Black Friday shopping: a guest post by Erin Dunkle

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I won't have time to post this weekend, so I recruited my blog friend Erin to write a guest post. Erin and I have never met in person, but we have a special connection. Her husband, Geoff, is waiting for liver transplant right now (and he's been waiting patiently for a long time) and as some of you know I've been through that myself. So, needless to say, when she found me through my other blog we became fast friends (if we lived closer, I am sure we would hang out and drink wine and shop together!!). Anyway, read on for her reflections on Black Friday shopping!! And after you read it I hope you'll drop by her blog, Life With the Dunkles, and find out the latest with LiverWait '08. Please say a prayer for her husband, too.

It’s coming…

And no, I am not talking about Thanksgiving or Christmas. I am talking about Black Friday. BRING. IT. ON. This is one of those days that I get so fired up about. Okay, so, I know the economy is bad and my Roth 401K is gone, and my husband is waiting for a liver transplant, but I am throwing that all out the window (well not the husband and the liver thing) and jumping in feet first!

This is an annual tradition (one that I cannot wait to pass onto my daughter) that my family and I have done for years. It starts on Thanksgiving morning. We are up bright and early scouring the ads one-by-one, placing them in their appropriate piles, and re-reading them just to be sure nothing was missed.

The piles are typically labeled:
1) MUST-MUST have
2) If we can’t get the must-must haves then we will move onto these items
3) If we strike-out on the first two piles then let’s just buy these items so we don’t look like total losers for getting up at 3:00AM

It’s sick. It’s an addiction. I know. One year I stood in line at Best Buy starting @ 4:00AM with my mom and aunt just to walk out of there at 5:30AM with a $5 Johnny Cash CD.

This year I’m taking it up a notch. This year I will be shopping at our local outlets at midnight on Thanksgiving. That’s right you read that correctly, the local outlet mall is opening at midnight for their big “Thanksgiving Sale”. I’ve recruited some friends and my mom. Were all set to go. Since the ads have not “officially” come out (I’ve been Googling the ads for days online), I’m not exactly sure how my day will go, but one thing is for sure, tomorrow I will be up at the crack of dawn putting together my “piles”.

Happy Shopping!