First off, I'd like to wish all of my family and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving. I am very grateful and perhaps more appropriately for this day, thankful, for having all of you in my life.
With that being said, I feel compelled to touch base on all of the Black "Friday" nonsense that has somehow infringed on our traditional family holiday. I had a couple hours to kill in Annapolis yesterday, so I decided to venture over to the mall for lunch. After finishing my overpriced plate of Chinese food, I decided to walk over to Macy's. Since my waistline is expanding faster than the speed of sound, I figured I'd better by a couple of "new and improved" (aka larger) pairs of pants. So, as I'm paying for my new Dockers', made small talk with the cashier. She appeared to be in her early 60's.
The store had a smaller crowd than I expected, so I said, "I guess this is kind of like the calm before storm. This place will probably be a mad house on Friday, huh?"
The cashier forced a smile and replied, "Oh, it won't take that long. It's going to be crazy in here tomorrow as well. And I'll be in here for all the fun."
I impulsively scratched my head and said, "Wait a minute, tomorrow's Thanksgiving. You mean to tell me you guy's are open?"
She answered, "Yes, indeed. I'll be in this very spot tomorrow afternoon."
I know I should expect this by now, but for some reason it really ticked me off. Instead of spending a day with her family, this woman was going to be standing behind a cash register on Thanksgiving. How long before Macy's starts selling goods directly from the floats in the Thanksgiving Day Parade?
And I know there will be some "essential" people who don't have a lot of sympathy for the lady at Macy's. After all, there is no day off in hospitals, police/fire departments, military, etc. I get that. These are, no doubt, essential jobs and I respect the people who "hold down the fort" on, not on the holidays. but also on everyday in between. However, is it really essential for someone to work on Thanksgiving just so we can get a killer deal on a new coat?
Here are some other retailers who decided to put profits over people by opening on Thanksgiving: Target, Best Buy, J.C. Penney, Kmart, Kohl's, H.H. Gregg, Sears, Sports Authority, Dick's Sporting Goods, Old Navy, Walmart and Radio Shack. Actually, Radio Shack, in a lame attempt to appear sympathetic, decided to close between the hours or noon and 5 pm to allow their employees to spend some time with their families. By the way, does anyone even shop at Radio Shack anymore?
Ok, I've gotten that off my chest. Let's move on......
If you're fortunate enough to have the day off today, please take a moment to think about what's really important. Material things are no match for the people in your life.
And as you prepare to break bread at the dinner table today, please keep those in mind who are working hard to keep the wheels turning. The police departments around the country have been dealing with a lot lately. May they have a safe day. And as always, God bless the troops for all that they do.
Wishing all of you a great day and memorable Thanksgiving.....
kw
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