Black Fri-day, noun. An excessive shopping binge that follows a holiday in which residents of the United States express humble gratitude with excessive turkey consumption. Characterized by long lines at Big Box stores and the occasional arrest of angry shoppers attacking each other over electronic gadgets...

I'm no Grinch. But nothing kills my holiday groove like crowds at the mall.

I love the holidays. I love shopping. BUT I hate buying gifts just to stick something under a tree. I hate spending gobs of money so that a distant relation can make fun of my present on the way to the trash can.

My holiday rule: Don't let The Man ruin the best month of the year.

So I'm one of those freaks who shops early. Like pretty much all year. Got my sister-in-law's present in April. Crossed my mother-in-law off the list in July.

I can't tell you what I spent -- hey, I blog under my real name -- but let's just say the holidays aren't breaking my bank. And I feel good about gifting some really nice things. Heck, I even put some thought into it.

As for Black Friday ... maybe I'll check out a few sales after enjoying my morning coffee. But if I'm feeling lazy, no sweat. I'm willing to bet that good deals surface again after Christmas. They always do.

-- Deal Diva Letitia