mcwalker

My shirt arrived today. Thanks, Brad. According to USPS tracking, it traveled via Macon, Georgia on its way from Wisconsin to New York City . I guess it wanted some southern cooking along the way.

As noted, a center channel speaker is not the same as a soundbar. A center channel speaker is paired with two separate side speakers (3.1) and possibly two rear channel speakers (5.1). The sound of such a system is almost always better than any soundbar because the mid-range speakers within these units are almost always larger than the speakers within a soundbar. A soundbar is a single long unit, but they always contain at least two speakers, and sometimes many more, but you can't see them unless you remove the grill. The speakers in soundbars are almost always much smaller than the speakers in a 3.1 or 5.1 system.

Center channel speakers normally come with a full package of the surround sound system (i.e. 3 to 5 speakers plus a subwoofer, and sometimes a blu-ray player), in part because all of the speakers should have similar or balanced sound characteristics. If you are not looking to replace the rest of the speaker system, you are probably best off looking for another similar Infinity Primus center speaker. Amazon has them. You won't find this on a Black Friday deal.

And now for my final update of the Map of GottaDeal.com Black Friday Shoppers for 2015. Everyone who responded up to this thread has been added to the map. Check the map at the following web site and zoom in to see who is shopping near you. The map is at https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?hl=en&authuser=0&mid=zUnZpeEjK4QE.kEBLMYUCCXrE http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af182/mcwalker59/BlackFridayMap2015-11-21.jpg

I just put it there so that so that half of the US does not open under the legend box.

I'll add Kohl's to the online list next year due to its popularity, but for now it falls under "Websites for other B&M stores"

I just changed one of the choices in the online section to "I check various web sites and will buy wherever I find the best deal on something I am interested in."

Now that you know the opening times and you are putting together your shopping strategy, I have three related poll questions: What time do you plan to either get in line or arrive at your first store? (Select only one.) What time periods do you plan to be shopping in person at B&M stores? (Select ALL that apply.) What time periods do you plan to be shopping ONLINE? (Select ALL that apply.) ******** Check a time period if you expect to shop a significant part of that time period.

Now that all the key ads are out, it's time for one of my two annual surveys of GottaDeal members. What stores do you plan to shop at this Thanksgiving / Black Friday? Check all that apply in the survey! This is the sixth year I have done this poll, which has grown to four questions. Apologies if one of your stores is missed, I can only include 50 choices in each survey. (Which is why I added aditional questions a couple of years ago in order to move some stores into separate groups. If you change your plans, you can come back and click "Delete My Vote" and do it all over again.

The only article I see online is on inquisitr, which I have found in the past to be a ludicrously inflammatory rag with poor journalism (if you can call it that). Of course it could happen, but I am not worried, nor do I think it should concern anyone except law enforcement who are looking to root out plots. Go enjoy your Thanksgiving and Black Friday!

That is either for a used one (which might be fine, but buyer beware), or if it is new the shipping cost will be more than $100. Any legitimate new one is $250 or more. I see one with a price of $159.96. And shipping of $149.99! Beware of that trick on ebay.

This sounds like a ruse by your son to get one purely for fun on the premise that he needs it for school.

I have often been traveling for Thanksgiving and Black Friday and find it fun to do Black Friday in new areas. (One of my most unique experiences was in Lancaster Pennsylvania where many Mennonites and some Amish were out shopping at some of the stores in the middle of the night, and I almost ran into a hose-drawn buggy in the Target parking lot. This year I will be in another new location: Burlington Vermont. Something I do each time is go to Google maps, center the map on the area where I will be staying, then do a search for some of the major store names that I am interested in (Best Buy, Target, JC Penney, etc,) to get an idea where they are located and especially to identify areas that have concentrations of the key stores. Then I create a map in Google Maps: My Maps where I mark the location of every store that I might be interested in. I will print that map and take it but I also just installed the My Maps app on my smartphone, so I will have that to refer to as I drive around. By now I am pretty familiar with where the various stores are already, even though I have only been to that area once before.

I have never camped. While there are still people camping each year, I think the number of campers and the justification has significantly reduced with changes in pricing and availability, online shopping, and the earlier shopping hours. I might be in line an hour before a 6 PM opening (or maybe not), but that is about it.

These can be fun, and I know some people use them for minor transportation, but don't forget that we need to walk for exercise and these require a lot more concentration than walking to make sure you don't hit an edge and fall. Plus, they may not (should not) be allowed inside buildings and are rather heavy to carry when you have to go upstairs or into a classroom and have other things to carry too. I wouldn't want to be carrying a laptop while riding one of these, and that is more important for a student these days than riding one of these. None of these should be used in icy conditions (even an expensive Segway) because they can't balance if they don't have firm grip on the pavement. Pnambic and I were writing about the same thing at the same time.

Disappointed that there are almost no "free after rebate or points" deals in this ad, as in the past. The only two are on the last page: - Oral B toothbrush or Pro-Health or 3D White mouthwash - Scunci Hair Elastics (good stocking stuffers for girls) I recall last year finding out too late that there had been a bunch of "free after points" items in the "regular weekly ad" that covered the Sunday through Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I think it was at Walgreens. So I will be checking for that.

I will be up for a while and help type if one comes in shortly after midnight Eastern time. As for the offerings in the adds so far, I wouldn't say I am too disappointed, but I am just looking for less this year.

Updated the map with everyone up to this post. https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?hl=en&authuser=0&mid=zUnZpeEjK4QE.kEBLMYUCCXrE http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af182/mcwalker59/BlackFridayMap2015-11-08_1.jpg

We went to this museum in Washington last year. Very moving and informative.

6:00 PM is too early. 4:00 PM would be downright rude. While Target is one of my favorite Black Friday stores, surprisingly, there is no target store in or near Burlington, Vermont, where I will be this year, so this one won't matter to me this year.

I mentioned above that the Kohl's Black Friday ad has a Sharper Image-branded self-balancing board for $369.99, and that does not look like a very good price. But actually, when you consider the Kohls Cash that you get on Black Friday, it is not a bad deal. With the $369.99 purchase (assuming you make other purchases) you will get $111 back in Kohls Cash ($15 for each $50), so the net total is $259. That is a pretty good price for these. Moreover, since you are buying from a U.S. store and the reputable Sharper Image brand name, the warranty and opportunity to return it if there is a problem is much better than if you buy from an Amazon Marketplace seller, most of which are based in China for these self balancing boards. You will pay sales tax on the higher amount, but the Kohls Cash and more reliable warranty might make this a worthwhile route for some.

The Kohls Black Friday ad has a self-balancing board marketed by Sharper Image at $369.99, which is not a good price. I see that the red one that magicalight posted above from Amazon has actually dropped to $255 with free shipping, which is a good deal. That may be as good as we get this year.

Note the yellow box on page 1 about a 50% coupon to to be e-mailed to Ace Rewards members on November 24. This will probably apply to many or most regular price items in the store. Many other deals require an Ace Rewards membership as well. Best to sign up before 11/24 if interested in the coupon or to get it out of the way before the sale period. Ace had printed 50% off coupons last year, which I used a few times in different stores last year (ssshhh!) I guess they went to the e-mail version so they can make sure it is one use per member this year. Still a nice discount if you are looking for something at Ace.

I still like their "Free after Plenti points" items (everything on scan pages 3 and 7) which is very similar to previous years. I agree with some that I find administration of the Plenti points program a little confusing compared to other programs, but will figure out my registration issue and make it work. I will be paying them a visit. I have been trying to hit all three pharmacy chains (Rite Aid, CVS, and Walgreens) on Thanksgiving morning before Thanksgiving festivities, or some other time when I am not working on major stores.

There are various items in the Rite Aid ad that can make good stocking stuffers. Especially look at the items on scan pages 3 and 7 which are all "free" after Plenti points. I have edited the item listing to highlight these items (look for "FREE" after xx Plenti points in the listings or My Shopping List. Also fun socks on page 1.