Are you excited for the holiday season? It's coming up quick, too. How's that wallet feeling these days? If you're like me, you've noticed that your paycheck doesn't stretch as far as it once did two or three years ago.

I have a feeling plenty of people will be scaling back on buying gifts this holiday season. Multiple reports suggest that it's shaping up to be a lighter Christmas this year than in years past. The bills come first, right?

Cat Country 107.3 logo
Get our free mobile app

At least there's Black Friday to look forward to. Do you head out to the stores on Black Friday to get all your holiday shopping done? It used to be a ✨magical✨ day in my house. We used to roll out to stores like Target, Walmart, and Best Buy around 4-5 a.m. to try to score some AMAZING deals. They really were some of the best deals you could score all year. They would roll out jaw-droppers that once made even the most budget-conscious shopper giddy with excitement. Imagine this: snagging the newest video game system or the latest smartphone for way less than what you’d normally pay... sometimes for hundreds less than normal.

The Start of the Christmas Shopping Season in Pennsylvania
Getty Images
loading...

The Deals People REALLY Want On Black Friday

I hate to admit it, but I don't think Black Friday deals will ever be the same. Back in the early 2000s and even the 2010s, Black Friday was a whole EVENT. It was worth it, too. Nowadays, items are so readily available thanks to online shopping that people aren't holding out for things like TVs and Blu-Ray players anymore. Not to mention, technology's come so far that some of the deals we all used to squeal over have become obsolete. Who even watches Blu-rays? Everybody streams everything on Netflix, Hulu, or Prime, don't they?

There's one Black Friday deal that started as a joke on social media, but now everybody is hoping comes to fruition this year. New Jersey's an expensive place to live and we all have huge TVs these days. What we really need is a discount on gas and tolls. Even better... let's slash those grocery prices.

If you told me milk, eggs, and veggies would drop to less than $5 on Black Friday, I'll plan to be up at 4 a.m. to hit up every store in town. Seriously... look at these prices. Can we get those lowered for Black Friday this year?? Somebody drop that idea into the suggestion box.

LOOK: Here's how much grocery shopping now costs in the U.S.

The average cost of groceries for one person per month in 2023 was around $337. But how does your state compare? Do you pay more, or less? Data compiled by Zippia takes a look at the average monthly grocery bill per person in all 50 states. States are listed from most expensive to least expensive and are rounded up to the nearest dollar.

Gallery Credit: Mike Brant

The Best Places to Shop on Black Friday

More From Cat Country 107.3