the short fuse 
21-11-2023 15:39
21-11-2023 15:39
Tuesday Cannon Fodder: gone but not forgotten
Good Tuesday morning, TSFers. It’s a rainy one here in D.C., but that doesn’t excuse me from having to walk Gunner the rescue pup. It’s a good thing I did too, because it spawned the idea for today’s CF.
Across the street from our building, they’re in the midst of a massive redevelopment project, tearing down an old strip shopping center and putting up one of those fancy, town-center, walkable shopping and residential deals. Some of the stores are moving to new spaces, but some are going out of business altogether. The dry cleaner, open for 33 years, is permanently closed. A toy and pool supplies store (weird combo, I know) that has been open for decades is closing as well.
That store somehow got us to local video rental stores that had closed. We had a Blockbuster, a Hollywood Video, something called Rocky’s Video (which I think was an independent / local chain), and 99 Cent Video all within 15-20 minutes. When I was growing up, an ideal weekend night would be spent eating microwave popcorn (although I wasn’t allowed to make it after nearly setting the kitchen on fire), popping in a VCR cassette, and watching a rented movie as a family. After the film, I’d go down to the basement and play whatever Super Nintendo game I’d rented as well.
Ah, the good old analog days. What are some other stores that have gone the way of the dodo that you remember fondly? Pour some out for Toys ‘R Us.
Across the street from our building, they’re in the midst of a massive redevelopment project, tearing down an old strip shopping center and putting up one of those fancy, town-center, walkable shopping and residential deals. Some of the stores are moving to new spaces, but some are going out of business altogether. The dry cleaner, open for 33 years, is permanently closed. A toy and pool supplies store (weird combo, I know) that has been open for decades is closing as well.
That store somehow got us to local video rental stores that had closed. We had a Blockbuster, a Hollywood Video, something called Rocky’s Video (which I think was an independent / local chain), and 99 Cent Video all within 15-20 minutes. When I was growing up, an ideal weekend night would be spent eating microwave popcorn (although I wasn’t allowed to make it after nearly setting the kitchen on fire), popping in a VCR cassette, and watching a rented movie as a family. After the film, I’d go down to the basement and play whatever Super Nintendo game I’d rented as well.
Ah, the good old analog days. What are some other stores that have gone the way of the dodo that you remember fondly? Pour some out for Toys ‘R Us.