The Cleveland Plain Dealer has invited readers to share things they remember about growing up in the Cleveland area, and some of these memories have been published over the holidays. I kept thinking it would be fun to write something, but realizing I'd left it a bit late, am delighted that my blog doesn't have deadlines.
You will be astonished to hear that I have very fond memories of going shopping (of all things!) for back to school clothes. It was the early sixties, and it was a novel experience for us when our mom drove to the Rapid Transit stop at Van Aiken. We got on the Rapid (somewhat between a train and a streetcar) and rode the swaying car into Terminal Tower in downtown Cleveland. Arriving, we entered the dark terminal and made our way onto the city streets. We walked to Higbees where Sara and I tried on dresses and skirts and blouses and shoes and coats.
Our brother, Peter, must have hated those outings. He, too, had to try on school clothes, but for boys it probably wasn't much fun. Wasting a beautiful summer day hanging around stores and trying things on is my attitude toward shopping now, but back then it was just plain fun. It may have something to do with the outstanding service. In that place and time if you inquired about raincoats you would either be escorted to the rainwear department, or someone would bring several for you to try on.
Higbees had a a delightful dining room where we ate chicken salad sandwiches for lunch. To this day I still feel special when I am eating a chicken salad sandwich!
After lunch we would venture over to Halle's, the other big department store in Cleveland. There we would get anything we hadn't been able to find at Higbee's. When we were finished in each department, my mom would ask the clerk to "have it sent". Such luxury! Going shopping without having to haul around your purchases. A few days later the big brown UPS truck would pull up in front of our house where the driver would deliver our school clothes.
By the mid sixties we no longer went on those outings. It was much cheaper and easier to shop locally, but I do have very fond memories of those trips into the city to shop at those wonderful stores, which have now been closed for decades.
Do you remember the quilt I made for my mom when she first showed signs of memory loss? I wanted something to keep her warm when I wasn't there, and something to show her how much I loved her even when I couldn't be where she is. That quilt kept wandering off and getting lost. I would walk past rooms when the doors were open and eventually find it and ask the staff to return it to Mom if it wouldn't upset whoever was using it. I started to make her a new one several months ago, but somehow didn't have the heart to finish it. . . until now.
This time I put her name on the back.
And then I put her name on the back again, even bigger.
Just in case. But she can't see it and doesn't know about it, and doesn't mind what kind of blanket she has as long as she's warm enough. I guess I am really doing this for me. So I know she's wrapped in something I made for her.
All this time that I haven't been blogging I've still been sewing and knitting. Just very quietly.
Wishing you, my dear blog friends, the very best.
