IN GARNER

Bonnie Strickland, 33, of Garner left home at 3 a.m. headed for the 24-hour Wal-Mart Supercenter in Clayton. Her strategy: wait inside where it was warm for the deals to begin at 5 a.m. Her goal: a digital camera and a portable DVD player. Two aisles over, folks were taking numbers for $398 laptop computers.

"It was madness," Strickland said. "Some people got upset. They didn't honor the numbers, and some people with numbers ended up not getting laptops."

She also hit the Target and Best Buy in White Oak Crossing in Garner. Her take on the day? "Everybody seems to be in a better mood," she said. "But my feet are starting to hurt."

Joe Christian's plan was simple. The manager of the Chick-Fil-A at White Oak was going to feed the early birds at the center's big stores and pass out free-drink coupons to boost his lunchtime traffic.

At 5 a.m., Christian took 250 mini breakfast sandwiches to those waiting at Target. After 20 minutes, he was out of sandwiches.

What about Best Buy? "I couldn't get over there," Christian said. "It was so crowded."

IN SMITHFIELD

Four hours into shopping with his girlfriend at Carolina Premium Outlets, Matt London got tired of standing and ended up holding down one end of a bench.

But London enjoyed the sunshine on a chilly Friday afternoon. He hung out while his girlfriend shopped for clothes.

"I'm just the boyfriend, the chaperone," said London, 25, of Greenville, who picked his up girlfriend in Lucama before arriving in Smithfield. "I drove around 30 minutes looking for a parking space, and here I am."

A day after cooking a Thanksgiving meal for 25, Nettie Brosseau of Greenville decided to hit the stores Friday. A little tired and nursing an achy knee, she showed up at the outlet mall about 10 a.m. with her three daughters, sister and best friend.

"My girls tell me what the grandkids want," said Brosseau, 54. "The girls line it up, I pay for it, and we come on out." At 3:15, she was baby-sitting a full shopping cart while the others shopped. Two loads were already in the car.

Who gets the haul? Six grandsons, ages 5 to 14, and one soon-to-be-spoiled granddaughter, 2.

IN RALEIGH

Out since 7 a.m., Dawn Grimes finished up at Triangle Town Center as night fell.

She spent the whole day shopping for and with her girls: Katie Wheeler, 14, and Madison Wheeler, 16.

"We do it every year to buy their Christmas," said Grimes of Stantonsburg near Wilson. "They're teenagers, and moms don't know how to buy for teenagers."

They carried and wheeled out bags from Charlotte Russe, Hollister, American Eagle, Hecht's and Victoria's Secret.

Grimes said she had one last stop: SuperTarget.

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