I went. It was cool. I even sang. Took some photos. Go look:
Tampa Mob Photos, Citrus Park Mall
There ended up being a LOT of people there. We got at the mall around 3:35 and the events were planned to start at 4:05. I wanted to see it and get photos. So we walked around the mall and waited for the time to pass (which it did, but oh so slowly!) Finally, at about 4pm, we milled over that way and hung out along the store fronts near where it was going to take place. There were a lot of people starting to gather and a lot kept looking at me since they were a bit nervous and excited and I definately kept checking my watch and scoping the place out.
Seems two different events were taking place. One involved people bringing chairs and booing/cheering while the other is the one I knew about. It involved everyone singing, Take me out to the ballgame as loud as you could and then looking for a missing baseball, then applauding for a minute. I went with the plan to just watch, but once everyone started singing, so did I. :) It was fun and cool and right before it started, people kept looking around - that didn't know what was going on - and one person asked if something was going to happen. I smiled and told her that there was and to stick around. Someone else said they missed it and asked me what people were applauding for - I quickly explained that it was a flash mob - a group of people who plan to get together at a set time, perform an action and then disperse. She smiled and thought the idea was funny. Pretty much everyone had come to see what was going on once the singing and the clapping took place. It was pretty neat because there were a good number of us participating and even more who were entertained and amused in their day.
There was, however, one nasty part to the whole thing. The mall security came and started yelling at people to move on and to shut up. One guy in particular was an absolute asshole. He would get right in the faces of the people who were teenagers (and only the teenagers, he didn't say a thing to anyone who was an adult) and literally scream at them in their face. My friend was with me (in addition to my Love who also joined in on the merriment and singing) and he told him off. Said he needed to pick on someone besides the kids. Called him an asshole. So the jerk actually called one of the real police officers who was around and had him physically escorted from the mall. The mall rent-a-cop was nothing more then a bully who wanted to pick on the kids - and single them out for his abuse. So, my suggestion is that anyone who was there, or even anyone who thinks that his behavior is just mean and he's nothing more then a bully, that if you ever see him at Citrus Park Mall, to boo him. Unfortunatly, due to the moving crowds and an inconstant flash, the pics I have of him are blurry.
Boo him serverely. This dude is an asshole! When all other mall security just milled around, trying to keep things under control, he got nose-to-nose with teenagers and screamed at them.
That's my flashmob info for the day. For anyone wanting more info on this group, feel free to hit their site, here, or to find planned mobs in your local area, go here.
~ flowers bloom near Memory and Dream
at 8/17/2003 12:19:30 AM ~
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