If these suggestions don’t fit the bill, you may have to write Christmas 2005 off as a lost cause:
For movie lovers
– “The Brat Pack Movies & Music Collection”: “Weird Science,” “Pretty in Pink” and “The Breakfast Club”–are in a Trapper Keeper-like binder and come with an eight-song CD featuring signature tunes from the John Hughes’ films. Universal, $39.98, wherever you buy DVDs and CDs.
– “Napoleon Dynamite: The Complete Quote Book”: Sweet! A compendium of the wit, wisdom and whines of Napoleon and his pals. About $8 at bookstores.
For exercise addicts
– In “Portion Telle,” registered dietitian Lisa Young offers new, practical ways to visualize proper food portions. $19.95 at bookstores.
– Nothing says stress relief like an inflatable punching “pillar.” The Bally Total Fitness Bally Boxer also improves coordination and flexibility, burns calories and sharpens reflexes. $16.99 at Marshall’s.
For the bookworm
– There’s a magazine for everyone out there, from aspiring vegetarian chefs to poodle groomers. Wrap up a current issue of the magazine to let the recipient know what he/she will be getting.
– Esquire’s “The Meaning of Life” is a coffee-table book that compiles years of the magazine’s famous “What I’ve Learned” columns. Paired with great celebrity portraits, the book unveils the greatest life lessons of the famous or infamous; $19.95 at your local bookstore.
For music lovers
Forget MTV’s horrible broadcast of this summer’s Live 8 concerts. The four-disc “Live 8” DVD set has the best of the day, including U2, Kanye West and the Killers. Capitol, $50, where ever you buy DVDs and CDs.
For budding Martha Stewarts
– For the wine enthusiast on your list, consider a fancy corkscrew kit with a zinc alloy lever-type corkscrew, foil cutter, bottle stopper and wine pourer; $12.99 at Costco.
– Set of six mod-looking, double Old-Fashioned snowball glasses and a silicon ice tray that forms snowflake-shaped ice cubes; less than $18 at Crate and Barrel.
This and that
– When your absent-minded driver can’t find his keys, he can use the Key Pager: Press the matching colored button on the base and the fob beeps; $30 at Target.
– Donation to a charity in your friend’s name. The organization will send him a card specifying that a gift has made on his behalf. It doesn’t get any more altruistic.
