Black Friday

Most Americans know that the Friday after Thanksgiving is perhaps the biggest shopping day of the year, as Americans begin their shopping for Christmas. (What a way to get into the spirit of the season--of course, one of the other big shopping days is December 26.) Only tonight did I learn that the day has a special name, "Black Friday." What this name? Wikipedia gives two possible explanations, though I like the first because it is the first that came into my mind--retailers depend on sales from the (pre-)holiday shopping season to keep them in the black, and so on.

I don't do much shopping in stores much, relying on internet retailers (for good or for ill), but I will be going out today because of CompUSA. Their sale actually starts at 5 A.M., and I may try to stay up until then. I hope the streets of Brighton are safe at that time in the morning. Too bad there's no Fry's Electronics here.

KK has 5 stores to hit--Macys, Sears, JC Penny, Target, and... one more. It's a good thing WalMart didn't exist in Cupertino while we were growing up--I'd hate to be a WalMart kid, though I didn't mind being a KMart kid so much--not because of the clothes. With respect to its business practices, KMart may be no better than WalMart. KMart is noted for having the Jaclyn Smith collection. But as Miranda Priestly points out in The Devil Wears Prada, fashion trends make their way down from the trend-setters...

KK and the M.D. think of themselves as Target kids as well; I prefer being a Mervyns kid.

Having Asian feet, it is difficult for me to find shoes. Unfortunately, in general clothing retailers here in the U.S. don't really cater to Asian body types. KK recommended that I check out Rockport shoes... I may do that once I return to CA. DakarM likes Clarks. (UK) Now if I could only find shirts that would fit me well...

How many people will be up early trying to beat the crowds, only to find that there are crowds nonetheless? And how many people will be spending the day shopping? And how much money will be spent on useless things and junk? I was thinking the other day about furniture--and how much furniture and other usable items are thrown out when people move out. How we waste... There will be some money spent on clothing, of course, and clothing is useful, but they are products of the garment and fashion industries, which are not exactly well-ordered. Then there are the toys, not just toys for children, but toys for adults. Gaming consoles are gaining popularity with adults, and the stigma that used to be attached to them is disappearing (though I think it still exists with respect to computer games, though even that may be diminishing).

How we keep ourselves in an infantile state with the sort of diversions we choose. I don't want to say adolescent, because there is a healthy adolescence. It seems that children are drawn towards diversions that are aimed at the gratification of the senses and the passions and replace the use of the imagination with an electronically generated virtual reality, and even for them this is not healthy. Fr. Rutler came to OLP once and inveighed against computer games... while the computer game-makers have been able to attract some younger females to their games, it seems that they become less popular with women as they get older; I do not think there is a sizeable component of 20-something females among those who play console games--then again perhaps this is because console game-makers have not created products that would attract them. But it is more likely the case that electronic games do not have the same sort of pull that, say, a novel would have. How many women have lost boyfriends, husbands, shack-up partners to electronic gaming?

While it may be possible to turn gaming into a social activity by going into a 2-P mode--I remember those days at Christendom when the basement of St. Benedict's would go head-to-head against each other in Goldeneye--how does this compare to a pickup game of basketball or football? Certainly the latter is healthier for the body, despite those who would claim that gaming is good for eye-hand coordination and useful for training soldiers in a high-tech military. There may be some use to games that serve as battlefield simulators, but I wonder if these games are realistic enough and if they may not foster some bad habits as well. I don't see how such games can replace battle drills and flexible thinking in accordance with the principles of 3GW, and if they make for a very bad substitute, then the money spent on developing such games should be used instead on training.

(What about the weekly poker (or mah jong) game? I ponder whether I will find a poker circle in the future, or if I will pick up golfing. Probably not. Paintballing can be good exercise, but it's rather expensive. Has the New Scot started up his airsoft group? In previous centuries one would guess that the opportunity for recreation was rather limited for most people, though there were communal celebrations of feast days and such. But more on this in a separate post.)

It would be nice to save up a bundle of cash and head off to do some training with a friend at a place like Thunder Ranch.

I do purchase presents for Christmas--I try to buy items that are connected to our Lord, either explicitly or by promoting Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. However it may be difficult to do even the latter, since the gift needs to be proportioned to the recipient if that person is to enjoy it. (Unless one chooses strictly useful gifts.) These days though I wonder if there is any point to getting presents for people outside the family and the circle of close friends... especially if the virtue of gratitude seems to be missing. Does it give support to the secular holiday that has in the minds of many replaced the Feast Day of our Lord? What is the rationale in their mind for gift-giving, other than custom?

How do we Christians get our feast day back and communicate our reasons for joy to others other than giving presents? Celebrating with our families, especially with those members who are not Christian, is a priority.

(Almsgiving during Advent seems appropriate.)

What does our use of the word "happy" fail to capture in the Christian understanding of felix? I was thinking about it today, after the Lady Downstairs made a comment about Whom people were implicitly thanking in celebrating Thanksgiving--when feast days have been drained of any transcendental meaning, should Christians boycott them? What is the Christian response? What is the rational response, the logical response of Mr. Spock? Or is custom sufficient to demand that we celebrate as others celebrate? How do we say Merry Christmas to a non-believer without making a mockery of it, if we do not take the time to explain why this day is indeed a reason for us to be glad. It almost seems as if one should save Felix Nativitas(?) for our brothers and sisters in Christ and say "Happy Holidays" to everyone else...



Anti-Walmart sites
WAL-MART: The High Cost of Low Price
Wal-Mart Watch
Links to Anti-Wal-Mart Resources - HEL*MART™
Comprehensive anti-Wal-Mart info digest
Wake Up Wal-Mart
How Costco Became the Anti-Wal-Mart - New York Times
Anti-WalMart and Pro-WalMart Groups and Websites

Uh, go Costco.

On CBS late night news...
Uh... there's a story on CBS news on older recruits--one is a 41yo woman with 3 grown children, another is a 42yo woman with 2 children--unbelievable. The army raised the maximum age for recruits to 42. This second woman has a son who is in the army and has been deployed to Iraq. Something is seriously messed up with the army and our civilian leadership. Being mentors for the teenage recruits? Life experience? What, the army is supposed to help provide that sort of guidance now? I'd rather see the army doing what it can to retain the older NCOs who know something about combat, instead of fooling around with social engineering.