We're bringing back a fan favorite! Enjoy the resurrection of this amazingly fun and informational podcast with Chelsea Pribyl.
Check out Here We Are on Instagram, Facebook, or Patreon!
Welcome to Here We Are. This week, we are bringing back the ever popular Black Friday episode from last year. I thought it was extremely apropos since black Friday is just a few days away. And. In all honesty, I didn't have a chance to edit an episode for this week. But standby for next week, it's going to be a fascinating episode all on fish virology. You won't want to miss it. So without further ado here is our Encore presentation of episode 33. Chelsea Pribyl and Black Friday Welcome to Here We Are. The podcast where we talk about curiosity, fascination, and what makes us delightfully nerdy. I am your curator of nerdiness Joy Bork. I am so excited about today's episode. You're about to meet one of my besties. The one and only Chelsea. We go way back. I originally met Chelsea when I interned where she was working back in 2010 and we've been friends ever since. Chelsea amazes me often with her genuine love, care of her people, and her kindness. Basically, I'm a lifelong, card carrying member of the Chelsea Pribyl support team, and I am so proud of it. So without further ado let's learn about Black Friday from the master herself, Chelsea Pribyl
Chelsea Pribyl:hello, podcast family. My name is Chelsea Pribyl and I am from the Northwest suburbs of Chicago in Huntley, Illinois. Joy's favorite line about Huntley is it's the village with country charm
Joy Blue:No, it's the friendly village with country charm
Chelsea Pribyl:with country?
Joy Blue:Okay. What do people call us?
Chelsea Pribyl:Twins.
Joy Blue:Because
Chelsea Pribyl:We have been known to look a lot alike
Joy Blue:do we look a lot, like right now?
Chelsea Pribyl:I believe we do. Because on zoom, our haircut that is usually completely opposite is actually the same.
Joy Blue:do we see the same hair?
Chelsea Pribyl:We do.
Joy Blue:Oh, my
Chelsea Pribyl:I saw her first. I just want everyone to know.
Joy Blue:you did. But I saw her two days ago,
Chelsea Pribyl:yeah. So you saw her most recently, so you have the freshest fade, but we do look a lot alike. There have been times in our life when we have been grossly mistaken for one another constantly. Like when we were working at the same place that we're serving the same organizations and yeah. So twins.
Joy Blue:One of us goes off headset, the other can just answer all the questions and nobody knows the difference.
Chelsea Pribyl:It's brilliant.
Joy Blue:Okay. What is your flavor of nerd you want to talk about today?
Chelsea Pribyl:My flavor of nerd is all about Black Friday and how it relates to gift giving and budgeting.
Joy Blue:That's amazing.
Chelsea Pribyl:Yes. Especially because you hate it
Joy Blue:I do. Okay. When did you start black Friday shopping?
Chelsea Pribyl:I started black Friday shopping 15 years ago. And I definitely had to do the math this morning before we jumped on this podcast because I knew you were going to ask me and yeah, I went back and figure it out when it started and yeah, 15 years ago this year.
Joy Blue:Who ushered you into this discipline?
Chelsea Pribyl:It's a great question.
Joy Blue:I almost said cult and I'm like, no, it's not, that's not the right word. I don't know the right word to describe it. Practice. I don't know.
Chelsea Pribyl:Oh, sure. Yeah. Okay. Either one of those. It started with my sister and her friends in college. And it started very casually because as you and I get further and further into the conversation, you'll see that it's not a casual thing for me anymore, but in the beginning it was just kinda like, uh, hop in the cars where we want to go and visit a couple of stores on Black Friday. And that was it. My sister and her friends were in college at the time and they were totally broke and I was too. So, you know, It wasn't really anything big and elaborate and it certainly wasn't planned. It was just on a whim.
Joy Blue:Do you remember what you felt that first time? Like What was the hook? Because I look at you now and you're so hooked. like w- how did you get from I'm broke, hanging out with my college-age sister and her friends to what we will discuss of how into it you are now.
Chelsea Pribyl:I think the very first time I was just pumped to be with my sister at any point. And I felt like I was super cool. Cause I was getting to hang out with her friends. We also just have really always loved shopping. So my mom really enjoys shopping, so even when we were little, it's just something that we have done a lot of, you know, on the weekends or when we're on school breaks. We had a really fun time going to the mall and it was a family thing for us girls. And so fast forward to when I was an older age, in high school and beyond. I still enjoyed shopping. And so my sister, Catie and I would do a lot of that together. And so I don't really remember anything super specific about the first few black Fridays in particular, other than. I loved spending time with my sister and I love shopping. And if you could get a good deal while you were doing it, then that was a bonus.
Joy Blue:That's so interesting. Because you and I are both quality time people and it's, I don't know. I guess you and I have never actually talked about this. I just know that you do this black Friday thing and it's really intense. And you send me pictures throughout the day and you make at least five coffee stops that are planned. And. I don't know you, you went from just hanging out too intense. When did you start planning?
Chelsea Pribyl:was a slow ramp. I would say. you know, First few years, not totally planning at all. Once we started catching on to the things that we really liked about Black Friday and the advantages that we had and the fun that we would have. We just slowly every year, morphed it into something a little bit different and something more specific, actually creating a plan or actually creating a budget or actually inviting certain people to join us. Or Just every year it turned into something a little bit different and bigger and better in our opinions. And so once we were both married and like totally on our own, like we're not living at home, we're not in school age of any sort anymore. Then it really became a more official tradition and something that we definitely plan for and put a lot of work into. And I think the fun increased for us when we started doing that as well.
Joy Blue:Okay, that's fantastic. First and foremost. Second, we keep talking around this word, the plan. Well, Two words. What is the plan? How do you plan? What does your plan look like? Is it strict?
Chelsea Pribyl:The plan is a guard rail. Let's call it a guard rail or a set of boundaries to play within and so. I hope Catie would agree. I don't think it's super strict. I think It's a way for us to be the most efficient. That's probably the reason for the plan. We plan far in advance, which is probably nauseating for most people listening to this because.
Joy Blue:How far in advance?
Chelsea Pribyl:On our good years like a couple of months. On our most desperate rush years, it's like a few weeks. But either way, it definitely requires getting in the right mindset. Because for us, the end goal of black Friday: one, it's the time together. It's the quality time, like you said. But two: It's the goal of being completely done with Christmas shopping by the time the day is over. And so, in order to do that, we have to know who we're buying for, what kinds of stores we need to try to find, what kinds of deals we're looking for on what types of items. We also need to know what kind of budgets we have to work with. Because for us, this isn't like a, just spend all the money and go crazy and be in tons of debt when the day is over. That's not what it's about for us. Like we go into it with a set budget. And speaking for myself and for my husband, like we save all 12 months of the year for this day, so that it's not a stressful financial day for us. So knowing that, you need to know how to stretch your dollars and you need a plan to support that. And also there's only so many hours in the black Friday day. And so you need to know kind of what route you want to take so that you can hit all your stores before they close, or before deals end, and all of that stuff. So it's a lot of conversation about, Hey, where do you need to hit? Where do I need to hit? What kinds of things are you looking for? So I can help you look for those things and vice versa. And we have a mantra: don't settle. We never settle on black Friday. So if you are like in target and you're holding something, and you're like, oh, would this person like this thing, or is this exactly what I'm looking for for myself? And you're like waffling, we put it back on the shelf. We don't buy things that we're waffling on. We buy things that we're like a hundred percent confident, this is the best deal, or this is exactly what I've been looking for. And we do it with confidence. So if you're waffling, you just move on
Joy Blue:That's fantastic.
Chelsea Pribyl:It's probably a good life motto too, but it works for shopping.
Joy Blue:Can you get that tattooed in a waffle somewhere because you know, don't settle. Don't waffle.
Chelsea Pribyl:I need an introductory tattoo. So that sounds like a big one.
Joy Blue:There you go. I am in awe of all of this. How do you plan to use it on the spreadsheet?
Chelsea Pribyl:You know, it! It is in a multi tab spreadsheet that I keep track of and work on all throughout the year. It's definitely not as elaborate as yours would be. 100%. You were just working on a spreadsheet for me yesterday and for something. And I can't even scratch the surface of your spreadsheet wizardry. But yeah, for me, it's something that lays out all of the people that we gift give to that's right... That we give gifts to all the people, the budget for each of them. And then any ideas that I have walking into black Friday about what they might enjoy, something that I'm looking for for them, and then a possible store where I might find it. So I have a lot of nieces and nephews just to use them as an example. I love buying kids stuff. It's like my favorite category of things to buy. And so all throughout the year, Out and about, and listening to conversations and seeing things online, and so I'm keeping track of ideas. And so I might have five things listed for a niece or nephew in particular, but I'm looking for what is the best deal? How can I stretch my money the most and what can I get my hands on that day that I think that they will really love. So yeah, the spreadsheet is encompassing all of that. But then. Additional tabs in the spreadsheet that get formulated more on Thanksgiving because you have to get the paper on Thanksgiving, or you have to be looking at the ads online and you're tracking what deals are coming out just that day before black Friday, or you're tracking store hours or, You know, certain stores say, Hey, we have deals going until noon. You know, You have to be physically in the store in order to get a certain deal. So then we're creating lists of all of those kinds of things. Stats and store hours and
Joy Blue:This is magic.
Chelsea Pribyl:it's a process.
Joy Blue:I've always known that you do this thing, but like this conversation is making me really happy because now I know how you do the thing. And one of the things that makes me the most happy is learning how. And I could almost cry right now, I'm so happy. I know. It's insane. It happens. My eyeballs, just do that.
Chelsea Pribyl:They do they water.
Joy Blue:you really are thinking about this all year?
Chelsea Pribyl:Yeah, it is on my mind all year long, but it's most intensely on my mind the three to six months before black Friday. So I've tried different tactics before. Like one year I totally changed it up. And I said, if I'm out and about the entire year, and I see something that inspires me for someone else, I snag it and I just hang on to it. Or if I find really great deals on a set of things, I'm going to buy them because I'm sure someone on my list will appreciate it at Christmas. But that tripped me up. I wasn't really anticipating it because then I found myself the week of Thanksgiving going, I have a table full of stuff, and I don't remember who I bought them for or how much I spent on that. I didn't keep track of the budget side of it and all that. It really screwed up the whole plan. And so this year by comparison, I haven't bought a thing that I would put towards a Christmas gift. And so. yeah I'm, I'm starting to think who are the people? What are they into? Like what would surprise and delight them to open at Christmas? I take a lot of notes, when people are talking to me about things that they love, or restaurants that they'd gone to, that they really enjoy or experiences that they've had. So that they spark creativity and curiosity in me when I'm shopping on black Friday.
Joy Blue:It feels a little bit like I just walked into Oz. And I'm getting just a little bit of a glimpse of the magic behind the curtain. And I both want to know and also be like no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I don't want to know. I don't want to know. I don't want to ruin it. But I'm going to ask all the questions. One of the things I have come to know about you and appreciate about you so deeply is that you are such an intentional gift giver. And I had no clue until you know, I was today years old when I found out that you keep notes on people. But that makes so much sense because everything you've given me has been incredibly thoughtful and it almost always makes me want to cry because I'm like really Chelsea, you did that. What? Stop!? I love it so much. And this is just a delightful part of your nerdiness and your intentionality and how you love your people.
Chelsea Pribyl:Um,
Joy Blue:Kills me with goodness. Yeah. Also terror because you're magical at it.
Chelsea Pribyl:I am horrible at a lot of things. So do not be in such awe and wonder, but
Joy Blue:It's and wonder, because I'm so bad at it.
Chelsea Pribyl:I actually don't think that you're bad at it, but we can
Joy Blue:Comparison is the killer of joy. But comparatively sure. Last question. What is one of your most proud finds or discoveries
Chelsea Pribyl:Oh man. Definitely not proud of the pink cake that I gave you when I first met you. That was
Joy Blue:I'm still so pleased with that cake. I was, I almost wanted to cry just because somebody I didn't know, made me a cake. Okay. And that was like one of the most Surprising things that could have happened. Because I did not expect people at all to see me, understand, approach me. And that was one of, that was one of the first things you ever did that I was like, holy crap, this girl is different. I don't understand. Scared. Hesitant. Must be her friend. Okay. And here we are. 11 years later.
Chelsea Pribyl:Oh my goodness. That's a really great question that I wish I had a wow answer for. But to roll a few things into one quickly I'm always blown away at the price of Sharpies, which are my favorite thing on the planet. on black Friday. So Sharpies, like they're a must. Like Ryan just knows. I always come home with Sharpies on black Friday. I don't need them, but I want them and I love them. They bring me joy. So, black Friday's and amazing day to buy luggage. That's the most adulting sentence I've ever said in my life, but that week is a great time to invest in really nice luggage. And my sister and I, between the two of us, we have bought a handful of video game consoles. You know, that's A great day to buy them for a steal. And so I'm remembering some of our most like courageous or most memorable, very early morning kind of moments on black Friday of standing in line, before stores open. Or being a part of, maybe we were given like raffle tickets and you don't know if you're going to get one until the very last minute or just spending all day being on the hunt for a video game console. And it's really mostly for our husbands. Like we've been tasked with finding the right thing. And so those have been some really fun memories where you're on the hunt. The hunt is part of the fun for Catie and I. And anytime we're like looking for one specific thing, And you've spent your day, always checking and always looking or calling stores or visiting five of the same store, just to see if you can find it like a scavenger hunt sort of way of those are always really fun. And the only other thing that came to mind was the ability to find a way to give back on black Friday is always a big part of what we're doing. And so, looking for local places that are doing food drives, coat drives, school supply drives, something like that, or their proceeds give back to other people. We really get jazzed about being able to be a part of organizations like that on such a day where everybody's shopping and you're out doing it anyways. So why not go the extra mile and do a couple of things for other people too? So. those are Kind of My most memorable things. Sharpies for the win
Joy Blue:I, yeah, you say that as I look to my left and I have an entire lego array that's vertical. That's built. That's has Sharpies. And I think you and I both have about the same amount of Sharpies. No, you
Chelsea Pribyl:the more Sharpies, the better, that whole thing. Wasn't Sharpies that I just showed you, but
Joy Blue:I lied, I have one more question.
Chelsea Pribyl:Bring it on!
Joy Blue:What's your normal timeframe on a black Friday? What time do you get out? And what time do you get home?
Chelsea Pribyl:Uh, When I was a little bit younger, and a little bit more flexible and adaptable, we would wake up in the three o'clock hour and be out in the four o'clock hour. Um, There have been years where we've started by standing in line at places and trying to win raffles and get amazing deals. But as the economy has changed, and as people's method of shopping has gone more to online stores are offering different things. And so the demand for all that early morning stuff is really non-existent now. And so we now get up more in the like five or six o'clock hour and just get out and in the six or seven o'clock hour, like it's later and a lot easier to roll with in my 35 year old body. And so then we go all day. We literally go totally drop. So I'm usually coming back home at 10 o'clock or so at night. And yeah, I guess that would be 15 hours. 16 hours would be pretty typical. And this last year we counted our stops. It was something like, I don't know, 20 something stores or restaurants that we stopped at along the way.
Joy Blue:You are magical. That's why both of us love the image of the unicorn. And you got me a sign that says be yourself, unless you can be a unicorn, then always be a unicorn.
Chelsea Pribyl:Always
Joy Blue:Always. Thanks for your time, Chelsea.
Chelsea Pribyl:anytime.
Joy Blue:So here we are. This was such a fun episode to record. Not only because Chelsea is one of my besties, but also because she is just so easy to talk with and be with. And thankfully she loves me enough to not invite me to go Black Friday shopping with her. And I'm so grateful for that. I hope this episode comes in handy for you as black Friday and Christmas are right around the corner. All right. I've got to know. What's one of your flavors of nerd? How does it show up in your life? This is indeed the part of the show where I ask you to email me at herewearethepodcast@gmail.com, and tell me all about how you love to nerd out. And if you want to just talk to me on Facebook or Instagram, you can do that too. Check out here we are on both of those platforms. If you're looking to go one step further and financially support what I'm doing with the podcast, head on over to patreon.com search for Here We Are the podcast and sign up for one of the many quirky support tiers that I am so proud of. Until next time. Don't forget that curiosity wins and the world needs more nerds. Bye