News-Record.com

Is the pen and pencil supply getting a little low? No worries, the time to restock is near.

Pencils, pens, paper and just about anything else back-to-school related will be on sale in the coming weeks, as retailers try to lure shoppers in with deals. Whether your classroom days are here or long gone, if you’re running low or trying to stockpile office supplies, now is the time to buy.

I often try to get a good supply of items to use year-round when they coincide with a retail holiday. For instance, school supplies rarely are as cheap in November or January as they will be come July and August.

Baked beans have been on sale pretty consistently this summer with lots of grocery stores running cookout-themed sales. But wait until February, and you’ll probably be paying full price.

Ditto for gardening supplies. Even if you have the greenest of green thumbs and cultivate plants year-round, you’ll usually catch the best prices and selection during the spring and summer months.

Freebies at Friendly Fridays

Friendly Center is offering a loyalty card program for folks who take advantage of the center’s free Friday evening concerts.

The loyalty cards, given out at the weekly concert, entitle holders to discounts at a variety of restaurants in the center, including Bear Rock Cafe , Harpers, Chick- fil-A and Bravo! Cucina Italiana.

The specials are available Friday evenings from 5 to 11 p.m., now through Aug. 22 .

Here’s a rundown of offered deals:

• Bear Rock Cafe : Friendly Friday special boxed meal offer;
• Ben & Jerry’s: Buy one treat, get one for $1;
• Bravo! Cucina Italiana: $5 off a $15 purchase;
• Cafe Carolina: Two entrees for $10;
• Chick-fil-A: Free three-count chicken strips with a purchase of a medium drink and fries;
• Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar: Complimentary wine flight;
• Harper’s: $5 off any entr ee;
• Jason’s Deli: 10 percent discount off any purchase;
• McDonald’s: Free dessert with a value meal purchase;\
• Pita Delite: $2 off a purchase of a drink and sandwich or platter;
• Qdoba: Free small chips and 4-ounce queso dip or salsa;
• Starbucks: Buy one drink, get one free;
• Tex & Shirley’s: Free coffee, tea or soft drink; and
• US Sushi: Free California roll with any sushi purchase or a free appetizer (up to a $7 value) with any entr ee purchase.
• Other participating restaurants include Caribou Coffee, Jay’s Deli, Mimi’s Cafe , and Muse.

Check your receipt

Most stores do a good job updating their computers. Most cashiers are good at ringing up your items and coupons correctly. But cashiers are human and computers are programmed by humans, so mistakes can — and will — occur.

The best way to make sure you paid the price you should have paid is to make it a habit to check over your receipt before you leave the store.

For instance, I bought a few boxes of cereal during a sale at Kmart. Running the math in my head, I knew the total (after the instant rebate and coupons) should have been about $4-5.

When my fiancé said he paid more than $8, I knew something wasn’t right.

Looking at the receipt together, we saw that two of the boxes rang up at full price, even though there was a sign promoting the sale right in front of the cereal. He was refunded the difference when we showed the error to the customer service desk. Had we waited until he was home to check the receipt, it wouldn’t have been as convenient or quick to get the error fixed.

Savvy Shoppers unite at the Bargain Blog at news-record.com. Do you have a retail news or shopping tips for Savvy Shopper? Contact Lanita Withers at 373-7071 or e-mail lanita.withers@news-record.com