Yes, the King of Prussia Mall Now Has Its Own COVID-19 Boutique

The front of the new COVID-19 store at the King of Prussia Mall.

A roundup of news from the Philadelphia area.

Now I’ve Seen It All: King of Prussia Mall Gets Its Own COVID-19 Store

There are very few things that will get me to spend my Saturday morning at the King of Prussia Mall. Any mall, really. Especially over a holiday weekend. But when I heard that a COVID-19 store had opened at the King of Prussia Mall, well, obviously, I had to pay it a visit.

And so I lured my wife and kids into the car on Saturday, the promise of a trip to Costco being the bait. A $268 grocery haul and some free bottles of Costco’s Vitaminwater Zero knockoff later, we hopped over to the Court at King of Prussia. Thankfully, the King of Prussia Mall actually has an online app that gives you internal directions to the store you are trying to visit. As in, if you want to go from Store A to Store B, they’ll give you walking directions, a la Google Maps.

The new COVID-19 boutique — it’s officially called COVID-19, Inc. — is right by Sephora, in case that means anything at all to you. The COVID-19 store is a pretty tiny space, and as you walk through the door, a device displays your body temperature, although I couldn’t seem to get mine to come up:

A purported temperature scanner at the COVID-19 store at the King of Prussia Mall.

The main offerings at the COVID store are masks, of course.

There are ridiculous COVID masks (maybe they’re called statement masks?) like this spiked one:

A spiked mask at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

And the ol’ gas mask version:

A gas-mask mask at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

Should you need a mask with a zipper, they have plenty:

A mask with a zipper at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

I quite liked this mask with a built-in hood:

A mask with a built-in hood at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

For the fashion conscious among you, there are the so-called “designer” masks.

“Designer” masks at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

“If you tried to buy a Louis Vuitton mask at the Louis Vuitton store, it would cost you $300,” a salesperson told a prospective buyer. But these, er, unofficial “designer” masks only cost $30, the salesperson explained. Plus, the COVID store was having a buy-two-get-one-free sale all weekend. Woohoo!

And you know what your mask smells like 30 minutes after you scarf down a Wawa Shorti? Well, the COVID store has solved this problem for you:

Lavender mask spray and mint mask spray at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

Finally, any guesses what this doohickey is?

A doohickey at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

Or this similar one?

Another doohickey at the COVID store at the King of Prussia Mall

A COVID-19, Inc. salesperson explained it to me. You use the graspy thing to grab door handles you don’t want to pull with your bare hand. And you use the tip to punch the keys on an ATM keypad.

This COVID store is one of three such stores in the region, the other two COVID-19, Inc. stores being located in New Jersey. I wasn’t able to get in touch with the owner of the three stores, but this is what he had to say about his business and the (hopefully) short-lived nature of it: “Buy a mask and put me out of business. The sooner I go out of business, the better.”

Indoor Dining Returns to Philly While Wolf Promises Increased Capacity Elsewhere

It’s September 8th, and you know what that means, right? As of Tuesday, restaurants in Philadelphia are now allowed to offer indoor dining again, which is something that the rest of the state has been doing for a while now. (Check out the list of restrictions placed on restaurants in Philly here.)

But that’s not all, folks! On Tuesday morning, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced that he was increasing indoor dining capacities from 25 percent to 50 percent, effective September 21st. Of course, there’s the fine print that this could all change if the numbers go in the wrong direction, but that’s the date he’s looking at right now.

If you think that means that Philly restaurants will also be able to be half full on September 21st, think again. Thanks to the way Pennsylvania law is written, Philly is free to make its own rules — so long as they are more restrictive than the state’s and not less. That’s why Philly’s laws covering smoking bars are far more restrictive than those in the rest of the state. Grabbed a beer at a Delco bar lately? Cough, cough.

Your civics lesson for the day.

Keep Your Eyes on the Parkway Encampment This Week

Wednesday could be a dramatic day in the city. That is the deadline that the city has set for the so-called Parkway encampment to vacate the grounds along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Yes, the city has set deadlines before. And, yes, those deadlines have passed without any attempt to forcibly move those encamped. But it sounds like this time around, the city really means business. Probably. Sort of.

Here’s a report from 6 ABC:

And Briefly Noted…

• Election Day is coming up. Here’s how it could go terribly wrong in Philly.
• Temple allowed students to return to campus. It royally screwed up.
• Lies and broken promises: Philly’s mayors and city poverty.