The Holiday Formerly Known As Thanksgiving Debriefing Thread 2015

[Smapti]

You'd be surprised how many people think you can safely defrost a 20-lb turkey in two days.

That's the main take-home point I got from last night's shift.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Found out today I'm working in the backroom Thursday and Friday.

I'm fine with this. But I'll likely need to spend at least a little time in the craziness because people need to buy stuff before I can restock it.

[SimonF12009]

I'm in the UK, so Thursday is just a normal day that I don't work, but my store is opening at 5am on Black Friday, and I start at 4 , presumably to help set up

[flyonthewall]

On Black Friday I'm working 6am to 12pm. I consider myself lucky. >.<


Our store always has lousy Black Friday sales so I wonder why anyone comes out in the first place.

[Food Lady]

I'm working a short day shift tomorrow and getting off at 3:30. Because people are out of town we are not having mid-week church, so I'll have time for last-minute groceries and cleaning and cooking. Off Thanksgiving and working 8:00 am Friday. I only work 8 hours, as opposed to the 11-hour debacle 2 years ago. I was overnight, too, and not used to that. I had so much adrenaline pumping into my stomach that I wanted to hurl. While I was serving food. Anyway, this year will be the best so far because I have all day Thursday to rest up.

[Dreamstalker]

We're open normal hours tomorrow, although if Shithead is running the show we probably won't get out of there until midnight (when we legally MUST close per state laws). Anything I need to buy tomorrow I'm doing before my shift as I may not get any other time to do so.

Closed on Thanksgiving proper and I plan to "shelter in place"; maybe get coffee in the morning and if I do go anywhere I plan to tip well if it's allowed.

I'll be doing tags all day Friday during business hours. Hopefully it'll be slow. Was debating going in at midnight, but mom doesn't want me on the streets that late and the pay's the same regardless of when I work. It'll be nice to have a "normal" Thursday for a change.

[Evannah]

I'm not working Black Friday because it's not really a big thing at the garden centre. Yet. The hype's been slowly spreading across the UK over the past few years, so it might be busy this time, I don't know. But I'm not in anyway, so if they do get busy it's nothing for me to worry about... unless I get called in *gulp*

[KuariKaydrith]

I'm no longer in retail or even a public facing business so I don't have to deal with the hordes. Even though I'm in Canada I have found that a majority of stores in my area are doing Black Friday sales, even the ones that aren't US based. Several of them have actually started their sales earlier. When I asked why stores in Canada would bother with sales for the day after a US holiday it was explained that it's how they compete with the US retailers, especially when doing online shopping. Our really big sale day tends to be Boxing Day...well, where I live stores are usually closed on Boxing Day and are open the next day at some ungodly hour for the start of their Boxing Week sales. I avoid shopping during those periods unless I absolutely need something and can't wait for things to quiet down.

But I'll be sitting at my desk at work thinking of all you folks that have to deal with the throngs that descend upon your workplace during this crazy time of year. You have my deepest condolences.

[RealUnimportant]

Near me (UK) most places are either not bothered, or working a reverse angle - beat the Black Friday madness with our 3/5/12 day sale. It's kind of pitiful really, they desperately want us to care but we just don't.

[Aria]

I'm no longer in retail or even a public facing business so I don't have to deal with the hordes. Even though I'm in Canada I have found that a majority of stores in my area are doing Black Friday sales, even the ones that aren't US based. Several of them have actually started their sales earlier. When I asked why stores in Canada would bother with sales for the day after a US holiday it was explained that it's how they compete with the US retailers, especially when doing online shopping. Our really big sale day tends to be Boxing Day...well, where I live stores are usually closed on Boxing Day and are open the next day at some ungodly hour for the start of their Boxing Week sales. I avoid shopping during those periods unless I absolutely need something and can't wait for things to quiet down.

But I'll be sitting at my desk at work thinking of all you folks that have to deal with the throngs that descend upon your workplace during this crazy time of year. You have my deepest condolences.

It's not that much of a competition anymore, really, with the exchange rate sucking so bad. How much can you save, especially online? Shipping and duty... Well, unless it's Amazon.

[Rosco the Iroc]

Well here it is 0630 US east coast time, I'm so giddy with the impending doom I even woke up early. I forgot to say I'm at the range today 0930-1800 and for Fri, Sat, and Sun. It's an outdoor range and at the temps will be ok. Highs of 50 today then dropping out.

Bad part is I have to drive past the Pocono's big outlet mall. That place is bad most weekends, Friday (insert Sideshow Bob's "eeeewww" here) I think I'll find a detour.

[Dreamstalker]

Last night was batshit-crazy until about 9PM. Shithead called me in early at 3 and he was hilarious to watch. Turkey with his head cut off running around, answering a million questions but not the ones that needed to be answered. He had put a newbie on Express and she was clearly having a hard time so I decided to bag for her mainly so I could field questions and I also wound up with the spare manager key for awhile. He didn't like either of those, but P told him tough shit, don't put a newbie on Express during the busiest day of the year unless you're ready to help them.

He left at 6, so we actually got out of there on time as he wasn't closing. Lots of people coming in at 10:30 looking for twine, cornbread mix and other things that they had at least a week to get. Somehow, we got all the returns cleared by 10:45.

[notalwaysright]

We did BF prep last night until late, because the SM is nice. Since it's done now, nobody has to come in at 2 AM on Friday to get ready. Anyways, I was in the drive through lane, and could see the nearby grocery store. It's nearly midnight, and normally there's maybe a half dozen non-employee cars... Last night it was pretty full, I'd guess 30-40 cars.

Side note, the drive though at the Taco Bell, was also BUSY! I was expecting slow, people home getting sleep, but I misjudged that by a lot. Was super fast, though.

[Seanette]

McDonald's last night was pretty bad. We went into the dining room, which wasn't all that full, but service was still a little on the slow side because the drive-through was so slammed. I'm not getting mad or anything, since the workers were definitely not standing around goofing off, they were BUSY.

My husband now works at the same thrift store I do, and he worked yesterday (we're both off today and he has tomorrow, while I'm working). He said it was pretty normal over there. Last year, what was Black Friday for other places was pretty much a normal workday. I'm on closing shift, so the BF shoppers would probably be at home exhausted by then anyway.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Side note, the drive though at the Taco Bell, was also BUSY! I was expecting slow, people home getting sleep, but I misjudged that by a lot. Was super fast, though.

Wish that had been the case at the Bell last night for me. It was PAINFULLY slow.