HERD ABOUT IT?
by Ana Grarian

The holidays fast approach. I was not able to afford an organic turkey this year, but I did get a NYS raised bird, without hormones or antibiotics. The temptation of the price wars over regular turkeys was a big temptation for someone on a small budget. However the recurring news of turkey recalls and the knowledge of conditions in turkey production kept me from going there.

Thanksgiving is our big family holiday when we can all be together at the same time. Traditions go on and are expanded, mostly related to food, as the family takes on new members.

I woke several times over night to the image of a huge giant standing over the highway, grabbing cars and tossing them into the parking lot of a local strip mall. The strip mall where a chain craft store has hung a banner saying they will open at 4pm on Thanksgiving day, because, hey, you never know when you might need some glue or poster board.

Poster board…….I’ll let my friends know.

They might need some last minute supplies to make their Black Friday protest signs.

Black Friday has been creeping into our vernacular for several decades now changing the holiday from a warm family time, to a hectic mass event to build up credit card debt. It has not even been slowed down by deaths and maimmings caused by the rush of the crowds at opening.

  Side note here: I mostly blame this “Black Friday” nonsense on retailers and ad campaigns, but hey – we all have to take personal responsibility too. It won’t happen if we don’t go! Is this really a great time in your life? Is it what the holidays mean to you?

A co-columnist posted an ad from Best Buy about Santa. So now we’re even going to throw Santa Claus out of Christmas?

My daughter told me about an ad for Pier One where a woman twists the office gift exchange so she would get her own name. Can you say juvenile? Greedy?

So far, the mall is winning. A number of years ago, Sears ran these cozy ads, showing the mall as the family place to be on the weekend.

My granddaughter watches a 2004 Nickelodean cartoon called 6Teen which basicly shows the mall as the only place teens live. There is reference to home. I think they might speak about school – or at least buying outfits for the prom which insinuates they go to school. They do have jobs (in the mall of course).

Every year at this time we are hit with a flood of books, movies, sitcoms about: “OMG it’s the holidays and I have to spend time with my family!!!!!!”. There are magazine articles about how to “gracefully” get out of it.

Well no more sweeties! You and your friends will be working this holiday season! – 24 hours a day – so that others can shop. You can work and shop round the clock, so the 1% can go to Aspen or Paris or wherever it is that those folks go on your money.

But hey – the good news for those who are working 2-3 jobs to keep their families afloat ?There should be a lot of extra shift work coming your way.

Get ready for the new tradition – Thanksgiving Breakfast – cause Momma’s got to be to work in a few hours.