Retail Therapy
Who: Everyone!
What: Shopping!
Where: Arkham’s merchant district
When: Morning - mid-afternoon, Saturday, 6 October.
Rating and Warnings: G! (For GO SPEND MONEY!)
Elias and Taylor had both arrived at the house early on Saturday morning. Early enough to make sure that the motley-looking crew they were bringing into the town center that day looked as passable as they could manage. It wasn’t an especially easy matter to accomplish with the group they had, but they did their best to try and assure they wouldn’t run into trouble, or draw more attention than necessary, during their outing.
They encouraged leaving weapons at home, but for those who they couldn’t convince, they at least made sure that guns were being worn in plain sight and not somewhere concealed. (The latter was a crime, after all.) They also discouraged anyone wearing uniforms, but of course when the point was to procure new clothing for the group, there was little they could do.
Setting off from the house just after 9:00, they led the group down the long drive. The head of the driveway opened onto the crest of a hill which sloped down towards the darkly glistening bends of the Miskatonic River below. From where the house stood, they had a perfect view over the town, the gabled and gambrel roofs peeking out between the brilliant oranges and reds of the fall foliage. Arkham, from this angle, looked exceptionally picturesque.
One short block north, they caught the trolley heading down towards the river and the more central parts of the town. Taylor paid the five cent fare for each of them, pointedly avoiding any curious conversations with the conductor.
It was about a ten minute ride, and the trolley car got more and more crowded as they went, jigging west over to Border Street, and then back east again to skirt the edges of the university campus, of which they were nonetheless afforded a clear view. The ground was flatter here, having evened out somewhat, and by the time they reached the corner of Garrison and Main where they were to get off, the land was mostly level and the streets cobbled with old stones, clearly laid there long before the trolley rails were added.
They were just a couple of blocks from the river now, and the street that spread out before them was bustling and busy with shoppers coming in and out of stores, particularly on the south side of the street where two long four-story row buildings stretch down the block. The signs over the shop windows and storefronts proclaimed the ranges of goods available within.
“Welcome to Merchant,” Elias said to the assembled group before letting them start off. “This street we’re on now is Main. The street we’ve just come down on the trolley was Church. Most anything that Arkham has to offer in the way of shopping you’ll find on these two blocks.
“We’ve managed to come up with a budget of sorts, so I’m going to give each of you fifty dollars. It should be more than enough to buy yourselves some reasonable clothes and any other necessities, but I’m afraid it won’t pay for anything extravagant. I would suggest that you each include a jacket on your shopping list. The weather may be lovely today, but it will be getting cold soon, particularly in the evenings.
“I’d suggest that, if you’re looking for clothes, you start at Gleason’s, around the corner on Church Street, but feel free to explore the area. We’ll meet back here at,” he checks his watch, “2:00. I think that should give you all ample time. Taylor and I are going to get a cup of coffee, but we’ll join you later.” He didn’t add that he was sure none of them would be hard to miss, but the implication was certainly there. Instead, he settled for saying (as though he considered it about as useful as trying to control the weather), “Try to stay out of trouble and be inconspicuous, if you can. The fewer questions we have people asking of your situation, the better.”
[OOC: $50 in 1928 goes a pretty long way, so you probably don’t need to trouble too much about the prices of individual items unless you want to. (If you want to know the price of something special, let us know.) We’re putting thread starts up for a few locations, but also feel free to start your own. Or, if you’d like a description of another location, just let us know!
The map of the merchant district is here and here (in two parts) for reference, and the OOC post is here if anyone has questions on anything!]
What: Shopping!
Where: Arkham’s merchant district
When: Morning - mid-afternoon, Saturday, 6 October.
Rating and Warnings: G! (For GO SPEND MONEY!)
Elias and Taylor had both arrived at the house early on Saturday morning. Early enough to make sure that the motley-looking crew they were bringing into the town center that day looked as passable as they could manage. It wasn’t an especially easy matter to accomplish with the group they had, but they did their best to try and assure they wouldn’t run into trouble, or draw more attention than necessary, during their outing.
They encouraged leaving weapons at home, but for those who they couldn’t convince, they at least made sure that guns were being worn in plain sight and not somewhere concealed. (The latter was a crime, after all.) They also discouraged anyone wearing uniforms, but of course when the point was to procure new clothing for the group, there was little they could do.
Setting off from the house just after 9:00, they led the group down the long drive. The head of the driveway opened onto the crest of a hill which sloped down towards the darkly glistening bends of the Miskatonic River below. From where the house stood, they had a perfect view over the town, the gabled and gambrel roofs peeking out between the brilliant oranges and reds of the fall foliage. Arkham, from this angle, looked exceptionally picturesque.
One short block north, they caught the trolley heading down towards the river and the more central parts of the town. Taylor paid the five cent fare for each of them, pointedly avoiding any curious conversations with the conductor.
It was about a ten minute ride, and the trolley car got more and more crowded as they went, jigging west over to Border Street, and then back east again to skirt the edges of the university campus, of which they were nonetheless afforded a clear view. The ground was flatter here, having evened out somewhat, and by the time they reached the corner of Garrison and Main where they were to get off, the land was mostly level and the streets cobbled with old stones, clearly laid there long before the trolley rails were added.
They were just a couple of blocks from the river now, and the street that spread out before them was bustling and busy with shoppers coming in and out of stores, particularly on the south side of the street where two long four-story row buildings stretch down the block. The signs over the shop windows and storefronts proclaimed the ranges of goods available within.
“Welcome to Merchant,” Elias said to the assembled group before letting them start off. “This street we’re on now is Main. The street we’ve just come down on the trolley was Church. Most anything that Arkham has to offer in the way of shopping you’ll find on these two blocks.
“We’ve managed to come up with a budget of sorts, so I’m going to give each of you fifty dollars. It should be more than enough to buy yourselves some reasonable clothes and any other necessities, but I’m afraid it won’t pay for anything extravagant. I would suggest that you each include a jacket on your shopping list. The weather may be lovely today, but it will be getting cold soon, particularly in the evenings.
“I’d suggest that, if you’re looking for clothes, you start at Gleason’s, around the corner on Church Street, but feel free to explore the area. We’ll meet back here at,” he checks his watch, “2:00. I think that should give you all ample time. Taylor and I are going to get a cup of coffee, but we’ll join you later.” He didn’t add that he was sure none of them would be hard to miss, but the implication was certainly there. Instead, he settled for saying (as though he considered it about as useful as trying to control the weather), “Try to stay out of trouble and be inconspicuous, if you can. The fewer questions we have people asking of your situation, the better.”
[OOC: $50 in 1928 goes a pretty long way, so you probably don’t need to trouble too much about the prices of individual items unless you want to. (If you want to know the price of something special, let us know.) We’re putting thread starts up for a few locations, but also feel free to start your own. Or, if you’d like a description of another location, just let us know!
The map of the merchant district is here and here (in two parts) for reference, and the OOC post is here if anyone has questions on anything!]
