It’s the hap-happiest, and let’s not forget busiest, time of the year, especially if you’re a shopper. Retailers are trying to lure you in with sparkly display windows, and online retailers have sent more emails with subject lines like “Get it by Christmas” than Santa can keep up with.

For the discount and deal obsessed Thanksgiving might just be your favorite time of year.  First there is Black Friday then Cyber Monday and the deals just keep going into the Christmas Holiday. It’s as if someone finally opened the race gates and you’re free to snatch up whatever you can find. Good as the deals may be, I have to admit that I did not take advantage of the shopping this past weekend, but I’d still like to take inventory of what I saw going on.

It seems that in today’s daily deal frenzy you have to be willing to sacrifice the cleanliness of your inbox and a good chunk of your time to save a buck. If you’re like me, then it’s still worth it, even with all of the required fine print scrutiny—when is the coupon valid, can I use two at a time,  and most importantly, how far away is it—I’ve learned the hard way that “Boston” has many interpretations.