Black Friday 2006

Who ever came up with the idea to have holidays that force employers to give you time off should be given a gold star. This four-day weekend could not have come a better time. With the deadline of a major upgrade in our software that we're building at work looming at the beginning of December we've been spending many a day coding into the the darkness of night.

The idea of getting an extended break was a great motivation, and that break has been well used. I've kept my distance from computers for much the break, with the exception of a few rounds of Halo with my brother in-law Serge.

After another late night of coding we left Thursday morning and traveled south to the more densely populated areas of Salt Lake and Provo. We stopped off at the Perego's, the home of my sister Jenna. After a tour of their house - they moved across the street about six months ago and Amber had yet to see the new place - we discussed our strategies for attacking the Black Friday sales over some fruity juice. The juice was unlike any I had ever tasted, so I had to make mention of it here.

On to our destination at the Bagby home for a gathering of family and good traditional food. It was during that evening that Serge broke out my one video gaming weakness - Halo. I'm absolutely awful at the game, but I've played enough to feel comfortable with the controls. Serge still obliterated me. But, it was fun to do something different. A rousing game of Loaded Questions concluded the family portion of the evening. After everyone left - around 10pm - Amber and I went for a quick drive to scout out the Black Friday situation at the local stores. Every store already had a line forming, with the exception of Comp USA which was still open. Serge was nervous about the situation. He dropped off his wife and daughter and zipped back up to Comp USA to start the line at that store.

Amber and I were already back home before I knew Serge was in position as line leader. When he and I touched base we decided that I would get a few winks in before joining him at the store entrance. I was very concerned that I would sleep through my 3am alarm - it being nearly midnight now. Amber reassured me that if the alarms didn't wake me she would. The next thing I heard was my wife's voice whispering, "Scott! Scott! You were right! You slept through the alarms!"

Sleepy eyed and groggy I stumbled quietly down the stairs, opening my phone to check the time. Instead of the time I saw the message that Serge had called around 1:15am. I hit talk, half expecting him to tell me that something went wrong and that I shouldn't bother coming out to the store. Such was not the case. He was still there and actually quite grateful that I had called as he also dozed off in his car for a few hours.

It turns out that while waiting by the store entrance Serge made friends with the security guard on duty. As the guard was leaving he told my brother in-law that he would come back on duty at 4am. He also mentioned that since he had seen Serge waiting where the line might be that he would allow Serge to go wait in his car if he wanted and would allow him to reclaim in line position at 4. Serge took full advantage of this and grabbed a quick nap that last until my call woke him up at about 3:40am.

I grabbed half a pumpkin pie out of the fridge and headed out. The sight of food brought a smile to Serge's face. No one was yet in line, but cars were beginning to swarm the parking lot. We claimed the top spot and had no trouble getting our items once the doors made way for the stampede at 5am. What was worth braving the cold all night, you might ask? Both of us were there for the 250-GB external hard drives that were on sale. And I picked up at wireless router for a couple bucks.

Amber had her eye on some deals at Staples, but wasn't willing to arise early to get them. Staples opened an hour after Comp USA so I headed up State Street to save Amber a spot in line. She was able to get mostly everything she sought after as well. Not a bad turn out for another Black Friday.

During my drive back to the Bagby's my body felt pretty good considering my lack of sleep. Of course, my mind changed while I found my self on a six-foot ladder that afternoon putting up the Bagby Christmas lights. It was there that I muttered to myself "never again" would I participate in the early morning rituals of Black Friday. But, that totally depends on the deals that get offered next year.