I love the Christmas season, but not the hours associated with it. Thankfully, the worst is over; I put in fourteen hours on Black Friday and about ten on Saturday. I’ve done this for ten years now, so it is mostly routine, but one thing that never fails to amaze me every year is the volume of people who are willing to sit in the cold for hours on end just to save a few extra bucks on that television or other item they had their eyes on all year.
Now I’m no anti-consumerist; hell, I definitely own more than my fair share of shit, especially in electronics and DVDs. I even like to save money, so I look for deals whenever I can. But really, even 8 am on the day after Thanksgiving is a little early for me to think about buying Christmas gifts for people, let alone anything for myself. We opened at 5, and even then we weren’t the first; Kohl’s was open at 4 and Eden Prairie Center opened at fucking one o’clock in the morning. Outrageous. If there is any silver lining in this madness, these are the things that come to mind first: the extended hours I am required to work will 1) allow me extra funds for Christmas gifts and 2) allow me to watch Law and Order: SVU without the interruption of going home and cueing up the TiVo to the proper spot. Until then though, my free time will be in short supply (sorry, Alyssa) and I may be cranky during those times (sorry, everyone else).
Despite all this though, I still love Christmas. Preemptive happy holidays, everyone.
now playing on iPod: Chad Hollister “Spirit’s Waters”