Five Things to Start Your Black Friday

A few facts, figures and tidbits before heading out with the other crazed shoppers.

1. BLACK FRIDAY SHOPPING FORECAST: Friday: Partly sunny. Milder. Highs in mid/upper 50s. Saturday: Mainly cloudy with a few rain showers — it may end as a few wet snow showers in the Worcester hills. Highs in the upper 40s early then temps crash into the upper 30s by night. Sunday: Cold and windy. Clouds and sun. Maybe a flurry well NW? Upper 30s to near 40 for highs. 2. BLACK FRIDAY HISTORY: The term “Black Friday” was coined in the 1960s to mark the kickoff to the Christmas shopping season. “Black” refers to stores moving from the “red” to the “black,” back when accounting records were kept by hand, and red ink indicated a loss, and black a profit. Ever since the start of the modern Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1924, the Friday …

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Five Things You Need to Know Today

Five Things: Black Friday Deals, Police Log & More

Check out the Five Things column for Friday, Nov. 16.

1. Food pantry: The Servant's Heart Food Pantry is open from 10-11:30 a.m. Friday at the Faith Evangelical Church, 200 Franklin St. The food pantry helps more than 200 families in the Melrose region by providing emergency food to people in need. 2. Get socialized: Check out the Melrose Patch Facebook and Twitter pages for additional content not featured on the website. 3. In case you missed it: Check out the latest Melrose Police log. 4. Black Friday deals: Black Friday may not be here yet, but check out the online ads posted by several retail outfits. 5. Wanted: Melrose photos: Upload your Melrose photos to our community photo gallery. Use Melrose Patch to connect with your neighbors:

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Where Are You Doing Most of Your Holiday Shopping?

Small Business Saturday. Black Friday. Cyber Monday. Which shopping day speaks to you?

Today is Small Business Saturday, when local shopkeepers encourage shoppers to patronize small businesses in their community. Yesterday was Black Friday, when a lot of chain stores offer discounts and sometimes unusual opening times to attract custoemrs. And Monday has been deemed Cyber Monday, when everyone who didn't get out shopping over the weekend logs on at work and gets their holiday shopping done online. So where are you doing most of your shopping this year? Take our quick pick poll and tell us more specifics in the comments below.

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Did You Brave the Black Friday Crowds?

Tell us if you hit the stores today and what it's like out there.

Some of us overdosed on tryptophan yesterday and might just be waking up now. Others, however, managed to pull themselves out of bed this morning—or even gird themselves for battle around midnight last night—to take advantage of the blockbuster deals that come with Black Friday. Shoppers looking for the best deals of the holiday season have been lining up before stores open and fighting their way through the crowds. Is it worth it? Are the deals that great? Take our poll and tell us if you braved the Black Friday crowds today and, if so, tell us in the comments the best deal you saw today. (Don't forget to check out our roundup of Melrose Black Friday deals.)

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Shop Local! Melrose's Black Friday Deals

Melrose Patch brings you a roundup of deals in the city for this weekend's shopping frenzy.

Here it comes, the craziest shopping day of the year: Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving, shoppers looking for the best deals of the holiday season line up before stores open, or head to stores that open after midnight, and fight their way through the crowds. So Melrose Patch asked local businesses to share their deals with weekend to make it easier to find the deals you're looking for and support local businesses. Here's what they told us: Stop in at this Main Street shop to browse a selection of makeup, skincare, fragrance, jewelry, accessories, hair care, home fragrance and bath and body care. Then take home a gift for yourself, too—with any purchase of $100 or more, get a free ultra-soft scarf to glam up any outfit, as well as a …

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