If you showed up at 5 a.m. Friday morning at Wal-Mart for the items that went on sale at 5 a.m., you were probably out of luck.

“They started arriving at 7 o’clock last night for an XBox” New Boston Wal-Mart Manager Bill Mason said as he directed traffic at the front of the store. “I think the big items are the computers and TVs. They were lining up at about 8 (p.m.) for those.”

Around 4 a.m., toward the back of the store, several women were sitting in chairs, obviously worn out from standing for a long period of time.

“I’ve been here since 11:30 (p.m.) last night,” Debbie Personett said. “I’m wanting an iPod Touch. It’s a music player. My husband is getting two 32-inch TVs also.”

Pearl Pollard was seated with her, also awaiting the ability to buy an iPod Touch.

Tammy Culver was also waiting patiently for a bargain.

“I’m here to get a microwave,” Culver said. “It’s $18 right now and you can’t beat that. Somebody stole mine so I have to have one.”

Row after row of people were lined up, many with their hands already touching the items they were coveting. Several people hovered over the children’s pajamas.

“I’m here for the $3 p.j.’s,” Bob Colley said. “I’ve been standing in this one spot for about three hours. I tried to take a nap inside of my cart but they kicked me out of it. Said it was a safety issue. So I’m gonna grab about six pairs of p.j.’s and make a mad dash.”

Clerks and management seemed to be enjoying the camaraderie which always exists when you have something in common, and what they had in common was the desire to serve their customers and keep things running smoothly.

“I’ve been talking to the guys working over there, and they said it has been very, very orderly,” Mason said.

Outside, a light rain, some wind and cold temperatures greeted those shoppers who arrived too late to get a parking space anywhere near the store. But it didn’t seem to dampen the spirits of those who will become statistics in the biggest shopping day of the year.

“I could have stayed in bed, but why would I want to miss this?” a lady spoke as she pulled her collar around her neck and walked briskly toward the entrance.

It was just another Black Friday at Wal-Mart.

Just up the road, an equally large crowd lined around the building winding through the parking lot waiting for Kmart to open at 6 a.m.

At Kmart they call it “Blue Friday,” to tie in with their world-famous Blue Light Specials. Once the doors opened, the gaggle of shoppers filed through the doors in orderly fashion, and began their shopping venture. Some of the same people who had lined the aisles at Wal-Mart earlier had made the trek to Kmart.

“We came here to get these great Christmas bargains,” Mary Leightenheimer said. “We just went to Wal-Mart. We made a night of it. We’ve been at it since a quarter till (midnight). But I saved almost $200, and I’ve had fun doing it.”

Mary had to stand next to the Wal-Mart freezer section for five hours and was warming her hands at the same time she was shopping.

Standing at the jewelry counter, Priscilla Coleman summed up a feeling of futility that is also prevalent at events in which a lot of people are shopping for the same items.

“This is my first time doing it and merchandise is already gone. Happy holidays.”

FRANK LEWIS may be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 232.