Jonny Numb

There are times when I find myself at the mall – usually the JCPenney to purchase new clothes – and can’t help but venture a peek inside the FYE. Over the past year, my local store has whittled down its selection of CDs and DVDs/Blu-rays/4Ks to a pittance, opting instead for licensed NECA figures, Funko Pops, Pusheen plushies, and various other periphery designed to accumulate value (and dust) in a closet before being flipped on eBay for beaucoup bucks.

During my most recent visit, there was a sparseness to the inventory beyond the physical media that – accompanied by a “75% Off” sign hanging in the front window – made me wonder if the chain was shuttering its doors for the second or third time since they infiltrated Central PA maybe 2 decades ago (absorbing the Disc Jockeys and Camelot Musics and Sam Goodys).

As I looked through the CDs and DVDs, the young cashier – who was practicing his juggling behind the counter and on the sales floor (no kidding) – soullessly asked if I was finding everything okay, and to let him know if I needed help. I offered a “thank you” as obligatory as his spiel, and he moved on to another customer, repeating the same line with exact same affect.

This kid knows what’s up, I thought. He sees the futility of it all. That’s why he’s practicing his juggling – it’s the only thing left to do.

The person I assumed was the juggler’s supervisor rang me up, pushing a free month of FYE’s loyalty program that charges a fee in subsequent months. They don’t relent easily on this – I’m guessing there’s some sort of commission or bonus hanging on the hook for everyone they get to “opt in” for that free month.

I found a couple interesting items:

I’m assuming the vinyl revolution is chugging along at its fevered sales pitch, but I diverted my attention to the pithy kiosk of CDs – the cheap, ratty cellophane and cracked jewel cases making the used options look even worse for wear – in search of nothing in particular; just trying to see if anything caught my eye. As I looked, a guy walked in and began loudly criticizing the cost of vinyl, but in a showy manner portending that his words, in fact, were bits of revelation unknown to any other human up to the point he chose to articulate them.

On a semi-related note, here are pictures of my findings from a recent visit to indie shop Extremities Entertainment in Lebanon:

As an aside, Extremities has a points-based loyalty program that accumulates with each dollar spent, and doesn’t chisel extra money out of you in the form of a monthly “loyalty” fee.

To conclude, here is a photo of some CDs I recently ordered from various online sites: