Blu-Rays For A Buck? Must Be Black Friday!

Last year’s Black Friday was the earliest I’ve ever awaken to check out the madness that surround this annual shopping event. We were at our local Walmart by 7AM, a tad late by hardcore Black Friday shoppers’ standards who flock to outlets and malls as early as midnight. It’s also quite a challenge to drag yourself out of bed that early when your body has been dulled the day before with Thanksgiving turkey’s savory sedatives.

After a deliciously divine dinner on Black Friday Eve, we browsed through flyers to know what deals to look out for, if anything catches our fancy. Before I was indoctrinated to this American shopping ritual, I didn’t know what the term “Black Friday” meant. I would later find out from informative news reporters covering said event that “Black Friday” is that time of the year when retailers strive to put their sales figures “in the black,” which translates to solid income, as opposed to “in the red,” which means losses (you number-crunching accounting meisters will easily understand)--before the year ends.

So this is the time they sell stuff at ridiculously, unbelievably low prices. If you've always wanted to buy a new digital camera, laptop, wide-screen TV, or that flip-worthy Flip video recorder, Black Friday is the day to get it. You can treat yourself to the incredible savings, or save mucho on that perfect holiday gift for your loved ones.

For my efforts that day, I ended up buying a paper shredder for $20 (because documents with sensitive info need to be disposed of properly) and a vacuum cleaner for just $23. The hot items, like the $198 laptop (not just a notebook!), sold out early on that morning. Those were the people who camped outside the entrance waiting in line with numbers on their hands.

 My Black Friday tip: Know what you want beforehand and know where to get it cheapest, without the rebate fuss. Also know which items are the real Black Friday steal, that is, low prices that only happen on Black Friday and not just on any of their usual sales event. Why torture yourself with the hassle of joining the Black Friday crowd when you'll get the same sale price during the more tranquil pre-Christmas Day sales they'll be sure to have?

But like any skill, smart shopping is something to be sharpened with experience. If it's not Black Friday, there's Cyber Monday immediately thereafter, which doesn't require driving and queueing. On any other day, you can count on coupons to save the day, like those from Savings.com.

(But I was only exaggerating about Blu-Ray players selling for a buck.)