What Black Friday Means to the Ones Behind the Counter

The following are some memorable tidbits from my Black Friday experience:

1. I got to use my French skills on two different occasions to eavesdrop on different groups of clients. In turn, I was able to help one woman find the right cut of pants for her body despite a language barrier. I knew that major would come in handy for something.

2. I witnessed an old man in a white Honda Accord maul the UPS man's big brown truck while the driver was inside our store making our daily delivery. I said, "Sir, you might need to go check on your truck. It just shook. Violently." His response? "I'm sure it's fine." ...He didn't think it was so fine when he went outside and realized I was right.

3. Granny panties. Need I say more?

In sum, please let this post serve as a gentle reminder to be kind. Not just on Black Friday or during after Christmas sales, but each time you shop. Consider the people who stand on their feet for hours on end and do their best to please you. For that matter, consider this any time you go anywhere. The world would be a better place if we all took just a second to breathe before getting irritated. In the end, we're all just trying to make it through the day.

A Few Things I'm Thankful for...

It bothers me that this post does not fall into any of my labeled categories, but I will try to put my obsessive compulsive tendencies aside for the sake of Thanksgiving.

The following are just a few of the things that I am thinking of thankfully this holiday season, in no particular order at all...

1. Dance parties - any time, any place:

2. My pink KitchenAid mixer, which has been put to an extraordinary amount of work in the past 24 hours:

3. Diet Coke, because what else would my hand hold?

4. My dysfunctional family, in all of their individual parts:

5. Five-star hotels with concierges who greet you with phrases like, "Oh, nice to see you again Ms. Buttimer" and "These chocolate-covered strawberries are on us, happy birthday" and "Oh, we don't have the room you booked available quite yet, let's just upgrade you to our suite." Le sigh.

6. My besties, for whom I am so lucky:

7. Fashion and all that it inspires:

8. Stink, her Loch Ness Monster tendencies and these paws:

9. Paddington, his health and his never-ending need for both affection and naps:

10. My grandmother, whose hands I love to hold and who is a constant source of guidance and inspiration to me, and who I hope to one day be just like, down to her snowy white hair:

11 (Because 10 would just be too easy). Shoes like these... I realize this last one's a bit shallow, but I do write about fashion, after all. And I AM thankful for my shoes!