Secret Squirrel

"Ad" me to the list, too. It's all I sign in for every year, mainly.

Fewer.

No, seriously, would someone please help me rename these totally-Politically-Incorrect items?! http://blog.chickdowntown.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/licorice.jpg http://www.thedailyplanner.com/images/1.PACME3BK-Crayon.jpg

Economy stinks, But be damned if I miss it; Who stole my flyers?!

Yeppers here. I got there about 6am, and there were already about a dozen people in line; alas, they only had 10 tickets for the Wii that I went there for, and I was too late . I'll be earlier this year if there's anything on the 'must have' list.

Well, lesson learned here: Although my local KM is never very busy, I opted to stay in bed a little longer on Thursday am, and got there about 6:15 to try for a Wii for a friend. I was 1/2 hr too late, and about 8 people too far back. Should have gotten up. Oh well. I got a voucher for the Easy Share camera, but decided after I got in the store that I really didn't need it after all, so turned the voucher in at the counter so they could give it to some other soul. Side note: "stupid" clerk in electronics couldn't seem to quell a man's frustration at there being 1 Wii left on the shelf...kept telling him they are "all sold out" and he kept saying "there's one right there on the shelf!" I couldn't get around the corner with my cart to let him know that they were all "claimed" by vouchers, and that one likely just hadn't been picked up yet (had til 8am to pick them up). That's the info that he NEEDED to hear, but I don't know if anyone ever explained that they were ticketed items. I felt bad for him because he wasn't getting the answer he needed, and wanted to slap the clerk who obviously was too ignorant to give him information other than "we're all sold out" which is NOT what he needed to hear. I should have tracked him down. I usually don't feel bad for people who are being nasty in stores, but he was just frustrated, and she was just being non-user-friendly.

I get to a point where it's information overload...which makes me glaze over, and although I always go out early, I don't go to the stores that will be mobbed...I have a little not-so-popular mall near me that has a JCP, Radio Shack, and KM, and very very few people are there at 6am. I prefer to shop in peace, and not with 4,000 crazed lunatics who will knock you and your grandmother over for a $3 DVD. The mentality makes me pissy. So I go out for the day, and shop at a leisurely pace, even if everyone around me is stressed. If I get it done, good for me. If I don't, there's other days. If I don't have it all done on Dec 25th, well, that's not what it's about, anyway, so what's done is done, and what isn't can wait til another day.

Timothy- are you serious?! You don't have kids, and you're under 40, aren't you? LOL! I don't have that kind of time, nor the memory capacity for that challenge...but more power to you! Also, your reference to "ticketed items" doesn't always hold true...many stores still haven't figured out that simple idea. sigh.

I have to ask...does anyone remeber if there was "product frenzy" before Cabbage Patch dolls? I was plenty old enough, but it seemed like it was a "new" thing to see what went on in the news stories. I don't think I had seen anything like that before on the news, and it seemed like the newspeople hadn't either. Were there mob-scenes like this before CPK?

This is actually my favorite shopping deal-day. I love KM on TG, and will go there just for the fun of it. People look at me funny: "You go shopping on Thanksgiving???!" Well, YAH...you do family time, watch parade, prep dinner, eat dinner, do dishes...then what? Sit around with your thumbs... I look forward to this ad. My KM isn't usually super-busy, so it's kinda "weird" to be shopping that day...but the 'feel' is different...KWIM? It's not an "ordinary" shopping day at KM.

I haven't been in one recently either, and less so because of their being schmucks. I don't post here much, but wanted to interject something: 1. If "we" as a collective group didn't matter, they wouldn't be going to these lengths to try to stifle us. So to everyone, that's called reverse psychology, and you are obviously VERY important if they are trying to keep you quiet. We DO matter. Why? Because WE are the group that they are desperately trying to win over. We're a "challenge." They've got all the rest of the people who will "shop there anyway." They know that WE are the ones that matter most, and given the opportunity, we're the ones who can create bad press for them. On the flip side, they also know that we are very savvy shoppers, and will go "out of our way" to secure a deal on something because we know all the tricks, loopholes, and whatnot of getting those deals. The problem lies in this: if the "wrong people" (that would be us) get the information on the deals to be had, and physically GET the deals, then that other group of shoppers will go away disappointed at not having gotten a deal on BF, and might change their shopping habits because they are mad at not having gotten the deal. Follow that? We, as a small, collective group could single-handedly change the shopping habits of the "majority" by simply throwing a wrench in WM's perfect little setup: That being that the "rest" of the shopping community shops at WM by "default" whereas we shop there to "cherry pick." I'm rambling, but do you get the point? We're a "force to be reckoned with" and if they don't "do something about us" then we might just toss that wrench in their perfect little plan to brainwash the rest of the world's shoppers. 2. Personally, if I have other options (KM, Target), I exercise them. I may be a "cheap-skate" in the long run, but I also have my standards, and my "regular" standard is a lot higher than what WM regularly provides in a shopping experience. 3. I don't have access to a printer, or the key to the 'secret safe' where they store the ad, but I am a keen observer when it comes to shopping. I'll scope out my local WM at lunchtime to see what I can come up with

It's all different, I think. My Target is clean, uncluttered, the FRIENDLIEST staff I've ever encountered in a retail environment...it's just a sheer pleasure to shop there. On the flip side, there's a Target about 20 miles away in Salem, and I would lump them in with the attitudes I usually find in the 'blue & gray box' store.

decent sale supposedly going on today (Weds), too. I might pop in after work...keeping this silly chair warm til 5pm...

Use Zip code 57104 for the TG ad info with all details for all products.

FYI- direct from the horse's mouth just now on their answering machine for "hours for the week of November 20-25 are as follows..." Open at 5pm on BF- not sure if this is a company-wide opening time "...join us on Friday as we will be handing out mini Disney Snow Globes while they last..." So they are doing it again. Cool.

One would hope that adults don't do the "his is bigger/he's got more than me/his is more expensive" thing anymore. I don't worry about stuff like that; I try to choose gifts that are perfect for that person, regardless of cost (or lack thereof).

Call the psychic friends network...they should know.

I'm not Jewish, but first, I think all the ads say "...Holiday Shopping"... and 2nd...(pardon my ignorance), don't Jewish people celebrate Hannukah with gift-giving, decorating, etc???

FWIW, here's my "usual & customary:" I don't bring a purse. I bring my Debit Card, a Credit card if I think I might make a major purchase, and my license. I realized a long time ago that I don't NEED any of the stuff in my purse while I'm shopping. I make sure that any "personal" necessities are taken care of right away, so I can shop for hours without...well, you know the rest. Sorry, TMI there. But seriously, I put it all in my back pocket, and my arms are free for shopping bags and I don't worry about my purse getting stolen.

It's almost become tradition for us to venture out in the evening to KMart after the festivities are over. There have been some great deals to be had, and I enjoy shopping with little crowds, and good deals, as not many people shop that day at my local store. BL is a little further away, and unless the deals are REALLY good, I haven't been there yet on T-Day. Someone said sacreligious...I don't see it that way. Christmas, Easter, Hannukah...shopping on THOSE days would be sacreligious, but T-Day isn't a religious holiday. (However, you're right in that we would have to thank Someone...so in that regard, ok, I'll give you that one. I'm thankful, but I'm still going shopping )

The economy wasn't taking a downturn yet, though. We might see some decent deals.

1000% TOTALLY agree! I'll do my Mom's list, but she couldn't find her way out of a wet paper bag, so will never be entrusted with mine! Unless you and your mom are on the same page, there's usually a huge generation gap and they just don't get it. Trust only those who 'get you' LOL!

Target in Concord, NH is still 50% today (Weds). Holding out for 75 or better.