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You couldn't even PAY me to shop on Black Friday.

Posted By: I hate crowds. on 2008-11-19
In Reply to: Any Black Friday shoppers out there? - shopaholic

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Peronsally, I would rather pay full price than shop on Black Friday.
x
you couldn't pay me to shop on a tax holiday
that's like shopping on the day after thanksgiving. No thanks!!
No Black Friday
No Black Friday thing this year because I didn't see anything that jumped out at me in the sale papers....until dh told me about Walmart's secret items that they just found out about on Wednesday. They had a computer tower, mouse and keyboard for 148 bucks. (you had to supply your own monitor). I thought they would be great for the boys. It was one to a customer so I recruited Kristi (my 19 year) to come with me. I was up and out the door at 3:30, planning to pick Kristi up and be in line by 4 for the 5am sale. Walmart had their greeters handing out maps so that you could find the sale items and get in the right line. I was all over that store because these computers were not where the map said they were. I asked lots of associates and got pointed in lots of directions and I was MOVING man! LOL Kristi was like, MOM, it's 4 in the morning, slow down. You have to forgive her, she's never been to a Black Friday sale. I teased her that she should be able to keep up with an old lady. LOL

Finally, I'm back to the place on the map, with a huge sign pointing down to where those computers are supposed to be and flag down a manager, who goes in the back and checks. He comes back out to me and says that they never got any!!! What??? You never got any?? And he says there are no rainchecks either since they never got them. What?????

So that was the end of that. I did end up getting, on a whim, two gamer chairs...the last two they had. They were on sale for less than half of what they usually are. I NEVER buy things on a whim, but I figured if I bought them and decided it wasn't a good idea, I could always return them. If I didn't buy them and THEN decided it WAS a good idea, I'd be kicking myself.

At least I didn't walk out of there with nothing so that the entire trip wasn't a waste, right?? LOL

If you went to the sales in the wee hours of the morning, how did you do? Did you get what you went for?

Black Friday
My husband and I always shop on Black Friday, but if there's something we really want he goes out at about 4:00-5:00 in the morning to get it and then comes back to get me at around 9:00. I'm not a morning person at all. I usually don't go to bed unti 4:00 a.m. because of work so the thought of getting up that early doesn't appeal to me. We leave the kids at my parents where we spend Thanksgiving. Then we go out to a fantastic Greek Restaurant for lunch then back to grandma and grandpa and then travel back home an hour away. Then the next day it's off to cut down our Christmas tree.
black friday
I went one time...and won't do it again.  I guess it would be better if I had someone to go with, but even then it gets crazy!  Good luck to you!  I will stay at home on Black Friday & shop online! 
Black Friday

Where did you go?


What time you started?


What did you buy?


Yes, i'm very nosey.


BLACK FRIDAY
Stayed home just relaxing -- when I heard earlier on NPR that a Wal-Mart employee was trampled to death when a crowd of early shoppers pushed in the front doors! They said the store was on Long Island, but gave no town. Guess what? I grew up on Long Island (that's NY) but have lived in Maine for years -- haven't seen a crowd yet! Bargains will still be there tomorrow.
Rosie

I never go out on Black Friday...SM
We live in an unstable environment, I feel at least.  And I woudlnt feel safe going to a store on this day.  In fact, I do all my shopping before Thanksgiving, mainly just to avoid lines, crowds, and out of stocks, but in the last few years I also have to safety into my mix of reasons for my early shopping.  Crazy world!! 
Black Friday

I never go out on Black Friday.  Of course, this year I had a little help staying home....a terrible cold, which also made Thanksgiving less enjoyable.  Feeling a little better, but still in bed.


I know people who live for this day.  Sorry, I don't care how good the sale is, it ain't worth it.


Black Friday....

I don't bother with it. I'm at the point in my life now where if I want it or need to get it as a present, I'm not real concerned with how much it is. I would rather sleep in, take a leisurely drive to the store (or shop on line), buy it and if it's on sale great; if not, oh well, makes no difference to me. My last Black Friday purchases were Cabbage Patch dolls (the FIRST incarnation of them many years ago) for my daughters. That was enough for me.


Black Friday Purchase
I didn't get up, but my DH was out of the house by 4:00 to get to Walmart. He actually said it was pretty civilized although it was mobbed. He ended up getting a portable DVD player for our daughter for Christmas and picked up a second one for a friend who didn't want to tackle the crowds. It was on sale for just $50. We did go out after (around 10:00 and got a few more bargains.
I only did the Black Friday thing once
and that was enough insanity for me.  DD just left to go with some friends and I said "Have fun!"  I have to work anyway, but wouldn't go even I didn't.  Unfortunately, I have to venture out tomorrow to get groceries.  I know what the stores will be like for the next few weeks.  
I did black Friday shopping ONCE and never again.
I had three young kids in tow, which was my first mistake. It was OK. We did have fun with all the little freebies and eating breakfast out. However, the crowds and rudeness just ticked me off. The stores are always out of the good deals by the time we get there. The rest of the deals are no better than I can find any other day. And the people shoving each other around just to get something free, which most of the stores don't give nice freebies any more anyway. We usually never have money at Thanksgiving either.

It's snowing here today, so I'm in homebody cleaning mode, too. I've got a fridge full of leftovers from turkey day. The kids are playing board games and DH is puttering around the house. They're playing Christmas music on the stereo. I've got plenty of extra work I'm doing to earn money for Christmas. Yes, it's a good day to be home.
Any Black Friday shoppers out there?

Tell me your plans for Black Friday.  I subscribe to a website that posts the Black Friday ads earlier than they are actually sent out.  It helps me map out my day.  I get up at 3:00 a.m. and wear my Black Friday shirt -- I have a couple and just ordered 2 more.  One reads:  "If you're not in line by 4 a.m. on Black Friday, you're just an amateur."  Another reads: "It's a Black Friday thing, you wouldn't understand."


I ordered 2 new ones.  One reads: "It's Black Friday, better have your big girl underwear on" and the other one:  "I train year-round for Black Friday; you don't stand a chance."


After shopping all day, my BFF and I head to the Roadhouse for dinner and drinks and then we hit the hot tub. 


In case you didn't figure it out, Black Friday is my favorite holiday of the year.  The closer it gets, the more psyched I get. 


What are your plans?


I never venture out on Black Friday...sm
I hate crowds and I have social anxiety. Don't get me wrong I do go shopping but not on Black Friday.
Black Friday Shopping
My husband got up really early and went to Target. He said it wasn't bad at all. He got my daughter two seasons of House on DVD and got my other daughter one of those Crayola Light Up Boards, all were on sale. Then we went out at about 9:00. We went to Kohl's, and the line, literally went around the whole store! Needless to say we didn't need anything that badly (I bet the wait was 4 hours, no kidding). Then we went to Target again and looked around (actually not very busy at all). Then we went to the Mall and got a slew of Twilight stuff for my oldest daugter and picked a few other things for my oldest. Then we ate lunch went to Walmart and just got home about 3:00. Now my husband is finishing up the Christmas decorations outside and tomorrow is tree day. I love shopping on Black Friday. And with the exception of Kohl's are wait was 5 minutes or less.
For my fellow Black Friday shoppers, a little tip

Don't wait until the last minute to get the big ticket items.  I know they may seem like a great deal, but usually those items are only $20 to $50 less than they normally would be.  The aggravation of trying to get it isn't going to be worth the money you'd save. 


I generally go for the smaller deals -- like the cool PJs on sale and the board games or DVDs on sale.  These are great sales.  One year, I got 3 Fisher Price/Hasbro games for my 5-year-old for $3 each.  DVDs were only $5 each.  There were 3-piece fleece PJs for $9.  These are best deals in my opinion. 


I've stood in line waiting to get the $49 gameboy that was normally $100 only to get to my turn and find out they're sold out.  Then I spent the next month trying to find one anywhere for my kid for Christmas. 


I go out early on Black Friday for the excitement and some bargains, but never the big ticket stuff.  I have that bought before then and stored away safe and sound.  To me, it's like tailgating -- the thing that gets me into the spirit of the season!


I worked Black Friday in snow up to my hips for .sm

7 years approving credit in a large shopping mall.....We (employees) all had to park a mile away for the incoming shoppers....Best thing was, we knew what was really on sale and helped each other with our employee discounts (15-20%) in each store.....Better yet was the day after Christmas sale! 


That was a while ago before I became an MT.    Cat


They are doing an early Black Friday sale now online!
There is a website that shows all the Black Friday ads and also shows which ones are online now, or will be on Friday. Most stores are doing the same sales online now.

Just Google black friday info
It's awful! I used to live in NY. Avoid it at all cost on Black Friday!
!!!
is there a store you will not shop

I know for some here they've said it's Walmart.

There's a chain of stores here in NJ, not sure if they're anywhere else though. It's calles SixthAvenue Electronics. We had a bad experience with them many years ago (they sold us a reconditioned piece of electronics without telling us it wasn't new) and to this day I won't even look at their flyers. I just throw them away.

Where won't you shop?


Women who shop with their
What is the deal with st**pid women who think they are special enough to take their dogs to the malls, grocery stores and other places these dogs shouldn't be? I was at Macy's today and a little dog in a woman's purse barked at people passing by. I made some rude comments to the woman but why do stores allow these people to continue to shop?

RATHER SHOP WITH DOGS

I am one of those st**pid women with little dogs and they are better company than someone like you, I am sure. They go where we go including nice hotels where they are welcome.  No one has ever complained.  They are clean and groomed, don't bark, and are gentle and loving.  Stores cater to me because I spend money there.  Are you?  Or, are you just walking around looking?  Maybe they don't cater to you because of your not so nice comments to their good customers.


Edited by Moderator for content. 


I would rather shop with dogs
than screaming kids!
I don't know where you shop, but Target has them for under 100
Target has 500-count king size (up to 18" deep) for $70 on their website. If you're thrifty, you should have no problem finding them elsewhere for under 100 dollars.
You shop at Walmart too?
//
Does anyone here shop at Fashion Bug? sm
My brothers GF is a manger at our local Fashion Bug and tomorrow only the entire store is 50% off.  This is nationwide.  They are not doing any advertising, just word of mouth. 
why I shop at Walmart
to save money. I have a bottom line too, and I go where I can get the best price.

I have a neighbor who thinks Walmart is Satan too, and guess what? we caught her shopping there last week.

The medical industry should boycott companies that send our work to India, then maybe I could afford to shop at Target. :)


I never shop before December 10th....sm
to me shopping for Christmas way ahead of time takes the fun out of getting out at holiday season.  I always take a day off of work and knock out all of my  Christmas shopping on one week day. 
I do not shop at Wally World...
Besides some company policies, which go against my personal morals, I do not like crowds. However, have you wondered where all the mom and pop stores have gone. If you live in a small community like I do, you will find that your choice of shopping is very limited...Wally bought out the market. Many MT's cry about their jobs going overseas, you should cry about products being produced overseas, being imported back into the U.S., and unskilled labor force having no choice but being employed by Wally. There are very few companies that are left that can train people, let alone invest in them, when all the jobs are going off shore. If you support Wally, you support Americas expansion into the Chinese and foreign markets.
And that is why I don't shop at those store, but there are many stores that I do
items.  I'm not holding any anger from this end, I am just going to continue to stick to my convictions. 
Sheesh, no I don't shop on either on those sites. They
jaj;da
If you like equines, here's a one-stop shop!

Mare stare has a whole boatload of farms that offer live cams in easy to navigate list format.  Usually in the spring these cams are trained in on mares who are about to give birth--which is incredibly cool (and sometimes scary!) to watch. 


http://www.marestare.com/Cams.htm


I got one to the local kitchen shop.
My mom knew I needed new pots and pans, but as I am so picky, she just got me a gift card so I could go pick my own. 
shop till you drop
x
We were at a the thrift shop for the mission in
our town the other day and there was a used toilet seat for sale.  I think they were asking 10 dollars for it.  I could understand if it was unused, still in a box, but come on....
One of many reasons I don't shop at Wal-Mart

Against the Wal
A class-action lawsuit in Dakota County could strike a costly blow to the world’s largest private employer
by MARGARET NELSON BRINKHAUS


In July 2001, Nancy Braun was watching television with a friend when a commercial caught her attention. The ad was soliciting litigants for a potential lawsuit against Wal-Mart, the Arkansas-based retailing giant, for allegedly cheating employees out of wages they were rightfully owed.


A single mother of two—and grandmother of four—Braun had started working for Wal-Mart in 1997. At the time, she lived in Slidell, Louisiana, where she had previously worked for a grocery store. She considered Wal-Mart a step-up. “I liked shopping there,” she says. “I thought I’d like working there too.”


And she did enjoy it, at least for a while. She liked the people, the work, the sense of solidarity among employees. But in 2000, homesick for her family, she moved back to Minnesota and transferred to the Wal-Mart in Apple Valley, where she was assigned to run the Radio Grill, the outlet’s now-defunct in-store restaurant. There, Braun quickly became disenchanted with the company, especially after a supervisor repeatedly prohibited her from taking breaks—even after she had surgery that required frequent trips to the bathroom. She soon quit.


Braun’s friend encouraged her to call the number mentioned in the advertisement to see if she qualified for the suit, but Braun was hesitant. She didn’t relish the prospect of reliving that period in her life. Yet she remembered how her mother, a longtime switchboard operator at Carleton College, had always encouraged her to speak up, to do the right thing when confronted with an injustice, big or small. “You can’t allow yourself to be treated like an animal,” she says. “I’m sure Mr. Walton would agree with me on that.”


One morning this past October, six years after she first saw that television ad, Braun sat inside a Dakota County courtroom in Hastings, her striped shirt and beige pants—bought from Wal-Mart—in marked contrast to dark suits, leather briefcases, BlackBerrys, and laptops sported by the army of attorneys in the room. “I’m a Plain Jane kind of gal, nothing fancy,” she said. “But I know what’s right. What Wal-Mart did to me wasn’t right.”


That sense of determination is one of the reasons why Braun found herself in Hastings, taking on the country’s largest corporation. She’s one of four lead plaintiffs in a massive, class-action lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart, a case that could affect 56,000 people who worked at Wal-Mart in Minnesota between 1998 and 2004. The suit alleges that over that period, the discount retailer systematically avoided paying wages earned by employees for overtime work and missed or shortened meal and break periods. And though the case is not the first of its kind—workers have won victories in similar cases in California and Pennsylvania—it may end up being one of the most significant. If Judge Robert King Jr. rules against Wal-Mart in this phase of the trial, the company would likely have to pay up to $500 for each employee, which could mean a payout in the tens of millions. More significantly, a ruling against Wal-Mart in this first part of the trial would also mean that the case would move to a jury to assess whether punitive damages are in order. If that happens, Wal-Mart could be on the hook for not only millions, but billions.


Braun’s troubles began after she returned to Minnesota. At the Apple Valley Wal-Mart, she worked in several different departments before running the Radio Grill. At first, she enjoyed the work. “I treated that place like my own kitchen,” she says. “I did it all willingly. I’m not afraid of work…never have been.” Not long after she started in Apple Valley, Braun had learned she needed to have gallbladder surgery. After the procedure, Braun suffered some relatively common side effects that required her to take frequent bathroom breaks. Braun’s supervisors initially said they would accommodate her needs, but that’s not what happened. “I’d get in a pinch, be there all alone, and soil myself, ruin my clothes,” Braun recalled. “I’d feel so degraded. Sometimes I wouldn’t have clothes with me, and the manager would say ‘We have clothes here for sale. Get your purse and go buy yourself some.’ They didn’t care.”


Putting up with an insufferable boss is, of course, an unavoidable part of a job for many people. Yet Braun’s treatment, argue the plaintiffs’ attorneys, wasn’t unique among Wal-Mart employees. Another lead plaintiff, Debbie Simonson, 59, started working as a cashier at the Wal-Mart in Brooklyn Park in April 2000. As a single mother of two children, she needed the money. And, like Braun, Simonson was often told by her supervisor not to take bathroom breaks. “He’d say ‘Skip the bathroom and get your butt out here,’ and I’d do it,” she explained in court. “It was an order. Your boss tells you to do something, you do it.” She quit after 13 months.


According to Justin Perl, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney, the denial of breaks was standard operating procedure at Wal-Mart. As part of the case, he and his colleagues combed through Wal-Mart’s own records to find workplace violations. They identified millions of missed bathroom and rest breaks, as well as millions of shortened rest breaks, along with thousands of missed meal breaks. “It’s the Wal-Mart way,” says Perl. “They nickel-and-dime the lowest- paid workers so they can improve their own bottom line.”


Wal-Mart sees it differently. A spokesman, John Simley, says the company doesn’t comment on pending litigation, but in other cases the company has denied it encourages employees to miss breaks or work off the clock. Wal-Mart, company officials maintain, tries to ensure compliance with company policies and state laws, but has no control over individual choices workers make.


Yet those individual choices are often informed by pressure from the company, argues Perl. According to testimony in other wage cases, Wal-Mart compensates its managers largely via bonuses that are tied to profits—and the easiest way to increase profits is by cutting expenses. “They do it by erasing everyone else’s salary,” says Perl. “It’s not a hard job. They cut staffing. They shave breaks. They make their profit goals. It’s the only basis for how they compensate their managers.”


Pamela Reinert, 54, saw for herself how that pressure was brought to bear. A petite, soft-spoken mother of seven from Maplewood who has a PhD in psychology, she joined Sam’s Club—a Wal-Mart subsidiary—in 1997, after she was laid off from another job. Like Braun and Simonson, Reinert liked the work, and was good at it. She made it into the management-training program shortly after joining the company. As a manager, she would sometimes try to intercede on behalf of workers who weren’t getting their breaks. Eventually, though, she was told to stop making trouble. She eventually quit after a supervisor threatened to write her up for insubordination—for trying to take her complaints up the chain of command.


A ruling on the case is expected sometime this month. But no matter how it turns out, Nancy Braun says she will always miss Wal-Mart. “I wish I could have stayed working there,” she says. She enjoyed the other employees, the customers, and the idea “that there was always something to do, always a way to keep busy. I worked my way up—that was a big deal for me. When I quit, I felt defeated.”


Now living in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and selling insurance at a cell phone company, she tries to attend the trial whenever possible. When she’s in Hastings, she occasionally makes a stop across the street from the courthouse to do some shopping—at Wal-Mart.


Margaret Nelson Brinkhaus is a Minnesota-based writer.


One of many reasons I don't shop at Wal-Mart

Against the Wal
A class-action lawsuit in Dakota County could strike a costly blow to the world’s largest private employer
by MARGARET NELSON BRINKHAUS


In July 2001, Nancy Braun was watching television with a friend when a commercial caught her attention. The ad was soliciting litigants for a potential lawsuit against Wal-Mart, the Arkansas-based retailing giant, for allegedly cheating employees out of wages they were rightfully owed.


A single mother of two—and grandmother of four—Braun had started working for Wal-Mart in 1997. At the time, she lived in Slidell, Louisiana, where she had previously worked for a grocery store. She considered Wal-Mart a step-up. “I liked shopping there,” she says. “I thought I’d like working there too.”


And she did enjoy it, at least for a while. She liked the people, the work, the sense of solidarity among employees. But in 2000, homesick for her family, she moved back to Minnesota and transferred to the Wal-Mart in Apple Valley, where she was assigned to run the Radio Grill, the outlet’s now-defunct in-store restaurant. There, Braun quickly became disenchanted with the company, especially after a supervisor repeatedly prohibited her from taking breaks—even after she had surgery that required frequent trips to the bathroom. She soon quit.


Braun’s friend encouraged her to call the number mentioned in the advertisement to see if she qualified for the suit, but Braun was hesitant. She didn’t relish the prospect of reliving that period in her life. Yet she remembered how her mother, a longtime switchboard operator at Carleton College, had always encouraged her to speak up, to do the right thing when confronted with an injustice, big or small. “You can’t allow yourself to be treated like an animal,” she says. “I’m sure Mr. Walton would agree with me on that.”


One morning this past October, six years after she first saw that television ad, Braun sat inside a Dakota County courtroom in Hastings, her striped shirt and beige pants—bought from Wal-Mart—in marked contrast to dark suits, leather briefcases, BlackBerrys, and laptops sported by the army of attorneys in the room. “I’m a Plain Jane kind of gal, nothing fancy,” she said. “But I know what’s right. What Wal-Mart did to me wasn’t right.”


That sense of determination is one of the reasons why Braun found herself in Hastings, taking on the country’s largest corporation. She’s one of four lead plaintiffs in a massive, class-action lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart, a case that could affect 56,000 people who worked at Wal-Mart in Minnesota between 1998 and 2004. The suit alleges that over that period, the discount retailer systematically avoided paying wages earned by employees for overtime work and missed or shortened meal and break periods. And though the case is not the first of its kind—workers have won victories in similar cases in California and Pennsylvania—it may end up being one of the most significant. If Judge Robert King Jr. rules against Wal-Mart in this phase of the trial, the company would likely have to pay up to $500 for each employee, which could mean a payout in the tens of millions. More significantly, a ruling against Wal-Mart in this first part of the trial would also mean that the case would move to a jury to assess whether punitive damages are in order. If that happens, Wal-Mart could be on the hook for not only millions, but billions.


Braun’s troubles began after she returned to Minnesota. At the Apple Valley Wal-Mart, she worked in several different departments before running the Radio Grill. At first, she enjoyed the work. “I treated that place like my own kitchen,” she says. “I did it all willingly. I’m not afraid of work…never have been.” Not long after she started in Apple Valley, Braun had learned she needed to have gallbladder surgery. After the procedure, Braun suffered some relatively common side effects that required her to take frequent bathroom breaks. Braun’s supervisors initially said they would accommodate her needs, but that’s not what happened. “I’d get in a pinch, be there all alone, and soil myself, ruin my clothes,” Braun recalled. “I’d feel so degraded. Sometimes I wouldn’t have clothes with me, and the manager would say ‘We have clothes here for sale. Get your purse and go buy yourself some.’ They didn’t care.”


Putting up with an insufferable boss is, of course, an unavoidable part of a job for many people. Yet Braun’s treatment, argue the plaintiffs’ attorneys, wasn’t unique among Wal-Mart employees. Another lead plaintiff, Debbie Simonson, 59, started working as a cashier at the Wal-Mart in Brooklyn Park in April 2000. As a single mother of two children, she needed the money. And, like Braun, Simonson was often told by her supervisor not to take bathroom breaks. “He’d say ‘Skip the bathroom and get your butt out here,’ and I’d do it,” she explained in court. “It was an order. Your boss tells you to do something, you do it.” She quit after 13 months.


According to Justin Perl, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney, the denial of breaks was standard operating procedure at Wal-Mart. As part of the case, he and his colleagues combed through Wal-Mart’s own records to find workplace violations. They identified millions of missed bathroom and rest breaks, as well as millions of shortened rest breaks, along with thousands of missed meal breaks. “It’s the Wal-Mart way,” says Perl. “They nickel-and-dime the lowest- paid workers so they can improve their own bottom line.”


Wal-Mart sees it differently. A spokesman, John Simley, says the company doesn’t comment on pending litigation, but in other cases the company has denied it encourages employees to miss breaks or work off the clock. Wal-Mart, company officials maintain, tries to ensure compliance with company policies and state laws, but has no control over individual choices workers make.


Yet those individual choices are often informed by pressure from the company, argues Perl. According to testimony in other wage cases, Wal-Mart compensates its managers largely via bonuses that are tied to profits—and the easiest way to increase profits is by cutting expenses. “They do it by erasing everyone else’s salary,” says Perl. “It’s not a hard job. They cut staffing. They shave breaks. They make their profit goals. It’s the only basis for how they compensate their managers.”


Pamela Reinert, 54, saw for herself how that pressure was brought to bear. A petite, soft-spoken mother of seven from Maplewood who has a PhD in psychology, she joined Sam’s Club—a Wal-Mart subsidiary—in 1997, after she was laid off from another job. Like Braun and Simonson, Reinert liked the work, and was good at it. She made it into the management-training program shortly after joining the company. As a manager, she would sometimes try to intercede on behalf of workers who weren’t getting their breaks. Eventually, though, she was told to stop making trouble. She eventually quit after a supervisor threatened to write her up for insubordination—for trying to take her complaints up the chain of command.


A ruling on the case is expected sometime this month. But no matter how it turns out, Nancy Braun says she will always miss Wal-Mart. “I wish I could have stayed working there,” she says. She enjoyed the other employees, the customers, and the idea “that there was always something to do, always a way to keep busy. I worked my way up—that was a big deal for me. When I quit, I felt defeated.”


Now living in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, and selling insurance at a cell phone company, she tries to attend the trial whenever possible. When she’s in Hastings, she occasionally makes a stop across the street from the courthouse to do some shopping—at Wal-Mart.


Margaret Nelson Brinkhaus is a Minnesota-based writer.


Any decent camera shop
that has any kind of processing service should be able to handle the conversion. You might want to call around and get prices. They probably will charge per slide. Nowadays, they'll probably also put digital versions of the pictures onto a CD for you. They can even create a DVD slideshow with background music. My mother had a bunch of old family slides converted some years ago, onto a VHS tape.

Of course, if you want to do it the REALLY old-fashioned way, and you don't care too much how good the prints are... I once set up the projector and screen, and actually photographed the screen, and thus got prints. At the time, I was on such a tight budget, and the cost of making a print from a slide was something ridiculous, and I only wanted the photos for a reference point, so I could see them without having to set up the equipment every time I needed to refer to one.... I'm sure there are much better options out there nowadays. In fact, I should look into it myself....
SHOP -- I'm doing my part to boost the

I also like to watch my kids play ball or take them swimming.  Sometimes, I get with my friend and her kids and we take them to the movies.  We love to cook out on the weekends and invite friends over. 


I also like just cleaning my house, believe it or not, and rearranging the furniture, etc.  Last summer, I painted and stenciled a lot and I'm thinking about doing a few pieces this summer.  I also like to take care of my flower beds.  Lots to do.  Summer is my favorite time of year. 


Used to own a coffee shop. Have had lots of those chocolate
covered beans - they can be nasty even if done professionally.  If I were to do at home - would buy a mild bean - or even a decaf bean and think I would cover with the Hershey's chocolate mixture I bought to make chocolate covered bananas - which I purchased at Cash N Carry. I think it had something special in it to stick to the bananas.  It only came in a huge can though so would be quite an investment to see if it worked.
We owned a coffee shop 5 years ago and here is my recipe (sm)
I have an espresso maker and a hot chocolate maker.  I buy white chocolate and dark chocolate at Cash N Carry.  I buy cups and lids at Costco.  I buy sleeves at Cash and Carry.  My daughters and friends say it is better than Starbucks!!  The hot cocoa maker froths the chocolate up just as well as our $1000 machine did at our original shop!! :))
Local fabric shop has a lady who gives classes. (sm)
She has been quilting for what she says is "100 years" and was an invaluable teacher. The hands-on experience on hand quilting was great. I don't think I could have picked it up from a book at all. Watching her rock the needle was just like a feathery quiver, gentle and efficient. I hope when I retire I can perfect this myself.
Owned a coffee shop and told by experts not to sm
freeze or refrigerate beans as it takes moisture out and does something to the oils. Only buy what you need and only grind what you need right before you use it. I was surprised too!
Bass Pro Shop! :) ha What region in Arkansas? What area do you type for MQ?
x
Good place to shop is Salvation Army Superstore. sm
Don't dump on me please. The store gets extra clothes from big department stores. It's better if you're a small size, but they have stuff for larger sizes too.

I got INC Incorporated embroidered tunic and Eileen Fisher sweater for $10 each, plus 2 pairs of "work" pants at $4 each.
WalMart sell homosexual books & videos. I won't shop at any store

and it's not because I'm judgemental of anyone. God will judge in the end. But, I have a right to shop at stores that do not sell such items.  And, for the poster who said homosexuals buy condoms...heterosexuals buy condoms, too!  For example, my brother and his wife use condoms because they don't want to have anymore children but also don't want to have surgery.  For the person who posted that the Bible was written by man, let me enlighten you.  The Bible was written by man through God. That means that, while man wrote the text, God was who gave man the words to write it.  This issue for me is not JUST about WalMart, it is about all businesses who sell homosexual material.


I think Chadwick's might carry larger sizes, too. And stop in a bridal shop & at
s
Next Friday
it's in stores. I'm going to buy it. I have tried everything including hypnotism and exercising my behind off to lose weight and just can't get rid of the fat. Also doing low carb and still can't lose weight. I'm counting down the days to buy Alli. Never tried Xenical but it's half the dose of it so it still should work. I'm desperate. I am in a wedding in Sept and need to lose a lot of weight in the next 3 months.
Friday
Home made chicken pot pies for dinner tonight. It's so chilly outside today. Plus, I can easily toss it in the crock pot during lunch. :)
It's Friday - Yay !!
Let's have a little fun. Name 3 things most people would be surprised to know about you. I'll start.
1. I love alternative music even though I'm in my late 40s.
2. I like animals more than most people.
3. I always wanted to be a singer as a career but cannot sing.