When Black Friday comes

Did you celebrate Buy Nothing Day?

I kind of did. And I feel all the better for it, especially after hearing the horror stories my boss shared this morning.

Black Friday - the Friday after Thanksgiving, and the "kick-off" to the shopping season- had its winners and losers. But some of us didn't even play the game.

Hurray for us.

People stealing items out of each others' carts? A little old lady getting trampled on her way into the fray? This is how we celebrate the holidays?

A lot has already been said about the crass-ness of the commercial holiday season, and how its all superficial and empty nowadays.

But I wonder: what if people put that same energy and passion into something that really mattered? Instead of getting all worked up over a stolen parking spot (as my boss saw that morning in the mall parking lot), why not devote your energy into something worthwhile?

I did the Black Friday thing once, in high school. Never again. Ignorance is bliss, I guess; I'd rather not know what happens on that day. It makes me feel better about being an American.

So since then, I've celebrated Adbusters' "Buy Nothing Day" campaign. When everyone else is out spending money, I sit my ass home (or, in the case of this year, in a movie theatre with gramma). The money you save just isn't worth the hassle, to me.

Besides, a trip to Meijer when I grocery shop is a battle enough. They ought to outfit those shopping carts with spikes and shields.

Have any horror stories?