Up until just before my 18th birthday, I lived in a small town in the middle of Illinois. Back in those days, there was no internet; the only access a kid like me (and a town like mine) had to the larger world was media, or to go out in it. We watched TV, read magazines of topics that interested us, read books from the school library. My experience of "going out" in the world was generally limited to the nearby towns of Streator and Peru, when I would delve into shopping for the latest records and tapes, what seemed like an impossible expanse of role playing games and novels, and video cartridges for atari. I found reasons to extend my visits to the Peru mall as long as possible; sit in the bookstore and look at all the new products; Grab a bite at McDonalds or the Dairy Queen (we had no fast food in my town); catch a movie like Indiana Jones or Back to the Future at the cinema (built right into the mall!). Until I or one of my friends could drive, we were at the mercy of my parents, who would eventually hunt us down and force us to return to dulls-ville.
Once home, we'd delve into our purchases and use them to escape; listening to rap music, pretending we were superheroes or dragon slayers using pen and paper role playing games, or watching a movie on VHS. Once I finally did escape, life started rolling, and as they often do, years went by in the blink of an eye. But I still find myself returning to malls and retail shopping areas not just as a place to shop, but as a place that gives me a strange sort of internal comfort.
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