While scouting for a back cover image to represent the American supermarket, I couldn’t resist this bit of (rather forlorn looking) nostalgia, found outside a local supermarket. I asked for permission to take the photo and used a tripod to ensure the sharpness of the image.

In the United States, mechanical horse rides were common features outside grocery stores; now they have all but disappeared, much like the public phone booth. Way back when, the promise of a kiddie ride would be used strategically during the weekly food shopping slog: “We’ll do our shopping then you can ride the horsey!” Now, fewer stay-at-home parents, more public preschool and kindergartens, and even online ordering with free curbside pick-up, have reduced the amount of time children spend at the grocery store. Lastly, I suspect the smartphone became the entertainment of choice for many children and the supermarket bronco’s coup de grâce.