Black "Eye" Friday

My Black Friday Story.


Black Friday is always a conundrum for me. As I grew up, we lived about 80 miles away from any major chain store, so there really wasn't any desire to wake up at 2AM to make it to the stores in time for a good deal. This year, my mom and I looked through the fliers and tried to gauge whether we were going to brave the crowds or not (I've since moved to a big city and the major chain stores are right down the street) I tried to see if there was anything I was willing to get punched in the face for...there really wasn't.


So we slept in, woke up and I made cinnamon rolls, we drank coffee and played with the wee one. We had a very relaxing morning. Around 11:00AM we decided that there were a few things that we thought might be worth the crowds and headed out to the local mall. Our plan was for the husband to drop my mom and I off at the door and then look for a good spot with no hurry. It just so happened that we walked into the right department, found the exact item we were looking for, and it happened to be the last one! My mom also found a few other things she was looking for while I stood in the checkout line. The lines weren't long, there were plenty of staff around to help, people weren't rude, and everyone seemed to be in a pleasant state of mind. This is how shopping should be, not just regular shopping, but Christmas Shopping to boot!


The absolute worst story I heard about this year was that of the man from New York...

This day should have been termed "Black-Eye Friday". Not only do we hear about altercations every year on this day, but someone actually lost their LIFE! And all those people that didn't bother to think about their actions just kept on shopping. There were lines outside the store all day. Wal-Mart didn't even bother to close it's doors to restore order after this mishap. They just kept filing the people right by "Oh, don't mind the man lying on the floor, the Plasma TV's are over there." This just makes me sick to my stomach. I think Christmas has truely lost it's meaning when things like this happen. To think that in this day with the economy down, unemployement up, and everything else going to hell in a hand-basket that people would be able to focus on the more imporatant things like health and life. Unfortunately in America with the mass consumerism we just focus on where we can get our X-box the cheapest. This year, we will exchange gifts, but there will also be a lesson at my house on the 24th. I plan to teach my son about the meaning of peace on Earth and good-will towards man. I'll make sure, as he grows up, that he knows this time of year is about merriment and joy, about giving not receiving, and about family values and recognizing those that we love. In addition, we can have the fun Santa traditions and trimming the Christmas tree, in my house and heart there is room for it all.

So to all that I love, Merry Christmas and I hope we have a better New Year.