today was my annual christmas money spending spree with my mom. although i cannot say that i did not completely enjoy this day of shopping, i was appalled and the state of our nation's youth. It was the new Simi Valley Town Center; brand new slurry sealed parking lot, graffiti free bathrooms, and scores and scores of the budding youth our nation is producing. However after much observation of such beings-most of whom were female and below the age of thirteen while above the age of ten-i found that these "budding youths" were nothing more than the exemplary sight of premature adolescent decay. They roamed the mall in packs of at least three-as there is safety in numbers, and hiding personal insecurities is easier. These girls had quite a uniform look as well. All were decked out in quintessential pre-adolescent garb consisting of overpriced trendy jeans, straight hair, zip up sweatshirt sporting the name of their pimp-like store brand billboard-style across their wannabe chests. They carried the latest style in knock-off designer handbags, and clothed their feet with pink ugg boots. With rhinestone encrusted cell phones in hand, they persued their next find-presumbably at claires or some other store filled to the brim with clones precisely like themselves. these packs of sickeningly alike preteen girls caught my eye periodically throughout the day. Every so often i would observe a stray girl lost in the crowd; desperately punching keys into her pink cell phone in order to locate her kind. with every passing girl it became increasingly evident that they cared little for reality, and more for their potential "cool" teenage life. They were not aware of the real world, they were lost among abercrombie bags and shimmering lip gloss. I realize this passage is extremely condescending and a bit premature in itself, but when i was their age, just 5 years ago, i was not in the state they are sporting. At their age, yes i was beginning to discover and enjoy and loathe the wonders of adolescence, but i was no where near the point of materialism and insecurity that these girls displayed. They hid behind their cookie cutter look, perhaps their philosophy being that if they all looked alike with their expensive clone look, people would regard them as one person, rather than individuals. it was a depressing sight-despite their gleeful and satisfied smiles, as i knew they were brought upon by purchases of corporate trends that would rob what little individuality they had left. On a different note i would like to address the growing number of stores clearly from the midwest, marketing to middle aged women. ColdWater Creek for example was just one of a few stores i visited today with my mom, and i cannot begin to explain the kitchy-ness advertised to its customers who-much to my suprise-actually liked what they saw. ColdWater Creek is a store filled with the most revolting fashions one can ever lay eyes on. While roaming the store in wait for my mother to return from the dressing room, i observed quite the plethora of odd items of clothing mixed with even odder items for the home. I suppose the items were not that odd, but it was quite the peculiar sight to see cutting boards displyed besides colorfully tacky cat sweaters. I also found a pair of velvet paisley stirrup pants. I made the conclusion upon entry of the store that it was definitely out of place in Southern California, but perhaps i am wrong-it was extremely busy. i've also found that running around the fountain downtown is quite fun while stripping oneself of garmets. oh yes, i apologize garrett for my brother tonight, he likes to smoke :)