The Day After
Luke was evidently confused this morning by all the Black Friday hype and thought I wanted him to wake me up at 5:30am so I could go snag some deals. He couldn't have been more wrong, but he was up for the day anyway. Fortunately, after 6am rolled around, Chris had some sort of Thanksgiving pity on me and got up with him. Chris's kindness, coupled with Luke's explanation of why he called for me at 5:30 ("I called you because I love you, Mama") were enough to curb that bad mood that would have ordinarily settled on me after being woken up so early.
Seriously, this whole Black Friday thing baffles me. It's been quite a while since 11th grade American History, and I cannot for the life of me remember where the Pilgrims and Indians fought their turkey hangover by battling it out over slightly underpriced electronics in the wee hours of the morning. Nevertheless, we spent Thursday morning waiting on the turkey to cook and poring over all the ads in the newspapers. The conclusion we came to (as I've done every year) is that there was no deal even close to amazing enough for us to a) get up at some ungodly hour of the night or forgo sleep altogether and b) fight some mad woman with pepper spray for. I mean, there was an ad for an Early Bird deal on Pillow Pets at the amazing price of $19.99. Have people lost their minds? That's the normal everyday price at almost every store in America, or at least in Alabama. I am a penny pincher and love to come home having saved $5, but I have my limits. And one of them is standing in line, in the cold, with a bunch of potentially crazy people, trying to get an item that may or may not be available when I actually get to enter the store - all to save a whopping $15 or some such ridiculous amount on a $150 item.
So instead, in nothing more than an effort to relieve a little day-after-Thanksgiving stir craziness, we took a quick jaunt to Dick's Sporting Goods and Target in the early afternoon, after most of the insanity had passed. And guess what...they were out of the item my father-in-law wanted and the three things we were interested in at Target weren't even marked down one penny. Black Friday, my foot. So, we headed straight back to the house to watch college football. That's clearly a more valuable way to spend my time.
Now that Chris has eaten his Thanksgiving Tamales, and I have eaten my year's quota of turkey, dressing, and sweet potatoes (okay,well the potatoes are so yummy that my quota is much higher and I still have plenty of sweet potato eating left in me), it's time to turn our focus onward and upward. It's time for the chaotic mess known as Christmas decorating to begin. Like most people, I have a love-hate relationship with the Christmas decorations. I love looking at them with the twinkly lights and music playing in the background, but I hate putting them up and taking them down. When we drag all that stuff out, it's like the house has suddenly shrunk to a size that would only be adequate if we were a family of mice, and I suddenly get incredibly bent out of shape and impatient, wanting nothing more than this giant mess to disappear ten minutes ago. It's nothing like the hot cocoa drinking, Christmas carol singing day I always envision. It's more like fighting a crazy woman with pepper spray at Walmart on Black Friday. Quite unpleasant. But, unlike Black Friday, knowing the price I'll have to pay, I always decide it's worth it to enjoy the aura of the Christmas tree(s). So, tomorrow, we decorate. (And, yes, I'm obviously full of the Christmas spirit and totally focused on the real meaning for this whole season.)
There's a little added pressure to the whole decorating plan tomorrow. Right in the middle of it all, there's a little football game that we'll probably watch. Now, the outcome of this game could determine exactly how Christmasy I'm feeling, so let's hope the right team wins, preferably in a blowout. Not that I'm being greedy or that football is important to me at all. It really doesn't matter. Really. No, really. But I'll need a little convincing of that tomorrow about 6pm if things don't go so well. But then I'll get over it and move on to the things that really matter. Or we'll win and the house will be beautifully decorated and we'll sip hot chocolate together while listening to some Christmas tunes and all will be right with the world. I'll take Option B, thank you very much.
Happy Decorating Day and Roll Tide!
Seriously, this whole Black Friday thing baffles me. It's been quite a while since 11th grade American History, and I cannot for the life of me remember where the Pilgrims and Indians fought their turkey hangover by battling it out over slightly underpriced electronics in the wee hours of the morning. Nevertheless, we spent Thursday morning waiting on the turkey to cook and poring over all the ads in the newspapers. The conclusion we came to (as I've done every year) is that there was no deal even close to amazing enough for us to a) get up at some ungodly hour of the night or forgo sleep altogether and b) fight some mad woman with pepper spray for. I mean, there was an ad for an Early Bird deal on Pillow Pets at the amazing price of $19.99. Have people lost their minds? That's the normal everyday price at almost every store in America, or at least in Alabama. I am a penny pincher and love to come home having saved $5, but I have my limits. And one of them is standing in line, in the cold, with a bunch of potentially crazy people, trying to get an item that may or may not be available when I actually get to enter the store - all to save a whopping $15 or some such ridiculous amount on a $150 item.
So instead, in nothing more than an effort to relieve a little day-after-Thanksgiving stir craziness, we took a quick jaunt to Dick's Sporting Goods and Target in the early afternoon, after most of the insanity had passed. And guess what...they were out of the item my father-in-law wanted and the three things we were interested in at Target weren't even marked down one penny. Black Friday, my foot. So, we headed straight back to the house to watch college football. That's clearly a more valuable way to spend my time.
Now that Chris has eaten his Thanksgiving Tamales, and I have eaten my year's quota of turkey, dressing, and sweet potatoes (okay,well the potatoes are so yummy that my quota is much higher and I still have plenty of sweet potato eating left in me), it's time to turn our focus onward and upward. It's time for the chaotic mess known as Christmas decorating to begin. Like most people, I have a love-hate relationship with the Christmas decorations. I love looking at them with the twinkly lights and music playing in the background, but I hate putting them up and taking them down. When we drag all that stuff out, it's like the house has suddenly shrunk to a size that would only be adequate if we were a family of mice, and I suddenly get incredibly bent out of shape and impatient, wanting nothing more than this giant mess to disappear ten minutes ago. It's nothing like the hot cocoa drinking, Christmas carol singing day I always envision. It's more like fighting a crazy woman with pepper spray at Walmart on Black Friday. Quite unpleasant. But, unlike Black Friday, knowing the price I'll have to pay, I always decide it's worth it to enjoy the aura of the Christmas tree(s). So, tomorrow, we decorate. (And, yes, I'm obviously full of the Christmas spirit and totally focused on the real meaning for this whole season.)
There's a little added pressure to the whole decorating plan tomorrow. Right in the middle of it all, there's a little football game that we'll probably watch. Now, the outcome of this game could determine exactly how Christmasy I'm feeling, so let's hope the right team wins, preferably in a blowout. Not that I'm being greedy or that football is important to me at all. It really doesn't matter. Really. No, really. But I'll need a little convincing of that tomorrow about 6pm if things don't go so well. But then I'll get over it and move on to the things that really matter. Or we'll win and the house will be beautifully decorated and we'll sip hot chocolate together while listening to some Christmas tunes and all will be right with the world. I'll take Option B, thank you very much.
Happy Decorating Day and Roll Tide!
Same thoughts on Black Friday (I'll keep my hair and my eyesight and forego the $3.57 savings on an Xbox), same love/hate scenario with the Christmas decorating, and same plans for the day! Roll Tide and an early hot chocolate "cheers" from afar on the Plan B outcome you requested above! Love and miss you all!
ReplyDeleteIts refreshing to know others share the same dismay regarding Black Friday. After Thanksgiving dinner, my fourteen year old daughter tried to convince me to go to Best Buy after midnight. My usually mild mannered sweet daughter became this irrate, attidude, and almost disrespecting girl in disguise. We began to debate why we should or should not leave the house now 1:00 a.m. I reminded her of the tragic events on the news last year. People were getting robbed at gun point in the parking lots as customers got out of their cars or came out of the stores with merchandise. Her response was that you can get robbed anywhere at anytime not just on Black Friday! I couldnt believe her justifications for a Playstation game retailed at $60 on sale for $35. I told her I rather pay $60 and not risk my life or hers. I also explained spiritual warfare; how the enemy sets us up for opportunities to get us off guard of our journeys. We ended the discussion with her stomping up the stairs to bed now 2:00 a.m. I was glad I stood my ground. Friday afternoon her dad picked her up and took her to Best Buy to get her game. When I asked her how did her shopping go? She replied that the store wasn't crowded and she got the game she wanted at the sale price. I reminded her of all the negative energy the night before. If we just keep the faith and not get caught up in "worldly" things, life is so much easier. Hopefully this experience will mold her for the rest of the holidays ahead.
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