Happy Thanksgiving!

I must confess, first off, that my wife is a black Friday shopper.  Personally, I think the whole thing is completely ridiculous, but my wife uses the opportunity less as a money saving effort and more as a chance to connect with her 4 sisters (so she says).  Now, as I tend to be critical of many things, I have to admit that my wife did manage to wrestle a small flat screen TV away from a less deserving 10 yr old customer in the middle of Wal-Mart at 4:45 in the morning (not really, that just my dramatized version of how things went down).  So I guess my family can’t cast the first stone.  But I am so glad that K-mart decided to stay open all day on Thanksgiving so that weary Americans could forgo that silly family meal thing and, instead, seek out their true first love-Consumerism.

Everybody I know complains about how ridiculous it is for ordinary people to get caught up in the Friday frenzy just to rush into stores that are inevitably out of the item you sat vigil for in the parking lot.  But alas, it seems this, ultimately, is not a question of economic status as much as it is the American desire to save a buck.  Does the average American child really need more toys?  Does the average American homeowner really need a digital photo frame to display pictures?

After the Thanksgiving meal, the wives pulled out the store fliers and began to plan their attack, while all the husbands sat watching the Lions loose again, but more interested in a bad game that shopping.  As I think through the items the stores were holding out like a raw steak to a hungry lion, I realize that not one person in the room needed any of the items being strategized over.  We are so lame!

We constantly talk about American excess, but its always someone else- not us.  My family is very good at being good stewards of our resources.  But we still can’t resist the thrill of the chase.  My wife purchased the TV as a replacement for the prison TV ( no lie, the plastic case is see through) we received from my wife’s brother.  We would not have purchased it if it weren’t so cheap.  But we bought one anyway (it became my gift from the family, Merry Christmas to me!).   How convenient.

So, for those of you who partake in the festivities, was it worth it?  Were you able to get what you went in for, or did you settle for something else?  And for those who remain on the sidelines… does your heart still race as you look through the flier or hear about the sales coming up?  Do you still purchase or receive items you don’t really need?  How do we get beyond the hype and hysteria and return our focus to contemplating the true purpose of the holidays?   Your thoughts?

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