Happy Black Friday!

Happy belated Thanksgiving and now, Black Friday, mi amigos. Never one to participate in the holiday shopping rush, I think I'm officially a believer!

Yesterday was only the second Thanksgiving I've spent away from my family (the first was while studying abroad in London). I had the pleasure of spending the holiday with my good friend/make shift older, wiser fabulous sister (literally, she's an AKA too!), Brandy. Brandy's family, including her husband and adorable son, are already entertaining but the fun was only augmented by meeting her extended family. I thought the highlight of the day would be our delicious dinner that including my first ever cajun, fried turkey but the real fun didn't start until all the plates were cleared.

I can't be certain how the conversation started, but we got into this deep, expansive conversation on race relations in America. While one might thing that six, educated, African-Americans would have similarities in their views on race relations, the like-mindedness was non-existent, which always makes for lots of fireworks. What was most amazing was our drastically differing views of the solution. My thoughts were that real change starts in the home, with the family unit and definitely with children. Others thought that Congress would need to impose legislation before we saw a change and some thought the situation was hopeless and not worth spending much effort on. Things got a little contentious when the Howard University alum accused me of "selling out" and "assimilating" because I chose to attend a "white school." But all in all, the convrsation was just fascinating. By the time our tongues exhausted, it was 3:00 a.m.!

I got home a 4:00 a.m. and couldn't fall asleep so I chose to participate in the shoppers high holy day, Black Friday. I arrived at Macy's at 4:40 a.m. and got a glimpse of the intensity the true shoppers shop with. The mother/daughter team was devising their divide & conquer technique; another couple mapped out their day to the second, even allotting traveling and parking time. I found myself laughing aloud several times! I must say, I've always thought Black Friday to be a bit of a urban legend. I mean really... are the prices that low? Do they even have the items advertised in the circular in stock? Would I have to engage in hand-to-hand combat to snag some of the hot sales item?...

I'm pleased to report, all was placid in Retail Land. From Macy's I scored not one, but two, Jones New York suits valued at $525 for way less than half of that. However, the real core shaker of my urban legend belief was Target. I arrived at Target a 5:50 and expected to see Mom's brawling in the aisles over the latest Wiggles video, but there were no such sights. I scored a home theater system and 6 megapixel, Kodak digital camera for less than $200. Even better, I was able to get a head start on Christmas gifts for my niece. The memories of Christmas Eve 2003 (where I got into a banter weight shouting match with a man of Middle Eastern descent over a Bratz doll) were fresh in mind. Not wanting to catch an assault & battery case so close to the holidays, I went ahead and purchased the "hot" items that are sure to be off the shelves by December 1.

After unwinding from the excitement of my finds, I finally laid head to pillow at 8:00 a.m. and woke up with every intention on packing at least two rooms... Do you really need to ask? ;-)