I'm Not Into Black Friday...And I Despise The Idea of a Gray Thursday!

As much as I love Thanksgiving Day....I don't like what's happening to it.
It seems that Thanksgiving is becoming synonymous with black Friday. I don't like the words "black Friday" either...it brings thoughts of plague, dread, dust, and death even though I know it has nothing to do with any of those things. Black Friday is actually about money, stores making a profit, and being "in the black".

For the last 10...maybe 15 years I've noticed this black Friday phenomenon boom (some say it's been around since the mid-70s). I've read news reports of people being shoved, bruised and even trampled to death (yes, to death) by eager shoppers rushing through the doors of a discount store to do what?  Save 10$ on a blender?  Really? This is where we are headed as a society?

I didn't mind so much when the line between Thanksgiving Day and black Friday was clear. Ten years ago or so it seemed that sales usually started at 5AM Friday morning (long after the turkey coma had worn off).  This didn't seem greedy, it seemed good for business, good for the economy, and good for people who like to get their Christmas shopping done early.
But now the line has begun to fade...stores want to be open earlier to gain the hard-core bargain shoppers.   And now, it is greed. 
A few years ago one well loved discount store even started to open their doors ON Thanksgiving. Now, more and more stores are following suit. Soon we'll be glossing over Thanksgiving completely, lumping Thursday and Friday together as one giant day of greed instead of thankfulness. How opposite can we get.

I'm reminded of the dad in the movie, That Thing You Do and his quote about the local discount store, Telemart.  "Open Saturday ten to ten. Open Sunday twelve to six... open on Sunday from twelve to six! You know, I don't believe I want to live in a country where you have to stay open on Sunday to business. You shouldn't have to work on Sunday to support your family."

I feel the same way about stores being open on Thanksgiving.

This quote was floating around Facebook the other day and pretty much sums my feelings towards black Friday.

It's meant to be cheeky, but it really does say it all...doesn't it?

Again, our grandparents who lived through the great depression and the years of WWII would probably click their tongues in disgust if they knew the chaos of black Friday.

Tomorrow's post will be more cheerful (I promise) I just HAD to get that off of my chest.
Until tomorrow,
Have a Happy, Vintage Day!