There Is Always A Line, And There Will Always Be Someone Ahead Of You

I have never really understood, nor, have I truly appreciated all the excitement around the so-called “Black Friday.” It seems to me that it really messes up what should otherwise be a very nice day following Thanksgiving. Since the extended family is still in town, and all the hard work putting the big meal together is over, I would think people who are not working would want to enjoy the day relaxing and visiting with relatives they might not see again for another year. For a great many people, however, such is not the case.

Apparently, it is “fun” for a lot of folks to get up at 2:00 in the morning. They want to be in line by 3:00, so they can be disappointed when the store opens at 4:00, when they discover that the “special” price on the merchandise they wanted is no longer valid, or the item they wanted was sold a few minutes earlier to one of the 600 people in line ahead of them (who had the good sense to get up at 1:00 a.m.). And, despite last year’s disappointment, and this year’s disappointment, next year they will get up at the same time and do it all over again. I live by a few simple rules. One of my shopping rules is: “There is always a line, and there will always be someone ahead of you.”

People here in the hill country are no different from anywhere else when it comes to Black Friday. They got up in force this morning to hit the major shopping centers around Austin. Places like Barton Creek Mall, The Domain, Lakeline Mall, The Arboretum, and the Hill Country Galleria endured crowds from before sunrise until way after sunset. I’m sure that the outlet malls in San Marcos and Round Rock were also very crowded.

Some Black Friday shoppers plan their day with the precision of a military operation. They implement detailed plans to outwit and out maneuver other shoppers, in order to seize the best price on the most sought after merchandise. Some Black Friday shoppers are so organized, that they often form teams and split up in the search of the desired products. They communicate stealthily using text messages on their cell phones, so as not to alert other shoppers as to locations where lines are shorter and deals are more plentiful.

It all seems like a lot of wasted energy to me, but, if they enjoy it, it’s really no business of mine. As for me, I slept in, and then spent the day with visiting family members, who will soon be departing. Here is another rule I live by on Black Friday: “I can always shop, but I can’t visit with family members once they’ve gone home.”

Thanksgiving Day In The Hill Country

Thanksgiving Day 2009 is coming to a close in the Texas Hill Country. After a huge holiday meal, and the late afternoon nap, people are beginning to stir now, getting ready to watch the University of Texas play Texas A&M on TV.

It was a beautiful and very mild day in the hill country, and like everywhere else around the nation, families were together preparing and eating delicious Thanksgiving meals. While plenty of folks around here enjoyed the traditional turkey and ham dinner, the diversity of cultures found in the hill country meant other great food was prepared today as well.

Walking out the door early this morning, the wonderful smell of mesquite smoke had already filled the air. Despite the early hour, the chimney vents of the pit barbecues in the area were pouring out a great aroma, heralding the start of the day. The various pits were smoking turkey and beef brisket, and it made me wish that I had been invited to one of their Thanksgiving dinners.

The German influence in the hill country also meant that some homes were preparing German sausage, sauerbraten, and red cabbage. Given the Mexican influence in the region, other families were enjoying chorizo, and given the abundance of wildlife present in the state, some were enjoying wild game. I’m quite sure that more than a few homes were enjoying Texas chili and jalapeno cornbread. Vegetarians and vegans, too, celebrated with their own holiday creations of locally grown crops.

Whatever food people were enjoying today, the most important thing was that they were enjoying it along with their family and friends, and that is why Thanksgiving is so special every year.

Peace.

Hill Country Residents Live In A Destination Site

Everyone says that that the Wednesday before Thanksgiving is the busiest travel day of the year. While the actual “destination” where family and friends are gathered is the part everyone looks forward to, getting there and then returning home is the part everyone dreads.

There are two types of people during the Thanksgiving holiday, those who travel and those who don’t. Those who travel have to endure the unpleasantness of heavy highway traffic, airport delays, long layovers, and stuffing luggage into the overhead bins of jam-packed airplanes. Those who don’t travel, well, they enjoy the benefits of living in a destination site. The Texas Hill Country is not only a destination site; it is an inviting one at that.

Of course, any place someone travels to is a destination site. But some destinations are just a lot more agreeable than others. Let’s face it, if I’m going to go through the packing of bags, long hours on the road, and numerous travel hassles, I’d like to think that at the end of my journey there is something a little more to be enjoyed than huddling around a space heater on some chilly windswept prairie or frozen tundra talking with Grandma and eating a turkey sandwich. If that describes your situation, you should tell Grandma to move to a destination site that people wish to visit. You might incent her to do so by telling her that you would visit more often if she did.

There are many attractive destination sites around the country, but, of course I’m partial to the Texas Hill Country. We’ve got lots of Grandmas down here, and I can tell you, the ones I know weren’t standing in a long line today waiting to pass through the security checkpoint at some airport. They were waiting for their family members to arrive in the hill country to visit them. And many, while they were waiting, played golf or were out on a boat on one of the Highland Lakes.

There were no travels for me today, other than to run into town to grab a coffee and a bacon and cheese croissant. I was not fumbling around trying to find my electronic ticket number, or, waiting for my boarding zone to be called. After my croissant, I rode around on my golf cart, and took the dog for a walk. Boats were plentiful today on Lake Travis, people were walking out on the sand, others were playing tennis, and golfers were improving their game on the local course. But then, I live in the Texas Hill Country, a darn good destination site at that.

Tomorrow’s high (Thanksgiving Day) according to the National Weather Service, will be 38 degrees in a major Midwest City up north. Friday’s high in that same city will be 45 degrees and then 43 degrees on Saturday. Here in the hill country, the respective high temperatures are 68 degrees on Thanksgiving Day, 70 degrees on Friday, and 72 degrees on Saturday. What’s not to like? If your Grandmother lives up in that cold anonymous Midwest City, tell her to get that “For Sale” sign up in her yard and move south to the hill country of Texas. She’ll probably see you a lot more often. Why? Because you will take the time to visit her more as she lives in a pleasant, and most agreeable, destination site, and you’ll be golfing and boating once you get here (with Grandma tagging along, of course).