I’ve talked about my love of Black Friday here. And I was able to share that with the entire Valley this weekend. Here’s my first-person account, with some photos:
It was 10 minutes to 6 Thursday night and I was feeling the adrenaline coursing through my veins as the Walmart associates ripped the cellophane off the cardboard DVD displays. I turned to my 17-year-old sister, Allison, who was about to begin her first Black Friday shopping experience.
“Now, I want you to know: if you fall, I’m not stopping for you,” I said. 
“What? Ashley, why would you do that?” she said.
“I just want you to know. This is the Hunger Games, and I can’t be held up,” I answered.
“Whatever,” she said.
It may seem dramatic, but in my 13 years of Black Friday shopping, one thing I’ve learned is that you can’t slow down for stragglers. Bargain hunting is a fine skill, one I look forward to honing every year following my Thanksgiving meal.
Back when my mother and I started our yearly Black Friday shopping session, the deals began at 6 a.m. Friday and involved you huddled outside a store in the cold, waiting for someone to unlock the store doors.
The deals were worth the potential hypothermia, especially when considering that it was the only way to afford that new Game Boy Advance that Allison, then 5 or 6, wanted. Plus, my mom and I enjoyed the time together, chatting and enjoying not being at work and school.
This year, the deals started earlier than ever — Walmart’s first “event” was at 6 p.m. Thursday — and mostly you just stand in line in the store, thanks to 24hour retail cycles.
But it’s still exciting.
Suquehanna Reporting 