Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful...

Welcome to another start of the week at The Magical Mystery Blog.

Yesterday New Jersey received the first snowfall of December 2013. Schools were closed, finals were halted, and people awoke to a white wonderland just outside their homes.  Some even tossed themselves into the wintry world and probably started a snowball fight or constructed snowmen from the freshly fallen snow.

I love snow but there are times when I would love to take a flamethrower to it.  Below are the reasons why I have a love/hate relationship for snow.

The Love

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• No school, no finals, no work. Who doesn't love to not work?

• Snowball fights, snow forts, snowmen, snow sculptures, and other excellent snow creations.  People can also partake in other snow related activities such as skiing, snowboarding, snow tubing, tobogganing, ice skating, and many more fun things.

• It creates a beautiful sight. Many artists, writers, and photographers have been inspired by the falling flurries, the most beastly of blizzards, and even the simplest of snowfalls. Not too long ago a photographer was so influenced by the snow that he created a device that allowed him to take pictures of individual snowflakes; proving that no two snowflakes are alike.

• It gets you in the mood for the upcoming holidays, especially Christmas. Christmas is often associated with snow by way of songs, movies, and television specials. They have given us the idea of a perfect Christmas or anything December related is usually perfected with snow. Snow is meant to be seen as beautiful and festive, just like Christmas. Other holidays like Kwanzaa and Hanukkah are sometimes depicted with snowfall, also giving them a glorious glow.

The Hate

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• Driving in it is like piloting a plane on an uncontrollable slip ‘n slide. Because of this, chances are you won’t be able to hang with your friends at the mall, go Christmas shopping, or travel to anywhere of dire importance. Sometimes if the conditions are unbelievably terrible flights will be cancelled, certain roads will be closed off, and even establishments will be closed.

• It’s too cold, much like the rest of winter. You could say it’s cold as ice.

• If temperatures drop even after the snowfall, the snow could freeze, and change into ice or even sleet. Ice makes conditions even worse, freezing power lines, and sometimes breaking them. Ice also makes roads extremely slick to slide on and even runways for airplanes.  Snow can pile up on power lines and also cause them to collapse.

• Snow kills people by way of extreme cold temperatures or other means.  Recalling the fact that our nation is covered in a wintry white murderer, at least eleven people, if not more, have been killed by it. Some of these situations include people being killed by deep freezes, hypothermia, and slick roads, leading to fatal car crashes.  Other instances even include animals dying by the onslaught of snow. This past October, the winter storm Atlas tore through South Dakota, resulting in the multiple deaths of cattle.

So what are your thoughts on the white, wintry wonderland? Do you love snow, hate snow, or happen to fall in between? Feel free to leave your comments below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed.

Black Friday Be Gone!

For those of you who survived Black Friday and many others who chose not to venture out into the chaos, welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Black Friday is a yearly tradition where people camp outside stores just to trample others to get that perfect Christmas gift at a seemingly lower price. Over the years, I only marched out into the hostile crowds twice. During those times, I would often hear myths about Black Friday where people would murder each other or break down doors just to get what they need. Well today the myth has become reality. In Long Island, New York a Walmart worker was trampled to death. Apparently, the crowd burst through the doors, and stampeded the associate into the ground. Along with his demise, a pregnant woman was taken in for observation and a few other shoppers were treated for minor injuries. What’s even more terrifying than these tragic instances is the fact that there’s a Black Friday death count website, calculating all of those who have died just because people wanted to save on a Tickle Me Elmo.  

While Black Friday often falls on a Friday, it was pushed back this year to Thanksgiving. Other stores like Walmart pushed their Black Friday prices back to this previous Sunday so that people could attempt to avoid the madness. This was done to give the masses a time to shop before preparing for the biggest day of this week: Thanksgiving. However, most stores opened their doors on Thanksgiving at various times. Some welcomed the chaotic crowd in at midnight, others were up and running all day, and other stores invited everyone in at 6 pm; the perfect time when everyone would sit down to eat.  But for states like Massachusetts, they have created the Blue Laws which entail that Black Friday will begin on Friday, and not a day sooner.

These Blue Laws have also appeared in Rhode Island and were created with the intent of families celebrating Thanksgiving and not crowding at the doors of many stores.  It’s a great event for these specific rules to be formed and enforced upon society because it reminds them to do the following things:

1. Chill Out

Christmas will be here and gone but there’s still time to get all your holiday shopping done. If all else fails, then cyber shop. You will save money, gas, and time. Plus if you order as soon as possible, your stuff will arrive just in time for Christmas, and it’ll look like Santa delivered them to your house.

2. Thanksgiving

That holiday that comes before Christmas where you eat with friends and family. It’s also a time of reminiscing about that Black Friday when you didn't kill your neighbor for that Hot Wheels set your son or daughter wanted. Also, don’t forget the mountain of food. The tantalizing turkey, the crantastic cranberry sauce, the sublime sweet potatoes; they’re all waiting for you. Do not deny them by shopping and trampling others. Devour them.

3. It’s Not About Gifts

In this material infested world we often forget that sometimes money and gifts aren't everything.  Presents don’t always make Christmas but rather, the time you spend with people makes Christmas much more magical. Last year I didn't get that many presents but I was content with them. What made that Christmas special though was busting out the Wii and playing Pictionary for hours on end after a wonderful dinner with a great group of people.

Maybe those who were injured and killed in Long Island’s Walmart would still be with us today if they remembered these things. But now is the start of the holiday season where everyone must keep in mind that gifts aren't everything and relaxing is needed to ease the lunacy of society.

What was your worst Black Friday moment? Feel free to comment below and as always, feedback and followers are welcomed.