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For These Shoppers, Putting On Wait Is Thanksgiving Tradition

Tribune photo by MICHAEL SPOONEYBARGER

Charlie Sammons wakes up while waiting in line at the Best Buy in Brandon.

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By KEITH MORELLI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 26, 2008

Updated: 11/26/2008 01:47 pm

BRANDON - As Black Friday ticks ever closer, you'd think a once-in-a-lifetime sale will be taking place when Best Buy in Brandon opens at 5 a.m. Friday.

Four nylon tents line the sidewalk just east of the front door. Sleepy-eyed squatters peer out from half-open flaps.

Sitting in a lawn chair Wednesday morning was Arley Smude, a 21-year-old recent graduate of the University of Central Florida who returned from a trip to Asia and Eastern Europe to get in this line.

He wore a white-and-black tiger-striped robe and fat fuzzy slippers while waiting for Friday's early opening at the Grand Regency Boulevard store.

"I'm here to get the 10th season DVD of 'The Simpsons,' " he said with a smirk, noting that the show is in its 20th year. "Last year, I told people I wanted the Hillary Duff CD."

"I'm here to get a vacuum cleaner," piped in Mark Heim, sitting in the morning sun next to Smude.

If you haven't guessed by now, this isn't about being first in line to get this year's can't-live-without gadget.

It's about being with pals during the holidays.

"I'm here to hang out with my friends, to read my book, to soak in the hot tub," Smude said.

His buddies, the two or three who were up by 9 a.m., pointed to the severed pickup bed, painted black and on wheels, that serves as the campsite's communal hot tub.

It's just beyond the entertainment center, where a folding table is home to a stereo and a flat-screen TV, which is next to the makeshift kitchen with a microwave and small fridge.

There are about 15 people here, all from Plant City and Valrico. Most came Tuesday night and set up their urban – actually suburban – campsite. They watch movies, play games, eat and sleep.

"Is it worth it for me to come here this early to make a purchase of a laptop or a desktop computer?" Smude said. "No, but it is great to be with friends once a year."

Store manager Tom Gray welcomes the squatters.

"Ultimately," he said, "We are all about having fun."

Anyone who plans to plunk down their holiday dollars is welcome. Best Buy is also trying to make the three-day stay a little more comfortable, Gray said. This afternoon, the store is having a couple of portable toilets delivered.

The ritual started a few years ago when a real sale-of-a-lifetime deal was offered on Black Friday at Best Buy, although no one can remember what it was. The next year, the campers returned to find pretty much the same people in line.

"It's a tradition," Smude said. "It's an excuse to get with friends we haven't seen in a year."

Consider it an unconventional tradition. There's a smoker and grill, and this year's theme is "Mustache Western Barbecue." Everyone grew – or tried to grow – mustaches for the occasion. Some came in thicker than others.

"Last year the theme was 'Classy Dinner,' " Smude said. "We all wore suits and top hats."

Thanksgiving dinner will be served tonight.

"Everyone is invited," said Smude's brother Adrian. "But we are asking that you don't eat all our food."

The camp is a bit rattled, though, by the cold.

"I have an electric fan," said Charlie "Chuck" Sammons, 25, peeping from under a tarp covering his pup tent. "The only problem is that it doesn't work when the generator is shut off, which is at night, which is when it is coldest."

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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