Posted on 04/20/2018 6:13:02 PM PDT by jfd1776
But I do hope that none of the attire you mentioned, is what you wear for social engagements.
“But I do hope that none of the attire you mentioned, is what you wear for social engagements.”
naw. i have special, clean jeans and special clean plaid flannel shirts for that ...
It was odd that I was just lazily scrolling and saw your post because this incident this morning really annoyed me.
I rememeber going into the city years ago-—hats,heels,and gloves.
I have one of those sidewalk sketches of myself,done in Manhattan in 1960,all dressed up for shopping,a dry martini,and lunch.
:-)
Your mention of the “North Shore” Line brings back memories of the “Electroliners” and the passenger line used on a Milwaukee to Chicago commute using the the “L” tracks into the Loop which was faster and far more convenient than today’s AMTRACK
Flannel shirts can be very nice...but have no place at certain events. ;^)
Part of the problem can be seen im.the responses on this thread. Several cite memories of going to the department store with their parents. Not one has talked about going with their kids.
Wow!! Your family made time for some great shopping trips! You hit all of the classics :-)
Lucky!
And I very fondly remember that NOBODY ( okay, so they weren't invented yet, but still...) was walking around shouting into damned cell phones and looking where they were going!
In those long ago, bygone days, people were more civil and well behaved; not to mention the fact that they actually looked nice. :-)
And before you ask, yes, we have taken the grand ( dressed nicely/appropriately ) shopping, in NYC.
Great article detailing the demise of the courtesies and formalities of everyday life, in yesteryear.
I remember when Mom used to dress us in our Sunday best, to fly commercial airlines. Have you seen what people where on commercial flights, these days??
OT....how are you enjoying the six months of COLD weather, up there?
Yeah, tell Boston Market about that or Burger Chef.
The big boys are the big boys because they are, over all, well run. And they always feel the hot breath of their competition on their heels.
No, Harmless Teddy Bear, I disagree.
I think you see plenty of mediocre fast food chains all over the place. I won’t name them, out of kindness, but there are plenty that survive. Not saying they thrive as well as the McDonalds and Burger Kings and Wendy’...
My thesis is just that in department store retail, the analysts expect imperfect ones to fail... whereas in any other industry, the analysts expect imperfect ones to struggle on, they just warn against investing in them.
I think our nation has given up on department stores, and we shouldn’t, because they represent so much that is important to the American way of life.
Yeah, let's meet at Kenny Roger's Roasters and talk about how the mediocre survive so well.
I would argue with you. There are a number of fast food chain that are struggling and if they are not supported by being part of a conglomerates they are sinking.
They are not "expected to struggle on," they are expected to fail.
The idea that retail is being held to some higher standard is ludicrous.
Sadly the retail giants have repeatedly shot themselves in the foot by being under the impression that they are "too big to fail".
Take Pennys. Sure, let's tick off 50% of our customers to cater to 2% of the population that would not be caught dead in our middle America clothes.
Take Macy's, hey, let's tick of 48% of the people who shop at our stores by dropping the "Trump" lines for political reasons.
Fast food places are rarely that stupid. They might make a mild nod to the minority but they do not go out of their way to insult their other customers. If they trespass they quickly apologize and correct course. Retail by contrast compounds their stupidity by doubling down.
Let me give American Retail two quick lessons that they seem to have missed in business school.
DON'T TICK OFF YOUR CUSTOMER BASE. People want to buy a sweater not hear how "woke" you are.
DON'T FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR STOCK PRICE. When you make business decisions based only on how it will make your stock price go up you are going to lose important pieces of your business. And then it is bye bye.
At work I starting noticing when I was running the quarter mile mad dash to respond to a fire alarm I was pulling up my pants and trying to grab tools from falling out of my tool belt. I bought coveralls and problem solved. Also when I had to bend over no crack :>} My boss at first was flustered but I made a believer out of him considering he wore suspenders LOL.
Fate would have it a disability hit me making wearing a dress shirt especially with the wretched and sadistic hangman's noose inflicted upon mankind called a tie impossible as also buttoning a shirt any higher that the second button down. I'll rip a tee shirt or a dress shirt off of me that touches my throat. I wear work boots likely more expensive than most peoples best dress shoes. Necessity dictates I do this as I was born Club Footed and as an adult also became Flat Footed. The boots along with prescription insoles mean I can walk on pavement and concrete. It also means my Red Wing work boots last me two years vs even the best shoes one month. Before that I broke over the sides of shoes which when I was growing up perplexed my parents as to how I could wear out good shoes so fast. I wear this no matter what the occasion yes even funerals including my Moms I presided over a year ago with two very conservative ordained ministers blessings.They were both recently retired and friends of the family.
I miss wearing my blue jeans. I miss the tee shirts as they were cooler to wear than coveralls in the summer and I fall into the having low tolerance to heat medical category. Oh yeah just to be in style I use a metal cane to help keep my balance. I got tired of seeing the metal so I bought a roll of Camouflage Duct Tape and wrapped it. It gets a lot of positive comments mainly "where can I buy a cane like that" from persons my age and older. For formal occasions I do have a hand crafted wooden cane but is too heavy and has way too much sentimental value for everyday use as my dad, cousin, and myself made it for my use.
The one thing I do get a kick out of is I'm 60 now with a almost white beard and partially bald so I wear a hat or wrap over my head when outside. Little Kids look at me in amazement when I'm out and about especially near Christmas. It took me a while to learn why. They think I'm Santa. One kid told his mom I saw Santa and he was out of uniform. Even the local Game Warden saw me out walking along a river trail and said "I want a Red Ryder BB Gun and a Red Wagon". I said you want what? He laughed and repeated it and said "You're Santa aren't you?" We both laughed and talked a few minutes. I found out he served on a ship usually across the pier from the one I was stationed on and in the same time frame.
As for beards? I have had my full beard without a shave since 1985 the last time I had to shave it off due to a National Guard obligation. When it ended the beard started again. I do keep it trimmed but on the long side. I've had it all but 18 months since 1977 when I grew my first one in the Navy. That means roughly 40 years of having a beard.
Oh one last thing. My late beloved stopped attending church in part due to a dress being required. It was not practical for her to wear one nor functional. She wore sweat pants with what is called Moon Boots Inserts for shoes to protect her feet but was buried in blue jeans and a western top. She was confined to a wheelchair 29 years. The sweat pants hid things she did not wish the public to see and helped her maintain privacy and dignity.
Tee shirts, sweat pants, or sweat shirts, don't bug me. Going out to eat and a server having a tongue stud and nose ring in is where I draw the line. That said in my interactions with people in public even at the gas station I use language unheard today such as please, thank you, yes sir, and yes mam, that is if you and when I can tell the difference. The clothes don't make the person the person makes the person.
For later
Back when my husband worked for Sears Home Improvement he had a customer who wanted triple glaze windows in his manufactured home. Sears turned down the sale because the customer's credit rating was not high enough. A legitimate objection only if the customer was trying to have Sears finance the sale. He was not, the customer had already obtained the money from his bank for the windows.
Didn't matter. Sears did not want the sale.
Who turns down a cash sale because the customer was not tony enough for them?
Sears.
Not an isolated incident.
I’m sort of an eccentric dresser. But I agree with you, I don’t like seeing food workers, waiters, or waitresses with giant ear loops, tongue jewelry, and face piercings.
I like the wrapped cane idea!!!
Sears used to make my dad so mad he couldn’t see straight because of their antics. Years ago if you bought an appliance or let’s say a mower at Sears you were at their mercy for parts. Those type of policies and what you stated were what brought about their collapse. It began two generations ago in thew 1960’s as loyal customers got soured on bad deals. The company became wrapped around selling after purchase services and having goods built dependent upon them as I stated examples of. People got mad after a couple of big ticket items and went to K-Mart and later Walmart. Sears destroyed their own business. The remaining customers who were loyal too and loved the idea of being dependent upon them and at their mercy became fewer and fewer.
I can’t believe Sears let the whole internet thing pass them by. They were Amazon 100 years before Amazon.
To be honest as far as food service and health care goes I wish states would go back to required Health Cards. When I worked in healthcare facilities I was required to at least take a TB test. One facility I worked in had active TB patients and that was in 1984. It was a nursing home but in the 40's-early 60's it was a state ran TB hospital. When I see multiple piercings I think about some diseases I took extra precautions to avoid catching at work.
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