LOUIE!

Hi to all my adoring fans!

Yep, it’s moi, Louie, reporting live…I repeat LIVE…on Leah’s Front Porch. Yes, friends, I can safely say that Clark and I have dodged yet another bullet in humanity’s ongoing fascination with holiday feasting. Actually we were never in any real danger. Clark and I have earned our permanent status as residents at the West ranch due to our sparkling personalities and never ending entertainment factor. We have achieved that exalted status in the animal hierarchy known as FAMILY PETS. It’s a rarefied existence, especially so for species deemed edible by humans.  We are, pampered, petted and adored. If you think you know the true meaning of Thanksgiving, think again. Clark and I can tell you a few things about Thanksgiving, especially today, the day AFTER….the day that has in recent years come to be known as Black Friday.

Yes, we’re pretty much all in agreement that the day is Friday. It is the day after Thanksgiving which always falls on a Thursday…so, yeah, Friday is always the day after Thanksgiving…but why “Black“? There is one agreed upon interpretation which you can find with any Google search, but I would like to propose an alternative.

First of all, for the record,  for us geese, a day of the week does not correspond to any color.  Neither do events.  We geese don’t tend to over think things.  But stepping into a human’s shoes (size 6 extra wide),  I can observe patterns of thought that ,for lack of any other description,  start to look like habits…a habitual way of looking at things.  I can certainly understand,  being the dominant species and all,  you have a full plate in terms of managing it all.   Consolidating as many repeating events as possible into activities that require little or no thought process would seem the way to go.

One such repeatable event is...a Friday always follows Thanksgiving.  Legend has it that before the advent of Black Friday, that day was pretty much open for relaxation, digestion, rest and reflection….BORING!  If there’s anything you humans can’t abide, it’s a space of time with nothing to do.  So not even a month after you make the quantum leap in time travel backwards to” 7am is now 6am”, you start thinking about advancing time again.  This time you’re not messing around with hours or time zones.  On the Friday that  follows Thanksgiving, all of a sudden it’s Christmas Eve!

You feel the panic start to rise.  OMG! I forgot Christmas!  But once again good old American ingenuity rises to meet the challenge.   Black is also an accounting term, and it’s a good one, for retailers, the day after Thanksgiving.  By Monday, everyone will be back in the office, with plenty to do and a good reason to do it….paying next month’s credit card bill.

So, okay, you’re still going to leap into the fray.  Here’s my suggestion.  Stop by Toys R Us, or any other toy department.  Find the coolest toy imaginable, at the best price you’ll see before next January.  Buy the toy. Proceed immediately to the nearest Toys for Tots donation point. Drop it in the barrel.  Then if you still have a bit of imagination to spare, imagine the eyes of the child who opens that gift on Christmas morning.  Okay, I’ll do it for you…

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa.

Thanks (for) giving.

Louie

P.S.  My dear Miss Leah will be back again next week. In the meantime drop in for some holiday cheer on

Leah’s Front Porch