The Key Shop

The CVS, Normal Theater, and Post Office were the extent of my knowledge in what was out in the Uptown Normal area.  Since I have such a narrow and limited knowledge and view of the Uptown area, I decided that I’d spent some time in October to explore a bit. By walking down the street of Uptown Normal a ton of things caught my eyes. Prior to this, I had very small expectations, but the further I walked along, I realized all the neat places, shops, etc. that Uptown Normal offers. Not only were these buildings unique in how they looked and what content was inside of them, but the outside and insides were full of an evident history. From the newly painted exterior of The Pod to the thousands of books being sold at Babbitt’s Books, I found all of them to hold some position in the history of the Normal, IL community.
As I was walking, there was a shop which I almost passed up due to being preoccupied, and probably because I was speed-walking; with the mentality of trying to check out all interesting places and ‘found objects’ that Uptown had to show, I almost missed seeing the inside of Bill’s Key and Lock Shop. Though the exterior view of the shop isn’t the most flashy or bright, I’m so glad I glanced through the window.  To simply put it, Bill’s Key and Lock Shop is a service shop that offers people help with their issues with locks, etc.  I guess I felt there was some subtle beauty that was inside the shop.
When I entered, there were several people in line. With that observation in place, I have the idea that this shop has been here for quite some time, although I truly can’t say for certain because I’m not from around this area at all. In any case, I found myself just staring, mesmerized by the amount of keys hanging on one of the faces of the walls. There were so many that I could hardly count. The keys were illuminated in a weird way; I know it sounds a little strange, but I felt so intrigued by how they were all lined up and by all the tools that were on the shelves. If there hadn’t been so many people, I probably would’ve started throwing out some questions to the people who were working. The locks were another fascinating item that were strung along the walls, although some of the duller, rustic, or older-looking locks appear to be either fake or no longer of use. There were a ton of more modern day locks that were quite lustrous in their shine.
In addition to these, I loved seeing all the rustic vintage pieces that were scattered around the store as decoration.  Another reason this shop was such an intriguing found object was the adornments of vintage items that somehow gave a welcoming vibe to me when I entered. The vintage toy trains took over on the upper shelves that surround the four walls while other items, such an old fashioned phone that had a slight ostentatious look to the handset, were also present. Although they were awesome to look at, I had to wonder: Do these items have any relevance to the shop’s history, or are they just for decoration? Is there a purpose or statement for these vintage elements being present? I thoroughly enjoyed looking at all the visually stimulating items that filled the Key and Lock Shop. These elements were primarily what drew me to take a photo of the store.
Aside from the visual appearance of the place, I also found myself making quick observations of the worker. He was also apart of the photo that I had taken in the shop. His eyes were really focused on his work, yet, in the midst of focusing, his face remained the picture of calmness and patience. The way he spoke to the customers was also notable.
All in all, the little shop that appeared to be normal and ordinary on the outside was deceiving. After stepping into the store, it proved to be a fun, neat service shop with a unique history all its own.-- Christine Jang