Confessions of a (middle-aged) Shopaholic

I love going to the mall because I love shopping. I enjoy the feeling that comes with getting a cute new outfit or the perfect pair of shoes. My shopping roots run deep. My grandma and I shared a love of Liz Claiborne and shoes. When I was a middle school student, my friends and I thought nothing of spending 4 hours at the Lansing Mall making $5 last all day. As I grew older, the stores of choice grew with me. In college my favorite stores were Limited Express and the Gap.  I knew that the best deals were on the clearance racks at the back of the store and that was where I headed first. I could dress in style, on a budget. A few months ago I had the opportunity to do some power shopping at the Rivertown Mall near Grand Rapids. This particular trip to the mall had me feeling somewhat dazed and overwhelmed. It wasn’t just the fact that it had been such a long time since I had the opportunity to shop for myself. Venturing into stores like Aeropostale or American Eagle make me feel a little bit uncomfortable. I am just sure that the girls at the counter either believe that I am buying something for a teenager, or wonder what in the heck an old lady like me is doing looking for clothes in such a young, hip store. I stumbled in and out of stores not really seeing anything that I felt like I’d be comfortable wearing. I found myself thinking “Cute skirt, but too young for me.”  And I thought that a lot. I remember walking down the mall and looking up to see the Sears sign illuminating in the distance. It was like a beacon of light that guided me down the vast expanse of the mall. I entered the large store and felt a wave of relief come over me. There in front of me were the age-appropriate Lands End clothes that I had been seeking and off to the right were racks and racks of clearance items. I discovered that it isn’t important where the clothes are, but that I like them and I feel comfortable wearing them. Sure, I’ll wear the cool jeans that someone ½ my age passed on to me, but for me as a shopper I realized that I’m OK with clothes from Sears, JC Penny, Target and Walmart. Heck, Meijer has some really cute stuff too. Fortunately for me, my elementary aged students could care less what I have on, let alone where it came from.  And that’s just fine with me.

Published May, 2011