The holidays will be tight, so here's where you can find Black Friday ads

There are many Black Friday ad spotters out there, but TGI Black Friday neatly organizes the holiday ad circulars and also lets you know when they'll be released.

So far, Toys R Us has released its Big Toy Book and among the bargains: a free $25 iTunes gift card with the purchase of an iPod Touch (so don't think that Toys R Us is just for kidstuff).

And for more money-saving holiday tips, check out my pal Stacey's blog Frugal Holiday Tips.

Free tacos, laid-off buddies! But is it worth the calories?

Jason Bartlett of the Tampa Bay Rays may have not been on the winning team in the first game of the World Series but he did win America a free taco by stealing a base in the Rays 3-2 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday night.

What we want to know is will we strike out on our diets if we eat it?

Turns out the free crunchy beef taco will only set you back 170 calories. There are 10 grams of fat and 3.5 grams of that are saturated fat. But there's no trans fat and you do get 3 grams of fiber and a somewhat respectable 350 milligrams of sodium.

You can snap up your free taco between 2 and 6 p.m. your time Tuesday, Oct. 28 at any particpating Taco Bell.

Linens n Things is liquidating but the sales are no big deal yet

I got a jumpstart on the big Linens n Things going-out-of-business sale since my local store was closing sooner, but I just checked on their Web site and the sales are no big deal yet. It's best to wait a few weeks until the discounts get steeper, then forage around for stuff. And now comes word that Mervin's will be liquidating its stock as well.

Don't go to these liquidation sales with anything specific in mind and don't buy junk you don't need. Last week I picked up pillows for the guest room and 5 dark chocolate bars, which I do indeed need for nutritional benefits :)

The chocolate, not the pillows.

Coffee at Office Depot, chocolate at Linens n Things

Sometimes you can find the best deals on "fancy foods" at the weirdest places. I was in Office Depot earlier this week buying batteries when I spotted a 2-pound bag of Costa Rican coffee on sale for $6. SIX BUX! Seriously cheap.

Later this week, I was checking out the last gasps of my Linens n Things, which is closing, and I picked up some Lindt and Scharffen Berger dark chocolate for 30 percent off.

Cheap chocolate and coffee (and pillows): What could be better?

Gas for $3.13, baby!

That's what I paid for my fill-up yesterday.

OK, here's the catch, penny pinchers: It's only for people with a Rick Case Rewards card. If you bought a car at any Rick Case dealership around the country or even go there for a test drive you can get a Rewards card, which will entitle you to the gasoline discount.