During my family’s Thanksgiving Day meal I was talking to my mom about Black Friday back when she was a kid. “The stores opened at 6 a.m.,” she stated.

She explained that all the stores opened at the same time in the morning, and her family would have to split up to get the deals at different stores. Then after they were all done at 10:00 a.m. or so, they would all meet up and have breakfast. She could not have imagined that 30 years later, stores would be opening more than 12 hours earlier than when she was a kid.

Black Friday used to be about waking up early in the morning with your friends and family and going out to wait a few hours in the cold in order to snag a few deals. Usually people got a few things for themselves, but mostly gifts for other people. It was fun and a nice way to follow up Thanksgiving Day.

This year Wal-Mart started their deals at 6:00 p.m., two hours earlier than last year. Following suit, other stores such as Target, Old Navy, and Boston Store moved up a few hours as well to 7:00 p.m. This way people can push and shove their way to deals at one store, then scurry over to the next, then the next. There was a plot twist, however. Brookfield Square Mall seemed to take a stand against these earlier times and did not allow their stores to open until 8:00 p.m.

Many people have a big problem with how early the stores are now opening. Many families eat Thanksgiving dinner around 5 or 6 p.m., not allowing them to go shopping. The dinner is the culmination of the entire Thanksgiving holiday, and it is not fair to expect them to move up their dinner for the sake of shopping. Many other families eat at around noon so this does not interfere with their shopping. However, often times they have family over or are at a family member’s house and they want to spend time together.

Many will argue that families could spend time with each other while waiting at a store for the deals. However, considering the cold weather and the amount of time spent on one’s feet, older relatives would not be able to come along, thus limiting the time spent with the whole family.

Furthermore, if a person does not fall under the categories of eating late or having older relatives, a person may just want to watch the Thanksgiving specials. I must admit that I would have enjoyed watching the Lady Gaga special where she sings and interacts with the Muppets. I wanted to watch this not because I have the least relish for Lady Gaga’s music but because it would provide some shock value (I’ve fallen into her trap). Also, I would have enjoyed watching a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.

Considering these three reasons for not having the stores open at 6 p.m. I would like to propose a compromise which I am certain has no chance of ever coming to fruition: What about opening at 10:00 p.m.? All the dinners would be over, people would have sufficient time to spend with their family, the elderly would be asleep, and the shows would all be over with

That being said, I am sure it will never go back to 10:00 p.m. anytime soon. I do not blame the stores. America has a free enterprise system, and because of this, they have the right to open as early as they would like. They would not continue to open earlier and earlier if people were not coming and they were not turning a profit.

One problem that my solution does not solve is making the workers work on Thanksgiving Day. However, considering Wal-Mart employees likely have to show up at least before 5:00 p.m. to prepare, it is safe to say they would appreciate the four hour time shift.

Many also argue that Black Friday cheapens the idea of Thanksgiving and being thankful for what we already have by going out and fighting and clawing for newest gifts. I agree that it is sort of ironic that we do this, but then again my morals are not strong enough to stop me from going shopping.  If yours are, then more power to you, but then again Call of Duty is at a really good price…

Many do not like it, but stores opening earlier seem to be a trend that will continue. If you don’t like it then don’t go out. A person has to decide which is more important; the time on Thanksgiving Day or the deals.