Actually that “!” should be ! x 1,000,000. At least that’s the way if feels when I look at either my email inbox or my physical USPS mailbox. [That’s right, rita is about WRITE a rant.]
Is it me or has the Christmas Rush buying season really ramped up this year?
I’m on the email list for a cute little American Girl Doll accessory shop and they’ve been emailing me EVERY DAY since the beginning of November to let me know how many shopping days are left before Christmas!!!
Here in America Thanksgiving is a national holiday. People are supposed to gather with their families, eat a big meal and say thanks. Some folks go to church, some catch a football game or parade… but the big meal (usually featuring a turkey) is pretty much the mandatory event.
The next day (today) is called Black Friday and is supposed to be the beginning of the Christmas Shopping season. Stores have big sales and people line up to get to early bird specials. Some stores open at Midnight to get a jump on those early bird shoppers.
English: DC USA, Best Buy, Black Friday (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Only now it seems that even opening at Midnight isn’t bringing in enough cash to the corporate coffers. So as soon as the pumpkin pie has been put away the Wal Marts and K Marts and Targets and Toys ‘r’ Us and Staples opened their doors to the consumer hungry hoards. They advertise “DOOR BUSTER SALES” to hype up the buying frenzy. And sure enough people have stated to get injured (and even killed) in the crush to get inside to shop!!! But if you didn’t get to the store last night or today, don’t worry, most of the sales last until Sunday. (So why call it a Black Friday Sale? )
Not to be outdone the online market, which is always open, started their Black Friday sales early. I’ve gotten emails starting as early as last Saturday inviting me to Pre-Black Friday sales (25 in the last two days). (I got one Black Friday Sale offer from GARMIN — I guess that might come in handy if I needed directions to the mall.) These “special sales” last at least to Cyber Monday (Dec 2nd).
It is all so consumer driven and so force-fed (and tacky).
Can we please just dial it back a bit and maybe remember what the Holiday Season is all about?
I realize I’m coming at the rant as a practicing Catholic and a Christian… but it’d be nice if people would start the “Holiday Buying Season” with at least a passing glance at an Advent Calendar.
The only thing that I think could tick me off more about this hyper-stuffed-goose-liver of all marketing schemes is if I WASN’T a Christian! I don’t know what I’d do if I had to put up with all this contrived merriment / shopping extravaganza in the name of a god I didn’t follow. (Well, I’d probably write a strongly worded BLOG about it!)
Ahhh the good old days when people actually had time to window shop, and there was physical space between shoppers.
Nestled in between Black Friday and Cyber Monday is Small Business Saturday where one is encouraged to patronize small locally owned shops. This is one tradition I will participate in. I have several people on my list who are wonderfully suited to LOCALLY SOURCED gifts bought at boutiques. However, since I try to buy from these shops anyway I don’t really need a special DAY to go through those doors.
OK. Rant over. I’m going to go eat some left overs.
Related articles
- Black Friday hits the UK (hulaholics.co)
- Black Friday? I’ll Pass. You Should, Too (blogs.wsj.com)
- Black Friday (teknhorull.wordpress.com)
ritaLOVEStoWRITE 
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