Black Friday/Cyber Monday, etc. How many of you are spending money?

[Tyrion Cheddar]

Thus far I have saved tons of money during these huge sales events...by not buying a freaking thing! :lol: But seriously...
The temptation is always there, of course, although now that I am older, most of the time there are far fewer material things I want, and even the impulse to buy a few trinkets is generally way less than it once was. Now it's larger ticket items I have to be careful about, when the mood takes me, which is usually music gear, in my case; but it's not too bad most of the time. The money I'll spend this season will be on gifts for family, that's all. Like most, uh, not young people, my desire to keep my credit card balance down has, in recent years, become at least as strong as my desire to buy things--something I note with chagrin as this fact makes me just so boringly middle-aged. :yawnb:

What about you? Have you availed yourself of the big sales? Do you wrestle with desire for merchandise? Has your desire to buy stuff (not talking about your needs, now) diminished over time? Do you control said desire and what strategies do you use?

[OrphanPip]

Honestly I'm amazed by how much Black Friday has spread outside of the US, with it making such a big stir in the UK this year. I even saw advertisements for Black Friday sales here in Malaysia and the majority of Malaysians probably couldn't tell you the first thing about Thanksgiving.

[Lokasenna]

What with moving house and not having internet access until yesterday, I'm pleased to report I spent a grand total of sod all.

I'm not keen on the idea of Black Friday - shops are horrible enough without adding a riot mentality. And if they can afford to still be profitable even with the reductions in place, then there's an argument to be made for lowering the overall prices of things throughout the year.

[YesNo]

I haven't purchased anything either, but then I normally wait until the last minute for Christmas gifts. I have a total of five Christmas cards that I have to mail out this year. I probably should just do it and get it out of the way.

As far as purchasing things for myself while they are on sale, I don't really want/need anything.

[Tyrion Cheddar]

Interesting posts, all. Orphan Pip, I didn't know about Black Friday spreading around the world, but that is Americanization for you; people see us getting excited about some cultural fare and then reproduce it in their home countries. Your point about Thanksgiving is something I noted not just in other countries this year, with people beginning their Christmas planning excitedly straight after Halloween, but oddly even in the States. I guess apart from how big Christmas is for people on a personal level, the stores want to start promoting those end of year sales as early as possible.

Lokasenna, I couldn't agree more about stores being horrible places. I've always dreaded going into them. I realized when I read your post that I was talking about online purchases--I never enter a store if I can help it. We have all the same Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales online, too. And your point about prices being lower year round made me think. Hadn't considered it but it's logical.

In my family, for the first time, we're doing a different thing for Hanukkah this year, which is to let each person pick the name of another family member out of a hat, and then they just have to buy a gift for that person. I got my brother, who ain't the easiest person to buy gifts for, but not the hardest, and I have some ideas.

[Lokasenna]

Lokasenna, I couldn't agree more about stores being horrible places. I've always dreaded going into them. I realized when I read your post that I was talking about online purchases--I never enter a store if I can help it. We have all the same Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales online, too. And your point about prices being lower year round made me think. Hadn't considered it but it's logical.

My approach to shopping is not unlike that of the SAS on undercover operations. I know my target, and I'm in and out before anyone has spotted me.

[Emil Miller]

Got to agree with the anti-shopping brigade. I really don't like shopping, which for my part is simply an imposition. In supermarkets I whizz round people standing in gangways with a vacant look on their faces and head for the nearest checkout before speeding out of the hell hole.
I have found that there are certain times of day when it's easier to shop, but in London navigating the pavements has become the problem as one needs to fight through the pullulating mass that now throng its streets, adding to the irritating fact that shopping has to be done regardless.
For larger items we now have the Godsend of online shopping which enables us to avoid traipsing around stores when we could be doing something more interesting.

[Tyrion Cheddar]

First, Emil, bonus points for pullulate. ;-) And Lok, I applaud and lend my support to your SAS analogy, although in my case I'll pick the fictional CTU from the show 24. ;-)

Speaking of wanting to avoid stores, we all know about the imminent flying delivery drones, but have you heard about the ground drones designed to travel on roads and sidewalks? Here's an example of one such idea. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE_sQdEfstU I saw another one that's being tested now that looks like one of those foam coolers you take to the beach, but on wheels, and it rolls down the sidewalk delivery meals from restaurants.

[Dreamwoven]

I hadn't heard of Black Friday until this year. We live in a quiet rural part of Sweden. No thanks, not for me Black Friday...