It’s a minute after midnight.  Black Friday is underway and millions of Americans will be raiding retail stores in hopes of completing their holiday shopping on the cheap.

I won’t be participating.  I could come up with a long list of reasons why I refuse to go through the nightmare of Black Friday, but I think The Consumerist’s list of 28 bad things should be enough to dissuade anyone from joining the not-so-merry masses of bargain hunters.

Many of you, however, are hellbent on crashing the doors of some big box store before the sun crests the horizon in order to save money on gift purchases.  Although I can’t bring myself to join you, I can’t blame you.  There are some great deals to be had for those who are willing to invest the energy and who can maintain the necessary attitude.

In recognition of the fact that my opinion of Black Friday shopping won’t be embraced by most readers, I found some great tips for those who will be fighting the crowds.

Thrifty Mama. Thrifty Mama has a list of eleven reasonable tips for Black Friday shoppers.  She starts with having a budget (a very good idea) and carries at the way through to having a shopping buddy with you (another good idea on a day like this).

And She Lived. The author loves doing the Black Friday thing and she offers one very interesting suggestion:  if Wal-Mart is on your “hit list”, start there.  The reason?  Most of the bigger stores are open 24 hours a day, which gives you the chance to wait indoors for the sales to start.  Any tip that might cut down on the risk of frostbite is worth mentioning.

Unclutterer. Unclutterer offers a list of ten recommendations that focus on the details.  As a non-participant, I’d never think of some of these seemingly wise tips.  For example, the post discusses concealing your purchases effectively in the car and the need to enter the fray with a fully-charged cell phone.

Penny Pinching Diva. This entry offers one of the smartest possible tips from a financial management perspective:  Use cash.  You’ll spend less and will find it easier to stick to your budget.  Penny Pinching Diva provides a total of six recommendations.  My other favorite?  Save your receipts and keep them organized.  It makes returns easier in case you make a poor purchasing decision or need to cut back spending ex post facto in order to stay within your budget.

I’m not convinced that following all of that great advice will really make Black Friday a fun experience.  Then again, I really would prefer to spend a morning battering rocks into gravel with my forehead than wrestling some guy for a loss-leader special in Aisle 5.  However, I do think that you can probably cut the list of 28 bad things that will happen on Black Friday down to 14 by following these recommendations.  And that’s not bad.

Let me make one last pitch for skipping Black Friday:  You can selectively pick off awesome deals over the course of the next month.  You can make many great purchases online in the comfort of your own home and in a setting of relative peace and quiet.  You need to calculate the “cost of punishment” into your approach to holiday shopping–is it really worth the chaos to save the money?  If you don’t have a massive list, it would seem hard to justify the excursion.

I doubt that worked.  Most people don’t see it my way and millions of people adore jumping into the action.  I’m betting that you’re tying your shoes right now, grabbing your fully-charged cell phone, collecting those advertising circulars and slamming back that last cup of high-powered coffee in preparation for your mission.

Good luck.