Okay....lets talk some Black Friday Shopping.
Who will and who won't?
I have learned that Black Friday shopping isn't just shopping....NO...It is a sport!! Actually I've seen some Black Friday shoppers who made it a contact sport.
One year, (about 8 years ago) the girls and I had just entered the doors at Target. I quickly learned that you do not just grab a cart; you arm yourself with a list, a game plan, and ideally, a helmet. One lady was furious at me because I got the last buggy when I was just steps ahead of her. She let me know it in some very unkind words. My daughters and I just laughed and then we ended up "Making up" a big story about it. We made up a story so we could tell the guys when we met up with them at dinner.
It was a great story and at first they believed us, until we started laughing. The story was full of craziness, as it went something like this: The lady was mad and she came and tried to jerk the buggy away from me. She then completely knocked the buggy over, but not before trying to stomp my foot. Blah, blah, blah.... The girls went and got the manager and the lady ended up being arrested. ALL of this was NOT TRUE! We had a lot of big laughs.
😂🤣😂
I will say, I do believe the pricing is a mysterious art form. Example: The same "TV" that people are fighting over was on sale $20.00 cheaper just the month before, but no one cared at that time. The big word is "Doorbuster" and then suddenly the items are worth risking your life for. And then, there are the "Buy one, get One half off" scams. Seriously who needs two air fryers, two hair dryers, or two coffee makers? As shoppers, when we see "Buy one, get One half off" it is like a magnet pulls us in.
And then comes......The Check Out Lines!! I always say....Congratulations to those of us who have managed to avoid the stampede, navigated the crowded isles, and haven't had anything snitched from us out of our buggy. BUT...we still have to face the final challenge!!
The check out line.....minutes turn into hours and your feet are aching and you are thirsty and hungry. You have a bad case of "Hangry" Oh....and you forgot that one item that is on sale and on the list, but you will lose your spot in line if you try to go find it.
After we get home, we do our best at sorting through the packages....hoping to take everything we purchased, only to find out the week after Christmas that it got sent home with the wrong person and totally forgotten.
Why? Why? Why? did I let myself buy 10 Peppermint spice candles, knowing that one would have been plenty? Because the sign said "Big Sale!"
Thankfully, at home we can soak our feet and nurse our headaches.....while promising each other we will never do that again...
the next day, we can't wait for the next "BLACK FRIDAY!"
All in all....it's not about the deals...it's about the thrills, the laughter, the camaraderie, the memories, and lol...😂....the pure absurdity of it all.
Unfortunately, the girls and I will not be Black Friday shopping this year. Shanda's husband in having surgery and Trista has an "out of town" date! We plan to do a little shopping on Sunday afternoon. Our guys might be a little disappointed as well. We ALWAYS meet them for dinner on Black Friday for Mexican food. We have done this for the past 20 plus years.....Same restaurant!!
How about you all? Will you be Black Friday Shopping or staying home relaxing?? LOL...I think I already know the answers.
Shug...🦃
I used to do this sometimes with my sister and I remember the craziness! Quite often I had to work, so I couldn't go.
ReplyDeleteThis year I'll be putting up Christmas decorations, warm and cozy in my house!
Love your crazy story!!!
How funny you are, Shug! I've not participated in Black Friday since 1970-something with my mother and little son, and I suspect that was before BF was even a thing. I could sure go for some Mexican food right now. I love Alabama, but these folks haven't a clue what 'real' Mexican tastes like.
ReplyDeleteHa... what a fun story. I have never, ever, ever participated in Black Friday shopping. I have had to work Black Friday. And both of my boys have too. CrAzY!!
ReplyDeleteI have heard stories like yours and seen movies that show what you just said and have managed to make it to age 80 without ever having shopped a black Friday sale, except Amazon when they send me items on sale that I have on my list. they are for me not gifts. unlike most women, I do not like to shop and crowds make me crazy. like I went to my first and only concert, Glen Campbell back in 1967 and was miserable in that crowd.
ReplyDeleteI do like to eat out though. anything for food. I bet the men will be shocked and unhappy with no Mexcian eat out. we have not done gifts since 2006, since there are no small kids and only senior adults, even my kids are seniors. when I did shop for Christmas, I ordered from Sears Catalog, long before Amazon. its a good thing everyone is not like me or all the stores would go bankrupt.
hehehe.... funny story ....lol
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you and yours
You know, no one cusses at you when you shop on Amazon.
ReplyDelete😁
Shug, at my age I could be killed going out on Black Friday, ha ha!! I loved reading this post, as I am a shopper for sure. But not on Black Friday, with the parking, crowds and lines. You have to weigh if it is all worth it. Thankfully, many stores are having Black Friday sales all this week, and I have already started . Your tradition sounds amazing though! And it IS a sport! Would be and has been loads of fun for me if I was younger and more fit. I think you have to train for it!
ReplyDeleteWow...you are the #1 shopper! Its fun when you make it fun and have a plan. I love your story you told the guys.
ReplyDeleteI only went once for a Black Friday sale with my daughter in law. It was really too much for me and I couldn't find anything I wanted to stand in line for..haha..
Its so true about the price "come on's"...got to be smart and I have done a bit of Amazon before black Friday... Black Friday purchases..all from the comfort of my chair in my slippers and comfy clothes, and oh yes, that steaming hot cup of coffee at my side. (:o)
Sue
Well Yes, I think you already know my answer.....no Black Friday shopping for me. It's never appealed to me, and the stories I've heard, just for a small sale adjustment. But your stories were fun to read, Shug, and definitely the sweet tradition of meeting afterwards at the same restaurant. That's special, in itself. I laughed when you said, "who needs two air fryers" as I see those signs, and then look at the product. It's ridiculous. But you're right, it is about the memories for some, and I love that last picture. She's thrilled to be going Black Friday shopping haha.
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you, dear Shug.
~Sheri
Would you believe that I have never in my life gone out Black Friday shopping? I've always had to work. I think even if I did have the day off I still wouldn't go. I hate crowds and waiting in line. I'll take cyber Monday over Black Friday any day.
ReplyDeleteI’ve never been interested in the Black Friday shopping. The Friday after Thanksgiving was when my folks and I would trek up to the Santa Cruz mountains and chop down our tree. While I no longer do that, it is the day we start decking the halls. I never got caught up in all that Christmas frenzy. My mom and dad spoiled us and we had so many presents under the tree that even as a teen, I thought it was just too much! That’s probably where my appreciation for simplicity started. I don’t care for crowds - that
ReplyDeletewould scare me. Of course, it’s none of my business if others find joy in that - for some families it is tradition! Going out for Mexican food is up my alley! How bout I meet you at the restaurant! lol
I shop pretty much everything on Amazon. To me, it’s the only way to go! Plus there are Black Friday specials online. And don’t forget Cyber Monday!! 🤩 I like it because it’s organized whereas those shopping excursions sound chaotic.
I look forward, hearing about your Black Friday this year!
God bless.
I don't like crowds so I tend to lay low between Thanksgiving and Christmas. ❤️
ReplyDeleteNope, never wanted to shop that bad...well I hate shopping anyways so there is that! Today I made applesauce, apple crisp, pumpkin bread and caramel rolls, the Grand girls are stopping by in the morning and they love pumpkin bread and caramel rolls:)
ReplyDeleteVisiting your blog for the first time and thoroughly enjoying it. That story you and the girls made up is too funny, but not so farfetched. I remember way back in the day of cabbage patch dolls things like that really did happen.
ReplyDeleteI haven't gone to the stores on Black Friday for a very long time. Now mostly shop online. They start having Black Friday deals early, and then there's Cyber Monday, and I have gotten some great deals in the confort of my own home, haha.
Happy Thanlsgiving!
The only time I've participated in Black Friday was when I was working at a mall customer service desk. Everyone had to put in a shift....no exceptions.
ReplyDeleteShopping when there is a huge sale is fun especially when you have enough budget to do it. It can be tiring, yet rewarding more so when the Christmas season is in the corner. It pays to have a list beforehand to save on time, instead of checking every aisle for a gift idea.
ReplyDelete