Back to School Shopping Tales
The race to get the deals and steals
Labor Day weekend brings many things — a long weekend for millions of workers, cookouts in the backyard, and one last blast at the beach. Labor Day weekend also brings millions of shoppers to malls all over the country. This is one of the most popular holiday weekends to shop right after Black Friday and Valentine’s Day.
Shoppers descend on the malls to score deals on clothes, shoes, and electronics. Parents are searching for the best deals to get their children ready for school. College students are on the lookout for deals on electronics like laptops and IPads. Teachers need items to decorate their classrooms. Everyone else just wants to save as much money as possible on whatever is on sale.
I was in the mall today. It was the Natick Mall. I drove my kids out there because I wanted more shopping options. Besides the mall, there’s Shopper’s World, a plaza full of stores like TJ Maxx, Michaels, and Barnes & Noble. The plaza is shaped like a horseshoe. You drive in and start by the Hobby Lobby and hit each store until you get to the Barnes & Noble. Just being in Shopper’s World can take up most of the day. That’s why I wanted to hit the mall first.
I’m a mall rat. I spent my teens and early 20s hanging out at malls. Sometimes I was there for a reason and sometimes I was there because I was bored. My boyfriend at the time was also a mall rat. So it was easy to get him to jump on the train to visit malls in Cambridge, Downtown Crossing, or Watertown. When he got his own car, we went to malls in Attleboro and Wrentham.
As we entered Natick Mall, the place was packed with shoppers. Young parents pushed toddlers around in strollers. Parents of older children had them carrying bags. College students filled the Apple Store and AT&T. Every store I saw was busy with customers except for GNC. I saw the poor employee leaning against his store looking forlorn. No takers on vitamins today, my guy!
Back-to-school shopping is exciting. The frenzied pace of shoppers on the hunt for bargains. The various kiosks selling unique wares. The free samples at various food shops. It’s fun to be caught up in the hustle and bustle of shopping.
But right now, I am dog tired. My feet ache. My legs hurt. I’m on my sofa bed as I type this essay, leaning to the side. Shopping is fun, but it is also draining — and not just my bank account. I burned some calories today and got my steps in. Tomorrow is another day and I have more shopping to do.
