lovetoshopCA

They were marking it manually, so you need to wait till they mark it.

Pet food is often like people food, YMMV. They discount it close to expiration or just when a store is changing something. I have seen it clearance at one store and not at any others several times. I am just bummed that they don't carry more variety of the Iams foods. The ones they carry make our cats vomit. I have to trek to Petsmart....

They moved a LOT from the regular backpack section to the BTS section this year, and those are not going down. They also have a lot more of the regular school items this year, rather than stuff they don't sell year round. Makes much more sense, frankly, even though it is frustrating not to get it all cheap.

barely any school supplies left to go clearance. Maybe 15-20 backpacks per store around here. almost everything is gone.

Our stores were pretty low on stock too, but they are also in the middle of the grocery remodel, so it is hard to tell if that is the reason. I will head out to another area (that did the remodel in spring) once they go lower. I need a backpack myself for occasional use, and I want one of the expensive ones. I got one last year and DS needed it before I ever got a chance to use it! My old one from college days (how many years ago....) is starting to fall apart finally. :-)

About 1/3 of our local schools started last week. Most of the rest start Thursday, but the local one starts the 15th. Our BTS supplies are still full price. Backpacks & lunchboxes are 30%

Yup! Would love one of the newer phones. And GD is Android Native, so it is great to use on the phone!

True, true. I live in LA where T-Mobile's service is awful. Around here Verizon has a bigger market share and more coverage. I tried them all, and in the foothills, you just get rotten reception with anything other than Verizon. I got the first Droid on the market, which does run on the Android platform. Love it, love it, love it! cutexianchick, the Droid is Verizon's version of Android phone. Basically it is just a smart phone, the same way an iPhone is. But the Android platform is Open Source (DH is a programmer for JPL, so he is a big open source promoter) which means it is much easier for people to make improvements to the operating system and to develop apps for it. I've got all sorts of goodies on mine, mostly related to shopping. ShopSavvy is one of my favorites. That's also available for iPhone and others. You scan an item in a store, and it goes to the web and does a comparison of prices and lets you know where to find it. I've got a wine app called Swirl which has reviews and a way to do notes as well as pricing. Lots of fun. I held out for 2 years on the worst phone ever (had to pay out of pocket b/c my contract wasn't up, and then didn't want to waste my money till the Droid came out) to get it, and I am very glad I did!

Aim your camera at the square bar code thingy and it will take you to their site to download. Otherwise, open the Marketplace from your main screen and search for Target to find it. Then download it and install. It is pretty easy to use. I tried it out this afternoon. It is nice.

Sorry, didn't know anyone local was looking. They had 2 water slides yesterday at the Pasadena Lake store. Gone today. I'm going to return one of the family pools, though. The kids just didn't want it this year. Tax laws are complicated, but I know from personal experience that it doesn't matter from a tax stand point if you take a loss or give it away, the tax implication is the same. However, there is very little "salvage" merchandise available in that market right now, so stores like Big Lots, Ross, Marshalls and all those types of stores and the middle men who serve them are paying higher prices to large retailers for their salvage this year and last. They need merchandise and it simply is worth it to pay more. On the Target side, they have to pay an employee to go through and mark down each piece for that interim markdown or those markdowns (some electronics will salvage after 30%), and when they account for those hourly wages, plus the lost opportunity cost of having those employees do something else, plus the fact that they are already selling the item at a loss, they may do better salvaging certain types of merchandise or certain items.

Thanks for the link! Just goes to show why the Droid is SO much better.... Oh, and be sure to click on that PeopleofWalmart.com link!!! Now THAT is why I don't like to shop at Walmart.

Not sure. I asked one of the markdown team members who was on the escalator with me (she knows me) what they were doing today, and she told me shoes & jewelry. Then she said nothing is going down, it is all going salvage.

Jewelry was being salvaged here today

They haven't marked ours down either. One local district isn't starting back till 9/14, though most go next week or the week after. We always seem to be 3-4 weeks behind the rest of the country.

Depending on the type of expiration date and the food, it can be perfectly fine to buy things close to or after the date. Here is a good quote from Businessweek on the topic: DATE DATA. The dates, for one, mean quite different things. For instance, "sell by" is more a guide for the store to know how long it can display a product for sale. The "best before" or "best if used by" date refers to a quality or flavor of the food. "Use by" works more like an expiration date, similar to that on medicines, and taking them after the date is not recommended. And from WebMD: * "Sell by" date. The labeling "sell by" tells the store how long to display the product for sale. You should buy the product before the date expires. This is basically a guide for the retailer, so the store knows when to pull the item. This is not mandatory, so reach in back and get the freshest. The issue is quality of the item (freshness, taste, and consistency) rather than whether it is on the verge of spoiling. Paul VanLandingham, EdD, a senior faculty member at the Center for Food and Beverage Management of Johnson & Wales University in Providence, R.I., tells WebMD the "sell by" date is the last day the item is at its highest level of quality, but it will still be edible for some time after. * "Best if used by (or before)" date. This refers strictly to quality, not safety. This date is recommended for best flavor or quality. It is not a purchase or safety date. Sour cream, for instance, is already sour, but can have a zippier, fresh taste when freshly sour (if that's not an oxymoron!) * "Born on" date. This is the date of manufacture and has been resurrected recently to date beer. Beer can go sub-par after three months. "It is affected by sun," VanLandingham says. The light can reactivate microorganisms in the beer. That's why you have to be especially careful with beer in clear bottles, as opposed to brown or green. * "Guaranteed fresh" date. This usually refers to bakery items. They will still be edible after the date, but will not be at peak freshness. * "Use by" date. This is the last date recommended for the use of the product while at peak quality. The date has been determined by the manufacturer of the product. * "Pack" date. You will find this one on canned or packaged goods, as a rule, but it's tricky. In fact, it may be in code. It can be month-day-year-MMDDYY. Or the manufacturer could revert to the Julian calendar. January would then be 001-0031 and December 334-365. It gets even weirder than that. How Long Are Foods OK to Eat? If you are not up on your Julian calendar and dating seems sort of a hodgepodge, how about memorizing some basic rules? * Milk. Usually fine until a week after the "Sell By" date. * Eggs. OK for 3-5 weeks after you bring them home (assuming you bought them before the "sell by" date). VanLandingham says double-grade As will go down a grade in a week but still be perfectly edible. * Poultry and seafood. Cook or freeze this within a day or two. * Beef and pork. Cook or freeze within three to five days. * Canned goods. Highly acidic foods like tomato sauce can keep 18 months or more. Low-acid foods like canned green beans are probably risk-free for up to five years.

they salvaged them, so you are lucky.

Yup. All the stores with garden centers have signs out that state Final Clearance will end September 30. They are starting with just some of the decorative stuff at 30% now.

Historically it has always run the week or two after toys, so it should be now. But I haven't seen any markdowns. But our stores are all torn up for the remodel, so it is harder to say. They usually do 2 major clearances for every department every year.

Full price here.

It is annoying, but they are not under any obligation to sell it at all when it is INF. In fact they are SUPPOSED to refuse to sell it to you at all. I have gone round and round with managers and the 800 number, and that is their official policy. In fact, for toys & baby items in particular they aren't supposed to sell them because they could be recalled items leaving them liable if there is a problem. If an item is INF you just have to pick the cashier you think you have have the best chance with and hope for the best.

Wow! Really amazing! Our church has a preschool, and they use it on Wednesdays for the kids all summer. They have insurance, of course, but they don't have to get it inspected.

Wow! Usually CA is the worst about those kinds of laws. We have friends who have one and have successfully used it here 3 summers in a row. their neighbor also has one and uses it several times a week for the last 2 summers. Same brand as the one at Target. One came from Target. It helps to put a tarp under to avoid problems from below. But always smart to save the box!

last year they sold out at 50% off here. It varies by area. Ours are not marked down yet.

Our stores will generally do it, unless it is clearance. then sometimes they won't. But, as has been pointed out, even those that do check, sometimes the employees take the items, so it isn't a help.

What was the question you were answering? Not sure which thing you are talking about.