Maybe it’s time to rename Black Friday. You’ve probably noticed that in recent years it has crept into other days of the week.

It seems that every retailer is looking for ways to keep ahead of the competition. Recently, Sears sent an email advising that I did not have to wait until Black Friday. I could enjoy the savings starting the Sunday before Thanksgiving week. Not to be outdone, BJs Wholesale Club let me know their savings had already started on the Friday before that. And in my email box there have been many versions of “Shhh! Our door busters are already on sale!”

If you can sort out all the clutter of flyers, coupons, and online offers , you could probably find something at a price you want before the traditional shopping day of the Friday after turkey day.

It all used to be so simple. Just get up early the day after Thanksgiving and the stores would welcome you in at a time much earlier than the usual opening. One Christmas my daughter wanted a Super Nintendo. The now departed Hill’s Department Store was offering it for a deeply discounted price at the then unheard of shopping time of 7 a.m. So dad braved the crowds and came home with the prized possession. But if that hour seemed incredibly early, retailers apparently considered what could be by opening even earlier than the other stores. That is, until they, too, followed suit!

In upcoming years, the opening times for a number of retailers got an hour earlier until 3 a.m. was not unheard of. One mall finally decided that it would still be Black Friday if they let the crowds in at midnight. Now of course the norm is opening on Thanksgiving day anywhere between 4-6 p.m. Kmart was somewhat late to the party with a 7 p.m. start time. Ironically, the home of the “blue light special” was one of the original retailers to open on Thanksgiving Day. Perhaps the merchants’ current theory is once the meal is over, people want other diversions besides entertaining relatives they typically only see during the holiday season.

So I suppose the question becomes are we better off with Black Friday being spread out over a longer time frame? Last year, I did notice daytime traffic on the Friday generally did not appear as intense. Apparently the die-hard shoppers handled most of their needs before the sun came up! Also, there I don’t recall any news reports of violence over “hot” toys. Once upon a time , when I worked in TV in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pa., some news video of two women seriously slugging it out over a Cabbage Patch kid vent viral.

Of course, with online shopping, retailers have provided some relief from those who can do without crowds. There’s an added bonus: sometimes the internet prices are lower than the shelf ones at a particular store.

But I’ve discovered if you point that out, the dollar disparity, most places will give you their own online price. It also pays to read the fine print. A smart TV was on my Christmas wish list this year. I was a little surprised to see that the store where I found the best price online would actually sell it in the store at the deeply discounted price on Wednesday. Upon arriving, there was not a surge of shoppers as I expected. So it seems some people are still conditioned to wait for the “real” Black Friday.

Regardless of the impact of online, the thrill of the hunt will most likely continue to lure a number of bargain hunter to the stores. As for me, I will watch the madness at home on the news thanks to my brand new television!