Locals already thinking about next Christmas
By Anessa Myers And Kenneth Fine
Published in News on December 26, 2008 2:28 PM
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News-Argus/MITCH LOEBER
Jenny Davis, left and her mother-in-law, Sherrie Davis, fill their cart with post-Christmas bargains at Target this morning.
Late Thursday evening, Kristin Mitchell was busy pulling boxes out of her living room closet -- preparing to pack another Christmas away.
But her garlands starting falling apart.
She noticed cracks in some of her "generic" ornaments.
And don't even ask about the 10-year-old lights that have graced her artificial tree since the birth of her only son.
"They're all twisted and the lights are old-fashioned," she said. "And the cats have just about chewed through them."
So she woke up this morning determined to ensure next Christmas' tree would feature "a whole new look."
Mrs. Mitchell was one of scores of Goldsboro residents taking advantage of clearance sales on holiday goods today.
And the mother of two found "shocking" deals on everything from vibrant garland strands to a glistening centerpiece.
"Look at this," she said from an aisle in Michaels. "Some of this stuff is 60, 70 percent off."
Emily Branson always wakes up early the day after Christmas.
"The kids get their day to go crazy," she said. "Why shouldn't moms get theirs?"
She, too, showed up at Michaels early.
"I try to buy one or two new pieces every year. You know, so that 20 years from now, all the walls and counter space will have something," Ms. Branson said. "But one or two pieces usually turns into one or two bags."
Her fiancé, Walter Shuman, doesn't mind.
"He always says he would rather I do it when the big sales are going on," she said. "Well, you don't find many sales better than 99 cents for a strand of garland."
Jeanette McNeill of Faison was another early shopper at the arts and crafts store.
"I'm looking for deals on Christmas decorations for the outside of my house," she said. "I have probably had the ones that are out there now for 15 years, and I don't want to pay full price."
Neither did Angie Head, who was busy looking over custom decorated wreaths marked 60 percent off.
"My sister is out looking for Christmas decorations. She wants a different color next year," she said. "I'm just out with her."
But Dec. 26 shopping isn't something new for her.
She said she "normally" comes out to find deals.
A few blocks away inside Berkeley Mall, Melissa and Stephen Charles were out for Christmas items, too, but they weren't looking for decorations.
The siblings were buying Christmas cards to send out next year.
"This is something we always do," Ms. Charles said.
"Yeah, it has become a tradition," her brother added.
But not everyone was buying items for next winter.
Some were simply out to find a bargain.
Like Brenda Marshall, who had already been to Target before rolling into JCPenny around 8 a.m.
"I'm just looking to see what I find," she said.
And she was pleased both with the deals she had found and the way people were acting.
"There was a line at first at Target," she said. "But once everyone got inside, it was fine. There was no pushing or shoving or anything. And I thought that was really nice. It is just like any other day."
Virginia Lassiter was also shopping at the department store, alongside her two daughters, Tiara and Tanisha.
Shopping the day after Christmas wasn't a first for the mother, but it was for her girls.
"I wanted them to come out and see what it was like," she said.
Tiara and Tanisha didn't seem to mind the day.
But the shopping time was another story.
When her mother asked her how she liked it, Tanisha replied, "You've got to get up early."