So what....

I'm stepping on my soap box again for a moment....  Ahem...

I've seen and heard so many complaints lately.  "Thanksgiving is so commercialized!"  "I can't believe Black Friday is starting on Thanksgiving!"  "Why is anyone playing Christmas music on November 1st?"  "The night before Thanksgiving is the biggest bar night of the year?"  Yadda yadda yadda....

Then it goes on to, "What happened to the traditions?"  "Why aren't people being with their family instead of shopping?"  "Thanksgiving is about family and food...."  blah dee blah...

Folks, does this really matter?  Have you not noticed that you don't have to do any of these things if you don't want to?

Who says those who go shopping aren't spending time with their family on a different day?  Or what if those people lost their jobs recently and are just trying to save some money so they can provide a Christmas for their children?  What if the people going out to the bar have moved over a 1000 miles away from home and the bar is the one place for them and their long time friends to commune?

I personally go Black Friday shopping every year.  For one, I enjoy it!  It's exciting and there's this Christmas spirit that just fills you up.  Believe it or not, the lines are very long, but you enjoy that!  You strike up a conversation with them, ask them who they are shopping for and what deals they found, you ask them about their Thanksgiving and what plans they have for Christmas.  There's Christmas music everywhere you go, and hot cocoa, and people laughing.  In all the years that I have gone, I have yet to run into a Grinch that is out to kill people for that deal.  And anyone that does look negative during that day, they immediately brighten up when you talk to them and remind them who they are buying their items for.

And two, we can't afford to pay $500 for flat screen TV, so the $188 one at Walmart is perfect for us.  (Although, we aren't getting that because we still can't afford it.)  Our deal seeking goes towards providing our kids with a memorable Christmas that we can afford and still have money to pay medical bills, buy food, have heat in our house, etc.  Is it so wrong that we take advantage of these mad rushes and super great discounts?

About the bar night thing, if you think about it, what do people do at the bar besides drink?  They spend time with friends.  Many people return home for the holidays to be with their family, and in doing so, they see friends they haven't seen in years.  So they go out to the bar to be with them and enjoy their company.  Who cares if they get drunk?  Let them enjoy their fellowship.

What are your traditions?  Do you let the ladies cook and let the guys watch football?  Do you eat ham instead of turkey?  Do you shop at the break of dawn?  Do you watch the parade?  Do you put Thanksgiving and Christmas together because most likely you will not have a chance to see your entire family that is spread across the country again for the holidays?  Do you go out for Chinese instead of cooking and catch a movie too?

Do what works for you and remember that what works for other people makes them happy.  And that's all that matters.  Be happy that others are happy that Christmas music is played on the radio starting November 1st, and if you don't like it, change the channel.  Be happy that people who can't afford Christmas are getting great deals for their family, and if you don't like it, don't go shopping.  Be happy that your man is watching football, and if you don't like it, don't watch it.  Be thankful that they are so happy.

That is all....go enjoy your Thanksgiving, no matter how you choose to spend it!