| rev:text
| - I know exactly how Indiana Jones felt before he entered the Temple of Doom: questioning his mortality, nauseous and yet determined. I feel the very same way before I pass through the portals of Dufferin Mall (DM). You see, DM, especially on the weekends, is inhabited by erstwhile humans (and their spawns) who have now turned into hardened zombies in search of a good deal. Their noses buried in weekly fliers (elbows sticking out), their faces turned at 90 deg to their walking path, these people have usually no consideration for their fellow beings. They'll elbow, stomp, bump etc etc in their quest for the holy grail of deals at any of the box and not-so-box stores in the mall.
Admittedly, this is a service mall and has a couple of useful anchor stores: Walmart, No Frills, Toys R Us, Winners, Dollarama and jolly old Swiss Chalet. As a result, it's always swarming with people who run around like chickens with their heads cut off. It's also a magnet for Little Portugal's old white men who have plenty of time to ogle aforementioned running chickens.
Regardless of the do-over, DM feels oppressive and sad. Sure, the savings I make, do light a feeble spark in me, but that's promptly extinguished at the sight of the snaking line in front of the Tim Horton's. Why wait 20 mins for terrible coffee? I can drown my sorrows a couple doors down at the wine shop that gives out free samples as if they're preparing for the second coming of Jesus!
I wish that DM had multiple floors to ease the flow of people especially on the weekend. Maybe they should've split the box stores up and done away with some of the rubbish stores entirely: International Clothiers and the gold pawn shop come to mind.
You can prepare for all sorts of milestones at the DM: From picking out a tux for your wedding, to framing your wedding pics, to buying tickets for your honeymoon, to buying bad wine for your mother in law, to buying stuff for your impending tyke. It's quite the comprehensive mall, but, ironically, in its eagerness to please and effort to be eclectic DM just ends up displeasing me and ends up feeling hodge-podge-y. Maybe, if I were Moses, Gandalf or any other superhero I'd have an easier time at the DM.
|