Okay, so I've never really been into the whole shopping hoopla. Even as a girl, I'm more interested in being lazy than shopping -- and that is an honest fact. But I do enjoy buying things sometimes, especially when a "deal" is going on. So I went Black Friday shopping this morning/afternoon, and here are some of the key elements I took away from my adventure.
JUST BECAUSE IT IS A "DEAL" DOES NOT MAKE IT ONE.
So I was one of those people who bought a billion things today, when I never buy anything in the regular week. I purchased a few sweaters, an iPhone case, and a bunch of things from Tuesday Morning. (If you haven't been to Tuesday Morning, go! Super cheap, super awesome.) Every time I saw something that lit up my eyes, I gasped to my mom, "Oh my gosh, look at this bargain! It was $60, and I'm getting it for $20!" My mom smiled and said, "The store's still making their money."
It is very true. The stores are giving a deal -- on a jacked-up price that gave them what, a 200% profit from the original price of an item? Come on, it is ridiculous. The advertisements are smart, but I understood what was happening. Even though I got the sweater for a cheaper price, the store was still making a profit, or they wouldn't have made that price cut in the first place. This told me that if I was getting a sweater for $20 that had an original price of $60...Wow. These shops must make so much profit.
Today they may not have made the most profit off an item, but the masses and hordes of humans inside make up for it. They don't need to mark their prices so high on this day, because so many people inside buying gobs of items will make this one of the best selling days of the year.
HUMANS ENTER SOCIETY...
I've noticed that with Christmas less than a month away, the streets are more crowded and people are out and about, buying things and sipping their coffees. Today was a pure example of this: Crowded lines, crowded dressing rooms, crowded aisles... It was insane. Now I didn't get to the store when it first opened -- as I need my beauty sleep -- but when I did arrive, it was packed. There were Indians speaking their native tongue, teenage girls instructing moms what to wear, and clueless dads trying to keep up with the little kids. It was actually an awesome event to witness.
In the normal times of the year, I wouldn't be exposed to the culture. I wouldn't see how everyone interacts with each other, since many people where I'm from stay to themselves usually. And I expected the chaos, and I expected rudeness, but it was actually pretty mellow. What I saw today was maybe not the best example of human bonding, but people were talking and searching for the best buy.
In fact I was surprised by how nice some people were. Don't get me wrong -- others were very rude, smacking gum and speaking on their phones with the intensity of Bigfoot, but a lot of people were genuinely friendly and excited about the holidays. However, I did find a twenty-five-year-old buying lingerie with her grandma present a little terrifying. Maybe I am that behind in the world, or maybe I'm just a dork, I don't know, but people were definitely comfortable.
'TIS THE SEASON.
I think every worker today was wearing red. And I saw about twenty of them, all in a six-hour period. Christmas music was playing at every store, and I think this really excited a lot of youth, elderly, and adults. As I left Target, a dad was singing to his kids and pushing them really fast in a cart, much to their delight.
Today -- and yesterday -- really marks the holiday spirit. Now there is no excuse: It's time to whip out the hot chocolate and let our ears bleed from Mariah Carey's Christmas songs. It is actually in style to say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" and I'm thrilled. Not because I'm extremely buzzed about the time, but because this month comes around once in a year, and it is time to let loose, eat a lot, and be thankful of all we have.
Probably tomorrow I'll be wishing it were summer. But for today, enjoy the winter weather, and Christmas is just around the corner.
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