Black Friday; the day all thrifty shoppers and broke teenagers try to get the most out of their dollar. It is also the most dreaded day of the year for retail employees. All I ask when you go out shopping this Black Friday is to please be nice to the retail employee.

Imagine having to fight the same traffic your fighting to get to Tyson’s, Pentagon City or maybe even the new Tanger Outlets at National Harbor, find a parking spot, then make your way across to the parking lot in the cold into the mall. But instead of going shopping at midnight to get the door busters, you’re trudging in, dreading your eight-hour long shift. We don’t get the pleasure of having fun on Black Friday, we’re working, then going straight home.

All I ask is that you keep in mind we’re humans too. We might be the people working in the store, but we’re not the people in charge of supply.

We know you’re upset we don’t have that cobalt blue cableknit sweater in a small, but we won’t be getting anymore in for at least a week. We can order it for you online, but that’s all. Please don’t yell at us because you’re upset, because honestly, that just makes us not want to help you even more. I can almost guarantee you aren’t the only person who has or will yell at us today, so please try to be nice. Our patience is just like yours; low.

Oh, and don’t yell at us about the size of the line when you get to the cash register. It’s Black Friday. We can’t just magically get 100 people through a line. We’re only human, and we’re trying to get people through as fast as possible.

Instead of spending time with my family on Thanksgiving, I’ll be sleeping getting ready to be at the mall by 11:30. I don’t get to wake up early on Friday for “fun” and go shopping. I’ll be running around American Eagle trying to make sure the world doesn’t end if someone isn’t happy. So while you’re eating with your family and being thankful for everything you have, be thankful for the retail employees you’re going to see the next day, and please remember to be nice to them.