Holiday Traditions

I was just in Chicago and seeing Macy’s which used to be Marshall Fields reminded me of how Christmas shopping used to be. In those days the only stores that had shopping carts were grocery stores and everybody shopped at the department stores that lined State Street. Each store had it’s own personality, but Marshall Fields was in a class by itself.

There was always a crowd waiting to see the Christmas windows. Along with Santa Clause, they had their own special characters, Uncle Mistletoe and Aunt Holly. All the stores had special boxes and shopping bags for the holidays, but Fields were always the nicest.

When I was in college, I sold toys at Christmas at Marshall Fields. Once you got hired, you went through a day of training. They made a big deal out the fact that you were working for such a classy store. We had to wear dark colors and nothing sleeveless, and of course, no pants. The only credit cards were the store’s own and everything was written up by hand.

The toy department was amazing. It took up half of the fifth floor. If you figure that the store is a square block, you get just how big that was. I worked at the counter that sold microscopes and chemistry sets. Once the store opened, the aisles would get so crowded you couldn’t see the counter across from you.

Carolers went through the store singing Christmas songs and it was very festive.

All the restaurants were on the seventh floor. The Walnut Room was the main one and at Christmas they put up a two story tree. The decorations were always new and the big excitement was to see what the designers chose. They had special food. The only thing I remember for sure was a snowman made out of ice cream.

I’m not the only one sad to see Macy’s swallow up Marshall Fields. When it first happened, there were picketers carrying signs and marching outside the store, but Macy’s didn’t seem to care. The Marshall Fields clocks still stand on the corners and they left the plaquesthat say Marshall Fields on the building.

And they left the Walnut Room stay the Walnut Room and at Christmas they still have the giant tree. Chicago people love their traditions and every year make their trip downtown to have lunch under the Christmas tree. On the weekends, there’s a three hour wait. For the past two years, my dear friend Penny and I have started meeting for lunch under the tree. I have known her since I was two, so we have lots of memories to talk over.

It’s fun to watch the families come in and old friends like me and Penny. I just wish they still had those ice cream snowmen.

Macy’s apparently understands Chicagoans obsession with Fields, so this year the windows pay tribute to holidays at Marshall Fields. You’ve probably figured the picture on the top is the tree in the Walnut Room. And the picture on the bottom is one of the holiday windows with Uncle Mistletoe in his red coat. Poor Aunt Holly seems to have been forgotten.

The fifth floor still has toys, but now it is just a tiny department run by Toys R Us. Not the magic I remember.

Shopping

I’m afraid I’m a dinosaur when it comes to shopping. Online might be convenient, but it isn’t fun and has other shortcomings as far as I’m concerned.

I stopped in Chicago on my way to Washington DC for Malice Domestic. Though the weather was drizzling and chilly, I took the train downtown. No matter the weather downtown Chicago is always a treat.

My first stop as always was the formerly Marshall Field’s now Macy’s. When I walked into the block square department store, I was greeted with a sensory delight. I came in through the purse department and enjoyed seeing all the colors and styles and could even touch them. The cosmetic department was full of wonderful fragrances to try. How can you possibly buy a perfume you’ve never smelled or had the chance to see how it goes with your chemistry?

Up the escalator were floors and floors of displays of linens, menswear, beautiful dishes, shoes, and, of course, clothes. I haven’t been shopping in a while except at places like Costco, so I really enjoyed the lighting and the way everything was displayed rather than piled on a table.

I had forgotten how nice it was to browse and look at things.

Back on the street there was the bustle of shoppers, workers at lunch and students from the various schools downtown. The same preacher with the portable microphone was standing outside Old Navy, with the same warnings against what he thinks are terrible sins.

It isn’t quite the same as the old days when from Randoph to Van Buren there was just one department store after the other. But there are still lots of stores lining the street. And had I headed up north on Michigan Avenue, I would have found Nordstrom’s Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales, Macy’s and a whole vertical mall, along with stores like Eddie Bauer, Apple, and Burberry.

I wasn’t really looking for anything beyond some stickers for a game a group of my writer friends and I are putting on at Malice. But as I was going though Macy’s there was this wonderful taupe ruffly top tempting me from a hangar. It was perfect for one of the weekend events and fit just right. I never would have found it online because I didn’t even know I was looking for it until I found it. And, of course, I wouldn’t have known how it fit, or been able to take it home with me. I haven’t been so happy about a purchase in a long time.

Online shopping might be great for finding something you need, but a real store can’t be beat for finding what you didn’t even know existed.

Walmart has announced that they are offering online grocery shopping. It would never work for me. Aside from the fact, I like going to the grocery store, I certainly don’t want some faceless person, throwing in just any produce or sending me dairy products that are a few days before the use by date. What about frozen food? How can you be sure it didn’t defrost in transit? I don’t buy meat, poultry or fish, but if I did, I’d certainly want to pick it out personally. Shopping for food isn’t an exact science. I mean, sometimes all the peaches look like green rocks and you decide to buy something else instead. I guess it could work for boxes of Rice Krispies and Twinkies.

How do you feel about shopping online?