What began as a really, really bad day for Todd Jamison turned into a really, really good deal for him -- and for the carmaker Hyundai.

The security camera at Extreme Fitness in Thornhill, a town near Toronto in Ontario, Canada caught a driver in its parking lot gunning when she should have been braking and rolling over on top of Jamison's parked car and one next to it. Somebody posted the video onto YouTube, where it's been viewed more than a million times by modern-day rubber neckers. As you can see from the video below, the driver smashes Jamison's car, pauses, then drives away.

Imagine Jamison's reaction at returning to the parking lot after his workout to find his car, newly paid off, in a newly squashed condition.

But execs at Hyundai Canada saw the video too, and took the news with considerably more excitement than Jamison presumably did.

It sent representatives out to present Jamison with the keys to a new Hyundai Elantra Touring to replace his totaled 2004 Hyandai Elantra. And then it posted its own video on YouTube. It's got only 97,000 views recorded so far, but the comments left are overwhelmingly positive.



Really, you can't buy this kind of PR. And Hyundai knows it.

The 60-something female driver of the BMW SUV was caught when she returned to the fitness club's parking lot and was recognized by an employee, whose car was also involved. She is being charged with leaving the scene of an accident. It awaits to be seen whether this employee will get a new car out of the deal.

Here are some serious stocking stuffers -- if you can get them: Always wanted to spend a Christmas in Washington D.C.? Your dream might come true, especially if you can score some free tickets to the 2009 National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony.

Free tickets for this event will be distributed via lottery system for the first time this year. The lottery system opened just after midnight on Wednesday November 4 and will remain open until 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, November 6.

The National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony will be held Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009 at 5 p.m.

To participate, visit the event's website here, or call (877) 444-6777. The ticket lottery will include 2,800 ticketed seats and an additional 7,000 standing room tickets, which significantly increases capacity, and your likelihood of getting in on the event.

You'll be notified by email or U.S. mail (if you entered the lottery by phone) if you're a lucky ticket-holder. Tickets will be mailed by November 15.

What are you waiting for? Enter and get yourself in the holiday spirit.

For the vampire lover in your life, today (Wed., Nov. 4) is the last day to sign up to receive your free signed Anne Rice bookplate.

If your blood is already rushing to your ears, then you know all about the author who started the current vampire lust 30 years ago with her seminal Interview with a Vampire. Rice is like the J.K. Rowling of the Vampire genre.

Follow the instructions on her website and sign up for the Anne Rice mailing list. Do as you're told, and maybe they won't run out of these gothic-looking bookplates before you claim yours.

So Halloween's over and now you have bags of candy -- literally bags -- lying around promising to do some serious damage to your kids' teeth and your waistline. What to do? Eat it? Throw it away? Put it in the garage and forget about it? We at WalletPop think we've found an answer to this most vexing of parental dilemmas: Donate your extra bags of Halloween candy to a charitable cause.

Send your extra candy overseas -- Several organizations send donations of all kinds to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Operation Gratitude will happily take your donations of extra bagged candy to distribute to troops (find more info about procedure here and scroll to the bottom of the page.). Operation Shoebox will take your candy - also any extra socks or old cell phones you care to donate.

Some local dentist offices will buy back your extra candy for $1 a pound, and ship it themselves to U.S. troops abroad. Check here to see if dentists in your area are offering this program.

Ronald McDonald House charities welcomes donations of your extra candy (provided it's in the original wrapper, of course). Check its website for specific giving policies at the Ronald McDonald House near you.

Your local Meals on Wheels charity, which takes meals to housebound seniors, will take your extra candy. Click here to find a local chapter.

As always, women's shelters, churches, synagogues and other places of worship will accept donations of extra candy. The PTA at your child's school may also be happy to have your (bagged) extra candy for use in harvest and holiday festivals.

Probably best to involve your kids in this operation, since while they won't object to sending half their candy to a worthy cause, they will definitely object to losing all of their swag.



Thanks to CoolMomPicks.

What do you want for the holidays? Get your own free copy of Sears Wish Book by filling out this online form. Get a head start on your Holiday shopping list today!

But you'll have to be patient. Allow two to three weeks for delivery to you doorstep.

This game of chicken is getting interesting.

After KFC offered up a free piece of chicken on Monday, Boston Market upped the ante by offering its online customers a $1 chicken meal. That's a complete meal with a quarter white or 3-piece dark chicken served with mashed potatoes and cornbread. All for one humble greenback.

Now that's finger lickin' good.

The offer lasts through Nov. 1. Get your printable online coupon here and bring it into any participating Boston Market. Limit one meal per customer per visit.

Boo!

Did we scare you? Did we at least get your attention? Good, because Halloween is this Saturday, and if you're planning on making any horrible things in the kitchen for your dark brood, you'd better get planning. This freebie should help.

Download this free eBook featuring 15 recipes for Halloween from Recipelion.com and get cooking.

Thirsty? Me too. But juice is expensive these days.

But here's a Fantastic Freebie deal to slake your thirst: Answer this short online survey and get a coupon for one free 64-ounce-bottle of Old Orchard Healthy Balance fruit Juice.

Healthy Balance is Old Orchard's line of low-sugar, low calorie fruit juice, with 75% less sugar and carbs than traditional fruit cocktails.

Try some today. You can't afford not to.

Here's the latest salvo in the battle for ultimate control over our children. Best Buy is selling a GPS device that will tell you where your child is every minute of the day.

In a sign that child-tracking devices have gone mass-market, it's the first store brand with such an offer. Best Buy is marketing it under its house brand name, Insignia.

It is designed to fit into a backpack and will send a text message back to parents whenever the child has moved outside a "designated" area, such as their school, after-school program, or babysitter's backyard.

The device surely is being aimed at parents with school aged and older kids, since they're the ones presumably who can wander out of eyesight. I can't imagine there being much of a concern of babies escaping, although you never know with parents these days.

The price for this false sense of control? Only $99. Cheap, considering some of the other options out there. That's a house brand for you.

Hurry! Like a little bunny ... or a little chicken. Get one free piece of chicken from KFC - today only. Just in time for dinner. Or lunch, if you're on the West Coast.

But before dashing out, call ahead first and make sure your local KFC is participating.