Commonly known as BLACK FRIDAY

You've all heard of the dreaded BLACK FRIDAY, or the day after Thanksgiving, the busiest shopping day of the year. Most years Melissa and I have decided to avoid this day. This year we grasped it, laughed at it and took that bull by the horns.

Our shopping experience started with some basic recon work the night before. A new Best Buy just opened not more than a 1/4 mile from our home. Wanting to take advantage of a few items at the store I did a drive by at approximately 9:00p to find about 150 suckers, or shoppers already standing in line. I, at that point, did not like my odds. In looking through the adds in the paper that day, I calculated the hours I was willing to stand in line versus the amount I would save on my purchases. The anticipated savings was worth to me, at the time, about an hour and a half of my time. For the purchase I wanted, a laptop computer, that calculates to about $233 an hour. Worth the wait, so I figured. The catch, limited number of computers, unlimited numbers of people who are willing to sell their time for much less than I was willing to sell mine.

Back to my recon, 10 computers, 150 people in line by 9:00pm the night before the door opened at 5:00am. Like I said, I did not like my odds. At that point I figured, I had put up a good fight, battle lost. I went to bed that night content with a good nights rest. Not more than five hours later, I awoke at 3:45am with a need to enlist in a cause, with a renewed sense of hope. I dressed and drove to Best Buy for at that point, additional recon. I might add that I have never been one to obey the laws of order when it came to formal lines. And feel that if there are opportunities that present themselves to better my position at the mercy of the innocent, well, yeah me. I suppose that if I could cut in line to get to the pearly gates quicker, I may think about it longer, but would probably still take advantage of the meek of heart. After careful contemplation, I placed myself at the back of a now, very long line. That lasted about 2 minutes before my A.D.D. kicked in and I had to go out for a little more recon. My exploration, soon to be exploitation, proved successful as I happened upon a good friend of mine, who stepped in line not more than an hour earlier with his nephew who had been in line since midnight. Advantage Jeff, innocent and meek, zero. But I had a long way to go before I had my coveted laptop. There were still hundreds ahead of me.

It was now approaching zero hour, or 5:00am, the time the doors would open. I failed to mention that an hour earlier, vouchers for all the computers had been given to those who had spent the better part of their Thanksgiving and all night standing in line. As it approached the 5 o'clock hour, one of the meek grew less meek and started expressing his disgust at my lack of regard for his time. I find in times of awkwardness that sarcasm heals or confuses the soul of the less verbose. I think I confused the man and his innocent spouse, as they concluded with some profanity and their warmest regards that karma would find a way into my day and that something dreadful may happen. To his comments, open mockery and laughter, silencing the potty mouth and his wife. All along fully aware I was deserving of his abuse.

I ignored my new disgruntled friend and the doors opened. I chuckled as I passed he and his wife on my way to the computer department. At the computers the line was already endless. I paced around around looking for opportunity, and came to a young red-eyed man who asked if I was in the market for a laptop, to which I replied, yes. He was one of the meek who had spent 27 hours in line, who at 4:00am received a voucher for a computer. After 27 hours, he decided his time was worth $2.77 an hour and decided to sell to me, his voucher for $75.00. I gladly took his voucher and stepped in line to pay for the laptop, I wish I could say at this point that I was content to go to the back of the line. I had come this far, why stop now. I joined my new friend and his wife at the front of the check-out line, and completed my transaction within minutes.

I left Best Buy with my new laptop under my arm, wishing I could walk by the man and his wife I crossed in line earlier. Unfortunately, I did not. I came home with my prize to tell Melissa of my adventure. I laid gloating for a little while, wide eyed like a child before Christmas, and then dressed and left at 8:30am to shop the rest of the day, leaving our kids behind with my parents. After 10 hours of shopping, and completing nearly our entire shopping list, karma did not find a way to punish me for my cheatery, but blessed me with a wonderful day with my wife. Karma knew that I would be using this laptop, at this very moment, to blog. Which is a far nobler cause, I am sure, than the other vain imaginations the others were there for that day.