I still dont think they should call it "Black Friday" because it sounds so goddamn ominous and depressing dontcha think? I mean, c'mon, if you love to shop even a quarter as much as I do, even pressured power-shopping for that matter, shopping is suppose to be a fun, uplifting and (in some instances) downright theraputic experience, not something that requires you to shoot up 15 mg's of Lithium twice a day just to get through it all! Geesh! Not only that but that term "Black Friday" literally implies an event of unparalleld tragic sorrow or great human loss, certainly nothing to do with the retail industry as has been designated for the past several decades. I think they should rename it "Crazy Friday" or "Uncertain Friday" if they wanna apply that term to the allegedly biggest shopping day of the year. Regardless, I wasn't even gonna write about that day; however, while I was out-n-about yesterday I noticed something that really majorly hocked me off so as usual, I need to open my mouth and release what's on my mind.
Is it just me, or did everyone else who was out yesterday also notice all the under-the-age-of-40 mothers who were hauling their improperly dressed children around ? Most specifically, at least in the ice-cold regions of the Northeastern US, didja all notice all the mothers in that age-bracket who were toting their smallest children around, ya know, the ones between the ages of 8 weeks old and 2 years old, without warm winter clothing on them, without covering their faces and therefore allowing those precious little bundles to inhale all that goddamn ice-cold air into their tiny little lungs!?!?! Yeah, that's really super intelligent isnt it? "Oh, but I just wanted to get the best deals possible today!!" Really? Well, tell that to your baby's pulmonologist when he/she tells you "I'm sorry Mrs. Shit-For-Brains but your little boy/girl has pneumonia and is gonna have to be hooked up to a respirator and hospitalized right through the holidays." Yep, that's what I call a good parent, dont you? In my opinion anyone who is willing to risk the health and well-being of their little ones just to save a few bucks here-n-there is an unsuitable parent. I'm serious. It is downright sick, extremely pathetic, and utterly ludicrous that anyone could put the value of the overcommercialized retail world above the health and well-being of a human life, especially that of their own child. I don't know what the hell is wrong with all you younger mothers out there but you need a few lessons or more on how to properly care for and raise your children.
And you know what's even more fucked up about all of this? It take's a half-dead, Hiv+, 45 year old homosexual such as myself to point this out to people! Not fucked up because this observation, this important message, this cold-hearted fact is coming from me but because it shouldn't have to come from me or anyone in the first place! If you're gonna choose to have children you need to know how to take care of them. Bottom line, alotta you younger mothers in the 18 to 40 year old age range need to either have long discussions with your own mothers or other members of your family BEFORE you decide to have children. And, once you do decide to have children, please, PLEASE take a coupla parenting classes before you even conceive so you at least have some concept of what the hell you're doing, okay? I mean it. I'm not saying y'all need to cover your babies up like little tiny Christmas packages when taking them outside but damn, you can at least cover the areas where they are sitting in their babycarriers or strollers with a soft, warm blanket for those extremely brief time periods when transporting them from the car to the store or mall, which would be much better than doing what alotta y'all were doing yesterday.
Do you know what I saw yesterday? A young mother, probaly around the age of 21 or 22, standing outside a store, waiting for it to open, her little baby boy tucked nicely into his babycarrier BUT with a totally uncovered face. Between 29 and 31 friggin degrees and you're allowing your little baby's face to be exposed to such wickedly freezing temps? Not to mention 20 to 25 mile per hour winds in certain areas of the city as well? Excuse me? Pneumonia? Pleurisy? Hello? HELLLOOOO!?!?!?! Oh I wanted sooooo bad to go up to her and say "You stupid ignorant bitch what the fuck do you think you are doing!?!?!?!" Get that child's face covered this instant or you and I are gonna be giving Social Services a nice little phonecall in the next 45 seconds Missy!" Oh I was just livid! And it wasnt just her, I saw about a good 7 to 10 mothers just like her in that scenario, risking the health and well-being of their babies and small children just to save a few bucks on a sweater for Aunt Bertha or a toolbox for Uncle Sal. Sucha shame, sucha dirty, filthy shame! People need to stop being STUPID, start wisening up and start taking better care of their children versus putting their children's health in harm's way.
I'm not embarassed to say this in the least but I wont be buying alotta gifts for Christmas this year because of the high travel costs of my trip to go visit my relatives in the Midwest. In fact, I wasnt even Christmas shopping to begin with when I was out yesterday. All I was doing was going to Walgreen's to pick up some prescriptions and then stop off at the local grocery store on the way back to my apartment, but on the way there and the way back, I saw several of the above scenarioes I just accurately described. I wont lecture anyone about how the holiday season is suppose to be about celebrating life with your friends and family versus going into major debt just to afford gifts for this-n-that person, even though we all know that latter scenario is quite commonplace across this planet of ours; but, I will say this much - it's pretty friggin hard to celebrate the holiday season when the people you care about the most (or are at least suppose to care the most about) are in the hospital because of your own negligence and lack of common sense. Every one of you mothers out there need to bundle up your children better and keep both them and their health both warm and safe, not just during Christmas shopping season but all winter long. Period. Thank you for reading.
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