If you’ve decided to take your kids fishing this summer but don’t have much fishing or boating knowledge, get started at Take Me Fishing. Sponsored by the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation, a nonprofit group whose aim is to increase participation in recreational angling and boating, the site has select-your-state sections on getting a fishing license and boating and fishing, along with the all-important guide on how to fish and a “fishopedia,” which lists and describes many types of fish. Once you’ve garnered some basic knowledge, you’ll need some equipment. Happily, Cabela’s currently has an online sale for fishing gear, such as the four-piece travel spinning rod (now $40, down from $50) and the more advanced Fish Eagle XML casting rods ($70, down from $140). For the kids, a Pirates of the Caribbean spincast kit includes rod, reel and small tackle box ($7). A good fishing trip wouldn’t be complete without the right apparel. Orvis’s “fishing best-sellers” include a classic fishing vest called the Super Tac-L-Pak ($89; pictured). Real fly fishermen always wear waders; these Silver Label Stockingfoot waders have neoprene gravel guards and an inside storage pouch ($189). Finally, a tackle box will keep your flies, hooks and other materials clean and organized. This classic Wheatley metal fly box , is handmade in England and can be personalizedand ($59 to $98). If that’s too steep for you, Wal-mart has a perfectly serviceable six-tray tackle box ($20).

It’s your first day at the office after the Thanksgiving break, but that’s no reason to start working. This is the traditional day when online shopping spikes. Swivel around so the boss can’t see and let’s get started. We surfed 17 major retail websites in search of bargains - and for the most part, we were disappointed. Many of the big box stores had little in the way of discounted items for today. Most were honking their horns about free shipping after you spend a certain amount, but that doesn’t sound very special to us. A few decent sounding bargains popped up, such as Walmart’s Cyber Monday specials (an Xbox 360 for $400 and a 42″ Sony LCD HDTV for $1,298). Best Buy’s sale ends tonight and they’re touting lowered prices on navigation systems, TVs and Ipods/MP3s (although it looks like you only save about $10 on those). Costco says you can save $200 on a folding treadmill and $20 off a digital picture frame. Sears is taking 10 percent off all appliances, 10 percent cash back on home theaters and big discounts on tools. At CircuitCity.com, their 3-day sale lets you save an extra 10 percent if you shop online but pick up your item at the store. Major retailers whose Cyber Monday deals were less than impressive (if they had sale items at all) were Target, Bed Bath and Beyond, Nordstrom, Amazon.com, Brookstone, Crate and Barrel and Sephora. Some sites did have solid sale prices, but they were kind of hidden, such as this page on Saks.com or this one on Sharper Image’s site. Pottery Barn had some good prices on their sale page. So who had the best deals this Cyber Monday? Macy’s and Kohls. Macy’s “Web Busters” offered $600 diamond earrings for $200 and a man’s leather jacket worth $575 was $229. Kohls was substantially knocking down the cost of their Simply Vera Vera Wang clothing line, as well as kitchen items, outerwear and fine jewelry. On top of that, their Gold Star clearance page cut prices by 60 to 80 percent ($45 towels for $9, for example).

Chadwick’s Catalog Outlet touts its “incredible markdowns on classic fashions and career looks.” This Boston store has been a long-time hot spot for quality off-price apparel for those who need to work within a tighter budget. Right now the site is featuring a summer sale on footwear at savings up to 65 percent. Let us know if you come across any great finds while you’re there.