Black Friday (shopping) stories resurface year upon year at this time, portraying hysteria and shortage of stock, creating a state of positive feedback. In 2014, spending volume on Black Friday fell for the first time since the 2008 recession. $50.9 billion was spent during the 4-day Black Friday weekend, down 11% from the previous year. However, the U.S. economy was not in a recession. Christmas creep has been cited as a factor in the diminishing importance of Black Friday, as many retailers now spread out their promotions over the entire months of November and December rather than concentrate them on a single shopping
The Pool of the Black One been published in the collections "The Conan Chronicles Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle" (2000) and "" (Del Rey, 2003). "The Pool of the Black One", which appeared in "Weird Tales" magazine a month after "The Slithering Shadow", is a pirate-themed adventure story and occurs in the Western Sea of the Hyborian Age. The story begins with Conan adrift at sea, after escaping from a council of pirates in the Barachan Isles. He climbs aboard "The Wastrel", a ship belonging to a different pirate order who are bitter rivals of the Barachan ones. After a tense conversation with