'Tis the season for early shopping

Resslin' Around, by Casey Ressler

Betty Rugan is crazy. Just ask her. She takes comfort in the fact that everybody else is crazy, too.

"I say every year I'm not going to do this, and I end up doing it," Rugan said. What she is talking about is braving the crowds by shopping on the day after Thanksgiving, the busiest shopping day of the year traditionally.

Rugan isn't alone. There are legions of diehard shoppers who bust down the doors of malls and shopping centers at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. to get the best bargains, the choicest gifts and the first sight of Santa Claus.

Malls opened their doors earlier than normal, and by noon, Santa Claus could be found with children on his lap, flash bulbs popping and smiles beaming. Christmas officially arrived on Nov. 23 this year.

"All of my friends told me I was nuts to plan to go shopping today, but you know what? I've already seen two of them here today," Rugan said around 10 a.m. Friday at the Cottonwood Creek Mall. "They are out here, too. They just don't admit it."

For some, shopping the day after Thanksgiving is just as traditional as carving the bird and feasting on Thursday.

"My husband and I both have off, so he watches the kids and I head to the stores with my girlfriends," said Danielle Freech. "Every year, the routine is the same. I like to shop, and doing it today [the day after Thanksgiving] gets me in the holiday mood."

Freech's shopping buddy, Geri Grange, said she does not mind battling the crowds. Her efforts are rewarded, she said.

"You get the best deals the day after Thanksgiving, and when you have a list to buy for, you have to get the best deals," Grange said. "You have to stretch every single penny around the holidays."

This year, retailers are a little skeptical about what the holiday season brings. There is an extra week of shopping this year -- Thanksgiving fell on Nov. 22, the earliest it can possibly be -- which should play well for store owners this season.

But a lagging economy and the state of world affairs could keep some people from the malls this holiday season.

"I probably won't be spending as much as I did last year," Rugan admits. "With everything going on, you just don't know what the economy will be like a month or two down the road.

"I'm a little more cautious this year than I have been in the past," Rugan said. "I think everybody is, to tell you the truth."

Freech and Grange said world politics and economic scares probably won't affect the way they shop this year.

"If I were buying big-ticket things like a car or a house, maybe I'd worry about the economy a little more than I am now but I'm not buying those types of things. I'm buying stuff I won't be financing," Grange said. "I've got the money in the bank, so it's not that big of a deal to me."

Freech agreed.

"I don't think Wall Street and the stock market have a big effect on whether or not I'm going to buy my daughter a Barbie doll for Christmas," she said. "If I were buying a new truck, then maybe."

Casey Ressler (valleylife@frontiersman.com) is the Valley Life editor. Other than fishing season, Christmas season is his favorite.