Can one sue their city for breach of contract? Maybe contract is not the right word, since I never signed anything besides my life away by promising to pay the bank an arm and a leg in perpetuity (it seemed that long, anyway) for the privilege of having a roof over our heads in our new location. (I honestly thought we'd be able to use the money we got when we sold our house to pay, outright, for a new one in our new town. Boy, was I in for a shock.) Anyway, I may have to consult a lawyer on this one. I wonder if I can find one that won't laugh me out of their office. How about suing for breach of promise instead?
Why breach of promise you ask? Because I don't like change unless it's for something I consider to be for the better. Closing establishments I may have frequented if I had remembered they existed is beside the point. When we moved here a little over 20 years ago there was a viable mall and several nice shops and restaurants as well as a couple of movie theaters. Just as I'd hoped, as the years went by, more shops and eating establishments were added which made this city a place where it was no longer necessary for us to leave town for shopping and entertainment. Opening two home improvement stores side by side was a lifesaver. Well, maybe not a lifesaver but definitely a gas and time saver. When we lived in our small hometown, which I still love and miss, we had to drive over an hour to frequent them and also the big box stores so when they were built here simultaneous to our move, I was ecstatic and all was (mostly) right with our world. Naive as I am, I expected only growth in a city such as this.
Fast forward several years when the Covid pandemic hit and businesses started closing due to the fact that, even if the products sought out were available, most were afraid to show up in person. Many were afraid to leave their homes and logic went out the window. It started to feel like what I imagine the Great Depression might have felt like, maybe not as bad, but to those of us who have never had to go to the store and see empty shelves, it was quite frightening. Sadly, we've become the throwaway generation, not the make-do generation. I guess the upside to all of this was the inventive way some stores started offering deliveries they'd never offered before. The big box stores decided to one-up everyone by offering a shop for you and load your vehicle service. I think that was a smart business move that's helpful to people who've needed something like this for years for various reasons.
On the downside, it seems this town has become a haven for car washes, fast food joints and dollar stores. We won't mention the plethora of casinos and shops selling the 'Devil's Lettuce' aka weed. FYI There's an app one can download so one can stay in the loop on price drops, special promos, new products, and more. I stumbled upon it by accident while doing some research. No, I did not download it as I have no need. It's like the collective population has no imagination. Don't get me wrong, this town has its good points and when I think of any, I'll list them– someday. I will say most of the inhabitants are nice and polite so there's that. Traffic has gotten worse over the last 20 years. It seems some wanna be race car drivers like to mistake our roads for a racetrack.
And while we're on the subject of breaches of promise, may I address grocery, big box, and membership stores who like to lull the unsuspecting public into a sense of camaraderie then BAM, in the middle of the night they rearrange everything so it's nearly impossible to find what one needs without a map and compass? Or for the younger generation, Siri or Alexa. When it comes to any kind of grocery shopping, I'm a get in and get out fast kinda gal. I might be missing out on a lot of new and improved (Ha!) items but I say 'Oh, well.' I still manage to spend an obscene amount of money on the plain old non-improved stuff.
I guess I need to embrace change since not all of it's bad news. It seems about as many places are coming in as going out. It's not my fault I didn't know the ones closing existed until I saw their 'Going Out Of Business' signs.
I promise to stop griping now. Maybe. Or maybe not.