Usually, I forego the madness of shopping on Black Friday, and leave that to less reasonable people. When I do go out shopping, though, I like to plan my excursions with military precision: get in, get what I need, get out and on to then next target. That means collecting intelligence in advance: scouring newspaper ads and websites for the best deals on the gifts I’m seeking, and then prioritizing them in terms of importance and mapping out my route.