戴維·黑德

Presidents Day， like most American holidays， is a celebration of shopping. But unlike holidays such as Christmas or Thanksgiving， where the commercial spirit is a corruption of the holidays true purpose， Presidents Day honors a man who truly loved to shop： George Washington.

Washington was a world-class shopper. Of course， he couldnt ride his horse over to Walmart， and there was no Amazon Prime to deliver. Instead， Washington ran an account with a London merchant who sold his tobacco and then used the proceeds to buy the things he wanted. Washington placed his orders and then waited， sometimes up to a year， for his goods to arrive.

Despite the inconvenience， Washington was a regular customer. He bought a great many of hats， shirts， coats， gloves， breeches， stockings and shoes and enough furniture， home decorations， cups， saucers， plates and glasses to rival an IKEA.

Washington wanted to be fashionable

Living so distant from his supplier， Washington couldnt browse， and he certainly couldnt return things he didnt like. He usually wrote general descriptions of what he wanted and relied on the judgment of his agent across the pond.

However， Washington did make one demand， repeatedly， pointedly and emphatically. Whatever he selected， he told his agent， it must be fashionable.

On different occasions Washington asked for “a fashionable Cloke，” a chariot “painted of a genteel and fashionable colour” and “ten common sitting Chairs for an Entertaining Room—to be large， neat， and fashionable.”

A few months after marrying Martha in 1759， George ordered a new bed “with fashionable white curtains.”

When requesting some new plates， Washington was direct： “Pray let them be neat and fashionable or send none.” It was the heart of his shopping philosophy.

Washingtons tastes reflect more than an urge to be in vogue.

Colonial Americans lived on the edge of the British Empire and often felt anxious about their status. A proper tea set and swanky breeches helped them feel just as good as the most refined man in London.

The latest fashions were also vital for Washington to maintain his reputation as a gentleman.

Being a gentleman in the 18th century was more than a matter of birth， wealth or education. Coming from a good family， enjoying a comfortable income and receiving a degree from a college （preferably European， though Harvard or Yale might suffice in a pinch） all helped prove a mans elite status.

The need to keep up appearances

But a true gentleman was a gentleman because he looked the part. He wore stylish hats and gloves， rode around in a tasteful carriage pulled by well-groomed horses and entertained in a genteel home. If Washington failed to display the trappings of a gentlemans lifestyle， people might start to talk about that Mount Vernon guy who married a rich widow， didnt attend college and never once set foot outside the colonies.

Shopping could be stressful， and Washington was sometimes frustrated. He went into debt buying stuff that didnt arrive for ages and sometimes didnt meet his expectations. Meanwhile London merchants， who never quite got the prices Washington wanted when selling his tobacco， harassed him for payment like a common debtor.

“I tell you that instead of getting things good and fashionable in their several kinds we often have articles sent us that could only have been used by our Forefathers in the days of yore，” a suspicious Washington wrote his agent. “Tis a custom， I have some reason to believe， with many shop keepers， and tradesmen in London when they know goods are bespoke for exportation， to palm sometimes old， and sometimes very slight and indifferent goods， upon us.”

The experience was one factor that pushed the Virginian to wonder what the colonies role in the empire really was. To pay high prices for Britains junk？ Maybe independence to buy and sell on their own would be better.

Washington understood that shopping mattered， both personally and politically. The right objects shaped Washingtons sense of self and helped him think through the colonies relationship with the mother country.

Presidents Day shopping， it turns out then， really does honor Washington. If youre heading to the mall or clicking around online， remember the first president of the US and make your purchases fashionable.

和多數(shù)美國節(jié)假日一樣，在總統(tǒng)日這天，人們的慶祝方式是購物。但也有不同點，商業(yè)氣氛破壞了圣誕節(jié)、感恩節(jié)這些節(jié)日的初衷，而總統(tǒng)日卻是為了紀念一位酷愛購物的人，他就是喬治·華盛頓。

華盛頓是一位超級買家。當然了，他不可能騎馬去沃爾瑪超市采購商品，也沒有亞馬遜金牌服務(wù)為他派送包裹。華盛頓在一位倫敦商人那里開設(shè)了一個賬戶，這位倫敦商人幫他銷售煙草，然后用賺到的錢購買華盛頓所需的東西。華盛頓下訂單，然后等待商品到達，有時會等上一年。

雖然很不便利，華盛頓卻常常購物。帽子、襯衫、外套、手套、馬褲、襪子、鞋子，還有家具、家居飾品、茶杯、茶碟、盤子、玻璃杯——他購買的東西數(shù)量和種類之多，可匹敵宜家家居商場了。

趕時髦的華盛頓

華盛頓與供應(yīng)商之間相隔太遠，無法看到商品實物，當然也不能退回不喜歡的東西。他通常是把想要的東西用文字大致描述出來，然后依靠那位遠在大西洋彼岸的代理人去判斷。

然而，有一個要求，華盛頓每次都會明確強調(diào)。他跟那位代理人說，幫他挑選的物品無論為何，必須是時髦的。

華盛頓有時會買“一件時髦的風衣”，或一輛“漆色既雅致又時髦的”敞篷馬車，或“十把用于會客室的普通座椅，尺寸大、精巧、時髦”。

1759年，與瑪莎結(jié)婚幾個月后，喬治訂購了一張“帶有時髦白色帷幔的”新床。

訂購新盤子時，華盛頓直接明了地說：“盤子必須精巧、時髦，否則就不用給我寄來了。”時髦就是他消費觀念的核心。

華盛頓的消費品位反映的不僅僅是趕時髦的沖動。

殖民時期的美國人身處大英帝國管轄范圍的邊緣，常常為自己的地位感到擔憂，而用上體面的茶具、穿上華貴的馬褲，則會讓他們覺得自己和倫敦最儒雅的紳士一樣風光。

對華盛頓來說，各種時髦新品也發(fā)揮著重要作用，讓他保持紳士名望。

在18世紀，成為紳士，不僅僅要拼出身、拼財富或拼學歷。出身名門、收入可觀、獲得大學文憑（最好是歐洲名校的，不過必要時，哈佛或耶魯文憑也夠用）均能顯現(xiàn)一個人的精英地位。

撐顏面的必要性

不過，既然是紳士，就得有紳士的樣子。華盛頓戴的是時髦帽子和手套，坐的是由精心飼養(yǎng)的馬拉的華美馬車，在裝潢典雅的家中款待賓客。如果華盛頓不在生活上擺出紳士的各種派頭，人們可能就開始議論紛紛，說他這個芒特弗農(nóng)人娶了一個有錢的寡婦，沒上過大學，從沒去過北美殖民地以外的地方。

購物也會帶來壓力，華盛頓時而為此煩心沮喪。購買的物品長時間不到，有時不是他想要的樣子，因為這些東西華盛頓欠了債。與此同時，那些倫敦商人幫華盛頓銷售煙草，卻總賣不出他想要的價錢，還像要債似的要他支付費用，讓他心神難安。

“實話說，運到這里的常常都是些可能只有往昔先輩們才會用的東西，我們根本得不到優(yōu)質(zhì)的各式新品?！痹诮o其代理人的信中，持懷疑態(tài)度的華盛頓寫道，“我有理由相信，倫敦有很多店主和商人得知商品專門用于出口時，向我們騙賣的不是過時玩意兒，就是些無足輕重的一般貨色。這是他們的慣常做法了?！?/p>

北美殖民地在大英帝國中究竟是什么地位，購物經(jīng)歷成為了促使這位弗吉尼亞人思考這個問題的一個因素?；ù髢r錢去買英國的蹩腳貨？或許獨立自主地去進行商品交易會更好。

華盛頓明白，無論對個人還是對國家政治而言，購物都有著重要意義。正是那些物品影響了華盛頓的自我意識，使他充分思考北美殖民地與其宗主國之間的關(guān)系。

由此可見，總統(tǒng)日購物確實是為了紀念華盛頓。如果你打算去商場逛逛或者進行網(wǎng)購，想想美國這位首任總統(tǒng)，也去選購時髦的物品吧。