End the War -- on Thanksgiving

And, if you're going to shop on Black Friday, it should really be to seek out Goose Island's Bourbon County beers:

 

All I have to say is this War on Thanksgiving better not affect the Crossed Giblets of Death thread.

 

I bet that one's really addicting.

 

I've yet to hear from any of the two dozen holiday temp jobs I've applied to so far. I'll make sure to visit every one of them open on Thanksgiving just to further ruin their holiday.

 

I don't feel bad for people working holidays. You don't have to work retail. There's no gun to your head forcing you to work there.

What about cops, firefighters and the military? I was under way plenty of times in awful places like the Persian Gulf and off Haiti during holidays. It was sad, yes, but it's part of the deal.

But where I do have sympathy for the people working holidays is dealing with all of the assholes. I worked at a shoe store when I was in college and there were four days you dreaded: inventory day, Black Friday, Christmas eve and the Saturday before Easter. The stores were packed and people were an amazing level of rude on those last three days. I even broke up a fight in one of our aisles between two women fighting over the last pair of an advertised special. They were throwing fists, landing blows and it was total pandemonium. Over a pair of $50 shoes that were regularly $100. Both were arrested.

Inventory day started at 4 a.m. and didn't end until 3 p.m. or later. The only nice thing about that was the company provided pizza. They also did that so no one would leave on break. Counting every shoe, handbag, T-shirt, boot and other items in a huge store is a massive chore.

 

When I worked retail I didn't mind Black Friday because it was non-stop work, so an eight-hour shift flew by.
The day I really loved was the day after Christmas; I'd ask to handle the returns (I worked at the Gap) and I'd sit in the back retagging and repricing returns. I'd happpen upon a year-old sweater someone regifted that got returned and it'd ring up at 5 bucks, so I'd use my 30 percent discount and pay 3.50 for it. I'd usually come home with a couple hundred dollars (if they were full retail) worth of stuff and not spend more than 50.

 

I got a seasonal job today. No gun to my head, but money is money. After 21 months of continuous unemployment, it's the best I can do. Already know my last day is Dec. 24. I'll either work Thanksgiving night or Black Friday morning, but not both. I guess the self-loathing among the crew can pull both, I dunno.

 

I found out my fate: 5 a.m. shift on Friday. I somehow missed working Thursday night, which is kind of a relief. I was under the impression that the store would close for a few hours to re-stock, but that's not the case. The toy store opens at 5 p.m. on Thursday and won't close until midnight Friday. Yikes.

But, it's only a six-hour shift. I was scheduled for 10 hours, but I made sure to remind them of the doctor's orders to not have me on my feet more than six because of my spinal cord compression. They weren't thrilled, so they cut my hours even more. If I get hit in the back, I'm going down for the count and filing for workman's comp.

 

There ya go. I knew retail wasn't in my future about 30 years ago when I worked one Black Friday shift while in university. It was rather tame back then, too, we only stayed open one additional hour in the evening compared to our normal store hours and none of this midnight nonsense.

Being suck a freakin' nightowl, I might actually see what is open at 2 am (other than the usual 24-hour Walmart) and venture out if the weather is pleasant.

 

How did we get along all these years with all of those stores closed on Thanksgiving?

 

Had a pretty good discussion about this at my shop today, as we came in at 10 a.m. and wrapped up the Thanksgiving edition early so they could stuff it with inserts.

Black Friday's not the only thing encroaching on Thanksgiving's turf:

1. Fewer people cook meals more complicated than boiling water or pushing a microwave button. Even the guts-in-a-bag, pop-up thermometer birds are more cooking/carving than many people want to do anymore. And forget the mincemeat pie or homemade dressing.

2. Who's going to come over to eat the big feast? Families are more scattered — both geographically and emotionally — than ever before. Personally, I would love to have Thanksgiving dinner with either my parents or my in-laws, but between my fine job and the distance we live away, it's not really possible. A trip of that length (and cost) makes more sense during a longer school break, like between Christmas and New Year's, spring break or the summer.

3. Add in the greater number of retailers and other businesses open on Thanksgiving, and it adds up to a holiday that is quickly losing its luster.

I still enjoy the religious/thankfulness aspect of the day, and my wife enjoys cooking a turkey and all the trimmings, even if the four of us are eating it for the next 3-4 days.

But I wonder as my 40-something generation and the ones after us get older, if there will be much enthusiasm left for the Thanksgiving traditions.

 

CBS aired Rudolph before Thanksgiving. Another sign of the War on Thanksgiving.