tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post905770896824401354..comments2024-03-27T08:23:33.621-04:00Comments on Go Retro!: A Plea to Save ThanksgivingPamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18122952408610512684noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-40444154341782620672015-02-05T11:09:57.965-05:002015-02-05T11:09:57.965-05:00I work for a national fabric store chain which I l...I work for a national fabric store chain which I love, and fortunately, since they're privately owned, they will never open on Thanksgiving. (They also polled their customers a couple years ago and asked them if they would shop on Thanksgiving night, to which they received a resounding 'NO!') This delights me no end. Sure, we may open a little earlier the day after, (usually 6-ish) but that's no big deal. My company respects its employees family time. If only all retail realized that they are, for the most part, unnecessary on the holidays. I think if America started it's smorgasbord of sales in early November (like the rest of the world) it it would surely give the employees their due for their hard work and keep Thanksgiving sacred. I refuse to shop on Thanksgiving and encourage all Americans not to! Theresehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12942102246946010220noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-16654131639063443682012-11-25T17:14:50.900-05:002012-11-25T17:14:50.900-05:00Luiz -- I like the sound of your country's tra...Luiz -- I like the sound of your country's tradition called "El Buen Fin." That sounds much less stressful to have holiday deals over a four-day period then cramming it all into 24 hours. <br /><br />Johnny -- It is indeed unbelievable that some people would shop at 2 AM. I suppose if you work in a job that has shifts outside of the average 9-5 position, that's the only time you can get holiday shopping done. <br /><br />memoryman -- Your comments made me sad. I'm sorry to hear you have to deal with working on Christmas Day. Pamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18122952408610512684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-31748046950384905172012-11-24T09:19:02.036-05:002012-11-24T09:19:02.036-05:00I have managed a retail store for many years. Its ...I have managed a retail store for many years. Its done a few things. Made the holidays meaningless to me is one, and I hate that. My company never closes, so there have been many times that I had to tell someone they had to work a holiday because it was their turn, making the holidays meaningless to someone else probably. The same old problem is when you are buried in customers on Xmas day they ask the same thing, "Why are you open on Xmas day?". Because you are standing in front of me, thats why.<br />And the doggone place has over 1000 customers every Xmas day. It will never go back to the way it was I'm afraid, as a matter of fact, it's getting worse. There is a scary word in the simple term consumer, "CONSUME"memorymanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13070855632402849956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-60453471430204871582012-11-21T15:32:35.358-05:002012-11-21T15:32:35.358-05:00I'm a New Zealander living in the United Kingd...I'm a New Zealander living in the United Kingdom so Thanksgiving I only know through stays in the US. I worked for a large retailer in NZ in the late 90s and when they wanted to stay open 24 hours a days I said "You're crazy, who shops at 2:00am?". But people did. Sadly, shops open every hour of every day because the fool public want it. Hard lines for the people who work in retail.John K Maddenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07103199955451435977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-25859441269774077972012-11-21T14:24:46.347-05:002012-11-21T14:24:46.347-05:00I'm from Mexico, so we don't have Thanksgi...I'm from Mexico, so we don't have Thanksgiving and thus no Black Friday either but since last year there has been a new custom implemented by businesses called "El Buen Fin" (The Good Weekend) in which you get a lot of Black Friday-like deals. The difference is that it lasts 4 days instead of one so there is much less scrambling and there are no scenes of people waiting in line to get in the stores. It's also a week earlier than the American Black Friday taking place November 16-19.Luishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07631388281199815121noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-14657648775074211532012-11-21T13:57:50.291-05:002012-11-21T13:57:50.291-05:00JZ--I know it, and a week ago I noticed a few hous...JZ--I know it, and a week ago I noticed a few houses already had Christmas lights strung and lit up while driving home from work. This is before Thanksgiving, with Halloween just barely behind us. It's mind boggling. <br /><br />SusieQT--shopping online in your PJs sounds like the best plan to me! I agree that I don't see the point of showing up early on Black Friday if there's a limited number of a particular item and only the first few customers are going to have a chance at buying one. <br /><br />Dr. JulieAnn--I know, I don't get the people camping out in tents, either. <br /><br />dryheat--If a law helps prevent injuries and saves some sanity, then I wouldn't say it's unnecessary. One could argue that overspending hurts the economy, since people are buying things they cannot afford and racking up the credit card charges. But, to each his/her own. <br /><br />Great comments, everyone! Have a happy Thanksgiving! Pamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18122952408610512684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-34152537784165277242012-11-21T11:11:54.271-05:002012-11-21T11:11:54.271-05:00OK, while I do agree that the meaning of Thanksgiv...OK, while I do agree that the meaning of Thanksgiving (giving thanks for living in the greatest country in the world!) has been lost in the hoopla, more laws make me cringe. This is still America, and telling me I can or can't do something that causes no harm to others is, well, bogus. Black Friday is called such because that is often the day that retail companies go "into the black" on the books. Capitalism gets a bad rap, but it is the engine that runs the economy. It has become such an event because consumers have postively responded to the gimmicks that retailers have devised to drive in business. They know the "bargains" will soon be gone, but now you're in the store and will probably buy other items too. I do what SusieQT does, which is sit it out and shop online. That makes much more sense than making more unnecessary laws.dryheat45noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-19874864496339775182012-11-21T08:26:02.851-05:002012-11-21T08:26:02.851-05:00My SIL posted a photo on Facebook of all of the te...My SIL posted a photo on Facebook of all of the tents already pitched on the sidewalk outside of a Best Buy near her house in an affluent Los Angeles suburb. If we assume that the people pitching tents are from her neighborhood, then we can also assume that they have incomes well into the six-figures and can easily afford to buy a flat-screen tv even when it isn't on sale. So, they are giving up Thanksgiving, altogether, and are camping on a sidewalk for several days <b>just so they can get a "bargain" on a low-quality item made in China. </b><br /><br />But, you know, I don't want modern TV so I am less susceptible to commercials telling me that I have to "hurry" so that I "don't miss out!"<br /><br />/end my old lady rantDr. JulieAnn aka The Modern Retro Womanhttp://modernretrowoman.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-2662655179443058782012-11-21T07:51:34.500-05:002012-11-21T07:51:34.500-05:00Normally I am not one to propose more laws, but th...Normally I am not one to propose more laws, but that is one I can get behind! A few years ago I got up early and did the Black Friday thing, and really I don't think I saved anything. All the really good deals are gone to the first couple of customers in the store. I prefer to do my shopping online, in my PJs, and whenever I choose!SusieQThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07472123869920926206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15023065.post-83503771533973613722012-11-21T06:28:03.918-05:002012-11-21T06:28:03.918-05:00It's almost as if Thanksgiving doesn't exi...It's almost as if Thanksgiving doesn't exist anymore; the radio stations in Baltimore all started playing Christmas music on 11/16/2012. All of this is to satisfy the stores who want customers standing in line at 8:00 Thanksgiving night. People have indeed been hurt, fights break out, and folks are hardly brimming with Christmas Spirit on Black Friday.<br /><br />I like Thanksgiving, it's nice that you have a day with the family, just to enjoy a meal and some time away from work to relax. I too would like to see a law passed that these retailers could not open until 6AM Friday at the earliest. Their employees deserve time with their families and a chance to rest up before the Christmas buying season begins.JZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04830586696690222760noreply@blogger.com