The First Black Friday

I've heard the stories.
Really, the horror stories.
People fighting.
Yelling.
Screaming.
Running.
Trampling.

It sounds like my sort of nightmare.
I dislike crowds.
Particularly, mob like crowds.

And What is Black Friday All About?

Yah. Mob Like Crowds.

So until this point in my life...I've avoided them.
I mean, there may be great deals.
But, if my life is at risk....

I don't care if it's 98% off....if I'm at risk of being maimed....it's not worth it.

However....

I saw this Ad....At Best Buy.
For a laptop.
A touch screen laptop.
A laptop that can disconnect the screen and become a tablet....

and I was like
()_() OOOOO MUST HAVE!

Why?
Because the laptop I'm currently typing this blog post on is.....well....
Ancient
in laptop terms.
It's like 4 years old.
I got it like right after my first year of college.

Soo it's old.
The keys are wearing away,
The screen is wiggly and unsteady...

Basically, even though I don't 'need' a new laptop.
I would love a new laptop.

And this 'door buster' laptop I was looking at...was saving me like $200.
()_()
Sooo expensive laptop...for not as expensive price.

GIMME!

But.
There was a problem.
When I went to go buy it online...
It was listed as an "In Store Only"

()_() But. But. But. But!
I could picture it.
The tents.
The angry mobs.
The chaos.

And I had to take a step back....is it worth it? Worth the possible fights?
My enthusiasm dampened...
I still decided to try it.
I reeeaaaaalllllyyy want it.
I mean I'd been to Best Buy like...four times in three days to 'play' with the laptop and see if I really liked it. And I did.
I kept coming back...that had to mean something.

And the final 'tipping' point....
Was that the 'door buster' happened at 10am Today.

Ten.
Not 3am.
or midnight.
or 7 am.

Just 10am.

And I was like......
Hmmm maybe....just maybe...it won't be as crazy.
I mean, all the people have been shopping since yesterday evening.
So the crowds may be thinned out.

So with trepidation,
I commenced upon my journey.
Leaving my nice warm bed, and family, and pets.
To make the very long drive back to CollegeTown.
Why not go to a closer store?
My thinking was...well....I've been in the CollegeTown Best Buy recently.
I knew where everything was.
So if it came down to a mad dash into the store....I would know the general direction to go.

My whole drive down I made backup plans.
I felt confident I could get one,
but I was prepared for the disappointment of arriving too late.
I mean, I was only going to get to the store like...45 minutes before the doorbuster time.
I pictured tents. Lines of people. me being waaaaay in the back.

Yet...I couldn't shake my confidence.
I was going to get one.

The parking lot, upon me pulling in...was fuller then normal.
But I didn't have to park waaay out in the boondocks.
I got a rather close spot.
And I also saw that....O.o there was hardly a line.
The tents I saw outside the store like 2 days ago....had vanished.
There were maybe 8 people in line as I walked up.
EIGHT.
When I pictured at least thirty.
My confidence rose again as I took my place at the end of the line.
Unless....you know...they only had like 1 laptop...and if all the people in front of me wanted that particular laptop....it would have been a waste of time.

And....the first guy in line...told me he wanted the laptop.
*gulp* Uhoh.
Then he added. "Oh yah, I went into the store and counted them, there's like 22, we're good.
O.O Really? Truly?
And then more miracles...
People left the line.
Until I was the 4th person in line.
Dun dun dun.
And then like thirty minutes before the time.
A lady came out.
Asked what we wanted.
And everyone said...'the laptop'
But there were only 4 of us in line.
And 22 laptops.

I got the purple ticket.
()_() Purrrrrpleeee.
Which basically guaranteed that I would get the laptop! (as long as I got it within a 3 hour window)

I was totally having a 'Charlie' moment.
I had the 'golden' ticket. I just needed to get through the 'chocolate factory' and get the 'grand prize' in the end.

Yet, with that ticket in hand, it didn't seem real.
Would I have it? There had to be a trick....really....
I ended up venturing cautiously into the store. Free to wander and browse the other deals while I waited for the 'ding ding ding' hour.

It finally arrived!
And with a little tiny bit of confusion on where I was supposed to get the laptop. (I had to stand in another line to get it.)

I GOT IT!
IT WAS IN MY HAND!
I PAID FOR IT
I WAS WALKING TO THE DOOR!

(totally paranoid that it was going to be stolen from my hand)
And I got stopped by the guy 'guarding' the door.
I showed him my receipt. (I think he has to do that to everyone.)

AND THEN I WAS FREE!
Me and my laptop made it safely to my car! ^^
YES.
I had survived the Black Friday Shopping event!
Woot!

No crowds. Nice people. No fights. No injuries...
Wow.
I'm a bit weirded out by it. ^^

Hehe, but I gots it! I gots it!

Sooo excited. ^^

And you know what's random.
O.o I was standing there in line.
Mentioning that this was an 'in store only deal'
and the guy in front of me was like "no it's not, I just checked, you can get it online too."
>.>
<.<
WHAT DO YOU MEAN I CAN GET IT ONLINE NOW TOO!!?!?!?!

All that anxiety, the standing in lines....the braving the Black Friday....
and you tell me that it's now available online?

*glares*

^^ Heh. But I don't care.
I guess that the laptop was only available online when the doorbuster happened...or something.
In any case.
I'm just glad to know that if I'd been unable to get my laptop on location...it was online...
I only hope that I would have gone to look once more at the laptop I couldn't have and see that it was available to get online. *shudders* If I hadn't known....ooo

But that is a total 'what if'' scenario.

BECAUSE I GOTS IT!!

Now...to wait til Christmas to open it. ^^

Until you next read these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!

-Sarnic Dirchi