Black Friday Starts on Friday
As expressed in another BUnow article, Thanksgiving is often glossed over in the excitement of Christmas. Well, I would argue that Christmas shopping plays just as much a role in that as Christmas spirit. Everyone is so excited about Black Friday deals that dinner is rushed and we’re quickly off to Wal-Mart, BestBuy, and the mall to buy Christmas gifts at discounted prices. There’s 50% off laptops, and brands that never go on sale like Northface and Nike are suddenly marked down. TVs and Apple products are affordable. Doorbuster sales start at 3 p.m., and we can’t wait to get our hands on it all.
Hold up. 3 p.m.?
Most families are still eating dinner or dessert, and enjoying each other’s company. Or at least they’re pretending to watch the football games as they nod off in the recliner. If you are that person who leaves your family and friends on Thanksgiving to buy a discounted laptop, you are the worst kind of person. Now, I know that sounds judgmental, but hear me out.
Thanksgiving is a day America celebrates to give thanks. We appreciate what we have and our loved ones. We honor America’s first settlers and our gratitude to live in the greatest country in the world. It is a day to stuff our faces. We eat our weight in turkey and mashed potatoes. We spend time with family, enjoying grandma’s pie and avoiding our aunt’s horrible desserts which she brings every year. We watch football and take naps. We argue with our families about politics (bonus points to anyone who hears, “you have to respect the president” from their racist cousin who thinks Obama is a terrorist). We enjoy our family and friends’ company, despite what I just mentioned. We spend the whole day eating, laughing, talking, and being thankful for what we have and who we’re surrounded by.
So, if you’re going to skip out on that for Wal-Mart’s doorbusters, then you suck. Plain and simple. 
This is not me hating on Black Friday; I actually think Black Friday is awesome. I just think the name should ring true and we shouldn’t celebrate it until Friday. Or at the very least, Thursday night, like 10 p.m. or later. By then, everyone is stuffed with comfort food and pie and your relatives have run out of arguments for why your liberalness is the demise of our nation.
I can absolutely support a great bargain when I see one. I know money is tight; I am a college student. I fully understand. However, I am not willing to deface the day of Thanksgiving to save a few bucks. I will absolutely be out late at night and during the day on Friday shopping, but Thanksgiving Day? I will have my butt planted in front of the TV watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade until it is time to eat, and then I will enjoy food, family time, be thankful for my life and our nation and roll my eyes at my family’s political views like the rest of America. I hope you will too.
Go out and enjoy your Black Friday after fully enjoying Thanksgiving Day.
