Ah, the season of giving is upon us once again!
What do you do if you’re a poor college student during this time of consumerism? Decide you can go without eating for a week? Tell your friends and loved ones that you are boycotting a holiday distorted by western consumerism and invite them all to dance naked with you around an oak tree in the true meaning of the Winter Solstice? And even if you have the money, what the hell do you get these people, anyway?
These are the times that try the soul, alright. Never fear. Here is a list of sure-fire shopping ideas that will please. And, because this is with the poor college student in mind, each idea is under twenty dollars.

Used Classics — Put that college education to good use: subject someone else to the dusty tomes you had to read, now that you know what they are. Enjoy Beloved? City Of Glass? Crime and Punishment? Give it to someone else who thinks like you. Even if you hated Jane Eyre, there might be someone on your list who would like it. Sold back your copy? Don’t want to get rid of it? Visit your local used bookstore and pick it up for a quarter of what you had to pay when you took the class.

The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook — Even new, this essential volume of how to do things like to land a plane, jump from a motorcycle to a moving car, or win a swordfight, come under our $20 limit. Both funny and useful, this book has sparked more drunken party conversations than I care to count. There are two other versions, Travel and Dating, making this not only a gift for everyone, but one that truly keeps on giving.

Gift Certificates — For when cash in an envelope seems low-class, but you still don’t know what to get. These things can go along way if you use them right. Good: Book stores, toy stores, music stores, restaurants. Borderline: clothing stores (only if you know the other person’s taste real well), pet stores (only, if they have, you know, a pet). Bad: health clubs.

Mix CD’s — Sure, some people like to stick to the tapes, but this is the 21st century! Upgrade! Blank CD’s are cheaper than tapes, and with the computers in Bauman being equipped with CD burners, the time has never been better.
Need MP3s? Check out www.audiogalaxy.com, www.aimster.com, or your favorite band’s website.

Art — Most artsy people do this every year, but what if you don’t have the talent to create masterpieces for everyone in your family? Not to worry; there’s a student art sale Dec. 13, right here on campus. Pick up a mug and help two people with one gift.