joyce. I’ve walked on the Y’s track two or three times this summer. I’ll probably go there again within the next week or two.
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Great!!!
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I’m with you on the heat aversion. I have disliked summer since I was a child. I am still taking my daily morning walk in the park but start much earlier in the morning. It is still miserable. Can’t wait for fall!
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I’m a big fan of fall too. It’s my favorite season.
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Same here
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I am right there with you on hating to be out in the heat and high humidity.
I am afraid that malls are dying all over. In fact, commercial real estate of all kinds has been struggling. I used to do eviction and collection work for a major operator of malls, back when potential tenants stood in line to get a good location in one. That world no longer exists.
Also I recall reading once that red signs are usually chosen for food establishments. I forget why, but it seems to be true.
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Hi. If the mall near me ends up going under, I wonder what will take its place. I bet it would be razed, and a housing development would be built on the land.
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The rise of e-commerce, particularly from giants like Amazon, has undeniably impacted physical retail, making it easier for consumers to shop from home. When we were in Glasgow earlier this year, I noticed that many of their malls are integrated with residential, office, and entertainment components, creating more vibrant and appealing hubs. Your song choices are always spot on, Neil. Thanks for sharing, and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
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It’s a good idea to add residential, office and entertainment areas to malls. Nothing like that has happened in my region, as far as I know.
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The future of malls as refridgerators…….there are a couple here, but I’d have to be desperate to use them thanks to the cost of parking there.
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Hi Helen. Parking is free at the suburban malls in my region.
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I hope your worries smoke out, Neil. But I’d be happy to also see shopping malls smoke out. They’re a pox on the landscape. Surely you can exercise elsewhere, like a local park, or the zoo…how about pacing the aisles of the Philadelphia Library? While you’re there, ask them to stock my books. 😂
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I’ll ask them!
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Hi Jerry, and thanks. Good tune!
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40 minutes is a good mall walk. I think I would’ve been sidetracked at Chicken & Burger.
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Well, you would have chowed down at C&B. And then you would have walked for an hour to burn off the calories!
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My first career was a running restaurants in shopping malls and we had a number of mall walkers who would join us for coffee and a basket of bread before heading home. I hope things are looking up for you. But I am with you – it has been a HOT summer. I was in Europe in mid-July and it was very warm there, too. I came home from Boston Sunday night and was able to sleep with the windows open for the first time since late May, but it’s warm again today. Hang in there and keep making your days count. Peace.
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Hi, Clay. I’ve seen news reports about forest fires in a number of European countries. Spain, Greece, and at least two others. Things are getting worse!
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You were wise in going to the mall for your workout. The extreme heat we’re experiencing is bad news for those of us in our senior years. I enjoyed your song choice.
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Little Red Corvette is a very cool song. It’s irresistible.
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Malls certainly aren’t what they used to be. They do tend to be more empty and boring these days. I know I don’t go very often. Prince, on the other hand, is anything but boring. Great choice.
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Hi. Prince was amazing. He was a natural.
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Sorry that your walk didn’t fully lift your blue mood. I’m with you on avoiding the heat, I’m not built for it!
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I think I started becoming sensitive to the heat somewhere in the 1990s. The sensitivity has increased over time.
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I rather like the H&M photo! Anyway, we’ve had some mall closures in San Francisco and its environs, but our local mall, Stonestown, is doing really well because after the old standbys all closed (Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Eddie Bauer), the replacement stores cater mostly to teenagers and they’ve added lots of food-court places and a huge theater. I guess some malls are now primarily used for entertainment by the very young. 😦
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Hi Paula. It’s good that the Stonestown owners took a chance, and that the chance paid off.
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Our malls also are fairly empty. Times are changing.
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Yeah, online shopping, as we know, has become a BIG thing. Stores have suffered.
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I haven’t been to a mall in a few years. Unfortunately, malls seem to be disappearing. There used to be one in the community where I live now. However, it was torn down a number of years ago. A couple of standalone stores have been built in that general location, but there is still an empty lot where it once stood. It is very sad. I am glad that yours is still hanging in there, and sorry your mood remained “blue.”
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Hi there. Thanks a lot for stopping by. I’m glad to say that my blue mood is a thing of the past.
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Glad the mall stroll lifted your mood. And Prince …loved him then and now.
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Prince was great. Another of his songs I like a lot is When Doves Cry.
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Unfortunately, this post is very relatable. A positive is that you got in a few steps even though the atmosphere wasn’t so positive. I dislike malls though as you found they have their place in hot climates.
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The busiest places in the mall near me are the food court and the Apple store!
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Well, red is my favorite color, so I’m happy to see you searched for it at the mall ♥️
Yes, the mall is about to be folklore, I think.
It has been hotter than the devil’s balls for a couple weeks now. Looking forward to cooler days.
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Hotter than the devil’s balls — that’s a great expression! I never heard it before.
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HA! I picked it up living in the South. One thing they’re good for down here is a good phrase lol
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But Neil, the economy is booming! Right? Erm, right?
I’m glad you have an air-conditioned place to walk, but it is kind of sad that things are going downhill for so many people, which impacts so many businesses, which impacts so many people, thus the spiral continues. But the economy is the best ever, right?
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And fabulous song! Nice way to finish off.
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Prince was something else.
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An amazing talent.
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Trump is such an enormous jerk. It’s troubling to know we live in a country whose citizenry put him in power twice.
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Hopefully there will be elections in 15 months.
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I think indoor malls are perfect for walking when the weather is too miserable to be outside. And you are so lucky to have one near you! In St. Louis, too many malls are closing down (I blame Amazon), and that’s a shame for the entire community, I think.
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Hi. Right, Amazon has helped put lots of stores out of business. Ditto for other successful online sites, such as Wayfair.
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Hi, Neil – I love that song. Thank you for including it here. ‘Hope your blue mood got a little brighter.
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I’m back to normal. Whatever that is!
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It’s the same with our mall here in Burbank. Just a few people milling around, very empty and lifeless. But ours has been struggling since way before Covid. Definitely feels like malls are on the decline. Maybe because everyone can sit at home and order online.
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Hi there. The changes brought about by the online/digital revolution are incredible. The world has been transformed in many ways, and it took only 25 or so years for it to happen.
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You don’t want to move to Queensland then, as it gets so hot that you can fry an egg in a pan outside without putting on a stove/BBQ, or on the road in the summer. Actually, probably in late Spring. If you wear makeup, it melts off your face at 8 am, but I’m in southern QLD. If you’re further north, it’s much earlier.
I’ve been reading how the northern hemisphere is getting hotter, but down here in the southern hemisphere, it’s getting worse.
Typically, everyone flocks to malls and shopping centres for the air-con as it’s cheaper than running it at home.
Hope your mood isn’t so blue, and by the way, great song and such a talented musician! Too many died too young.
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Rising temperatures, melting glaciers, rising ocean levels, extreme weather events, more forest fires than ever — we’re in trouble.
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Ah, but there’s no global warming, it’s just the earth’s normal transition, they say. 😉
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There are several hundred active wildfires in Canada right now. Smoke from them has drifted south into some states in the USA. I live near Philadelphia, and smoke has reached us here.
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That’s crazy!
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It has been a challenging summer in Maine, too. Sorry to read about your blue mood, which was not helped by the less than thriving mall. Hugs from Maine. Love that Prince song.
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Howdy. Last night I listened to Controversy, a Prince album I never heard before. It’s a good one.
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Love red and Prince, of course. Still sad he’s gone.
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I remember being shocked when I heard he had passed. It was hard to believe.
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hope you’re feeling a little less blue, Neil. Keep listening to the music you love it has the ability to lift spirits. https://youtu.be/v8enlTBXR5Y?feature=shared
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I’ve been back to my normal self for quite a while. Thanks for sending that video. It’s really good.
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Glad you liked it!
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I’ve been pushing off that yard work for probably about a month now.
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Shame on you! (Just kidding.)
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Talking to people, I think we are all going through blue moods, depends not the day, the heat, etc. Love Little Red Corvette.
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Hi. The world is a mess. So many problems and so much violence. All of that can put people into blue moods.
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I think of your mall as a harbinger, unfortunately, given the current state of affairs In the US of A! Red seems to have become the colour of upset and ruin.
But Prince remains superb!
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Prince made a bunch of albums I haven’t heard. I’m going to listen to some of them over the next few weeks.
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I’m sorry you’re being troubled by worries, Neil. Hope they’re passing. On a positive note, you write a story about your blue moods add a few meh red photos, throw in a nice bit of Prince—and look how well we all respond. That should help. Yes?
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Hi. I’m feeling fine. Thanks for your concern. I appreciate it. Onward and upward!
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Goody!
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So many levels on which this post hit me. Neil. We had two malls, a small local one and a “biggie” down the road–a fifteen minute drive. Both dead now–as you noted–since the Plague. Call me “crazy” but I don’t want to buy everything on Amazon. I don’t want Door Dash. I want real restaurants I can go to and dine in the company of others. I want real stores, real clothing I can touch and try on. I want a society–not the many people I see rushing past, staring at their cellphones in fear of having to make ACTUAL EYE CONTACT! I go to rallies and marches. We CANNOT, MUST NOT lie down and accept this. As MLK noted, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but…” Keep the faith!
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I like your attitude and approach to life. I agree that the digital/virtual worlds cause a lot of people to become way too isolated. It’s unhealthy, individually and societally.
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That’s such a great song, Neil. Makes me feel better already. Between weather and all that’s been happening on our area of the planet it’s easy to have blue days. I sure feel this way a lot lately. Thank you for putting a shine on my day.
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Hi. In a few minutes I’m going to listen to the remainder of a Prince album I started listening to yesterday. Prince was fabulous.
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After reading your post, I realized I couldn’t name a single Prince song. I intend to remedy that. Around Houston, malls have gone in a number of different directions. Some, out in the suburbs, are thriving, and have become anchors for constellations of other stores. Some simply gave up the ghost, but one’s now part of a community college system, and another became home to a variety of health agencies. Repurposing works!
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Hi. I’m a big fan of repurposing. I live near Philadelphia, where many former factories and warehouses and schools have been turned into housing, offices, etc.
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I think you could even make a post of dishwater photos entertaining!
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Thanks, Geoff. I appreciate it.
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I sometimes have to go shopping for the kids when I’d rather exercise and I’ve been consoling myself saying that I did actually do some walking at least. So I’m happy to have this idea validated now! Also, I laughed at your ”figuratively” hopping 😂 you have an entertaining style of writing
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Hello there. My days of actually hopping into my car were AGES ago.
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