Tales from a Mid-Lifer

On the tail-end of our spring getaway last year, my husband and I overcompensated for airport traffic, giving us two hours before the rental car was due. So, we pulled into a lovely outdoor shopping center. My husband sought food while I scoured sales.

Wandering into Talbots, the sales lady asked, “is there anything you need in particular?” Not could she help me but what did I need? It was odd and she was snarky. The fellow mid-lifer practically yelled it across three racks of shirts between us, but I answered joyfully, “no thanks”. I was technically still on vacation for a couple more hours, and refused to let cranky lady steal my joy.

Another woman eyed me strangely nearly demanding, “do you need help?” My eyebrows raised a bit as I contemplated answering, “um you literally JUST heard your colleague ask me the same thing 45 seconds ago” but I happily spouted, “nope just looking”.

Both women stared as I wandered back out, disappointed at the silly $89 price tag for a sweater that already lost the minimal spandex it might have originally had in the waist hem.  

Next, I strolled into a small cosmetic outlet, feeling happy after a much-needed week enjoying the Atlantic ocean. It was quickly evident that the two sales ladies had zero interest in me, but were razor focused upon the black bag engulfing my 5’3” frame. It was a large air travel duffle, filled with a few items that would melt if I left the bag in the hot rental car, so I lugged it with me. My husband offered to keep it, but I was afraid he would sit in the sun. Perplexed, I shook my head and walked out of the store.

Then, I remembered.

Two weeks earlier, a madman opened fire at the Allen, Texas shopping outlets. Ironically, I was at those very outlets a month prior to the shooting. It was an unspeakable tragedy.

Walking alongside beautiful Florida palm trees, I became increasingly aware of the shoppers noticing my clearly non-shopping, body-sized, black bag. Despite my aging blue eyes and blonde ponytail, faces were being made directly at me. In stores, salespeople were on alert and not nice. The bag really did appear suspicious for a routine shopping day.

Shootings, daylight theft, and physical brawls are commonplace in bricks and mortar stores. What a world when our poor retail workers experience regular fear and are threatened by the mere site of an unusual bag. If I were them, I would be concerned too.

E-commerce killed most of touch-feel shopping. Thieves and the disturbed among us are on track to eliminate it completely.

Image Credits: Saleslady: istockphoto Retail space: securitytags.com Nordstrom pic: usatoday Palm tree shopping pic: pinterest