Sunday, November 27, 2011

Getting into the Swing of Things

As you may have been disappointed to note this week, there was no installment of Dirty French Friday.

What even could have taken place to have kept me from delighting the masses with my dodgy French?


Oh yeah. That.

The Christmas shopping season has had its official kick-off.



If you've been following my blog for any decent length of time, you'll know what I was not absent from writing this past week because I was a participant in the shopping delights of Black Friday.



I was on the stressed-out, frantic, retail-worker end of things.

The upcoming month is more like I'm an extra in Groundhog Day, where I wake up and every day is Black Friday. I'm even sick this week, just like last year. I don't even know why I'm writing a new post about it. I might as well have just reposted this entry from 2010.

At my place of employment, every single one of us is required to work Black Friday. And you know what? Aside from being extremely busy and wishing I could clone myself between 12 and 3 pm that day, it wasn't too bad.

Oh, it was busy as shit, but customers seemed a little happier this year. Maybe because they had a bit more money to spend? I was just reading an article on the increase in Black Friday spending over last year. My store certainly saw the increase, we were pretty tickled.

The worst encounter I had this past week (and not even on BF) was when a woman yelled 'This is some bullshit!' in my face and then stalked away because we didn't have the hot new toy for the season in stock.

The LeapPad Tablet.


That kid is smiling because his mom didn't have to swear at a poor, harried bookstore employee to get this toy for her son.

Apparently these things are almost impossible to get right now. A kid has to have a tablet just like his mom and dad's!

Whatever happened to getting dolls and bicycles for Christmas?  I'm so old.

Remember when Cabbage Patch Dolls were the big toy for Christmas? This had to be 1984/85-ish. I bet my mum had to arm wrestle another mum for these ones. And here I am in my favourite outfit of choice: An Edmonton Oilers jersey, underwear and odd socks. I look like I just ate a lemon.



Christmas concert at St. Theresa School, circa 1987. I was the angel with short dark hair in the top left of the frame. The last time I could don a halo with any sort of authenticity.



Yep. I'm old. The only thing that gives me comfort, is that Chuckles was in his mid 20's at that time. Which makes him really old and kind of a pervy cradle-robber.

Other than the swearing in my face over the LeapfuckingPad, people have been pretty nice. They don't get really pissy until the last weekend before Christmas.

The weekend where they realize that they've left all their shopping till the last minute, and they realize that we're not able to order anything for them in time for Christmas, and "What do you mean you don't have a book on mule training on the shelf?? What kind of second-rate establishment is this??" happens.

They'll start grabbing anything off the shelves at that point.

"Hmm...what to get Grandma? Oh, look! There's one copy of 'Tickle His Pickle' left! That way I don't have to get Grandpa a gift ! Two birds with one stone and all that..."

Now that you're all picturing your grandparents playing hide the trouser snake, I must go. I don't have another day off for a few days, and I have a lot of relaxing to get accomplished before it's time to go to sleep and wake up for another day of retail fun.

As far as my personal Christmas shopping goes, I think this is the plan for the season. I'm sure my husband will go along with it.


8 comments:

Liz said...

Hi Kyna,

I'm glad to hear you survived Black Friday - lord knows why' it's spreading over here because we don't even sodding celebrate thanksgiving, wtf?! Anyway... lol.
I've been surprised how busy it's been already; either everyone is getting their shopping done nice and early or they do indeed seem to have found money from a money tree.

Most of my shopping has been done online so far... so much more relaxing!

Rohrerbot said...

Ugh. I tried doing that hell yesterday and just shut down. I couldn't. People are crazy....I mean really crazy. I bought a pink figit..fijit...I don't even know what the damn thing is....but it was pink. PINK!!!! And the last one hiding behind the billion green ones that no one wanted. Yet when I pulled the pink out from behind the boxes. 4 parental units surrounded me like they were going to beat me up. I DISLIKE this time of year so much. So I stayed home and cleaned:) Hope they aren't too brutal with you.

Alison said...

I love reading your holiday posts about work. Dolls and bicycles? What about just getting them real books for Christmas? I buy all my little grand-nieces and nephews books for Christmas.

I love that last picture. I don't do Black Friday.

Thanks for all your hard work dealing with the crazy people.

Kyna said...

Liz: It's spread to Canada too. Although I think it makes more sense than the traditional Boxing Day sales we have up there. People are out buying stuff the day after Christmas? You'd think people'd have no money left by then.

Rohrerbot: Fijit? Sounds like an easier way to say 'fucking idiot' LOL. Glad you didn't get pummeled. ;)


Alison: I don't really like to write about work too much, I don't want to get into trouble. But I don't ever really write anything that bad, and some of the holiday stories are too good not to tell. ;)

Liz said...

Hi Kyna,

Boxing day is when everyone goes batshit crazy here too. I never, ever go anywhere near shops during the first week after christmas.
Some shops open at like 5 and 6am and people wait all night just to be the first in.

I forgot to mention the cabbage patch kid thing... It passed us by, or rather passed me by. However I did get one, no idea how, when or why because I didn't even like dolls. It had red dungarees and a little embroidered elephant :)
I was a My little pony gal, ponies ponies ponies!!!!

Robin said...

I don't think that I could work in retail. First of all I absolutely HATE to shop and second, I could never put up with people's bullshit during this time of the year!

I did participate in Black Friday for the first time. My butcher had a special...buy $100 worth of meat and get $50 for free! You just can't beat free meat!....Oh, I guess that you could!

Turling said...

HA! We sent me mum out for the Leappad for my daughter. That's awesome. No wonder she can't find it.

Kyna said...

Liz: I didn't really like dolls either. Well, I loved Barbies but not baby dolls. CPK's were the only 'baby' dolls I ever really was into. I wanted to be Barbie though. I wanted her Corvette and the big boobs.

At least I got one out of the two.

Turling: Yeah, they're nowhere to be found dude. I'd count on not fnding one before Christmas, sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

I'd say check eBay, but I bet they've jacked up the price like crazy if they are on there.