Comments on: Black Friday

by: Diana Celesky

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 16:57:00 +0000

Insanity certainly does roll out of the doorways and hallways of plastic suburban America, filling the streets with greed since we’re a nation tightly plugged into the agenda that the media, politicians, and Corporate America feed us. I can remember when Black Friday was simply known as, “the day after Thanksgiving.” The day certainly does provide an added dimension to character development for our stories. We just need to get out there and note it. Great post, and thanks for the Steely Dan quote.

by: spyscribbler

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 20:41:25 +0000

Real life? What’s that?

I love, love, love Christmas lights. We deck out our whole yard and house. I love, love, love the fall. I celebrate Halloween for the entire month of October, and Christmas for the entire two months of November and December. I celebrate New Year’s Day all through January.

But holiDAYS? Oh gawd, I really hate them. I really, really, really, really, really, really hate them.

by: Kathleen Bolton

Sat, 24 Nov 2007 12:38:27 +0000

I attended a Black Friday sale only once, and while I was being buffeted in a stampede, I thought “is this really worth saving $20 on a portable DVD player?”

The whole thing was pretty carnivalesque, I’ll admit. I’ll never underestimate the power of human greed harnessed to the herd mentality again.

by: bunnygirl

Fri, 23 Nov 2007 15:37:25 +0000

I think the way we do the Christmas season in America is extremely stressful and overemphasizes mindless consumption. I find nothing pleasurable about having to park blocks away from overcrowded stores and fight grabby, hostile people just to get a look at something.

Okay, so there are sales going on. I get it. But the aggravation of the small price savings just isn’t worth it to me. My ledger book doesn’t just tally the dollars, but time and peace of mind as well.

And quite frankly, I rarely see anything to spark my writing in these brief snippets of humanity I encounter in public spaces. My inspiration comes from the guy who stops by my office to ask the status of a paycheck resolution and then goes on to tell me about his kid, his new house, or his thought on a news story he saw. Or maybe I’ll arrive early at a meeting or the meeting organizer is running late and something will spark the soon-to-retire manager at the end of the table to tell how he met his wife when his motorcycle broke down on a back road in Germany while he was doing overseas graduate studies.

You just don’t get those kinds of stories and the life insights they afford from some stressed-out mom shushing her kid who wants to get back in line to see Santa again because she forgot to ask for the new Dora the Explorer DVD.

by: Therese Walsh

Fri, 23 Nov 2007 13:48:29 +0000

I like your message here, Dave: Open your eyes, see what’s really in front of you and let it filter into your life and work. Authenticity in writing–through a true understanding of the human condition–can be one of the season’s great gifts.