A PROBLEM

I have to say, there is something depressing about Black Friday. It’s always at the end of the month, and isn’t everyone broke by then? So it seems that most people have to shop with credit to get great deals.

I do realize some places carry over into December now, but not when it first started.

There must be a “Go Forth” thing for this day. Any ideas?

— Elizabeth

A SOLUTION

My family makes it a family day.

The kids and I go shopping together, and we make a day of it. We hit 7 to 8 stores, but only one of them is a typical retail store (e.g. – Hobby Lobby where we buy art supplies, yarn, etc.) All the rest of the stores are thrift stores (e.g. – St. Vincent de Paul, Goodwill, a local store called The Copper Nail, etc.)

We tend to buy a lot of our Christmas presents for each other on Black Friday. It’s a lot of fun to hang out together, and to try to make sure that the various family members don’t see what we’re buying for them at each store. There’s a lot of “close your eyes, Mom; I’m paying for your gift right now!” And, “[so-and-so], go around the corner for a minute so that you can’t see what I’m getting for you.”

— Mick

“Life is not complex. We are complex. Life is simple, and the simple thing is the right thing.”
— Oscar Wilde