Some words on video rental stores

We're gathered here today to honor the loss of a dear friend.

HOURS OF FUN WITH FAMILY FRIENDS AND SIGNIFICANT OTHERS

Video rental stores. Last Saturday, SNL came out with not only one of the funniest episodes ever (#PresidentialDepression) but also a hilarious if not painfully truthful skit about Blockbuster. If you haven't seen it, you need to catch up with your DVR.

Here it is:



Me:

Watching this episode with my roommate, I reminiscently sighed, "This kind of makes me sad." To which she promptly responded, "YOU'RE THE ONLY PERSON I KNOW WHO DOESN'T RENT DIGITALLY." Followed by something akin to "ARE YOU LIVING IN THE 90s???????"

Let's talk about that. Let's talk about the 90s. I grew up with video rental stores as a prime source of fun and entertainment. When I was little, I would ride with my family to the local Hastings. Once I got my license, it became an exciting teen jaunt to ride my yellow bug to said local Hastings with friends. When I would come home from college, I would go to Hastings, rent 4 movies, go home and fall asleep half way through one, get too busy to watch the rest, forget to return them, rack up late fees, and have a terrible yet nostalgically warm and fuzzy welcome home feeling upon discovering the higher than unexpected bill at the check out in the same process months later.

YOU JUST DON'T GET THAT EXPERIENCE FROM TYPING IN "GREAT GATSBY" ON AMAZON OR ITUNES RENTAL. Congratulations, America, you can do everything from the couch.

The act of physically walking through walls and walls of little rectangles of movie posters along the wall, in alphabetical order, acting stupid with your high school bestiez or idiot boyfriend, was a way to get fully immersed in the movie-choosing experience. I just said movie-choosing experience.

#dramaticYetACCURATE

While besties and idiot boyfriends will always be in abundance, gone are the days of driving to a store to walk through aisles of movies. I'll have to tell my children I grew up in the days where we did this thing called "renting" shiny discs called, "DVD movies," and paid for them with cash, MAYBE EVEN PENNIES?? WHO KNOWS?? WOAH?????????

And you know what? I'm usually accepting of technological change. I welcome it with open arms. I liked the iOS 7 update. I'm okay with the cloud thing. Not owning CDs. Cool. I get it. I EVEN HAVE NETFLIX well i watch my roommate's But to take away movie rentals???? My 90s heart is shattered. May the video rental stores rest in the most peaceful of peaces.

If anyone needs me I'm going to be dusting and shining my VHS tapes and DVDS bye.