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You survived Black Friday (the Friday after Thanksgiving) and this was no small accomplishment with all those tantalizing specials that beckoned you to stimulate the economy. Some of you witnessed the craziness associated with Black Friday: the heavy traffic, long lines of bleary-eyed shoppers, some shoving and pushing, the ubiquitous holiday music, the ringing of cash registers and parents trying to keep their children content. I understand that some of you were unable to shop on Black Friday because of all your academic work and lab experiments, but don't despair. There is hope for you. We are now in the midst of a 48 hour reprieve which will enable us to catch our collective breath until the next shopping event, Cyber Monday. Cyber Monday is a marketing term for the Monday immediately following Black Friday. In order to avoid all the congestion at the malls, companies created this term to entice and persuade people to shop online. Many consumers do computer "window shopping" during the weekend after Thanksgiving thus avoiding all the frustration and aggravation associated with Black Friday. This hassle-free approach to shopping is a popular way to do your shopping by letting your fingers do all the purchasing for you. In most cases, handling and shipping is provided free of charge. Last year, over three fourths of online retailers said that their sales increased substantially last year on the Monday after Thanksgiving, a trend that is driving serious online discounts and promotions on Cyber Monday. So, if you missed out on Black Friday specials, don't despair, as Cyber Monday can be the answer for you. Bob Chudy Program Director International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS) Office of Global Affairs University of Connecticut Rowe Center Room 126 Storrs, CT 06269 phone: 860-486-6653 email: [log in to unmask] web: www.isss.uconn.edu