According to Cosmopolitan, one in every ten Black Friday sales comes back into cycle over the course of a year. It’s now the holiday season, and although Black Friday has passed, I’m still trying to get to the bottom of whether or not the deals on flat screens are really that great.

Honestly, I’ve never been Black Friday shopping before. I’ve contemplated it quite a few times and came really close to participating this year, but there were quite a few factors that stopped me.

The first reason was because I thought about the crowds I’ve seen on the news and what actually happens in them. The news always stories of stampedes, customers flipping out, and exchanges between two customers that don’t end well. What if I get stomped over in that stampede? What if things get physical with another customer? I don’t know about you, but I just want the deal–not a big deal to be made out of it. Especially on a full stomach!

Another reason why I decided not to go was the fatigue and consumption of food from the previous day. I did not have energy for all the cardio I would be doing. And please, see point one about customer exchanges–I would need to have the energy for that.

But the most important reason why I didn’t participate is because I can’t support a day that pulls people away from their families at six o’clock, during dinner time, and on Thanksgiving Day. Black Friday is a day, not a night. People should be able to stay with their families and celebrate what they’re thankful for. And I’m sure people are thankful for their source of income, but not when it pulls them away from a national holiday that all Americans dedicate thanks to.

Instead, I save my holiday shopping for December 1st. I find that I score better deals in December than my friends do on Black Friday. And I’m more in the holiday spirit when the malls are merry and bright with holiday lights. So next year when you think about starting Black Friday on Thanksgiving Day, realize many people don’t get the same opportunity to spend time with their families because they are called into work, to serve people like you. And maybe that will make you realize that Black Friday isn’t as fun as it seems when it becomes Black Thursday.