Friday, November 23, 2007

Black Friday 2007

Right after my previous entry, the night just started because it was simply Black Friday. =)

The guys and I met up at our friend's place around 11pm to prepare. We put our BF lists together and played some PS3 and ping-pong while waiting for the rest of the group to rendezvous with us. Two hours later, our group of nine strong headed out in two cars to Woodland Hills for some shopping.

There was already over a hundred people outside Circuit City when we got there around 2am. We split our teams into two: Aldous, Jimmy, and I took Circuit City while Charles, Andre, and Edwin took Staples right next door. The rest alternated in providing support, bringing food for us and checking other stores' lines.

Needless to say, it was freezing in the mid-40s and we warmed up as best we could with our clothes (I even brought my bed blanket). As the clocked ticked closer, people started rushing forward to close up any line gaps, but unfortunately, several patiently waiting customers got cut big time. =( Andrew, Shawn, and Ted noticed the commotion and surged ahead for us to keep up with the crowd pace.

When the 5am opening came about, lines were almost completely useless as people started pushing others around to get in. Salesmen "bouncers" kept a steady stream of people in and out so things didn't get too crazy, and the six of us got most of what we needed when it was our turn.

We loaded up the trunk and headed over to Staples next. With the exception of an extremely LOUD and rude woman in line behind us, it wasn't as brutal (only 2-3 customers were let in at a time). After paying for the stuff, we looked up Pep Boys on one of our newly bought GPS navigators to get more stuff, and then hit Office Depot and RadioShack to call it a night (or in this case, an early sunny morning).
































By-the-Numbers Summary

  • # of twenty-something guys participating: 9
  • # of transporting vehicles: 2
  • # of degrees Fahrenheit of outside temperature: 47
  • # of stores visited: 5
  • # of customers waiting in line: several 100s
  • Treasures
    • 10+ 2 or 4 GB USB memory sticks
    • 8 GPS navigators (TomTom and Mio)
    • 1 PlayStation 3 & controller
    • 5+ 2 GB SD memory cards
    • 2 Logitech webcams
    • Several $3 DVDs
    • 5 USB computer mice
    • 3-4 Bluetooth Earpieces
    • 1 Laptop
    • 1 Paper Shredder
  • # of Carl's Jr $1 chicken sandwiches consumed: 8
  • # of miles traveled: approx. 60
  • # of hours: approx. 7-8
  • # of $ spent: ??? (should be < $10,000)
  • # of bonding/conversation moments: too many to count
We were all sorta edgy going into the whole thing since getting what we need on the busiest shopping day of the year is a gamble. But after you walk out the stores' front doors with your stuff in hand, well, it feels pretty darn good. =) At Pep Boys, a customer even mistaken us for salesmen who worked there because "we looked so d*** happy!"

Now back to sleep.  Good (early) night.

3 comments:

Rebecca said...

haha nice asterisks. looks like a load of fun. I dont think I could've handled that well I wouldn't know if I could but yeah hah. glad you got most of what you wanted to get. bonding with the guys!

Jess Man said...

I like the bonding but read my recent blog on consumerism and Christmas :P

You made me tired just by reading it.

Albert said...

To...

Rebecca - yeah, it was fun! I actually didn't get a whole lot of stuff for myself...mainly just the Tom Tom GPS navigator for my mom and few of the smaller fish.

Jesse - I did read your blog entry and I am humbled. Definitely considering this new Kingdom-minded perspective as the holidays are approaching & one to think about for next year.

Post a Comment