This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Black Friday Warriors Battle the Cold

Customers line up to catch early Black Friday deals at Best Buy in Encinitas

While you were eating turkey and stuffing with your family, about 150 people were outside waiting for the doors to open, and the Black Friday madness to begin.

At the front of the line was Jose Villalva and his family. While you may think showing up a few hours before the store opens will secure you a great deal on a popular electronic, think again. "We've been out here since 1 pm as of yesterday", said Villalva. This family isn't just a coupon-cutter family; they're Black Friday warriors.

Villalva's primary motivation for camping outside Best Buy was to get Black Friday deals on TV's. "We're here for the 42" plasma screen TV for $199. If the plasma screen was on sale anywhere else, I would spend $300 at most."

Find out what's happening in Encinitaswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

You might ask yourself if it's really worth it to battle the cold and wait outside for the doors to open, but Villalva explains otherwise. "It feels awesome being out here! I can't explain any other feeling."

Since the family was in front of the store since yesterday, they had set up a tent so they could spend the night together. "Sleeping in front of the store was rather cold but doable," says Villalva.

Find out what's happening in Encinitaswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Villalva and his family has battled it out and will hopefully find the deals they were looking for come tomorrow. Interestingly, between all four family members, they will have spent a combined total of 140 hours together by the time the doors open at midnight!

It's hard to find great deals in this economy, but to be a Black Friday warrior, you have to fight for it!

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?