Gray Thanksgiving

I love Black Friday shopping. I love getting up ridiculously early to meet up with friends, bundle up with some hot coffee and armed with ads. I love looking over the ads and mapping out our routes while eating an early breakfast. I even love the atmosphere, as long as the business is prepared, and you are not after any big ticket doorbusters, it alleviates almost all of the craziness. I say almost all craziness because I have been witness to and even have been victim to some of those Black Friday horror stories. But even with that, I have to say that MOST people do not lose their humanity, MOST people are normal, kind, and even helpful.

The trend to start Black Friday earlier and earlier does upset me though. This year seems the worst. MOST stores will be open Thanksgiving and sales start in the afternoon or earlier.

I have heard a lot of people complain about how unfair this is to the worker. And although, I agree, that is not the main reason I will not be participating in Gray Thanksgiving.

Anyone who works retail, in a restaurant, or even customer service, knows they will be working holidays and crazy hours, especially this time of year. It is part of the job. They may not be excited about it, but it usually does come with extra pay and of course, a job.

I am one of those people so I am not talking from a perspective of someone who isn't impacted by holiday hours. I don't have a bank job and my company is open for every single holiday.

The reason I refuse to shop on Thanksgiving though is because it takes away my holiday as a consumer, not as an employee.

If I participate in such ridiculous sales tactics than I am saying it is ok to take away my time with my family as a CONSUMER. And that is one thing they can not put a price on for me.

So I plan on doing what I do every year. I will have a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving with my family. I will try to go to bed early, set my alarm for an unholy hour, pack up my ads and pick up my Black Friday partner before strategizing out a game plan over breakfast.

Hopefully, more people do the same and we can bring Black Friday back to Friday.