Ask HN: Tell us your Black Friday stories.

[Brewer]

This year will be my first working in retail on a Black Friday. I work at Hhgregg, and electronics and appliances retailer in the eastern half of the United States and I will be working 21 out of the next 24 hours.

What stories (good or bad) do you have from Black Friday, either as a customer or an employee?

[kellishaver]

My step mother goes midnight shopping every year. I went with her last year, due to a temporary lapse of sanity. It had been weeks since I'd been out of the house due to medical reasons and I thought well, it was something to do.

The stores were almost too packed to move. Getting anywhere took forever, and while most folks were generally nice, it got really pushy around some of the bigger displays. We left shortly after witnessing a fist fight over bed sheets.... Yeah.

That said, as insanely crowded as it was and as ridiculous as some people were behaving, it wasn't an angry, frenzied mob. The vast majority of folks were laughing, talking, and helping one another out. There was just a lot of them.

I'm opting out this year, though, despite her efforts to convince me to join her again. I didn't hate the experience, but I have no need to go and large crowds are difficult to navigate and a little intimidating when you have no peripheral vision.

[Brewer]

I was pretty impressed when we opened tonight. Folks started walking calmly into the store. They were walking fast, but I didn't see anyone doing an all out sprint.