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AUGUST 2022 - Buying A Coat

8/20/2022

3 Comments

 
Picture
It was 1953. I was leaving for college in a few weeks and needed a new winter coat—one that was warm and made well enough to suit my mother, a more than competent seamstress who couldn’t abide badly made clothing.

We started at S. Klein, a discount department store where it was possible to find bargains. I found a few coats I sort of liked, but my mother made it clear—they were poorly made and not warm enough for the cold winters in upstate New York.
Next stop, Ohrbach's, also a discount store but with a better class of merchandise. Many more coats to choose from. None suited me or my mother. Wondering where we’d go next, I was shocked to hear my mother say, “Well, I guess we’ll have to try Saks 34th St. Let’s walk.” 

What? Buy at a full price department store?

She took off without another word, walking fast. I followed behind as best I could, the two of weaving in and out of people crowding the sidewalk. When we had to wait for a light, my mother maneuvered herself to be the first person to cross the street, with me struggling to keep up with her. The discount stores were at 14th street, Saks was at 34th street, but we were used to walking distances. What I wasn’t used to was my mother’s willingness to buy something at full price. I couldn’t remember that ever happening.

The difference in the quality of the coats was quickly apparent. My mother picked out three coats she considered suitable. I liked them all, especially one, a gray wool ballerina coat with a fleece lining and a large collar that could act like a hat in bad weather. When I told my mother I liked it, she said, “Good, let’s buy it.”

I looked at the price tag. One hundred dollars. “It’s too much money,” I told her.

“You like the coat. Buy it. It’s well made. It will last a long time.”

“But it’s too much money,” I kept saying, almost in tears. “You never buy anything at full price and it’s more than four times what the coats at Klein’s and Ohrbach’s cost.” 

My mother lost patience, took the coat, with me following, not knowing where she was going. She found a telephone booth and called my father at work. “Irving, will you please tell your darling daughter to buy the damn coat!” She thrust the phone at me.

My father sounded mystified. “What’s the problem, Nancy?

“The coat is too expensive.”

“Do you like the coat?” he asked.

“Yes, but it’s too expensive. It’s too much money,” I wailed.

“Nancy, if your mother wants you to buy the coat, for godsakes, buy it!” With that he hung up.

We bought the coat. I wore it for more years than I can remember. I never stopped loving it.


Did you experience a time when you and a parent switched roles? What was that like for you?

​
3 Comments
Dan
8/3/2022 05:11:13 pm

A great little story. It struck a cord with me.

Reply
Marlene Simon
8/6/2022 10:29:13 am

Great story. And a good memory. It struck a chord with me as I lived a few blocks away from Orbach's on the Miracle Mile in Los Angeles. It was across the street from the May Co. My girlfriends and I would make the pilgrimage to both stories almost every Saturday. We would have our route within each store worked out and could get in and out in a few hours, starting with the makeup counters which were always on the first floor. And of course, we always made it to the sales racks. It is a special and precious memory of times less complicated.

Thank you for sharing yours.

Reply
Devavani
8/29/2022 01:37:24 am

As always, Nancie tells this story in her clear unvarnished voice. Allowing us to see and feel what her life was like without any fuss or frills. A true talent and gift to her readers!

Reply



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Nancy King is a widely published author and a professor emerita at the University of Delaware, where she has taught theater, drama, playwriting, creative writing, and multidisciplinary studies with an emphasis on world literature. She has published seven previous works of nonfiction and five novels. Her new memoir, Breaking the Silence, explores the power of stories in healing from trauma and abuse. Her career has emphasized the use of her own experience in being silenced to encourage students to find their voices and to express their thoughts, feelings, and experiences with authenticity, as a way to add meaning to their lives.

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