Doorbusters, moms and Black Friday memories

by Posted on

By Liz, trying to ignore all the Black Friday promos!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! And now, for the main event: Black Friday.

Let me caveat this by saying I’ve always been a very good shopper. It’s my favorite hobby, next to reading. I got this from my mother – one of the few things we ever agreed on. And probably the only time we ever really bonded was on Black Friday WAY back in the day when I was in my teens and early twenties.

I don’t remember my mom getting excited about much. But she looked forward to Black Friday the way good Catholics look forward to Sunday mass. And yeah, she was that too.

Anyway, the plans for Black Friday shopping started the week before Thanksgiving. She would check in to make sure I was on board (I was) and where we should go (usually the same place – the Rockingham Mall in Salem, NH). She loved J.C. Penney. I’m not even sure if that store still exists. We would get up at an ungodly hour, around 4:30. She would pick me up and we would speed to the mall as if the deals were going to get away. J.C. Penney always gave away gifts – the doorbusters – to the people who came in during the first hour or two hours that they were open – usually a Christmasy snow globe or ornament. She was very proud of that collection of snow globes.

And we got some good deals. We would both load up on stuff – some gifts, most not – and she would always buy me a bunch of things. It was our first and most fruitful stop. Then we explored a few other stores we both liked in the mall and were usually home by ten or eleven.

Today, of course, things are very different. I haven’t been out in the world hitting the stores in probably twenty years (although the online sales are another story). My mother and I haven’t bonded in probably as long. And these days the sales have been going on for a good week before actual Black Friday.

As for those trips to J.C. Penney, they’ll always hold a special place in my heart. Not because I really even liked the store that much. It was just that for a couple hours, I felt like I was out shopping with a special friend. We didn’t have conversations about other stuff, we didn’t argue, we just ran around like teenagers showing each other clothes and encouraging each other to buy it, whether it was frivolous or not.

And it was kind of magic.

What do you all think of Black Friday? Love it? Hate it? Ignore it? And traditions? Tell me in the comments! And happy shopping!

Unknown's avatar

Published by Cate Conte / Liz Mugavero

Cate Conte writes the Cat Cafe Mysteries and the Full Moon Mysteries. As Liz Mugavero, she writes the Pawsitively Organic Mysteries, the first of which was an Agatha Award nominee for Best First Novel. She lives in the Boston area with her rescue pals.

31 Thoughts

  1. I’m glad you have those lovely memories with your mom, Liz (especially since I know you don’t have recent ones).

    I think I went once with my mom, many years ago. I didn’t enjoy shopping in person then, and I don’t enjoy it now. Maybe if I had someone like you to go with me, it would be more fun (and fruitful)!

    Like

  3. When I was growing up, I’d never heard of Black Friday. However, by the time our daughter was about school age, it became a THING. I can remember heading out early to get to the stores at opening (no early openings then – just normal hours) to try to get “the thing” that all hype said kids wanted before they ran out. Once that was safely tucked in the car, then I could slow down and try to find other gems. Of course, back them most stores had lay-a-ways and that was how us young folks could even afford to get most of it. However, I was the kid that on Christmas morning it was my presents that either didn’t fit, were defective or just plain didn’t do what they were suppose to do meaning I was in the long line returning something (if not all) my presents. Do you know what it’s like Christmas morning when everyone is playing with their toys to be the one sitting there with nothing to play with? Because of that, after putting things on lay-a-way, I’d lay awake nights thinking about what if it doesn’t work or worse yet they lose my lay-a-way. I never could leave things in the unknown and would get them out of lay-a-way way before most just to check it out.

    Now that Dale and I have outlived everyone else and there’s no little ones (face it Christmas morning and presents are for the smiles on a child’s face) to buy for, I’m fine with skipping Black Friday. I can only remember going to one big before the break of dawn Black Friday and it taught me to buy early, buy on line or give gift certificates. Boy was it a dangerous situation out there that time!
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

    Like

  4. I used to love going on Black Friday with friends. It was really more about the excitement, the super early hot cocoa, and the brunch afterwards than it was about presents. Now I don’t go out and just buy gift cards. aprilbluetx at yahoo dot com

    Like

  5. I’m glad you have those good memories, Liz! I’m not much of a fan of Black Friday, though I do enjoy supporting my local places on Small Business Saturday.

    Like

  7. What fun memories. I have never done Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving is a pie-for-breakfast, one more load of dishes kind of day. But my daughter and daughter-in-law are here strategizing for their online purchases.

    Like

  8. Liz, J.C. Penney does still exist.

    I only took part in the in-person Black Friday once. Never again.

    That’s not to say I don’t like the sales or anything but in general that teeming mass of humanity is more like a mob and since society frowns on actual murder, it is best that I do my best to limit my interaction with people on Black Friday or my body count will soon no longer be at zero.

    Now, as I said, I do like the sales. But I’m talking at the places I like not the general merchandise stores.

    And since I do order stuff online, I’ve been paying attention to various websites that I’m interested in getting stuff from. And hey, some of it is even for OTHER PEOPLE!

    I’ve been posting some stuff on my Facebook page to keep people with similar interests up to date.

    I ordered a graphic novel that I’ve long been wanting from Midtown Comics yesterday. They had it for 40% off so it was the perfect time to grab it. Even with tax and shipping added back in, it was still less than original cover price.

    There’s a record label’s shop running a 50% off sale that I’ll be taking advantage of. Star Trek Shop has 20% off and 40% off holiday stuff.

    My friend’s record shop is having a weekend-long sale, too.

    I’m not saying I’m going to hit it all this weekend because I know I won’t since I still have to go grocery shopping. But I can get some stuff AND get holiday shopping out of the darn way. But in-person Black Friday…just not for me.

    Like

  9. Happy Black Friday!!! I am the shopper in our family, and I am already shopped out. I feel there were not so many “deals” out there this year, or maybe I was not looking for items that were actual deals. We are visiting our son and his family, and they had a major shopping event going on yesterday afternoon…ZARA had a 40% off sale that started at 3PM Pacific, and they had loaded their carts with items they wanted to buy. ZARA’s website froze up for some time, apparently to prepare for the “momentous” 3PM magic hour. Everything stopped as the minutes ticked on, and when the virtual store opened, they were all glued to their phones, and got about 80% of their n”loot”, because some items were sold out…That is not my type of shopping, but everyone has their preferences, and I could see how excited the parents and the teenagers were. Good for them. Thanks for your blog today. It was so interesting to read it, plus everyone’s comments! Luis at ole dot travel

    Like

  10. My best Black Friday memories are much like yours, Liz. It was a tradition between my mother and I when I was home from college for the week. We’d have breakfast together and spend the whole day out looking for gifts and deals. Lunch out was a given. Sometimes even dinner.

    These days, you couldn’t pay me to go out on Black Friday. My own daughter is much more into online shopping, so we bond in other ways.

    Like

  12. Love this, Liz! I’m not sure I’ve ever shopped on Black Friday. I never remember standing outside a store waiting for it to open. But I used to love to shop in real stores.

    Like

  13. I don’t remember Black Friday until well after I was out of the house. I only attended once. My mom had her eye on a multi-function stand mixer that was selling as a Black Friday door buster for 80% off. The store opened at 5AM. My then boyfriend and I camped out overnight so I could be first in line. I’m proud to say I scored one of the two they had available. It was worth it to see the look on my mom’s face. That turned out to be her last Christmas

    Like

  14. I mostly hate shopping tho’ I like getting just the right thing for someone I love. I never shop on Black Friday. When I do shop, it is locally, if possible.

    Like

  15. Actually I do my Christmas shopping throughout the year. I do not do Black Friday. There are actually more sales after Christmas then before. So the sales are actually better in January. I also do not do Cyber Monday. I prefer to go into shops instead of on-line.

    Like

Comments are closed.