By Lynn R. Mitchell
I may be completely alone in feeling this way but after several years of seeing retail stores open on Thanksgiving to get a jump-start on Black Friday sales, I have to say it has put a damper on the typical beginning-of-the-Christmas-season shopping experience. This year is no exception.
This morning my sister and I watched our husbands head out at 5am for their annual manly shopping experience that consists of Home Depot and Lowe’s before taking a break at a local eatery for breakfast, but she and I slept in late with plans to meet later just for the ambiance of the holiday shopping season. We are two people who used to be out at 4:00 or 5:00 am and happily — even joyfully — stood in line to be among the first in Target or Kohl’s or Macy’s. But that ended when stores began opening on Thanksgiving.
For us, Thanksgiving Day is family time: visiting, cooking, conversation while lingering over dinner, board games, football, and other activities. Shopping? No, although we’ve been known to pick up a cyber deal or two online.
So this year we will once again meander out later on Black Friday to circle through the stores, as my sister calls it, and possibly pop into a favorite restaurant for lunch — or maybe just return home for leftovers — but the days of circling ad deals and making doorbuster sales that only last a few hours are over.
To those enjoying the hustle and bustle, happy shopping! Fa-la-la-la-la!
