Black Friday

[S2M]

....anybody heading out to trample people to save $15?

[Don]

Not all the deals are bad. The 42 inch Sharp 1080p at BestBuy would make for a great computer monitor at that $199 price.

[S2M]

Not all the deals are bad. The 42 inch Sharp 1080p at BestBuy would make for a great computer monitor at that $199 price.

Just don't understand all the XXs heading off to cutthroat land, to save money...isn't it only the first few in line that get the deals anyway? Just like those overstock conventions during the late summer that advertise Xboxes for $20....and Ipads for $8. Cameras for $3, and car stereos for $12....only the VERY lucky get that stuff...you basically have to Occupy Best Buy....

[artist4perry]

Not all the deals are bad. The 42 inch Sharp 1080p at BestBuy would make for a great computer monitor at that $199 price.

Just don't understand all the XXs heading off to cutthroat land, to save money...isn't it only the first few in line that get the deals anyway? Just like those overstock conventions during the late summer that advertise Xboxes for $20....and Ipads for $8. Cameras for $3, and car stereos for $12....only the VERY lucky get that stuff...you basically have to Occupy Best Buy....

I am sleeping in, and watching TV. I hate crowded shopping places on regular basis. Those people are cut throat on Black Friday. People get shot, trampled, and the fangs come out. NO THANK YOU.

[S2M]

Losers....lol

[Enigma869]

I think in the interest of falling in line with our politically correct society that it should be re-named African American Friday

[G.I.Jim]

Losers....lol

THAT is frigging hilarious.

[artist4perry]

Losers....lol

THAT is frigging hilarious.

Occupiers of Best Buy.................opposing high prices wherever they go.

[Memorex]

I have gone out before. With 6 kids, it's always nice to find deals. But I was strategic about it. I'd say I've gone out maybe 3 of the last 20 years and my wife a couple more. Nothing appeals to me this year - some good deals but nothing i need. My son is going with his friend tonight who is going to try and pick up a $200 laptop. I'll have him pick up a couple things for me - but not xmas stuff. Just things that have a great price on them.

As far as only having 3 or 4 of something - not sure how true that is. I'm sure it happens. I think they've gotten better at it. They'll usually have at least 100 of something, it seems.

I think Walmart has learned and I heard they are breaking up their sales into different times. Last year, they sold DVD's and Games at midnight, while everything else was 5am. I had gone to pick up a couple laptops and saw the DVD crowd. It was insane - a mob. Fights, etc. But then by 12:30, those folks were all gone. As crazy as it was, it kind of worked. It's better with a place like that is open anyway, and so it's not 500 people standing outside running to one spot.

[Rip Rokken]

....anybody heading out to trample people to save $15?

That's not a bad price at all to pay for the opportunity to trample people.

[Enigma869]

With 6 kids, it's always nice to find deals.

Holy fuck. I'd lose half my kids if I ever had that many. Not to mention, I'd probably never remember all of their names

[Rip Rokken]

With 6 kids, it's always nice to find deals.

Holy fuck. I'd lose half my kids if I ever had that many. Not to mention, I'd probably never remember all of their names

A couple more and you qualify for an entry-level reality show. People eat that crap up, and you get everything paid for. Just don't go nuts and blow all the money... the tap will dry up after a couple of years.

[Enigma869]

A couple more and you qualify for an entry-level reality show.

If I had that many children, I'd need a reality show just to be able to pay for them. I honestly don't know how people are able to support that many children. I make a pretty good living and it's all I can do to pay for the expenses of two children.

[Rip Rokken]

A couple more and you qualify for an entry-level reality show.

If I had that many children, I'd need a reality show just to be able to pay for them. I honestly don't know how people are able to support that many children. I make a pretty good living and it's all I can do to pay for the expenses of two children.

Watch one of the shows - they love talking about how frugal they are, make their own laundry detergent and stuff, and how they get by week-to-week by the grace of the Almighty.

[Enigma869]

Watch one of the shows - they love talking about how frugal they are, make their own laundry detergent and stuff, and how they get by week-to-week by the grace of the Almighty.

Yeah...I know the type. I also know that "The Almighty" has never paid a single one of my bills and I'm not going to count on that starting to happen anytime soon.

[conversationpc]

Losers....lol

My post from last year's black Friday...

Loser Family First to Camp Out for Black Friday

[mrsromek]

No offense to anyone, but if I ever considered sleeping outside in a tent in the front of a Best Buy I would hope that someone who loves me would slap the shit out of me for even considering it.

I'm with you, Rip. There are a lot of people I would pay even $30 to trample over.

[Enigma869]

No offense to anyone, but if I ever considered sleeping outside in a tent in the front of a Best Buy I would hope that someone who loves me would slap the shit out of me for even considering it.

Camping period is goofy to me. As I've always said, if you're not homeless, there is absolutely ZERO fucking reason to be sleeping outside on a rock. And before all of you camping jackoffs tell me that you have an air mattress...I don't give a fuck. Get back inside, on your bed, where you belong

[ebake02]

....anybody heading out to trample people to save $15?

I'll be one of those poor bastards getting trampled. Have to work 2-11pm.

[Rip Rokken]

Wanted to experience the door-busting phenomenon first-hand, and just arrived at Best Buy who opened at midnight this year. UN-FREAKING-REAL..... photos to come soon.

[JRNYMAN]

Not all the deals are bad. The 42 inch Sharp 1080p at BestBuy would make for a great computer monitor at that $199 price.

LOL! I recently worked on a client's PC at his house and his monitor was a 42" LED. He had it sitting on the desk just as you would a CRT instead of mounted on the wall. It was just too close and everything was too big albeit CRYSTAL CLEAR. Winblows has NEVER looked so good! It kinda felt I was at an IMAX theater.

As far as joining in the melee that has become Black Friday, umm.... no, no I'm not. My wife and daughter left about an hour ago to get in line at the mall of all places rather than choosing a specific store. Years ago when the girls were little (and the stores opened at 4 am, we ventured out to take advantage of some deals on stuff for the kids but now that most, if not all the stores have included online shopping in their BF ads, there's just absolutely no reason to add to what is increasingly becoming a pathetic display the worst people can be when they don't get the deal they feel they deserve due to sellouts, etc.

Can't remember the exact year but a few years back when the 7" or "personal" DVD players were all the rage, I was still an overnight manager for Walmart and my store was the one where the 89 year old greeter was punched by a very large man who was asked for his receipt. The old guy's face was shattered and he ended up dying a couple days later. They never did catch the thief who got away with the 36" plasma screen and, oh yeah... murder.

[Rockindeano]

No offense to anyone, but if I ever considered sleeping outside in a tent in the front of a Best Buy I would hope that someone who loves me would slap the shit out of me for even considering it.

Camping period is goofy to me. As I've always said, if you're not homeless, there is absolutely ZERO fucking reason to be sleeping outside on a rock. And before all of you camping jackoffs tell me that you have an air mattress...I don't give a fuck. Get back inside, on your bed, where you belong

Ever make love to the one you love next to a bestling river under the moonlight as freight trains pass? Dude, it's unreal. I was poking my old lady and when I was about to blast off I pulled out, and squeezed it...she sat up, disoriented and then bam! Shot in her her eyeball! I love camping.

[scarygirl]

With 6 kids, it's always nice to find deals.

Holy fuck. I'd lose half my kids if I ever had that many. Not to mention, I'd probably never remember all of their names

I have a show for you: 19 KIDS AND COUNTING (NOW, 20!)

[Rip Rokken]

(NOTE: Breaking this down into parts to counter the sting caused by people who quote the entire post in their response).

RIP ROKKEN'S BLACK FRIDAY BONANZA: PART 1

Ok, here's my Black Friday story. This does happen to be my favorite shopping day of the year, and I look forward to it for a number of reasons. #1, I always get some killer deals. #2, I learn a lot about human behavior, which always leads to the deeply introspective and slightly humbling confirmation that I'm smarter than 99.75% of those people (and that's not just a number I pulled out of my ass - I'll explain the math later). It's a freaking spiritual experience that I walk away from feeling like Tom Cruise in a Scientology promo vid.



I could write a book on this, but for time's sake I'll share just a few of the gems in my time-tested and proven strategery...

1) Familiarize yourself with the Black Friday ads and map out both your objectives and your plan of attack -- write down which store is offering what and for what price, and the items you wish to purchase in order of importance, considering which stores will have the most vs. least traffic during the rush. If you're not sure about this, Best Buy is like the free space in Bingo -- it will rate the highest on the "absolute zoo" factor. Wal-Mart and Target generally run closely behind. Also, take note of the times that certain sales for items that are heavily in stock go on for. Some stores keep a sale going until 10am, while some now go all weekend. You don't have to rush to grab these items if you time yourself well.

2) Forget the loss-leader "doorbusters" -- the ones that people camp out all night waiting to receive a ticket to buy. There are generally only a few of these items on-hand and they get scooped up quickly, sometimes being ripped out of the hands of other shoppers, so leave those things to the fools whose personal time vs. savings value ratio works out heavily in their favor. If your I.Q. is above 90 and you are lucky to enjoy full time employment in today's economy, chances are you'll lose money on these.

3) When employing your strategery and trying to outsmart the general public, use extreme caution and DON'T make the mistake of considering them human. Seriously, treat them like flesh-eating zombies who will riot and rip you apart at the first sign of trouble, because they damn sure will, and people die every year making this mistake. I highly suggest NOT trying to skip in line if anyone's going to notice you doing it. Instead, if you want to be really hardcore, employ a team approach... take a buddy along who will grab a space in the checkout line with a big shopping cart and the first object they can pick up (like a pack of Twizzlers), while you go out and forage for more shit, bringing it back for them to hold. As long as they are standing there with something to purchase, people generally won't say shit about this, and you can discard the Twizzlers in favor of the XBOX at the first opportunity. Or keep them, just don't eat them for God's sakes. For the record, I've only done Black Friday solo, so while I feel my advice on teaming is quite sound, I offer the disclaimer that it's theoretical until proven out in the battlefield.

4) Remember that anything you buy, you can return, so don't waste time wondering if you really want something, or if you could get a better bargain at another store. Buy as much shit as you can (for yourself or others if your friends/family can benefit), then sort out the returns later after the National Guard arrives and the madness has subsided. Also, if any price drops in a certain number of days, get them to refund the difference. Just bought a Klipsch iPod dock on sale for $98 last week, and was amazed to see it dropped further to $68 just a few days later, and they refunded me the difference. $30 is $30.

5) Let your loved ones sleep in, then surprise them when they wake up. You'll be the closest thing to a real live Santa Claus in their eyes when they do and see all the shit you've procured for them. It's the oldest role man has been biologically wired to play.... to go forth, hunt, and provide... only it's electronics these days instead of woolly mammoth meat.

[S2M]

Honestly, I think you get better deals AFTER Xmas...Xmas is just a date. If you can get past the whole, 'i have to get my kid <whatever> by the 25th', you can have your own Xmas a week later...plus it's always grreat to people watch in the return line, like - 'Ok, sir...what is the reason for the return?' 'I've got 2 pairs of these'...'Oh, you were given TWO sets of anal beads?!!!

[Rip Rokken]

RIP ROKKEN'S BLACK FRIDAY BONANZA: PART 2

Like I said, I don't normally do the 4am doorbuster crap... I have too much pride for that, but this year, things changed... many stores started opening up for Black Friday at midnight instead (or even 10pm in the case of Wal-Mart). So this was easy since I haven't been getting to bed before 2am most days anyway. Thought I'd go experience this first-hand, just like I was in my own episode of Wild Kingdom.

Inspired by the Iron Maiden song, I arrived at Best Buy 2 minutes before midnight, and it was an absolute, damned zoo... half a block away I could see cars circling in vain to find a spot, and knew I had to think quickly to avoid getting caught in the same quicksand. As soon as I pulled in, I found a very nice fire hydrant to park in front of, and surely enough, others followed suit and piled in behind me. I was already establishing myself as a leader. Was I concerned about getting a ticket? No... I gambled that the authorities would have their hands full otherwise, and I was right.

In front of Best Buy was a squad car with flashing lights, and several (off duty?) officers helping keep the line under control. It wouldn't have surprised me in the least if they had been dressed in full riot gear, but aside from helmets and kevlar vests, I didn't notice anything else. There was also a news vehicle, broadcasting via satellite. After one glance at the line, I started taking photographs.





The line of zombies literally extended from the front door, all the way to the left, past the young hatchling megachurch, down to the loading docks, then back up and down a few times (like a line in Disneyland), then all the way back up to the freaking street. This line was LONG... amazingly, once they opened the doors, the line moved about as fast as you could walk without jogging... they piled that cattle into the store, and I was in by 12:10am. I had a laugh with the muslim standing next to me, saying that getting in must be the easy part. I knew what was to come.

[Rip Rokken]

RIP ROKKEN'S BLACK FRIDAY BONANZA: PART 3

I've never seen the store that crowded, and trust me, none of my pictures do it justice... it was anarchy.




I had my battle strategy mapped out, and picked my items up quickly. Problem is, they were out of baskets and my hands were full. By the time I found the end of the checkout line, the pain in my arms was getting pretty extreme. I have great checkout line strategery for showing up at 6-7am, but again, this was my first real try going in during the opening rush. The line to check out by electronics was just about as long as the line waiting to check out up front, and they were ridiculous... winding halfway around the store, then up and down several aisles. There was only one thing to do... abort. I put all my shit back, and decided to try Target instead.

Target was also a nightmare, but luckily the lane for the Pizza Hut Express was totally clear. I advised them that they should send a couple of hotties out hocking pizza to the idiots in line if they wanted to really maximize their bottom line, and they laughed.

Driving with one hand, and cramming a horribly greasy Italian Sausage pie with the other, I made my way to one of our nicest Wal-Marts on the edge of town, right in the middle of Richpeopleville. It's the most upscale Wal-Mart I've ever seen, and I was right... the lines were totally clear. They still had enough checkers to handle a huge rush, but they were all open. I'd forgotten though that Wal-Mart started the the madness at 10pm, and was entertained by stories from staff of the 2 fistfights they'd had to break up during the madness. This makes 4 years in a row that a Wal-Mart employee has relayed stories of violence in their Black Friday activities -- it's become a tradition now, and something I look forward to each year.

I decided to check Best Buy out again at 2am, and this time, the parking lot was only about 85% full, plus, I had no trouble getting a basket. I went ahead and picked up my shit, some of which I'd hidden behind other objects, but found the checkout line was in the same shape. I did a quick estimation in my head, gauging the length of the line vs. the thinning crowd, and felt pretty sure that if I returned at 4am, I'd be in good shape. This I did, and I was right... everything I wanted was still there, with plenty in stock, and I didn't have to wait more than 5 minutes to check out.

Now where did I come up with my estimation that 99.75% of the people there were dumber than me? Simple... It's not an exact figure, but based on a very rough estimation that the line was 400 people long, and considering those people alone, I was the only one not stupid enough to waste up to 4 hours of my time waiting to check out. I could have gotten there at 4am and had no issues with parking, finding my shit, or checking out either. But again, I did this for the sociological experience, so that I'd come face to face with the darkest side of human nature and not forget what I'm up against in this life, so I don't regret it. Mission accomplished.

EPILOGUE: Two days later, I've finally sorted out the stack of overly long, stapled together receipts from Best Buy to get an accurate assessment of the damage. These include returns and repurchases (yes, swapped out the PS3 outfit for the XBOX after receiving sounder advice than I felt I'd received from the store staff), price matches, and corrections to pricing screw ups by the store employees. I handled these with patience and grace, making sure only to approach the fattest or geekiest staffers to assist in that process, not the two hotties who had been helping me during pre-purchase. I'm venturing to guess Best Buy is sort of a social microcosm of the outside world, in that the geeks don't socialize with the cheerleaders, so the probability that my cheapness will be discovered by the hotties isn't very high. Strategery....

[Rip Rokken]

Honestly, I think you get better deals AFTER Xmas...Xmas is just a date. If you can get past the whole, 'i have to get my kid <whatever> by the 25th', you can have your own Xmas a week later...plus it's always grreat to people watch in the return line, like - 'Ok, sir...what is the reason for the return?' 'I've got 2 pairs of these'...'Oh, you were given TWO sets of anal beads?!!!

This is an excellent point... prices always drop after the rush, and holiday merchandise especially drops anywhere from 50% to 80% the very next day. People need to be patient and wait for their gift, when it can be given completely from the heart, and not out of fear of meeting a deadline. If someone absolutely must deliver by said holiday headline, then I strongly advise purchasing 364 days early. Each year at our company Christmas party, we are asked to bring a $20 ornament to swap for Dirty Santa. Each year, I bring some killer ornament I bought at 80% off right after Christmas the year before.

[Enigma869]

Camping period is goofy to me. As I've always said, if you're not homeless, there is absolutely ZERO fucking reason to be sleeping outside on a rock. And before all of you camping jackoffs tell me that you have an air mattress...I don't give a fuck. Get back inside, on your bed, where you belong

Ever make love to the one you love next to a bestling river under the moonlight as freight trains pass? Dude, it's unreal. I was poking my old lady and when I was about to blast off I pulled out, and squeezed it...she sat up, disoriented and then bam! Shot in her her eyeball! I love camping.

I knew I could count on you to find the silver lining. I'll let you keep boning your old lady outside. I'll keep giving it to my wife on the king-size Tempur-Pedic. I'm able to take perfect aim when I'm really fucking comfortable

[Angel]

#2, I learn a lot about human behavior, which always leads to the deeply introspective and slightly humbling confirmation that I'm smarter than 99.75% of those people (and that's not just a number I pulled out of my ass - I'll explain the math later).

But you're not smarter than me.....I stayed home in my nice warm bed and slept in!

I went to a store next to Best Buy on Wednesday morning and there were already people there camped out-I have no idea how long they had been there but there were about 10 tents pitched. One of the local news channels did a story on it and pointed out that Best Buy only had 16 of the TVs that everyone wanted so "if you're not already in line, you've already missed out."