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BLACK FRIDAY, or THE UNBEARABLE HEAVINESS OF STUFF

11/27/2011

 
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_Black Friday, or, the Unbearable Heaviness of Stuff
    Every car I ever owned was used, the best a 1955 Ford Victoria bought in 1962 for $150. Drove it to Logan, Utah,
and back. Others took me coast-to-coast and border to border. And I never owned a house.
    Yet I’ve been a reliable consumer, had record players and record collections from shellac, to vinyl, reel-to-reel tapes,
cassettes, CDs, and downloads. Bought the first tape recorder on the market, a Brush Soundmirror.  Tried to get interested in clothes, but whatever I bought looked like it came from Sears Roebuck. except for my first civilian suit after the army, custom -made with a crescent shaped handkerchief pocket I drew myself. It came from Sears Roebuck.
    I’ve had plenty of other “stuff,” “gear,” “loot,” did my part for consumerism and the manufacturing industry. However, filling shelves and closets was never my idea of happiness. Imelda de Marcos and Evita Peron were into shoes, thousands of pairs each. I call that a fetish.
    Now, judging by Black Friday, fetish is all over the map. Lining up for 24 hours to buy stuff strikes me as desperation. Yet the media acts as if it were wacky but wonderful, like opera buffs who get on line at 6 AM  and wait all day to see a show that night. I comprehend opera lovers, but not loot lovers.
    Toys, trinkets, TV sets churned out in some Asian country, soon busted or obsolete, clothing or video games out of fashion by next season. Has America always been such a spiritual blank, or did it get that way when I wasn’t looking? Is Black Friday all that’s left of the American Dream?
    Michele Bachmann wants an electrified double fence with a no-man’s land between, Herman Cain wants a moat with alligators, Rick Perry wants agents with night-vision binoculars, helicopters, and drones. All agree that the goal is an American Maginot line to keep out invading Mexicans looking for a piece of the American Dream.
    Could be doing them a favor.


Julietta
11/27/2011 07:56:59 am

This is so true and so sad. I am currently writing a short essay about Black Friday and Thanksgiving—I'll send it to you when I'm finished. If only America wasn't so obsessed with STUFF!

P.S. Happy Birthday!

rs
11/27/2011 08:00:55 am

we can,t stop consuming...it used to be just "buying"- but now ,if we don,t, we're ruining america.

loved the drawing piece

urbisoler
11/28/2011 02:13:04 am

It is consumption that has made the US the envy of the world. It is why they flood the US looking for jobs. It is honest labor that keeps the world on an even keel. See what happens when supply is up but demand is down.
But, there is no disagreement when it comes to using natural resources that may be depleted by an expanding population. After we suck up all the earth's juices, minerals, raw materials - then what? Can other planets replenish those resources? Better hope so.
But none of this is going to happen any time soon. In the meantime, I refuse to recycle my rather large collection of Philip Wylie books into slush for another week of, say, the New York Times. Ciao!

Martha
11/28/2011 12:05:18 pm

The next day was "Small Business Saturday," which I endorsed. Because I live in a big city, it's easy for me to shop at indy (non-chain) businesses: bookstores, hardware stores, and other local businesses. When you can, keep the money in the neighborhood.

CH
11/29/2011 08:55:51 am

This year, Black Friday, 11/25, fell on International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women. Instead of consuming, thousands of women across the globe marked this day with rallies, activism, advocacy, and action.

Red Bank sex link
10/23/2012 02:48:04 pm

First time to your blog and just wanted to say hello.


Comments are closed.
    Picture

    Author (Yuma, AZ, 1944)

    Being 90 years in this world,  with great kids,  great grandkids, great wives (two, one at a time) and great memories, I wonder why some people seem to have stopped loving the U.S.A.? I will wonder in print right here. If you wonder too, or can provide some answers, please comment.
                                   Stuart Hodes

    Picture
           With my friend, Nero.
                   April, 2012.
        Photo by Ray Madrigal

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