Welcome back from your Thanksgiving break -- and for those of you in Canada and beyond ... well, welcome back anyways :)

We've got a bunch of stories to catch up on, but first I want to thank everyone for their entries into our Pre-Thanksgiving giveaway and make an announcement: We've got another great giveaway right on the heels of the Atomic9 GrungeBuds!

Starting on Wednesday, Dec. 02, we're going to open the second annual Byte-Sized Holiday Giveaway, featuring the new Rubik's TouchCube -- a touchscreen-style Rubik's Cube that's fully electronic! We've got our copy out with a reviewer right now, so tune in Wednesday for the full story!

In the meantime, here are the stories that have the tech world buzzing today!

--It's Cyber Monday, so where are the deals? Check this guide from DigitalTrends to get the most from your mouse clicks, or this one from CNet.com! And, for all you shoppers: Please remember to stay safe, and don't buy anything from an e-tailer you aren't familiar with, no matter what deal they are offering!!

--If you're planning on getting an ereader for your someone special (and trust me, they want one!), here is a fun guide to help you pick out the right one.

.... Though, if you want my opinion, which I know you do, I'd say go for the Kindle every time. The Barnes and Noble Nook is a cool ereader to consider, but I really haven't found my black-and-white Kindle 2 lacking in anything the Nook now delivers. Oh, and stay as far from the Sony ereaders as you can -- I've tried one and it's garbage. Sorry, that was harsh. How about, 'They can't hold a candle to the Kindle or Nook. Heck, they can't hold the unlit match that lights the candle.' Yeah, that at least sounds nicer. Convoluted, but somehow nicer. Moving on ...

--File this one under 'Gee, you don't say...,' right alongside the complaints of there being long lines on Black Friday: A new study shows people complain more online than they do in person. Shocker.

--See what all the twits have done?! Twitter has become the most-used word of 2009. Well, I'm not really surprised ... but it came in higher than 'Obama' and 'vampire.' That's actually pretty impressive. Sorry, Twi-hards -- you lost this round.

--Amazon has sneakily announced-without-announcing that its Kindle had a banner November. Highest sales ever! Awesome job, but move over, this bandwagon is getting pretty full! :) (Why was the announcement shaded in mystery? Because Amazon doesn't ever give actual sales stats regarding the Kindle.)

--In other ereader news (I swear I'm not becoming the ereader blog, there is just a lot of news swirling on them today ...): Barnes and Noble has pushed back shipments of the Nook for a week to give priority to those who preordered. Good for them I say; I appreciate customer service.

That's all for today! Remember to come back for the announcement on Wednesday! Catch you on the flip side ...