Black Friday Shopping: Sometimes I Wonder Is It Worth It?

I am a big fan of saving money and living frugally.  Black Friday is one of my favorite days of the year.  Really, what other day of the year is dedicated to getting consumers in the door to spend large bills of money to get their numbers out of the red and in to the black?  Each year I find one or two little items that would save us money on our Christmas list.

Growing up I lived in a small town in Oregon and I do not remember Black Friday being a big deal.  I am not sure if this was because I was young or because Black Friday didn’t exist then like it does now.  It was only when I was in college that I realized that Black Friday could save me money.  It was an event that I did a few times.  Then I had my first daughter and wanted the huge savings on the baby toys, but I couldn’t shop for two Black Fridays in a row because my husband was out of the state setting up for a conference.  Sleep was coveted more than a few extra dollars in the bank.  And well, the safety of our family by staying home and out of the insanity was paramount.  I did make it out shopping last year….I went to Walmart and then came home and was in bed before 12:45.

This year was a different story though.  Stores were open ON THANKSGIVING. Well, Walmart was (along with all the drug stores in my area and Kroger).  Stores that allowed their employees to celebrate with their families opened later at night (Michaels, Toys R Us).  The midnight magic time became muddled and the line that once clearly defined Black Friday was a blur.

My first stop this Black Friday (if it can be called that?) was to Michael’s on Thanksgiving night to get some crafty supplies to put under the tree.  I drove past Toys R Us and laughed (out loud) at the line and thought “Never in a million years.”  Then I drove to Walmart where I also thought “Never in a million years” but I did it anyway.  Never have I seen the Walmart parking lot that packed.  I had to park at a nearby fast food restaurant and walk to Walmart.  It was crazy busy inside.  Since Walmart was open all day I felt like the selections were sparse since people had been camping out ready to grab right away.  But I am sure that is the case everywhere.  The video games I came for were not to be found, so I grabbed 2 pairs of pajamas and headed to the register.  While in line I read a whole issue of one of those gossip magazines, but it wasn’t a terrible wait.

I headed home where I chatted with a  few of our Facebook fans for a bit before heading to Target.  I am lucky to live close to an amazing selection of stores.  When I drove past  Target at 10:45 there were about 40 people in line.  When I came back a little before midnight the line was long…and by long I mean…..Black Friday long!  As we stood in line the Target shoppers could hear the nearby Kohl’s shoppers cheering (twice actually) and we cringed with jealousy that the Kohl’s shopper were being ushered in to the store while we waited outside….in the cold.

There was a police officer outside Target and the line progressed nicely.  Inside the store people were nice.  In fact, I asked one lady where she found her Kinect and she said “Oh, do you want this one?  I changed my mind and don’t want it.”  I could have done a happy dance if I had more than 6 inches to myself.  🙂

And then I made a terrible no good very bad decision.  You see, I walked to the front of the store to see how long the line was.  It was….Black Friday long!  Wrapping around the store in contorted ways that I never deemed possible.  So I decided to head to electronics to pay.  Mistake!!!  I stood in line for over an hour.  When I finally left I had to walk out the front of the store (duh) and there were NO LINES.  I was so sad that, like always, I chose the wrong line.

As I texted my husband from line I could just hear him thinking “Is your time really worth this?”  And after spending more than an hour in line to save $15 I am still wondering…..is it worth it?  The logical math based voice says “Hey you!  That’s $7.50 an hour.  You made more than that when you babysat.”  But the frugalista in my thinks “You just saved money!  You go girl!!!”

Next year I have to admit, I probably won’t be going out to save a total of $15.

Did you have a good Black Friday?  Anyone else stand in line for way too long like me?