…To work in retail.
If any of you have been on Facebook over the past 15-16 days now, you’ll have become painfully aware of the “what are you thankful for” status updates. I wanted to do something like that myself except I like telling stories more than I like just saying what I’m thankful for every now and then. So, instead of doing that on these few days left before Thanksgiving I’m taking from now until the New Year to have a “things I’m happy to have in my life” type posts and hopefully enter the new year on a good note.
As we enter into the “retail hell” most people are grateful to be anywhere but the stores. Especially on the infamous Black Friday. Now, as far as shopping goes I get everything (or almost everything) online. Sure, I like shopping, especially at little independently owned stores (and bookstores of any kind) but when it comes time to buy I usually tend for the online stores. But there’s something about working in retail during the Holiday Season that makes my Christmas experience.
Weird right?
Trust me. I know.
There’s just something about working in a department store. Seeing all the decorations up, the rows of Christmas trees and ornaments for sale (looking way better when they’re put up professionally than they ever do when you take them home) and all those cheesy holiday themed gifts like candles, socks, coffee tumblers, stuffed animals, and best of Christmas Carol C.D.s that always seem to end up next to the registers. There’s also something about watching people come in and out of the store buying gifts. Everyone’s in such a hurry to find the thing they saw on sale, grab a gift receipt and get out. But when you’re working retail during the Holiday season you just get to sit back and watch everyone rush. (Sure, we also have to deal with ridiculously rude customers and an insane amount of work keeping the store organized but that’s not the point right now). It’s like a whole different way to experience the holidays.
I like to think I can trace the root of my weird fascination with working in retail at Christmas time to my childhood exposure to “The Christmas Store” a book of vignettes about things that happen in a department store at Christmas time and also comes with an (well, when I was little tapes, now they’re mp3s) audio version I’d listen to almost every night of December. The stories just make the department store Christmas world (and it really is different from the real Christmas/reality world) seem so magical. Like it’s something worth experience.
So my advice to you, once you’ve finished with the Black Friday Rush, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Sunday, is to plan a day to walk around the mall (specifically some kind of department store) with no plans to buy anything. Just soak in the atmosphere, mock those people rushing around like buying an ipod is the most important thing in their life, and enjoy the spirit.
And, to end my cute little story of the day, here’s my first finished ornament of the holiday season! I really like it and I’m looking forward to getting further along. Not making the progress I expected but there’s still time. I have the whole week off for Thanksgiving and then I graduate in mid December So hopefully that means I’ll have some time opening up. How are your Christmas projects going now that we’re getting close to the one month point? Hope everything is going well for all of you (over 400…wow) followers!