Non-motoring > Shopping malls	Miscellaneous
Thread Author: Armel Coussine	Replies: 78

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:16   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

To me they are visions of globalized hell: huge, tiring, full of overpriced tat you wouldn't ever want or need, with casinos and rubbish like that stuffed in here and there. Oh, and perhaps a supermarket if you're lucky: an expensive one of course. I feel much the same about the pretentious big chain hotels to be found in all the world's capitals. I try to avoid such places, even in towns like Nairobi where many of the locals see them as glamorous, aspirational, a gangway to the largely imaginary world of international wealth and culture. So I would have had to be very unlucky indeed to be among the victims - who may turn out to number more than 100 - of the beastly events in that (singularly harsh and unpleasant in ways related to race and class) town Nairobi over the past few days. The BBC is being criticised for calling the perpetrators 'militants'. The criticism is correct, because such people are not militating for anything. They aren't Muslims by any stretch of the imagination, because murder is a sin in Islam and murdering innocents would condemn a Muslim to eternal hellfire. What they seem to be is environmentally-trained sadistic psychopaths with a psychotic, suicidal edge. There seems to be a constant supply of such people. What an agreeable thought that is. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:21   Shopping malls - movilogo

>> huge, tiring, full of overpriced tat you wouldn't ever want or need, with casinos and rubbish like that stuffed in here and there It is better that they are huge. Usually they are covered - so a good place to be when it rains. They are not always overpriced. Sometimes they offer very good deals. In my local town, there are 99p shops and Poundland. So definitely good value for money. Usually I don't buy from shopping mall supermarkets as I park free at a distance and walk there. So won't be able to carry weekly shopping. For that, I go to out of town supermarkets with own parkings. casinos etc. - well, if you don't like you can skip them. I sometimes enter when I need to use the loo :-) >> They aren't Muslims by any stretch of the imagination My view is that there is really something wrong with that religion. Last edited by: movilogo on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 15:22 Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:31   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> My view is that there is really something wrong with that religion. The same thing that is wrong with all religions: the psychology of a minority of believers. Shopping malls aren't the same as retail parks at all. They are all under one roof, randomly laid out mazes where you can spend ten minutes rushing about looking for the outside world... absolute hell. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:41   Shopping malls - movilogo

>> The same thing that is wrong with all religions: the psychology of a minority of believers. I think for this religion, it is the psychology of majority of believers Reply to this message | Report message       2

New Fri 27 Sep 13 09:43   Shopping malls - DP

>> I think for this religion, it is the psychology of majority of believers The sad thing is, it really isn't. I know quite a few Muslims. They would no more murder people in a shopping centre, hijack a plane, or blow up a commuter train than you or I would. They also really don't get as offended as easily as the PC lobby suggest, or enjoy the concessions and special treatment that the Daily Mail would have us believe. They're just people. Last edited by: DP on Fri 27 Sep 13 at 09:43 Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Fri 27 Sep 13 09:44   Shopping malls - Alanovich

>> I know quite a few Muslims. They would no more murder people in a shopping >> centre, hijack a plane, or blow up a commuter train than you or I would. >> They also really don't get as offended as easily as the PC lobby suggest, or >> enjoy the concessions and special treatment that the Daily Mail would have us believe. >> >> They're just people. >> Don't talk sense, DP. They don't want to hear it. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 09:52   Shopping malls - CGNorwich

"Don't talk sense, DP. They don't want to hear it." Much easier to live with a stereotype. Removes the need for thought. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 11:08   Shopping malls - Focusless

www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/britons-not-prejudiced-just-thick-2013091779514 :) Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 17:28   Shopping malls - No FM2R

>>MOST Britons are good-natured morons rather than unpleasant bigots, it has been claimed. Probably true, and an awful lot easier to live with than the reverse. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:45   Shopping malls - tyro

>> Shopping malls aren't the same as retail parks at all. They are all under one >> roof, randomly laid out mazes where you can spend ten minutes rushing about looking for >> the outside world... absolute hell. Fine. Usage does seem to vary. A quick google indicates some definitions of "Shopping Mall" (e.g. "a large building or group of buildings containing many different stores") could be pretty much the same as what I would call a "retail park". But I take your point about the unpleasantness of a complex in which one is completely cut off from the outside world. But, as movilogo says, there are times when the weather in the outside world is so unpleasant that one of these complexes has a certain appeal. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:34   Shopping malls - Alanovich

>> My view is that there is really something wrong with that religion. >> Last edited by: Alanović on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 15:34 Reply to this message | Report message       2

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:40   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> something wrong with religion. >> Be careful Alanović. If Communism can become a religion - as I'm sure you know it can - then atheism can become one too. :o} Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 15:41 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:46   Shopping malls - tyro

I suppose that anything can become a religion. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 17:59   Shopping malls - Roger.

>> I suppose that anything can become a religion. >> It has! Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 16:02   Shopping malls - Alanovich

>> then atheism can become one too. >> Not going by its current definition. It can of course be annexed by other credos, such as was the case with its inclusion in so-called "Communism", as practiced widely in the 20th Century. On its own, by definition, it can't become a religion. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 16:50   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> annexed by other credos, such as was the case with its inclusion in so-called "Communism", as practiced widely in the 20th Century. That wasn't what I meant at all. I meant the way Soviet communism, while officially atheist, took on the lineaments of a religion, with the Party in place of God and the First Secretary as His only-begotten Son, with religious-type ceremonies and high mass equivalents, even confession and absolution. North Korea has a crazed version to this day. As for atheism, absolute belief even in that has a religious aspect. How do atheists know for sure that they are right? They just know, like religious believers. Reason can only go so far. It's a matter of probability in the final analysis. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 17:58   Shopping malls - SteelSpark

>> As for atheism, absolute belief even in that has a religious aspect. How do atheists >> know for sure that they are right? They just know, like religious believers. Reason can >> only go so far. It's a matter of probability in the final analysis. Depends what you mean by atheism. If you mean the strict interpretation that there are definitely no deities, then you are right that that is belief without evidence, and hence very similar to religion. If, instead, you mean those that consider religion as belief without a shred of evidence, then that isn't the same as religion. As I think you suggest, the situation should properly be framed as there being a possibility of a creator but, arguably, no real evidence to support that conclusion. Of course, that applies to many, many things. If a tree is growing in a forest, it would be wrong to suggest that there is absolutely no possibility that it self assembled out of random atoms, rather than grew. It would also be wrong to suggest that it is impossible that your posts are all generated by a squirrel banging randomly on a keyboard. It might explain a lot! :) Last edited by: SteelSpark on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 17:59 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 18:12   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

OFFS SS. You seem to mean that non-belief in a deity is not quite the same as belief that there is no deity. You are quite right. You should have said so without all the wittering. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 18:17   Shopping malls - SteelSpark

>> OFFS SS. >> >> You seem to mean that non-belief in a deity is not quite the same as >> belief that there is no deity. You are quite right. You should have said so >> without all the wittering. Bang, bang, bang...went the squirrel. I was saying a bit more than that AC. Maybe it went over your fluffy little head. Anyway, why don't you have a go at the guy who started this thread, rambling on about the evils of shopping malls, for about half an hour? Oh yeah... Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 18:31   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> I was saying a bit more than that Not really. You were just saying it at greater length, rather badly, with lots of commas, using the cant word 'arguably', in the hope of straightening out my fluffly little head. Thanks of course, but it's a lost cause. >> rambling on about the evils of shopping malls, for about half an hour? Oh yeah... A slow reader too. Tsk. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 18:45   Shopping malls - SteelSpark

>> >> I was saying a bit more than that >> >> Not really. Yes, actually. Including the mention of probability and the fact that atheism is often considered an exact term, but is not. Either it all went over your head, which I doubt, or you're doing your usual routine or being dismissive for the hell of it. Good sport, eh? Oh, and I think that the comma distribution is reasonable. It's the guys who put colons in their rants about shopping malls that are really trying to look clever. Some people are fully turned on by colons...but they only give me a semi. Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Wed 25 Sep 13 19:20   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> Including the mention of probability Heh heh. Read the last sentence of my post. Nothing wrong with colons. They aren't the same as semi-colons. Honestly SS, where did you come from in this disagreeable mood? Perhaps 'wittering' was a bit rude. But you are a peppery little fellow and no mistake. Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Wed 25 Sep 13 19:36   Shopping malls - SteelSpark

>> Heh heh. Read the last sentence of my post. I hate to cut short your triumphant return to this thread, but I didn't say you hadn't mentioned it in your post. Just that mine included more than you suggested it did. >> Nothing wrong with colons. They aren't the same as semi-colons. You don't say. >> Honestly SS, where did you come from in this disagreeable mood? Perhaps 'wittering' was a >> bit rude. But you are a peppery little fellow and no mistake. Oh, come now AC. We all know that you try hard with your internet persona. Old, world weary intellectual, who has lived a life, and still has a gleam in his eye, but has seen it all a million times and can cut through the nonsense with a well placed "faff", or "mimse", or "witter" put down. Whether that's you, or whether you are just a guy, with too much time on his hands and and internet connection, getting something out of being dismissive to strangers on the internet, I don't know. How does such a fascinating guy as you find so much time to spend arguing on the internet? Reply to this message | Report message       2

New Wed 25 Sep 13 20:08   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> How does such a fascinating guy as you find so much time to spend arguing on the internet? Now that actually is an interesting question. But I'm not going to discuss it with you. I've talked about it often enough. In any case you're too competitive, too Jacky Chan on paper, to make an agreeable correspondent. I made an apologetic reference to 'wittering' in this exchange, but I might as well not have bothered. You think I come here to put people down? Nothing could be more absurd. People in real life witter, mimse and faff. Badinage apart, I don't normally use these words about people here. But it's all the same to you. Perhaps you are a 'speed-reader'. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 08:05   Shopping malls - Cliff Pope

>> >> How does such a fascinating guy as you find so much time to spend >> arguing on the internet? >> >> Now that actually is an interesting question. I post, therefore I am. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 18:59   Shopping malls - Manatee

A belief without proof that there is no creator is not as irrational as the belief without proof , or even evidence, that there is one. Ockham's razor and all that. Demanding proof of the non-existence of something is just a debating trick. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 19:20   Shopping malls - SteelSpark

>> Demanding proof of the non-existence of something is just a debating trick. Yes, it's true that people will use that trick, and others. The closely related one is that a lack of proof of A (non-deity powered creation), is somehow proof of B (deity powered creation). Akin to "scientists don't know everything". It is, though, correct to say that you should not technically rule out the existence of a creator. When these tricks are applied to evolution, for instance, some will prey upon the "theory" aspect of the theory of evolution. An answer to this is probably best summed up by the guy behind Spaghetti Monsterism: "I think we can all look forward to the time when these three theories are given equal time in our science classrooms across the country, and eventually the world; one third time for Intelligent Design, one third time for Flying Spaghetti Monsterism, and one third time for logical conjecture based on overwhelming observable evidence." Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 20:04   Shopping malls - MD

+ 1. I'm an Agnostic thank god. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:23   Nairobi Mall killings - tyro

Warning: Thread drift Hence title change. "They aren't Muslims by any stretch of the imagination" It will be interesting to see how many Muslims speak up and say that. (On the subject of shopping malls . . . well, we don't have such things in remote rural areas such as the one I live in. They are not really very different from the "retail parks" which have sprung up in recent years in the UK. And retail parks are not very different from supermarkets on the edge of towns with big car parks. Or so it seems to me.) Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:36   Nairobi Mall killings - Bromptonaut

Amusing line form one of the UK's malls. The Everton store in Liverpool's newest and biggest Mall, Liverpool One, is called Everton 2 It's address is thus Everton 2, Liverpool One Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:48   Nairobi Mall killings - RattleandSmoke

I don't like them much either but sometimes you have to go to them. The Trafford Centre is the worst, just full of people spending on their credit cards. My nearest mall is in Stretford and is good for bargains, there is a good seconds shop, two poundshops, a B&M, a Quality Save, a Wilkinsons etc. The Arndale in Manchester city centre also has a good balance between the over priced designer stores and poundshops. I use to work in the Trafford Centre (Dixons) and I was always a bit nervous about security because it always seemed like an obvious place for a terrorist attack and I worked there just after the London bombings of 2005. Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 15:48 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 16:03   Nairobi Mall killings - Manatee

>> The Arndale in Manchester city centre also has a good balance between the over priced >> designer stores and poundshops. And it has a grand little 'pub' (not Witherspoons) www.perfectpint.co.uk/best-real-ale-pubs-UK/3302/Micro-Bar But I see the Manc Arndale as more of a market. The pure temples of consumerism are the Laeside, Bluewater, Meadowhall, Westfield, St Davids's type. Not a hardware shop in sight. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 22:44   Nairobi Mall killings - Duncan

>> The Arndale in Manchester city centre also has a good balance between the over >> priced >> >> designer stores and poundshops. >> >> And it has a grand little 'pub' (not Witherspoons) >> There is a Wetherspoons right next door to The Arndale Centre :- The Seven stars in Dantzic Street. Well recommended. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 15:48   Nairobi Mall killings - Alanovich

>> It's address is thus Everton 2, Liverpool One Nicely reverse-echoing last night's Everton result. Last edited by: Alanović on Wed 25 Sep 13 at 15:48 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 16:36   Nairobi Mall killings - RattleandSmoke

I didn't know that MicroBar was there, but I don't go to the Arndale very often. The Trafford Centre doesn't have a hardware shop or anything of that nature either, its all just stupid designer shops. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 16:56   Nairobi Mall killings - henry k

A few years back I was working near the " King of Prussia" mall which I think had 400 shops. That really was a place for using a Sat Nav. IIRC it is about the biggest in the USA Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 17:46   Nairobi Mall killings - CGNorwich

"IIRC it is about the biggest in the USA" West Edmonton Mall in Canada is even bigger. the larges in the Americas I believe. Mind you you don't want to be outdoors for about 8 months of the year if you live in Alberta. In Montreal the Malls tend to be underground and are connected by tunnels. You can walk for miles without venturing outside. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 17:49   Nairobi Mall killings - Lygonos

>>In Montreal the Malls tend to be underground and are connected by tunnels. You can walk for miles without venturing outside. Similarly when I was in Singapore it was a delight to go underground in the middle of the day and walk along the airconditioned mall-tunnels. Anytime between dawn and dusk was a sweat-fest there. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 17:59   Nairobi Mall killings - Robin O'Reliant

We have a Tesco's Mini Mart, a dog grooming parlour, a cafe and a petrol station all next to each other. Does that count? * The petrol station sells newspapers and milk. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 19:18   Nairobi Mall killings - Armel Coussine

>> a delight to go underground in the middle of the day and walk along the airconditioned mall-tunnels. It's true that in a hot place at a hot time of day air conditioning can tempt anyone even into a ghastly shopping mall or pseudo-posh hotel. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 25 Sep 13 22:54   Nairobi Mall killings - Ted

The Trafford Centre doesn't have a hardware shop or anything of that nature either, >> its all just stupid designer shops. >> Not quite true, me ole Rats......The only good shop in the Duomo is The Trafford Model Centre. Ted Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:36   Shopping malls - Westpig

>> To me they are visions of globalized hell: huge, Interesting post AC. I think ALL shopping is in that category. Everything I buy...and I do mean everything...is done via the internet and even then if the site sods me about or I can't find what I want fairly quickly, then I find my hackles rising and I'll give up...maybe I might try once more on another occasion. The only shop I have been comfortable to visit in the past 15 years, is a little gentleman's clothes shop (with the ladies side of things connected, right next door) in Oban, Scotland (Blacks they are called). You can go in there and be properly served by a lady who will trot off and get what you want, then you try it on and then you pay..simples...none of this roaming around trying to find things and no assistant free when you want one...and all their stock is of good quality. I've spent a few bob in there. I have no doubt there are other shops dotted around the country like it..but where?..and how do I find them?..and can I park anywhere near? The Oban one was found by chance on a tourist visit when we went for a fish lunch on the quay nearby. However...the shopping malls do have some pluses and I've used them on holidays.. because, the you can park and there's a lot of things in one place and you don't get wet/hot etc. Most towns in this country treat car drivers like lepers..so guess what?..many go to out of town shopping malls where they are considerably more welcome. >> The BBC is being criticised for calling the perpetrators 'militants'. The criticism is correct, because >> such people are not militating for anything. The BBC has had its collective head up its backside for years and it isn't about to change soon. They are so institutionally left wing that they do not recognise their own bias and just presume everyone else around them is wrong. If it were a person it would have a narcissistic personality disorder. Same with political correctness, they are so wrapped up in that world they don't know the reality. I am absolutely certain that if some neo-Nazi's somewhere in the world started killing people in the name of their 'cause', the BBC would not be calling them 'militants'. They aren't Muslims by any stretch of the >> imagination, because murder is a sin in Islam and murdering innocents would condemn a Muslim >> to eternal hellfire. They are Muslims though, that's the problem. they are obviously at the extremes of their religion in the same way other people from other backgrounds/ religions/ races etc can be extreme..but they ARE Muslims. The problem here is the average Muslim and the moderate Muslim do not shout loudly enough to decry them. In fact IMO there isn't even a quiet whimper....so a lot of other people in the world don't like that and Islam gets a bad name. The cure will have to come from within...only don't hold your breath for it to happen any time soon. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:38   Shopping malls - L'escargot

I refuse to call them shopping malls. Malls is an American word and I live in the UK not America. They're shopping centres. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:40   Shopping malls - Westpig

>> I refuse to call them shopping malls. Malls is an American word and I live >> in the UK not America. They're shopping centres. >> Good point well made, I humbly apologise for my recent misdemeanour. Got to rush, I need to post something about trucking and sidewalks...;-). Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:45   Shopping malls - L'escargot

>> >> I refuse to call them shopping malls. Malls is an American word and I >> live >> >> in the UK not America. They're shopping centres. >> >> >> Good point well made, I humbly apologise for my recent misdemeanour. Relax Westpig. I was commenting on the thread title. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:20   Shopping malls - Alanovich

>> Malls is an American word and It's an English word, if we're going to be pedantic. Americans use it in their dialect of English to denote an indoor shopping complex, but the word originated in England. Ever heard of Pall Mall? It's a bit like those who scream abuse at the mention of soccer. That's an English word, too. In fact, I think I'm going to call it soccer from now on, just to wind up misguided wannabe pedants. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 12:31   Shopping malls - Roger.

>> >> Malls is an American word and >> >> It's an English word, if we're going to be pedantic. >> >> Americans use it in their dialect of English to denote an indoor shopping complex, but >> the word originated in England. Ever heard of Pall Mall? Pall Mall's origins explained here:- www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/pell-mell.html Nothing to do with shopping centres if the above correct! Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:49   Shopping malls - CGNorwich

Does your pedantry extend to those that call themselves Malls? Norwich has two, the first called "The Mall" and the second called "Castle Mall". Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 09:51   Shopping malls - L'escargot

>> Does your pedantry extend to those that call themselves Malls? Definitely. Linguistic pedants of the world unite! tinyurl.com/lzg7alr Last edited by: L'escargot on Thu 26 Sep 13 at 09:55 Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:16   Shopping malls - Focusless

www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/people-who-highlight-minor-grammar-points-are-amazing-2013082378916 :) Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:21   Shopping malls - CGNorwich

Excellent. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:23   Shopping malls - Alanovich

>> www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/people-who-highlight-minor-grammar-points-are-amazing-2013082378916 >> :) >> L'Es is looking younger and more cheerful than I imagined there. ;-) Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:27   Shopping malls - L'escargot

>> >> www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/people-who-highlight-minor-grammar-points-are-amazing-2013082378916 >> >> :) >> >> >> >> L'Es is looking younger and more cheerful than I imagined there. >> >> ;-) >> It's being so cheerful that keeps me going. tinyurl.com/ost78yn Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:20   Shopping malls - Slidingpillar

In the UK we tend to call things what they are, ie shopping centre, loo etc. The Americans though are squeamish beasts and think if you give something a fancy name, it must be nice. Hence 'malls' and 'bathrooms'. Must cause no end of fun in houses like mine where the loo is a separate room, and the bathroom just contains a basin and... a bath. Irritating to see the word 'mall' is only given as a shopping mall in the Cambridge British English dictionary. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:20   Shopping malls - Cliff Pope

>> I refuse to call them shopping malls. Malls is an American word It isn't actually. It derives from Pall Mall in London, an avenue where pell mell was played and people used to promenade, chill out and meet their friends. The essence of the word is it is a leisure/meeting place, not just a row of shops. Also unlike a shopping centre it is arranged as an avenue, not a cluster of shops round a central focus. I like all the connotations of the word, apart from the horrible American pronunciation. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 10:22   Shopping malls - Alanovich

Great minds/fools, Cliff. Same time stamp too. Hang on, didn't I say that to FoR recently? Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 11:10   Shopping malls - Slidingpillar

As far as I can tell, the origin of the word 'mall' is suspected to be Pall Mall, but not proven. I'd not be surprised if an earlier usage is found. Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 20:49   Shopping malls - Dutchie

Once in a while we visit Meadow Hall Sheffield.I don't mind to much parking is free wife and daughter clothes shopping like most women do.Me,I wonder off with the granddaughter she is starting to say a few words now.I try to teach her Dutch with a few swear words trowing in,potverdomme. What would you do if anybody started shooting in a mall,first instinct try to protect the bairn what else? Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 22:20   Shopping malls - Roger.

We call it Meadowhell! Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 22:37   Shopping malls - Fullchat

But we do get a look in at that little tool shop :) Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 23:27   Shopping malls - Zero

>> What would you do if anybody started shooting in a mall,first instinct try to protect >> the bairn what else? you and the kin GTFooT (get the flick out of there) Reply to this message | Report message

New Thu 26 Sep 13 23:44   Shopping malls - legacylad

The closest I have ever been to a large shopping mall in the UK is the Victoria Quarter in Leeds. An hour away on the train, lovely arcades, people, buskers, and several really nice pubs in the city centre. Never been to Meadowhall or that one near Gateshead. I really really hate shopping and cannot envisage ever going to one. But I do enjoy a day out in Leeds every 4/6 months. Last time our 'tour leader' took us to 6 fantastic pubs one Sunday afternoon, and sadly we missed out on the new Trinity Centre. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 08:10   Shopping malls - Crankcase

Shopping centres seem to me, not unreasonably pitched at a demographic of which I'm not part. Our "Grand Arcade" is girly clothes shop, teen clothes shop, girly clothes shop, shoe shop, teen clothes shop, perfume shop, soap shop, chocolate shop, girly clothes shop, teen clothes shop.... The was once an HMV and a Dixons so you could go in admire the nice action on CD drawer eject buttons, but now they are, respectively, a girly clothes shop and a teen clothes shop. No problem with that, just not really my thing. Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Fri 27 Sep 13 08:22   Shopping malls - Zero

>> No problem with that, just not really my thing. Had you bought stuff in HMV or Dixons, rather than just wiping your grubby paws over the shiny chrome they would still be there.... Just saying. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 08:24   Shopping malls - Crankcase

Oh, I did. DVDs in HMV, often, and things like cameras and game controllers in Dixons, until they turned into the kind of place you wouldn't buy anything from. Which is why Dixons are not still there. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 10:13   Shopping malls - BiggerBadderDave

Somewhere recently there was a bit of a spat about grammar in one of the threads particularly the hatred of American slang. I can't remember which one but I thought I'd drop this article on the end of this thread. tinyurl.com/pl4zows There are two programmes I watch - Counting Cars and Fast 'n' Loud. Fantastic viewing, not just because I love those dreadful 60s, 70s and 80s American cars, but I enjoy the banter between the guys who are restoring the cars. So to join in the Friday morning mass debate, I love slang - American and English. And I love shopping malls too - wifey goes off to the boutiques with a credit card, and I find a hot mature piece of action with a tight booty and follow her around for an hour. What's not to like? Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 14:11   Shopping malls - Duncan

>> I thought >> I'd drop this article on the end of this thread. >> >> tinyurl.com/pl4zows >> He complains about the ungrammatical way the president of the USA speaks, whilst he speaks in the present tense about something that happened in the past! Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 09:57   Shopping malls - tyro

"Had you bought stuff in ... they would still be there...." "Oh, I did." Ahhh, that's life, isn't it? Some of us enthusiastically (or even desperately) support shops and businesses that we like in order to keep them going, aware that the enterprise may well be doomed because our neighbours either don't understand "use it or lose it" or they couldn't care less about whether they lose it. For example, I refuse to buy petrol (or diesel) at the big supermarkets in the towns and cities of the Scottish Highlands, aware of the number of small local petrol stations around me that have ceased trading in recent years. But do my neighbours do likewise? No. They grumble about the price of fuel at their local and fill up in the likes of ASDA or Tesco when they head for the big smoke. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 10:36   Shopping malls - Crankcase

I have to say the ability to enjoy a shopping experience for more than just the purchase is something the internet doesn't provide for me. It does, of course, provide a lower price, and we are surrounded by a culture that on all levels assumes that is a good thing. Purple prose ahead, go read something else now. I'm a booklover. The joy of a stumbling over an unknown second hand bookshop in a sleepy little town was always a highlight of a trip out somewhere. Anticipating what may lie within, whether something new and undiscovered, finding a lovely little copy of an old well loved companion, or finally tracking down that elusive treasure. The sound of the bell as the door opens - they always had little bells that instantly gave you an almost Victorian sense of auditory delight. The smell of dust and calor gas, and in the corner, the bookseller, who would always glance up with a welcoming smile and a hello. The pine shelving, sometimes cheap and higgledy piggledy, sometimes stern, neat and functional. And then the books. All types and colours and sizes, jostling for your attention, waiting to be examined and cooed over, like lost and eager kittens at the RSPCA. And the serendipity - oh the serendipity. A glance at the transport section yielding Morris Minors leaning against Massey Fergusons, or in history, Roman verse a shelf below Russian politics. That mis-shelved copy of a Penguin detective novel amongst the topography. The unavoidable exclamation of delight when exactly the right book for the day appears, and the sense of satisfaction as you leave with an armful, happy that the transaction has brought a little profit to the owner and a heap, literally, of knowledge or fun to you or a good friend. No child in a sweetshop could be happier than a booklover in a proper secondhand bookshop. Or you can go onto Amazon, type in a barcode and it turns up in post. It works, it's functional, it saves you money, but the experience, for me, is just not comparable. Partly because of the internet, individual quirky bookshops with quirky owners and quirky stock have closed almost everywhere - can't compete, you know, not enough money in it, much cheaper online. I'll buy from Amazon like everyone else, when I know exactly what I want and I know the Waterstones down the road will only order it in for me anyway, but private individual bookshops are a great pleasure of life for me and it's sad they are dying out. Reply to this message | Report message       1

New Fri 27 Sep 13 10:41   Shopping malls - Zero

>> Purple prose ahead, go read something else now. Agreed. Nothing better. But - You wont find that in a shopping mall either Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 14:37   Shopping malls - Bromptonaut

>> The closest I have ever been to a large shopping mall in the UK is >> the Victoria Quarter in Leeds. An hour away on the train, lovely arcades, people, buskers, >> and several really nice pubs in the city centre. >> Linking to the Norwich 20mph thread I thought that bit of Leeds was the first pedestrian precinct in UK; Lands Lane and Albion St c1969. Amazed last time I was in Leeds how much the Victorian Arcades - Thornton's, Queens - had changed. IIRC Boots occupied a block between them but rest was 'secondary shopping' our optician for example was in Thornton's. There was an excellent model shop in the upper level of Queens Arcade. Now its Westwood, posh jewellers etc. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 14:50   Shopping malls - CGNorwich

The arcades in Leeds have been superbly renovated though. Fantastic buildings. There is a similar but smaller arcade in Norwich which was renovated many years back. Prudential owned the building and embarked on a modest restoration and discover to their horror that the Grade 1 listed building was built on top of a system of medieval chalk workings and had to more or less rebuild the place. To their credit they did do a fantastic job. Norwich was definitely the first to pedestrianise an existing street. I believe it required an Act of Parliament to authorise. Walking down the narrow road now it doesn't seem possible that it was once a major traffic route through the city. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 15:02   Shopping malls - Slidingpillar

Cough, doesn't 1819 for the opening of the Burlington Arcade in Piccadilly seriously predate all this. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 15:11   Shopping malls - CGNorwich

The Burlington Arcade was the model for the many Victorian arcades which were built in many cities throughout the UK. A predecessor to the modern shopping Mall Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 16:00   Shopping malls - Armel Coussine

>> A predecessor to the modern shopping Mall And vastly preferable. The shops are small, and more importantly you can find your way out of an arcade - Burlington Street at one end and Piccadilly at the other, simples. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 16:35   Shopping malls - corax

I had to go to Luton once to have a propshaft reconditioned. Took a walk around the place and there was no one on the streets. Then I walked into a large shopping mall and couldn't move for people. Surreal, it was like something out of the film Logans Run, where everyone lived underground, apart from a few escapees. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 19:13   Shopping malls - Dog

>>it was like something out of the film Logans Run, where everyone lived underground, apart from a few Eh, they didn't live under ground, actually. (*_*) Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 19:21   Shopping malls - corax

>>Eh, they didn't live under ground, actually. >> >> (*_*) Where did they live then dog, am I confusing Logans Run with the Time Machine and the morlocks? Gimmee a break it's the end of the working week. Reply to this message | Report message

New Fri 27 Sep 13 19:32   Shopping malls - Dog

>> am I confusing Logans Run with the Time Machine and the morlocks? Dunno corax, but you can try this: www.radiotimes.com/film/jsbxg/cloverfield >>Gimmee a break it's the end of the working week. Colles ?? :} Reply to this message | Report message