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Gamers Unite!

   Friday, Nov. 17, will probably be declared by some hardcore gamers as a national holiday. The Playstation 3 game console should be out in stores. The console, which runs $499 for the 20GB version and $599 for the 60GB version, supports a feature its Microsoft equivalent, the Xbox 360, does not have. The PS3 not only plays new games specifically designed for that console, but it also can play some PS1 and PS2 games. Good luck finding one for sale before Christmas!

Black Friday

   Haven't you always heard that the Friday after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the year? According to www.snopes.com, which specializes in "Urban Legends," this legend is false. The day after Thanksgiving is the busiest, traffic-wise, but not money-wise. Black Friday, which got its name from the fact that many businesses see their income move from in the red to black, is the fifth biggest shopping day out of the year. Retail experts say normally, depending on the day Christmas falls, that the Saturday before or Dec. 23 is the largest shopping day. To find out more legends of Thanksgiving, visit http://snopes.com/holidays/thanksgiving/beliefs.asp.

Butterball Hotline

   Now, even clueless cooks can prepare a Thanksgiving feast...or at least, they can cook a turkey. Butterball sports a "Turkey Hotline," which has been available since 1981, for those people that are not quite sure how to roast the bird for their Thanksgiving dinner. These "Turkey Counselors" have actually received questions about people asking if they can pop popcorn in the turkey's cavity will they roast it so that when the popcorn pops, the rear-end will blow off the turkey and they will know it's done. FYI, it does not work. One man even called in asking if he could carve his turkey with a chainsaw...that must have been an interesting Thanksgiving for that family.

   Another woman called asking how to get the bleach off of her bird, which she had used to clean it. Apparently, she had a germ phobia and was scared that the bird would be to "germy" to eat. Obviously, some people just need to head to the all-you-can-eat buffet somewhere like Western Sizzlin'.

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