I get the best deals at the "secondary stores." I refuse to wait hours and hours at TRU or Wally World. Staples one year-- for a 20-minute wait before opening-- resulted in an $8 scanner, a free phone, a $1 stack of blank CD's, and a $3 game controller. I think I spent $19 total and was out in 10 minutes.
I have done KMart early, but I think it's considered "secondary" in our area. Haven't gone unless there was a specific item I wanted to score, like gold jewelry or half-price Lego sets where I had coupons in addition. Alas, our Lego years are past. I spend a lot of time on the boards and looking at ads (not just BF but for the weekend before) and I have a good idea what I'm going to dive in and get. I WILL NOT spend hours in a check out line, either. At some point, my time is more valuable and the sporting aspect is lost.
If I had someone who needed Santa to bring a gotta-have something, might be a different story, because Santa NEVER disappoints at our house. This year the gotta-haves will be more money, I-tunes cards, etc. I expect. I end up wrapping up socks and toothbrushes, just so there's still lots to open!
