Well, today is Black Friday. Sounds kind of ominous doesn’t it? Well, it sort of suits here. A cold front came through last night dropping our temperatures by over 40 degrees, Brrrrrr. And to add insult to injury, it is cloudy and drizzling rain. Just what a “black” Friday should be, right?
I guess I am wrong. I must live a sheltered life, because up until this year, I had never heard of “Black Friday”. Yes, I knew for years about the idiots standing in line all night to get into the stores to get the few bargain priced items, and that all the malls and stores where crowded that day. That is why I rarely ventured out the day after Thanksgiving.
Well, this black Friday thing got me curious, and when I get curious, I go to the Internet and usually “WikipediA”. As always, I got my information. It seems that the term has been around for a long, long time, but the meaning it has for the day after Thanksgiving was started in Philadelphia in 1966. It was named by the police and here is some of what Wikipedia had to say about it:
” The day's name originated in Philadelphia, where it originally was used to describe the heavy and disruptive pedestrian and vehicle traffic which would occur on the day after Thanksgiving. Use of the term began by 1966 and began to see broader use outside Philadelphia around 1975. Later an alternative explanation began to be offered: that "Black Friday" indicates the period during which retailers are turning a profit, or "in the black."”
Well, I learned something, hope you did, too. But maybe I am the only person in the world that didn’t know about “black Friday”. No, that isn’t correct, my wife never heard of it before, either.
So, have a good Black Friday. . . .
So far Rockport has a gray, drizzle, cold, windy nasty Friday. This is an "outside" town so sunshine is needed.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it will send more tourists further south and you will have more room to have toooo much fun. Always try to find the silver lining. . .
ReplyDeleteThe business folks, campgrounds, guides, stores etc, have noticed a smaller influx of winter Texans this year. The ones that are here for the most part came later than normal. It is unusual to have campsites readily available for long term renting this late in the year in the Rockport area.
ReplyDeleteHaving worked in the retail industry most of my adult life, I can say without reservation that I do NOT miss Black Friday at all!
ReplyDeletePeople can make such fools of themselves about shopping! Guess that's why I dislike the holidays so much!If I never hear another Christmas song again, I'll be happy!
Barney, is that because of the economy? I would figure that it would not affect the retired folk.
ReplyDeleteHermit Jim, I know what you mean. My wife and I do not celebrate any holidays, not even birthdays. Everyday should be a hiliday :-)
I only heard the term "Black Friday" a few years ago. I don't like to shop much at all and normally never go to malls if I can help it. But a couple of years back was in NY with some of my family, and agreed to take my granddaughter and niece (both in late teens) shopping if my son would drive. He did and I had a wonderful time. I held the girls' packages while they tried things on, paid for a lot of their purchases, and it made my heart happy to hear their happy giggles all day. I think that was the year that most people stayed home, so it wasn't too horrible. I would take those girls again, any day!
ReplyDeleteGypsy, Black Friday is just another day for me. Don't participate in the comercializm part of holidays.
ReplyDeleteI first learned of the phrase "Black Friday" when I met my now wifey some 7 years ago. To her, it's a holy holiday, complete with ritualistic suffering. She has it down to a science, but I always get some awesome new toys. I have no idea how that new GPS ended up in my car.
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