i don't have to stop and think for very long to realize that the mall is a pretty lame place. not only does it perpetuate all that is evil about our country, and not only does the food make you want to throw up (although it tastes pretty damn good on the way down), and not only is a hang out spot for teenage cliques, it also leaves you feeling strangely unsatisfied. would i be happier if i could afford more clothes? why don't the items in my bag that i so coveted give me a greater sense of meaning? how come when i close my eyes all i see are blindingly bright lights, emaciated mannequins dressed in hideous clothing, and a guy trying to acost me so that he can buff my fingernail into shiny glory? seriously, no one wants one buffed nail, which i guess is their gimmick to get you to buy the stupid buffer.
despite this long rant tearing the mall to shreds, i still go there. yes, i love shopping, and the mall is a fairly good place to do that. it houses some of my favorite stores (along with a bunch of really lame ones, like cambridgeside galleria's "body basics," which sells freakishly cheap and ugly underwear). but my love/hate relationship even extends to some of these favorite stores! let me explain.
the gap. in high school, i thought it was only for loser preppies. in college, i realized they had some cute stuff, and i purchased my very first pair of gap jeans, which sadly to say, no longer fit. as myself and my fashion sense continued to mature, the gap became my place for basic wardrobe staples at semi-reasonable prices. add in some credit cards and a few trips to the awesome place that is the gap outlet, and random gap treasure finds at thrift stores, and suddenly i find myself clad in all gap on some days. so where does the hate come in? really, the thing i hate is also something else i love. the gosh darn baby clothes. they are so freaking adorable, that sometimes i can't contain myself. and today, it was my first glimpse of the baby gap 2008 spring line, and it was all i could do to stop myself from shreiking with delight at all of the beautiful, bright, teeny tiny clothes. a couple of years ago i either wrote or considered writing a blog entry entitled "killed by cuteness" after viewing another smorgasbord of baby gap spring delights. the thing is, i love bright colors, and the designers at baby gap are always making such bright garments, and well...every once in a while i buy something for my future child. what can i say? i love children, color, and clothes. the point is, baby gap is too full of goodness. it overwhelms me. polka dots and stripes...hurray!
j crew. i discovered them in college, too. it all started with their sweaters. adorable, comfortable, high quality...expensive. and so it goes with all of the amazingly stylish, make you look like a model, retro throw-backs that j crew offers. i don't know how many times i have looked at their catalog and actually found myself thinking, "i would be happier with that amazing, $78 jacket." it's bad. very bad. and today all of their clothes were so bright. needless to say, i don't really have anything from j crew. i have one amazing sweater, that i managed to get as a christmas gift one year, but last month i accidentally shrunk it when i was temporarily taken over by a complete moron and put some of my sweaters in the dryer. this is one of the main reasons i can't really shop at j crew. i am way too hard on my clothes. i work with kids, i make art, my dog gets muddy foot prints on me, and, i admit, i wipe my hands on my pants when i'm eating.
in short, i'm a slob. but i'm also a fashionista. so, until i become some corporate stylish lady, and i have a reason to purchase perfectly tailored j crew suits (which i never plan to do), i will charge my gap jeans and keep wiping the grease from my mall nachos on them, thank you very much.
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