Back Garage: Bear Hunting

I decided to attempt Round Two of my search for appropriate attire for the Bears game, this time in Bear Country.

My goal: to find some warm Bears gear that doesn't make me look like a soccer mom and that will stand out enough to get picked up by the TV cameras from the 5th row in the end zone. (I want my .15 seconds of fame, dammit.) I'm also hoping the challenge, and subsequent appropriate costume, will restore my excitement in seeing the Monsters of the Midway after a horribly disappointing performance in last night's game against the Redskins, in which my favorite QB, Sexy Rexy Grossman, sustained a season-ending injury. What's a poor fan to do but seek solace in the comfort of familiar thrift stores, hunting for, well, Bears?

I started out at the Salvation Army.

I rarely visit this store, and once I got inside I remembered why: it's totally disorganized and smells like someone forgot to throw their McDonalds from two weeks ago away. I didn't find any Bears gear but I did score five resalable books for a decent price, including this little gem, for just $2.26.

I'll re-sell this for $18.95.

Are there no Bears fans in this city? Or is everyone just holding on to their gear in the hopes that the Bears go to the Superbowl again this year (now a mathematical impossibility, though no one can explain exactly why)?

After getting out of rotten McDonald's pit, I took a trip to one of my favorite thrift stores, the Uptown Unique.

The Uniques in Chicago are one of those awesome brands of thrift stores where everything is organized by style and color. So I headed over to the men's navy sweatshirt section, where sure enough:

Nothing too flattering or stand-out, though. There were some more promising items in the kids section, but alas, they were all too small.

On to the scene of my next conquest, Village Discount Outlet on Clark.

Chicago thrift stores have decidedly more orange and blue items, even though not all of them are Bears-related.

After looking for a long time at that last scarf, I decided to buy it. Not officially-licensed Bears merchandise, but not soccer-mom-ish, either.

The Village also had a fantastic selection of Bears jerseys, although I didn't think they'd be warm enough.

And once again, the best warm-weather gear was in the kid's section.

I bought the clownish scarf and decided to make one last stop at another Unique, this one in West Rogers Park.

And there, as soon as I walked in the door, is where I saw it:

Orange faux-fur, of course! Like a real bear, but orange, like The Bears! I had a mini heart attack when I found the coat didn't have a price tag on it, because Unique has a strict no-sale policy for anything without a tag, but the woman working the counter saw me come in, run to it, and obviously noticed my dismay, so she said she'd sell it to me for $18. A little steep, but I paid it, since the coat was perfect.

Then I took a trip over to the men's navy sweatshirt rack again to find this awesome hooded sweatshirt priced at just $3.50 -- and in my size!