Black Friday - Where to go
 

Where is the most fun shopping on Black Friday--your local mall? How does that compare with shopping the streets in say, NYC? What is that feeling called when you come home with all those bags--exhiliaration? happiness? buyer's remorse? Gosh I miss it. Anyone camping out tomorrow night?

When my kids were younger, I braved the weather and early morning hours to stand in line outside the stores on Friday morning. I haven't done that in a couple of years now that the kids are older and don't have to rush for the doorbuster sale on toys. I feel like I am out of the loop.

Quite frankly I don't shop on the day after Thanksgiving and haven't for years, it is far too much of a madhouse.

I'm working. Far less stressful.

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Say "Enough!" and join a movement dedicated to reviving the original meaning of Christmas giving.

Buy Nothing Christmas is a national initiative started by Canadian Mennonites but open to everyone with a thirst for change and a desire for action.

Buy Nothing Christmas is a stress-reliever, and more people need to hear about it. One of the downloadable posters show Christ asking, "Where did I say that you should buy so much stuff to celebrate my birthday?"

http://buynothingchristmas.org/image..._did_I_say.jpg

I live in Southern CA and today looked more like Black Friday on our streets and at the Malls. I couldn't believe it. Looked like the Sat before Christmas or the day before Christmas. Guess most Southern Californians weren't home preparing Thanksgiving Dinner like I was. I was just out to get a few things I forgot and when I was anywhere near the malls it was a mess. Freeways were a mess too. Happy Thanksgiving All!

I love shopping early and alone on Black Sunday. I don't even go to buy Christmas presents yet I'm out the door while its still dark.

We don't exchange gifts outside our immediate family (and even that is minimal as our big gift is traveling for the holidays) so I don't have to accomplish anything that day which is probably why I enjoy going. I love the madhouse atmosphere and the people watching possibilities.

Every year we go hiking that day to avoid madness and crowds. Usually we are only hikers on any trails and we feel exhiliaration and happiness but also remorse we have to go back so soon.

It's a tradition that my mom, my sister and I go shopping on the day after Thanksgiving. We get up around 4 a.m. and head to the store. It used to be Toys R Us when the kids were little, but now it's more likely to be Best Buy or Circuit City (you know how the prices of 'toys' go up as the kids get older!!!)

We have a good time, but it's exhausting.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

Ohhh...I'm not a fan of Black Friday! After working long shifts at unGodly hours for the week leading up to Thanksgiving every year in the bakery,I have Thanksgiving itself to catch up on lost sleep,only to have to wake up early and do it again Friday because we always open earlier because of this nutty day! Maybe I would look at it differently if I were on "the other side" of the fence,but I'm not one to stand in lines. I get all of my shopping done in the two weeks leading up to Christmas. The last 2 years have been mostly internet ordering at 3am type shopping!

Speaking of 3am ,at my Costco, we had our first member at the door at 3am the other day for the Xbox 360, and by 5am there were 30 people (including the little toddlers that had to go with Mommy).Crazy!


Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Never have shopped on that day at all. I'm not a shopper to begin with and I get my family presents by catalog or give money.

We had a store here this week with people waiting all night to get the new X box. All of it is crazy, IMHO.

I'm surrounded by Grandmothers and parents that fill the "orders" like it was a mission. I've actually had a best friend volunteer to shop for me on this day. One time she showed up with a coffee pot she knew I wanted. She gets a real kick out of being in the fray. I don't even understand it.

Somehow I just never have gotten into the "stuff" thing so I am not that kind of Mom or Grandma, I guess. I want to have experiences with them and not give them stuff.

I don't shop on black Fri. Not worth the hassle. Better to go to stores late at night (many are open until 11PM or later for the holidays). Less stressful & I can do a little shopping every night, instead of wasting a good day off!

I plan to shop online this Christmas and do Norstroms gift cards so the teens can pick out their own treasures. Already got DH's gift and OD's gift, so that leaves YS and he loves money...Plan to stay in and enjoy the holidays and not engage in combat of finding parking places...

Have a wonderful holiday all.

Where does the term Black Friday come from? I've never heard it until today.

Underhill, the term comes from the fact that the day after Thanksgiving (aka the biggest US retail shopping day of the year) is the day that retailers books go from being "in the red" to being "in the black." :)

Statia - thanks for the explanation. I had never heard it before either.

Sandy

Statia, that may be the official explanation, but for those who work in retail, Black Friday has a whole 'nuther meaning.

I agree, here_today. ;)

I just heard the term "cyber Monday".

All of the stuff people didn't get on "Black Friday", will be purchased online on Monday from the office computer.

I go on line.
Can't stand the chaos in the malls!

Wild horses couldn't drag me to a mall or shopping center on Black Friday. I don't need to buy anything badly enough to battle it out with gobs of other shoppers like that. To look at the videos on the news, you would swear that people were starving and the only way to get food was to stand outside Walmart at 5am.