Oh, Black Friday, you miserable shopping day!
In case you couldn't guess from the title, I am NOT a Black Friday shopper. In fact, I would almost prefer to stick forks into my eyeballs than go shopping the day after Thanksgiving. Here's why.
- I hate crowds. Hate them, hate them, hate them. Being a stay-at-home, work-at-home mom, I am accustomed to being able to drive and shop during off hours, and I love it. No traffic to sit in, no trouble finding a parking place, no standing in checkout lines forever, and no worries of losing track of my kiddos in the crowds.
- The things on sale on Black Friday are rarely things I need to buy. This is true pretty much across the board, but it is especially applicable to toys. Most often, the toys that are deeply discounted are unitaskers (toys that do one thing), or fad toys. I'm much more prone to buying classic, not-so-electronic things for my kids, like Duplos or Bionicles, books, craft supplies and the like.
- The supplies of the really good deals are exceedingly limited. Even if I could manage to find a Black Friday deal I wanted, the odds of me snagging the item are really low. Often, stores have only 10-20 (or even less) of a doorbuster item, and so even if I got to the store at 3 am and waited in line, I might not get what I came for. That is not worth the risk to me.
- I can cut my Christmas spending by employing other, less miserable means. For example, I find great deals on books and music at half.com, I come across gifts in perfect shape at Goodwill, I make quite a few presents (more on that in the coming week), and I buy things throughout the year as I see good bargains (contrary to popular opinion, deep discounts can be found throughout the year, not just on Black Friday!).
So, while I will be getting up at 4:40 am on Black Friday, it won't be because I'm going shopping...it'll just be because my husband has to work that day, so we'll be getting up as usual (incidentally, he also has to work Thanksgiving day. My poor husband. But, he rocks for faithfully providing for us.)
Yes, other people can have the crowds and craziness. I'll be home hanging laundry, cooking dinner, baking bread, and decorating the house with my kids. And I know I'll be much happier for it.
What about you? Do you loathe Black Friday like me, or are you a die-hard Black Friday shopper?
Ugh...working on Thanksgiving es no bueno.
Yep, it stinks. However, because he goes in so early, he gets off at 2:00 pm, so he will join us at my parents' house for Thanksgiving dinner.
We are hoping against hope he can get off for Christmas day. At this job, he is normally never off on holidays that fall Tuesday thru Saturday. We are not big fans of this, of course, but it is better than no job, that is for sure.
Hate it. Went once with my grandma, mom and aunt about 10 years ago and decided from that day forth that Black Friday was NOT for me! Employing the same methods as you, we are able to stock up on gifts all year long, so we pretty much have all our shopping done by the dreaded black day anyhow.
SOrry about the hubby having to work :(. Mine is always working on days that other people get off too. It's not fun.
Our tradition is getting our Christmas tree on Black Friday. We go and cut it in the morning/early afternoon and then spend the rest of the day decorating and eating Thanksgiving leftovers. I hate crowds too!
No crowds for me! I worked two years ago a seasonal cashier job and had to be at work at 4:00AM. It was amazing the line that was already formed when I got there! We had a whole system set up just for that day and even had to do a dry run the Tuesday before! It was certainly an experience and somewhat fascinating to watch all the people, that is for the first two minutes before I has to check them out for five straight hours! This has been my only Black Friday and it will stay that way!
My wonderful mother on the other hand will be out because of my aunt coming up. My aunt does not have many of the stores we have and so wishes to go out. My mother always complies even though she hates it! Bless her!
I totally agree! Working in retail, I hate Black Friday and have no intention (should I ever have that day off) to shop anywhere that day. I tend to find great deals on stuff I need throughout the year. I do my research and wait it out. Sooner or later, I find a great deal that I don't have to stand in line 5 hours for.
I definitely try not to shop on Black Friday. I aim to have most of my gift-shopping done by then to avoid the temptation. And this year, I've made most of the gifts I'm giving. That said, I do sometimes like to people-watch on Black Friday. Not at the mall or at big box stores, but in downtown Portland where I live. My husband and I like to take the train downtown, get some coffee, and just walk around. Since we're mostly outside and we only duck into a shop here and there, the crowds aren't overwhelming. The department stores have really cool and creative window displays here; we don't even have to step in the store to admire them. And they light a huge tree downtown and decorate the lamp posts, I like the hustle and bustle of being downtown, but I stay away from malls. And I try not to spend any money!
I used to hate Black Friday, but now I kind of enjoy it. I never do any Christmas shopping, at least I never intend to. I just take a little cash and look for good deals. The crowds don't really bother me!
You could not pay me to shop on Black Friday! (well...make me an offer and I'd consider it!) For all the reasons you mentioned, I am NOT going---especially the crowds. But I realize that for some people, it's a holiday tradition practically! And I wish them well 🙂
You could have been describing me in your post. I don't think that it is worth it at all. Biggest pet peeve of mine is waiting in line. Any line. At the store, post office, traffic lights. There would be way too much of that on Black Friday.
I don't get it. You can get great deals without putting yourself through the torture. I will be home relaxing with my 3 favorite guys.
I don't even understand waiting close to Christmas to buy gifts. My husband and I picked up board games for the boys 2 weeks ago at Toys R Us for a $1.99 and the store was a ghost town. We are done shopping b/c we have picked up little things along the way AND b/c we try not to go crazy with the presents. 🙂 We laugh at all the "HOLIDAY STRESS" b/c we are in the stress free crowd. I like it this way! 🙂
I never have shopped on Black Friday and I never will! In general. I just don't like shopping much anyway and when I do have to shop, I wouldn't go on the most crowded shopping day of the year ! To me, that is insanity ! As for Christmas gift shopping, it's wiser and more cost effective to purchase during sales throughout the year . Why add stress to your life?
I've never been Black Friday shopping, but would like to try it someday (when I can drive...My mom would NEVER consider taking me shopping on Black Friday). I'm the type of gal who tries everything out simply because I'm a Curious George. I know it's crowded and hectic, but normally I get really excited when there's a lot of comotion going on. I don't know if I will like it, but I'm really looking forward to the day when I can try it out.
I love Black Friday! But, that is, I love BF in Wyoming. There's no crowds anywhere and the deals are worth it. Now that I've relocated to Chicago, I'm uneasy. There's easily 10x the amount of people here and I'm hoping to pick up some good ideas for MAKING my own gifts this year. Since cash is low, I'm hoping food will be a cure all.
I do say, BF is a fun tradition with friends. Go through the ads on Thanksgiving to see what we might want. Figure out which stores we need to hit up in what order. Meet there, rush through the crowds, lines, and go to the next store. It usually ended for us around noon with lunch. And then a nap promptly after. It's one tradition I definitely miss this year 🙁
I don't usually do Black Friday but I think I'll give it a try this year. There's a gift I want that is $50 instead of the $100+ it usually is. Even if it is crowded and nuts I think it is a small price to pay to save $50....
Black Friday, well, I went about 10+ years ago and there were fist fights over tickle me elmo. Tried again a couple years ago, thought the prices were pretty good, waited in the check-out line for over an hour. Went back to the same store a day later and the pretty good prices were still available, and there was no lines at the check-out. Black Friday is just a retailing stunt to get everyone whipped up into a frenzy.
My husband is working too, he left today at noon and won't be home until Saturday night, we'll have Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday!
The older the get the more I dislike crowds. 10 years ago I loved the Friday sales, but now just the thought of allllllll those people crammed together in one store gives me the willies. But my aunts are really into it, so I just give them my shopping list and get what I want. : )
We are another family that goes for a Christmas tree on Black Friday. If we aren't prepared for a tree then we decorate the house and do other things. I stay far away from all that craziness.
haha.... using my sisters favorite phrase True Story, i went once when i was like 18 just to see what it was all about... NEVER AGAIN.
I love black friday. Not because of the shopping though. I wouldn't want to shop in the crowds at all. However, a group from our church will be going to Charlotte, NC, to one of the Operation Christmas Child Warehouses to volunteer with the shoeboxes. Are you familiar with Samaritians Purse? If not check out samaritanspurse.org. Children all over the world will receive a gift filled shoebox through this program, some that have nothing and have never received a gift in their life. It is true awesome. It puts our "black friday" to shame.
In 2002 I went on my usual Black Friday shopping binge. I felt fine all day and made out like a bandit in the stores. However, by late evening, I had horrible sharp pains in my side and ended up driving myself to the E.R. I turns out I had a kidney stone, and that began a horrible month of surgery and recovery. I now associate Black Friday with that pain, and I have never again participated in the madness due to my silly superstition. As bad as the experience was, it did me a huge favor in the end! This year I will spend the day making Christmas cards with a friend.
My first time ever was this morning, with hubby & sonny boy (17 in one week) ... we wanted the 32" tv they had at Target for $246. Guess what. We got there at 4:30 (they open at 5am), was about the 100th person in line (101 and 102) and we SCORED two tvs! Had my $5 off coupons (2 of them) and we got two $10 gift cards. The tvs were not 'necessities' but we are slowly upgrading our 20 year old tvs in the house to the newer, more energy efficient flat screens. Woohoo. I really really thought we were wasting our time but we got what we wanted. We were out of the store at 5:15am 🙂
I hate toys that are "unitaskers"---they're always the heavily-hyped ones, they never work the way the look in the commercial, and they are almost always noisy and annoying! Luckily, my son (8) loves Bionicles and art supplies and history books. Were in the toy aisle of Target a few weeks ago (a very rare occurrence, believe me, we were just passing through and he wanted to look although he knew we weren't buying anything) and when I launched into my spiel about how toys like that never work right etc. he said "let me guess: it's a one-trick pony" and I was rather pleased that he remembers me using that phrase about other dumb toys in years past! Frugal Jedi training proceeds...
Oh and also, there was a story on the front page of the Seattle Times today about Black Friday and in it, a woman was quoted as saying she was going to get up early and go shopping, looking for stuff that was 50% off because her husband lost his job last summer. My husband commented on that, how maybe if they have no income, she should stop shopping. Sigh. I hope she clues in soon, that frugal is the new black. 🙂
I *love* crowds and I adore being where lots of people and action are. Having said that, I think Black Friday is a complete waste of time. First of all, my sleep is precious and I cannot imagine waking up earlier than normal ON MY DAY OFF to score a few "deals". The internet is a lovely thing and it's so easy to find what I need or want for my children (most of the time) without going into lots of stores.
I did go one year to Marshalls (Or, was it Ross? TJ Maxx? They all blur.) - they had all of their fancy dresses on sale for $20 and I REALLY needed a nice one for my husbands Christmas party. Never again, though. Or, so I say :p
This was my first (and probably last) year of trying out Black Friday shopping. I went to get my budding photographer an inexpensive but quality digital camera--his only gift for the year. I couldn't find better deals online, unfortunately. Black Friday shopping is for hardier folks than me! Crowds bother me a lot, so I probably will never do it again. Maybe Cyber Monday sales are the better bet...?
I re-read this article from way back when and I 100% agree with the crowds thing. Not because of covid, but because I worked for years in retail and it is definitely a miserable experience during the holidays. I guess I just didn't have the right frame of mind for it! Even now I like to shop on off hours or even on-line with curbside pick-up. That being said, you still work holidays at a hospital because people don't take a break from being injured or sick. Thankfully, only the sickest people come in to the ER so they can get more of our resources and attention than say, the kid who stubbed his toe last week. Yes, that really happens... Thanksgiving was my holiday to work, but it turned out to be a pleasant day.
https://cannaryfamily.blogspot.com/2021/11/much-to-be-thankful-for.html
I have a cousin who is a police officer, and he likes working nights for the same reasons you mentioned; more of the calls are actual emergencies!
I know all the "firsts" after you lose someone can be very tough to navigate, so I'm really glad you had a good day with your kids.