With one week to go, AV offers a last-minute gift guide for those who can’t or won’t shop ahead

Wake up.

Wake up, wake up, wake up: Christmas is one short week away.

Where do you stand on Christmas shopping?

Have you ordered the goose? Picked up some wine? Found a book for Aunt Mabel and a CD for Uncle Harold? What are you getting for your mother? What are you getting for your brother? What are you getting for that person you wake up beside every morning? Have you figured out if, when, and how you’ll wrap all these hypothetical gifts?

Wake up. You’ve got one week.

Happily, as you well know if you are the sort of procrastinator who picks ups a weekly rag like this to pass the time when you know you should be shopping, cleaning, running errands, and what have you, all you really need is one day. One frenetic, desperate day.

Here at AV, we’re of the same mind. We might, for example, relegate all our holiday gift-shopping to a handful of bookstores: Burning Books on Connecticut Street (especially on Friday, December 16, 6-9pm, when they’re knocking 10 percent off all merchandise and offering refreshments to weary fellow travelers), Rust Belt Books on Allen Street (one needs some time in this treasure house, so maybe this weekend, before the dread really takes hold), and Talking Leaves (on Christmas Eve, of course, because you can literally close your eyes and grab things off the shelves at either branch of this local institution and come up with brilliant gifts).

We might, in a pinch, run up to the Floristy on Delaware or the gift shop at Burchfield Penney Art Center on the Buffalo State College campus and pick up Avalon’s whole line of snow and water globes celebrating Buffalo’s architectural icons. (The latest globe features the Botanical Gardens, pictured above.) They may provide the only snow your out-of-town visitors will see this holiday season.

We may, as you are doing now, consult this list assembled by our deadline-savvy experts to help direct our last-ditch efforts. They’re here to help all of us who once again have slept too late and too well.

Last Minute Gift Guide	Season's Eatings by Jennifer Mogensen Sugar, spice, and everything nice: great gifts for food lovers and for yourself
Last Minute Gift Guide	Gifts For Gadget Gurus by Cory Perla The Gadget Guru on your gift list is probably the kind of person who has everything, so you’ll have to get creative. The best way to do that is to go with something cutting-edge and new.
Last Minute Gift Guide	Keep 'Em Cozy by Jill Greenberg Even though this winter has been creeping in like a lamb (like a daydreaming, behind-the-pack, slow-as-molasses lamb), don’t let your guard down. This is still Buffalo, which is known for lake-effect snow, surprise storms, and a lion’s roar of chill.
Last Minute Gift Guide	Last-Minute Utilitarian Gifts by Buck Quigley ’Tis the season when you can’t glance at a TV without seeing a commercial where good-looking lovers frolic in a snowy landscape, or cuddle around a crackling fire—before a small box is produced containing a sparkling diamond ring or necklace.
Winter Drinks	Ho Ho Ho... and A Shot of Rum by Donny Kutzbach It happened a little later than usual, but the sub-32-degree temperatures and blustery winds of winter have finally taken a grip on the Queen City. The idea of a cold weather drink here might make a few people scratch their heads. This is Buffalo, right?
You Auto Know	Fast Cars and Faster Gifts by Jim Corbran First, let’s get the obvious gift suggestion out of the way. Someone you know and love wants a new car. Here are my down-and-dirty quick picks: VW GTI, Ford Fiesta hatchback, Mazda MX5. And if you simply must have more room, a Dodge Caravan should work for anybody. Okay. Now for some car-related gifts that you might actually buy.