The Mall of America in Minneapolis!

"Minneapolis" isn't quite accurate - it was actually Bloomington Minnesota, but I think that most folks outside of Minnesota don't know of it. Well, what Bloomington is well known for is that it is the home of the Mall of America (MOA) - the largest mall in the United States. It was the largest in the world for many years but someone else swiped that title (I think it was those pesky Canadians). :-)

It goes with out saying that there is no way I'm going to be next to the MOA and not go shopping! It also appears to be a good time to GO shopping as every store in the mall was having sales of 40 to 70% off of most things. I wore a cute little skirt that flares out at the bottom! I don't care if it might be a bit old fashioned - I loved it and that's what counts!



I entered the mall through Dillard's. It's sort of a method with me to help remember where I park. If I always park at Dillard's then I don't have to sit there 4 hours later asking myself "DAMN! Where did I leave the car??!!" Boy am I gonna be in a world of hurt if I go to a mall that doesn't HAVE a Dillard's!

So as I'm walking in, two woman are walking towards the door and I can hear what sounds like the end of a conversation or debate on outfits. One to the other while looking at me as they approach "Now see! This girls outfit is . . ." and that's where she stopped talking and acquired that "is that a guy look?" that I'm starting to hate.
I smiled as I walked past and then couldn't resist turning to see if they were looking back at me. Sure enough, I busted the one that was talking turning to get a second look. Must be that neon sign on my head saying "Cross dresser" again.
Well, there went my "I'm passing" confidence right out the door at the start of my shopping :-(
Oh well, why worry about it - there's shopping to be done!

Didn't take long for two things to occur to me.
1 - A mall this size can not be well air conditioned so it was often quite warm.
2 - The red knit top I was wearing was a REALLY bad idea if you're going to be somewhere warm!

By the time you factor in the wig, the makeup, the nylons, and then the top with the high neck, you have a recipe for getting HOT!!! When I noticed that there was perspiration running down my nose, I figured "That's it, I don't care about hiding the adams apple, it's time to get a blouse that is cooler!" And so, another great shopping quest is begun!

I took a few pics of the mall just to try and give a concept of its size. This place is truly huge, with an entire carnival inside! I mean we are talking roller coaster, Ferris wheel, etc, etc - all the full sized rides of a carnival and its inside the center of the mall.

The Mall of America.

 (It has been years ago now and now I don't recall who it was, but I was contacted by a magazine asking permission to use this photo! Isn't that cool?!)



Well, other than being far too warm, I enjoyed the mall! I found a store called Nordstrom Rack and found a great pink top for my favorite skirt! (Pic in my next blog entry). Well, when I went to pay for it, the SA was a cute blonde lady maybe in her mid 50's and she was very friendly. She told me that she thought the new top was awesome, and "by the way, pink is my favorite color!", and "I love your ear rings!" she says. I told her "thank you very much. I can't wait to try it on with my favorite skirt!" She told me she was sure I'd look great in it. I said "I hope so, and maybe it wont be as hot as THIS one!" while tugging on the top I was wearing. She just sort of giggle and said she was pretty sure of that! She looked pretty hard at my debit card when I handed it to her so I sort of giggled and said "Don't laugh TOO hard!". She just laughed and said it was absolutely not a problem! Way cool!
On the way back to the hotel I came across a theater and stopped to see what was playing. "Oceans 13" was about to start so I went for it! Cute show - I really enjoyed it!