Christmas
As has become the tradition of Black Friday, people gather in the streets and await the store's openings. They waited outside hardware stores the day before thanksgiving to pick up armor and weapons, and today they wait to use them.
The sales are good this year. After filling up their gas tank at the government promised lower price of 26.80 a gallon, the crowds surged into the streets and are anticipating the new christmas lines of garments and electronics.
Take Steve Bellville. He's worked all year, saving every dollar he could manage for this day. His kids have had the best care they could, and his family is happy and reluctant to give in to the feeling that Christmas is just another holiday. Steve took out another mortgage this year on his 2 story suburban home just 20 minutes to the east of Tampa. His third didn't mean anything as he can easily make his payment doing side jobs around Tampa. Coraline, his wife, has taken an night job working in a bar in Ybor. The tips aren't as great as they used to be as she grows grows older, the lines deepening in beside her eyes, and the crowd stays the same.
They stay at home mostly, when they're not working. The oldest of the three children, Melissa, spends her spare time doing what any teenage girl would do. Cooking, cleaning, baby sitting, and waiting for Mr. Right to come through the front door and save her. The Bellville homestead needs a man around the house to take of some things that have fallen upon worse times. The hurricanes have hit stronger every season, and the storms are leaving their mark. Steve is working too hard to notice the holes in the walls, and the christmas tree that has sat in the same spot since last christmas collecting spider webs and mold. Maybe it wasn't even last christmas. Two years, maybe three since they've spent anytime in the den. There are still unwrapped gifts piled against the doorway to the garage, tossed aside while the kids played the new games and fiddled with the new electronics. Even those have been tossed aside.
There was no thanksgiving this year, as Steve was spending time at the office trying to repair a, now almost acient, copier. His employees left the day before and wouldn't be seen again until the heads were counted and everyone had seen the family doctors.
Steve now waits outside a large box superstore. The crowd is surging. Steve's palms are sweating as he grips his son's Louisville slugger from a christmas past. It's his good luck charm, and this year he'll need it. He's getting older, as well, and his kids have not yet been trained to deal with this sort of thing. He stands within site of the front door, and catches glimpses of the fear in the eyes of the security as they wait for the signal.
Steve's already worked out his path through the store in his head, having spent the previous week inside of it taking note of product placement. He stood in line at the bank the previous tuesday to cash the checks he'd kept aside for just this event. Cash in his pocket, bat at the ready, and his vest secured around him, hugging the life out of him. Nothing left to do but wait.
The headlines printed just a few hours later went as follows. "Another Black Friday Failure" and the story continued. "Retailers are back on top following another furious holiday shopping day. The deals were incredible, and the people still lined up by the thousands. But were they ready for it? Reports, once again, of empty shelves, and full beds at the emergency kiosks. One shopper was crying as she ran from the store empty handed. Another was escorted out as he had tried to grab a nurse's stitcher to fix a large gash on his face. ""Although there were high sales and low casualties, the mix just isn't right" said a spokesperson for the store. "There's just not enough room inside to keep them happy enough to stay".
The article continued to point out how hard it is to stay afloat in the economy as people are watching their money through-out the year. "No one spends anymore unless they have to, except on Friday".
The lots are now empty, and most families are home wrapping presents and watching the news ticket across the walls.
Coraline will spend christmas with her family and thousands of others at the the 25th Anniversary of the ceremonial Vigil for Lost Souls.
"It's just tradition" read the article.
The sales are good this year. After filling up their gas tank at the government promised lower price of 26.80 a gallon, the crowds surged into the streets and are anticipating the new christmas lines of garments and electronics.
Take Steve Bellville. He's worked all year, saving every dollar he could manage for this day. His kids have had the best care they could, and his family is happy and reluctant to give in to the feeling that Christmas is just another holiday. Steve took out another mortgage this year on his 2 story suburban home just 20 minutes to the east of Tampa. His third didn't mean anything as he can easily make his payment doing side jobs around Tampa. Coraline, his wife, has taken an night job working in a bar in Ybor. The tips aren't as great as they used to be as she grows grows older, the lines deepening in beside her eyes, and the crowd stays the same.
They stay at home mostly, when they're not working. The oldest of the three children, Melissa, spends her spare time doing what any teenage girl would do. Cooking, cleaning, baby sitting, and waiting for Mr. Right to come through the front door and save her. The Bellville homestead needs a man around the house to take of some things that have fallen upon worse times. The hurricanes have hit stronger every season, and the storms are leaving their mark. Steve is working too hard to notice the holes in the walls, and the christmas tree that has sat in the same spot since last christmas collecting spider webs and mold. Maybe it wasn't even last christmas. Two years, maybe three since they've spent anytime in the den. There are still unwrapped gifts piled against the doorway to the garage, tossed aside while the kids played the new games and fiddled with the new electronics. Even those have been tossed aside.
There was no thanksgiving this year, as Steve was spending time at the office trying to repair a, now almost acient, copier. His employees left the day before and wouldn't be seen again until the heads were counted and everyone had seen the family doctors.
Steve now waits outside a large box superstore. The crowd is surging. Steve's palms are sweating as he grips his son's Louisville slugger from a christmas past. It's his good luck charm, and this year he'll need it. He's getting older, as well, and his kids have not yet been trained to deal with this sort of thing. He stands within site of the front door, and catches glimpses of the fear in the eyes of the security as they wait for the signal.
Steve's already worked out his path through the store in his head, having spent the previous week inside of it taking note of product placement. He stood in line at the bank the previous tuesday to cash the checks he'd kept aside for just this event. Cash in his pocket, bat at the ready, and his vest secured around him, hugging the life out of him. Nothing left to do but wait.
The headlines printed just a few hours later went as follows. "Another Black Friday Failure" and the story continued. "Retailers are back on top following another furious holiday shopping day. The deals were incredible, and the people still lined up by the thousands. But were they ready for it? Reports, once again, of empty shelves, and full beds at the emergency kiosks. One shopper was crying as she ran from the store empty handed. Another was escorted out as he had tried to grab a nurse's stitcher to fix a large gash on his face. ""Although there were high sales and low casualties, the mix just isn't right" said a spokesperson for the store. "There's just not enough room inside to keep them happy enough to stay".
The article continued to point out how hard it is to stay afloat in the economy as people are watching their money through-out the year. "No one spends anymore unless they have to, except on Friday".
The lots are now empty, and most families are home wrapping presents and watching the news ticket across the walls.
Coraline will spend christmas with her family and thousands of others at the the 25th Anniversary of the ceremonial Vigil for Lost Souls.
"It's just tradition" read the article.