The Day After Thanksgiving — What Are You Doing?

Written by Greg

Well, Friday is here. It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and I hope everyone enjoyed a day intended to be spend with loved ones, giving thanks those things with which we have been blessed. And I hope no one has been hit with “eater’s remorse.” Naturally, I ate more than I should yesterday, but I don’t feel like I’m going to be sick. I was planning on hitting the gym today, but they don’t have childcare, so the boys and I are hanging out at the house this morning. That’s OK.

My wife is out hitting the stores for the big sales. It has become a tradition for her to go out with her mother and brave the Black Friday morass of shoppers trapped in a sale-induced state of euphoric buying. It is, after all, the season of gluttony. It makes perfect sense that we should gorge ourselves on food on Thursday, then turn around and gorge ourselves on buying the day after. Can you guess my opinion on this subject?

O.K., so that’s over the top. I would imagine everyone has their own “Black Friday” traditions that have become just as ingrained as the Thanksgiving traditions. They have for us, and no one would really consider changing them in the slightest. They love going out together the day after Thanksgiving, and my Mom and sister are just as devoted to the tradition. I always go meet them for lunch, and occasionally will take the children (sister’s kids) out to entertain them while they finish their shopping. I usually avoid the shopping malls and Wal-Mart. I dislike crowds anyway, and the behavior of some shoppers on this day of mass shopping hysteria is just shameful.

I know it probably sounds worse than it is, but I just don’t understand some of the behavior that goes along with holiday shopping. This short list of Black Friday shopping disasters serves as a reminder of how consumerism can overtake common sense.

November 2006 — Shoppers were trampled at a Best Buy in Fresno, Ca. in a rush to get the newly released PS3.
Again in 2006, a woman was trampled at a California mall during a mad rush to grab gift certificates dropped from the ceiling.
In 2005, a 72-year old woman died in Florida when shoppers ran over her in an effort to get local deals.
In November 2006, Virginia police were forced to use pepper spray to control a crowd of 200 as they clawed for PS3 deals.

These incidents are a sad testament to our society, and likely a result of materialistic consumerism. So, if you’re reading this before you hit the stores, please, please keep these behaviors in mind when you’re shopping. It’s supposed to be the season for love and giving.