School is about to start -in person! And my son is going to be a senior. This year will be the last time I/we ….(fill in the blank). There will be a lot of lasts this year. He’s my youngest, and I’m already feeling a transition. And I don’t like it! But that’s another blog.
This blog is about the final (and most spectacular) back-to-school clothes shopping spree ever. Since this is the last time I will buy my son back-to-school clothes, I thought, “Why not make an event out of it? Do something he’ll never forget.” So I booked three nights at a budget hotel in New York City, and off we went.
My son loves clothes, as many teenagers do. And sure, he can order just about anything from the phone attached to his hand. But there’s something special about the experience of shopping in the swanky SoHo boutiques.
To get into some of these stores, you have to line up and wait to be admitted by a bouncer. Not because of Covid. It was always like this. I guess the “velvet rope” adds to the exclusivity and mystique of the shopping experience. Not to mention, it helps them keep an eye on you. Some of this “streetwear” is super expensive.
But not all of the stores are out of reach; the skate shops are surprisingly affordable. And since my son is a skater, those were the brands he wanted to buy. However, in New York City, even the skate stores feel upscale and special. Some stores are furnished with couches, club chairs, and coffee tables lined with picture books. I told my son I was going to sit and have a cigarette while he looked around. The clerk didn’t think my joke was funny. Neither did my son. But a couple of the stores looked like that -like a lounge. In other stores, it felt like I had walked into an art gallery. One had a giant sculpture in the center that people were sitting on. Which I thought was kind of rude. (Maybe they need to move in some couches.)
In all of the stores, the racks were sparse. That’s the one thing they all had in common. They only display one size on a wooden hanger. This is a psychological trick. It doesn’t feel like you’re buying “off the rack.” It feels like you’re buying a one-of-a-kind couture piece in a hip lounge/nightclub/art gallery. Fun, right? And not at all intimidating. Although a few times, it felt as though selling wasn’t a priority. When my son tried to buy a skateboard in one of the shops, the employee said it wasn’t for sale. It may have been because the skateboard was attached to the wall, but my son had his doubts. In another store, I asked about a t-shirt. The girl said, “It’s 85 dollars, but it’s just for display.” I pointed to a stack of three more identical t-shirts. She said, “Those are for display too.” Whatever. I didn’t want to buy an $85 t-shirt anyway.
Besides picking up an awesome wardrobe, my son also wanted to go to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) and to a Yankee’s game. One day of shopping and one day of sightseeing.
Currently, at MOMA, there’s an exhibition featuring cars entitled Automania. It just so happens that my son loves cars. So we ate lunch in the sculpture garden overlooking cars and art… and cars as art.
Afterward, we strolled through the galleries where, for the first time, my son saw Jackson Pollack, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, Picasso, and Van Gogh. He was amazed by both the scale and texture of these familiar pieces. Some of them were much smaller than he’d imagined. Others were much larger. The colors were different in person… the brushstrokes, the paint, the saturation. To see Seurat’s “points” extend beyond the painting to cover the entire frame is something you have to see in person to truly appreciate. My son appreciated all of it. He loved it. And I loved watching him love it.
From there, we rode the subway to the Bronx to see the Yankees take on the Orioles. No problem for the Yankees. They won 13-1. In fact, sometimes, the game was kind of hard to watch. What wasn’t hard to watch was the sunset. We sat in the cheap section. But from our $12 seats up on the 5th tier, we were treated to this.
If you have a chance to go to Yankee Stadium, sit wherever you like. But don’t miss the museum inside the stadium. It’s free, and you’ll see the trophies, the rings, and the jerseys of the greatest players to ever wear the Yankees uniform. Players like Lou Gehrig #4, Joe DiMaggio #5, and none other than Babe Ruth #3.
Like a Dali painting at MOMA, it was surreal to see Babe Ruth’s jersey and bat. Did you know that Babe Ruth used to autograph balls and hide them all over the city for kids to find? He was more than a baseball player. He was a baseball ambassador.
In between all of these activities, we ate classic New York food. My son is a cheap date. He (like me) loves street food. We ate hot dogs, pretzels, pizza, and our favorite, chicken over rice. From the deli, we got “chopped cheese.” Chopped cheese isn’t on the menu, but it’s a locals’ favorite. It’s chopped beef with melted cheese on the most delicious roll. The roll is what really makes this sandwich great. They toast it on the grill, so the sandwich is greasy and crunchy at the same time. Basically, I ate like a 17-year-old boy for two days.
The trip ended with a first-class sleeper seat home! This is rare and definitely special.
Just like time spent hanging out with my son… also rare and definitely special.
Love this blog! It’s about my youngest grandson and his experience in New York with his mother. This was truly a once in a lifetime experience. He enjoys his mother’s company and traveling with her. He also loves New York. They comfortably packed a lot into those three days!
I’ve always said she is the best mother I know.
Off you go to school (in person thank goodness) in your final year!