I don’t usually find myself roaming a mall on a Saturday evening, but this particular night was an exception. Colleen was working and after I had visited her during a break, I decided to embark on a quest to find a winter coat at Gurnee Mills. Now, I had already bought a new winter coat in December at JC Penney in McHenry. It was brown, but I loved it so much, that I wanted to find the identical coat in black.

The mall was an absolute zoo. If you ever wondered where all the high school kids are on a Saturday in winter, just walk into Gurnee Mills and you’ll have your answer. First on my agenda was to hit up JC Penney to look for the black coat I wanted. I headed down towards the butt end of the mall where no one usually goes, by Rinkside. This is where JC Penney was. Or at least, that’s where it used to be. The former entrance was completely covered up. It was almost blended in with the rest if the wall, leaving little trace that there even used to be a store there.

Just my luck. I swear, whenever I go to a store looking for a specific item, I can NEVER find what I am looking for. Not only could I not find the item, but I couldn’t even find the store itself! This, my friends, is why I try to do most of my shopping online, to avoid wasted trips to the mall.

I tried to not let it be a wasted trip, so I started browsing some stores for some other things. I’ve been on a quest for a zip up sweat shirt without a hood. I currently have a green one that I got from Old Navy many years ago. It was of those “pre-distressed” styles that looked good when I bought it. But over time and washing it, those fake worn out areas turn into gigantic holes and now the thing is falling apart! And it was my favorite! I’ve been looking for a replacement for about a year, but to no avail.

Here was my criteria: 1.) Well sewn, no fake holes! 2.) Color is some sort of earth tone 3.) Zipper goes up full length of the front  4.) No hood  5.) No large logos

I browsed several stores at the mall including the Gap, Aeropostale, American Eagle, etc. Nothing, nothing, nothing! I found a lot of cool hoodies, but I already have plenty of hoodies. I needed one without a hood. The ones I did find without a hood were pull overs. They only had a zipper going part way down. FAIL!

When I had almost given up, I decided to wander into Banana Republic. I don’t believe I have ever stepped foot in one before, but I decided, what the hell do I have to lose? This turned out  to be a really good decision. I found the exact sweatshirt I was looking for, meeting all the criteria! The original price was $50, which I would have gladly paid for such a hard to find item. But it was on sale for $15, score! I almost considered buying two, one to store away for when the first one gets destroyed. I picked up 3 other items, all on clearance. Normal priced, I would have paid $150-$200 for all my items. But my final tab was something like $52. My trip to the mall wasn’t a waste after all.