Black Friday

I haven’t bought anything for weeks. Why? Because I’m waiting for the biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday, when shops slash prices and even give away free things. Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving, which means it's on 25 November this year.

Before it became a big day for shoppers, the day got the name Black Friday because it was such a busy day that city streets were black with crowds. Later people suggested the day be called Black Friday because it’s the day shop owners go in the black, meaning out of debt.
                                                                                     
I can think of another reason why the day is a black day, or a dark day, for the US. In the last few years, people have been hurt, and even killed, while taking part in the day’s sales. Shoppers often wait outside shops, especially big department stores, for days and when the doors open, they stampede inside to fight for the best deals.
 
In 2006 nine shoppers were injured in a mall in California when a crowd tried to grab gift certificates that were falling from the ceiling. In 2008 a shop worker was trampled to death in a stampede in a Walmart shop in New York. And last year a woman was arrested outside a Toys ‘R’ Us shop in Wisconsin after she threatened to shoot shoppers who complained when she jumped the queue.
 
You might have to be first into shops to get the best deals. But fortunately you can get good deals at any time of the day and even online, which is where I plan to do my shopping. I can’t think of anything I’d want to buy that’s worth dying for. Can you?!