I Suck At Black Friday

The day after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday. The day is traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Unfortunately, I suck at Black Friday.

It seems like every year, I get tempted with the idea of experiencing the Black Friday shopping frenzy just to see what it is like. This year was no exception, thanks in part to my friend (Aimee) who apparently loves a good deal herself and told me about some of the deals to be had. And of course like every year, I usually choose sanity and sleep over shopping (this year included). And sadly, I missed the Black Friday shopping experience yet again. Perhaps some day, I will get to experience the Black Friday madness.

It was probably just as well that I missed the shopping madness. After all, Friday was shaping up to be a busy day. Karen's grandfather recently passed away and his wake just so happened to be on Black Friday. For me, it was the first wake I ever attended from start to finish. And in case anyone is curious, it was also the first wake for my niece (Kaleigh) and nephew (PJ).

I must say, it was an interesting experience. The part I found most peculiar about the wake was how the priest randomly interrupted everything for a reading. People would be talking amongst themselves and then... BAM! The priest started reading aloud scripture. To me (a fellow non-Catholic), it seemed out of nowhere. Apparently, that is a common tradition.

As well, I had missed an interesting comment from one of Karen's relatives. While I was out picking up our baby daughter (Briana) and bringing her to the wake, I guess one of Karen's relatives mentioned to Karen how amazing it was to see the number of Karen's friends attending the wake.

I never really thought much about it, probably because I may have taken it for granted. But Karen and I are lucky to have a large number of amazing friends. It probably is unusual that both Karen and I still maintain friendships with our childhood friends. In comparison, my favorite sister-in-law (Janine) joked that she only had one friend. So I guess we are lucky to have such a large number of great friends.

Speaking of which, Karen, Briana and I headed to our friends' (Cass and Ellen) house following the wake. For awhile now, Cass and Ellen have been hosting a Black Friday party in which everyone in attendance would bring their Thanksgiving leftovers. I guess you could call it a potluck of Thanksgiving leftovers. And yes, it was on Black Friday where I had my famous steak-choking incident.

Needless to say, Karen and I were late to the party for obvious reasons. Cass and Ellen encouraged us to attend while at the wake, in the event Karen needed a break. And for Karen, I think it was a much needed break from the day. It was definitely good to see some friends.

As a side note, I forgot to mention that Cass and Ellen were an apparent hit at the wake because of the lovely floral arrangement that they sent for Karen's grandfather. Karen's relatives were raving about the flowers. This is proof yet again that parents love Cass... which is why he should run for mayor of Quincy.

Anyway, all of us just hung out at Cass and Ellen's. Also in attendance were our friends (Marc, Kelley, Kerry, Andrea, and Meredith) and Meredith's baby (Xander). Like I said, it was good to hang out... probably more for Karen. It was definitely a good way to end the night.