I took one last shopping trip to the Mall, limping somewhat. I have a pedal extremity issue. Antibiotics have done what they could, but it’s not enough, so I’m thinking, well, off goes my foot, I guess. Print me a new one. Oh wait it’s not 2041 yet. Will we have to wait that long for home-printed feet? Probably not. People always underestimate the pace of technology.

The Mall was not overrun with shoppers. There was a sign on the H&M store wishing everyone Merry Christmas and telling us to come back for great after-Christmas sales, because they were closing this location. Scuttlebutt says the mall kept the rent too high. Might be a rumor. Seems plausible, though; you can imagine a distant landlord thinking “it’s Southdale, look at those demographics, people will come back and spend.” But they haven’t.

The Apple store is completely dark because they’re closed all their retail outlets. Got that? They closed all their retail outlets during the holiday shopping season. Forget about buying that HomePod Mini! Oh wait it’s backordered to January because demand was so strong. You can order it online. It just appears at your house one day. Isn’t that better?

No

I did find a few things. I talked to some shop clerks, which was nice. Heard the songs on the PA system. Walked past the Santa’s Workshop place on the second-floor walkway. It does not have Santa nor any signs of toy making or parents queued up with nervous kids, looking ahead for a sign of the Great Man himself.

But it’s limping along, like your humble narrator. I can see half the stores closing after the holidays.

Short week here - limited Bleatage, for Holiday Reasons! Also, early posting because I'm now wearing a foot-confining boot and am clomping around like someone about to break into "Puttin' on the Ritz," and I don't want to wake up everyone by coming upstairs to upload at midnight.

Pen, Liberty bonds - that's two. What's the third best gift?

It’s War Savings Service.

The War Savings Service program was established by the government to raise money for the war. Members were given War Savings Service buttons and signed a pledge to show their commitment to the program's tenants of practicing and discussing with others the importance of frugality to support the war and to buying and selling War Savings stamps to contribute money to the war.

Economy is the Badge of Patriotism:

Gorham’s still around.

At the time, this was their New York HQ. It suffered an unfortunate lower-floor post war rehab.

In its early years, 390 Fifth Avenue was lauded for its design. Augustin-Adolphe Rey, a French architectural critic, referred to 390 Fifth Avenue as "the most beautiful business building in the world" in 1904.[24] Three years later, Architectural Record dubbed the building "a surprise and a joy",[18] and that "compared to the Gorham Building, the Tiffany Building is by way of being frivolous".[24] A critic in 1912 said that following the construction of the Tiffany & Co, Gorham, and Knickerbocker Trust Company buildings, "the standard of excellence in commercial architecture was raised to a height previously unknown.”

Some of the building's praise concerned Stanford White's role in its design. in 1908, a critic for New York Architect said that 390 Fifth Avenue was among McKim, Mead & White's "best designs [...] for a commercial edifice, both from a monumental and practical point of view". Another writer referred to the building as White's "best piece of work" as well as "perhaps the [United States'] most beautiful store building”

Not any more.

EWWWWWW

They put the W in EWWWWWW

Oh, Wilson & Co.? They were meatpackers. That’s where your hair came from. Dinner.

Yes, militarization of every aspect of the culture has never happened in the US:

Well, here we are in the fine town of South Bend, opening our new watch factory. What name shall we choose that truly sums up the essence of a quality timepiece?”

“Studebaker?”

“Don’t be stupid.”

Wikipedia:

By 1929, the South Bend Watch Company had 300 employees and had produced nearly a million watches. The Studebaker line was sold on credit, requiring only one dollar down. When the stock market crashed on October 29, 1929, the company found itself with more delinquent accounts than it could handle. On November 27, 1929, the plant was closed. Employees were told it would remain closed until January 1, 1930. The plant never reopened.

I wonder if there was a company called “Wilkes” that made cribs.

Timepieces and tombstones: those were the heady days of advertising.

Well, the Egyptian leaders were Greek, so I suppose it makes sense.

We’ve been over the Egyptian tobacco story before. Suffice to say that it still has a lingering impact today, due to one surviving brand. Name slips my mind at the moment.

Not an ad for a particular company, but an ad for the idea of cards. You should send them! People love to get them.

That'll have to do. The last batch of Websters awaits. Next week it's a real fire sale, with 25 Milquetoasts posted.

Did that sentence make sense? Good!