Yes, we are those crazy people they interview on TV. Deal with it.

This year we once again decided to join the ranks of the insane and camp out outside of a store to get in on all of the Black Friday sales. We weren't sure what we were going to get. I had gift cards that I had been saving for the good deals, we figured we could get some Christmas shopping done, and I told my boss I'd help her get a computer for $189. I think for me it is a way of reconnecting with college era Hutch...staying up all night for no real good reason. Anyway, here is a rundown of our night:

8:45pm -- After Thanksgiving dinner at my grandparents house in Alhambra, we get on the road headed for the same place we were two years ago: the San Diego Best Buy. Our plan is to spend the weekend down there afterwards. Last time we got there at 11pm and no one was there. When we came back at 1am there were about 20 people. Even with traffic we'll be ok.

9:30pm -- Trouble already. We pass by a Best Buy in south Orange County and see a mob outside. Hopefully this is an isolated case, but we hurry on anyway.

10:30pm -- We make it to San Diego. It's not an isolated case. In the same place that was empty two years ago, there are now about 400 people. The line is all the way around the parking lot which is what it looked like last time when the store opened at 6am. I remember seeing an ad for an equally cheap computer at Circuit City so we decide to check that out before giving up.

10:45pm -- Success! There are only about 20 people in line and at least 10 computers guaranteed. I set up my chair, and Cyndi heads to her mom's house to get coffee and the Circuit City ads.

10:50pm -- Lots of people show up. Apparently they're all friends with the guy two in front of me in line. Not cool. They've now got a group of 20 themselves. And they are LOUD!

11:00pm -- A few more people come and join the group. They break out a card table and within seconds five laptops appear. I guess Asians love the World of Warcraft too.

11:05pm -- The group is still very loud and very annoying. I break out the iPod sooner than I wanted to.

11:10pm -- Whatever they're eating has kim chee in it. Seriously, not cool. This is going to be a long night.

12:00mid -- Cyndi is back! She brought me a large mocha and a muffin to eat when I take my meds. I tell her that she'll probably want her iPod, but she just pulls out her book and decides to try and ignore them. I put my headphones back in and break out my Sudoku book.

12:30am -- The middle aged Asian guy between us and the group hasn't moved. He's been sitting on the ground staring straight ahead since I got here. He may be dead, but I'm not bored enough to check yet.

1:00am -- Good news, he's not dead. He's now staring at me. He's also creeping me out.

1:15am -- The guy now wants to know why we're there. He's there to buy a 50" plasma screen TV, but doesn't understand why anyone stays out like this. I point out the fact that he is out there for a sale. He says he could buy the TV whenever he wants, but just wants it today.

1:35am -- He's now interested in my Sudoku book. He's never seen them before and wants me to explain how they work. It seems that I'm not a good teacher and it doesn't help that the group on the other side of him is still incredibly loud. I'd ask them to quiet down a bit, but they don't speak English, and I don't speak Chinese.

1:45am -- The guy now wants to help me do one of the puzzles. I'm stuck on the one I'm doing, so it's giving him lots of time to try and "help". It might be more help if he knew what he was doing, but he really doesn't get it.

1:55am -- He gets a phone call and turns away. Just then I get a break and finish the puzzle. Before he finishes his call, I go to the car to take my meds. That'll give me a few minutes to escape.

2:05am -- I go back and remember my coffee. It's still somewhat warm, but it has no taste. Cyndi swears she got it from a real coffee maker. I accept it because I don't want to think what else could be that color.

2:30am -- Cyndi shows me her bookmark. It's a cutout of a bloody knife that came in a magazine ad a few weeks ago. We contemplate using it on several people around us. I'm not even sure it would give them a paper cut. Lucky them.



3:00am -- I'm getting tired. The store doesn't open for another two hours.

3:10am -- iPod decides I should listen to Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon". That's it. I'm going to try and sleep.

3:40am -- Sleep time is over. Some guy decides to show off by driving his big wheels pickup truck around the parking lot, revving the engine as he passes everyone. If I get out of the store before him, I'm letting the knife do their worst to his tires.

4:00am -- The store employees are here. Everyone starts rushing to pack up their stuff just in case they decide to open early. I have a feeling the employees are willing to wait a while.

4:30am -- Vouchers for the big ticket items are passed out. The only one that makes it back to us is for a 32" TV for $1500. Guess the computer is out.

5:00am -- They open up the store. Cyndi heads one way, I go the other. We'll meet up soon if we survive the rush. I wave goodbye as the mob rushes her away.

5:30am -- I finally find Cyndi. She is a bit beat up though I think she'll make it. She found a 1gb memory card for our camera that was going for 3 bucks! She really took one for the team and almost lost her arm in the process. What a fighter!

5:40am -- Some guy in line in front of me with a heavy accent notices the Gilmore Girls season 5 in my basket. "Oh you like Gilmore! That's a long movie for you to like!" Ok buddy, whatever you say.

5:50am -- We get pulled over to a newly opened register in the car audio department. While Cyndi pays, I notice they have a Big Wheels Escalade for kids. This one comes with a real working in dash dvd player. My toys were never quite that cool.

6:10am -- Back in the car. The line outside is longer than when the store opened. We spent a bunch, but some of the things we got on huge discounts just because we know we can sell them for more online. If not we'll just return them and get our money back. If we make the sales all of the presents we bought will be paid for. Since things worked out well there, we decide to head to Best Buy while we still have energy.

6:30am -- Best Buy isn't really that bad. I spend some of my gift cards on a portable dvd player. Score!

7:30am -- We make it back to Cyndi's mom's house. Mmm...sleep.

7:35am -- There's a cat standing on my head. She's ready to play. Cyndi kicks her out. We'll take a nap for a few hours and head back out for more. With any luck we can get all our shopping done today.