Last Minute Music Gifts
A friend without an iPod® or other MP3 player may be missing out on the convenience of digital music. The mass marketing of iPods® and Microsoft Zunes® has obscured a treasure trove of other MP3 players available to gift givers. The Creative ZEN Mozaic® (http://us.creative.com/welcome.asp) is available in 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB with a maximum price of $140. The SanDisk Sanza® Fuse™ (http://www.sandisk.com/products/productdisplay.aspx?catid=1010) tops out around $100 and allows users to watch audio and video from their favorite artists. These MP3 players and others are available at electronics and big-box retailers nationwide.
If your friend already owns an MP3 player, you can give the gift of music with a subscription to eMusic© (http://www.emusic.com). This online music retailer sells MP3s through monthly subscriptions starting at $11.99 a month for 24 songs. While iTunes® is the more popular source for online music, eMusic© is compatible with the iPod® and dozens of other MP3 players without additional software downloads. The eMusic© library features more than 5 million songs covering indie, classic rock, and country artists. A great way to introduce your friend to eMusic© is to download songs from his favorite artists to his MP3 player, creating a birthday surprise when he starts up his player.
Last Minute Birthday Gifts For Wine Lovers
You can give the gift of wine on your friend’s birthday with a membership in a wine of the month club. Wine of the Month Club® (http://www.wineofthemonthclub.com/) offers four month, six month, and one year memberships to wine lovers around the United States. You can choose red and white, red only, and white only to meet your gift recipient’s wine preferences. Another option for last minute wine gifts is a local wine club like the Virginia Wine of the Month Club© (http://www.vawineclub.com). This club offers three month to one year memberships where recipients can get up to two bottles of Virginia wine each month.
Avid wine lovers may be fully stocked on bottles, openers, and other accessories for their hobbies. You can avoid offering last minute birthday gifts that will go to waste by organizing a wine tour in your area. If the gift recipient has a favorite winery, you can ask for a special tour after business hours as a nice surprise for the birthday celebrant. Companies like Oregon Wine Tours© (http://www.orwinetours.com) run tours of multiple wineries starting at $165 per person.
Last Minute Travel Plans
You should think about making travel plans as last minute birthday gifts for your friend or family member. While the term cruise is associated with journeys across the Atlantic and Pacific, a number of local cruise companies offer trips across lakes and inland waters. The Great Lakes Cruise Company© (http://www.greatlakescruising.com) runs routes during the spring, summer, and fall from Lake Superior to Lake Ontario. These cruises range from weekend trips aboard the Canadian Empress to ten-day jaunts aboard the Clelia II.
Another travel option is a series of camping trips within your state’s park system. California’s State Parks system (http://www.parks.ca.gov/) contains more than 270 parks and nature preserves that make for great hiking, kayaking, and camping destinations. You can set up reservations for a series of parks in a region like the Shasta Cascade and pay the park fees when you arrive. These camping experiences will help you bond with the recipient while enjoying the beautiful environs in your home state.
Last Minute Hobby Kits
The sports fan in your life may appreciate a hobby kit devoted to his favorite team. You can start the kit by purchasing a T-shirt, hat, and pennant from the team’s official store. Your sports kit should include oddities like bobble heads, custom T-shirts from CafePress© (http://www.cafepress.com), and other items from local collectibles stores. The centerpiece of your sports hobby kit can be a set of tickets purchased from StubHub© (http://www.stubhub.com), an online marketplace for sports fans to purchase tickets to upcoming events.
Another last minute birthday gift you can create for a hobbyist is a fishing kit. You can purchase reels, line, baits, and other supplies from a major retailer like Cabela’s© (http://www.cabelas.com). Your fishing kit can also feature a fishing hat, vest, and other clothing items that can be worn out on the boat. A final addition to this last minute gift idea should be a novelty item like a joke T-shirt, bumper sticker, or picture related to the challenges of fishing.
If you have a scrapbook enthusiast in your family, you can create a scrapbooking kit as a last minute birthday gift. The most important item in this kit is a sizable album that can be filled with mementos, photos, and other items. Your kit should be filled with glues, art pencils, and scissors from a scrapbook supplier like Crafter’s Toy Box© (http://www.crafterstoybox.com/). A scrapbooking kit can be assembled relatively quickly and will help the recipient savor his or her birthday memories for years to come.
Giving Memories As Last Minute Birthday Gifts
Your friends and family may have cherished photos from past birthdays that have not been framed yet. You can bring these photos into the 21st century by investing in digital frames from Kodak©. The Kodak EasyShare® (http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=14329&pq-locale=en_US) line of digital frames makes it easy for tech novices to convert old photos into digital files for posterity. Your last minute birthday gift can be an offer to upload these photos to an EasyShare® frame.
You should choose a Kodak EasyShare® digital frame that will hold thousands of photos like the W820 Digital Frame Kit. The process of adding digital photos is as simple as inserting the memory card into the frame, thereby uploading the photos without extra work. If you have a scanner and photo editing software, you can commit time to upload traditional photos to a dedicated folder. Once you have scanned and edited photos to your liking, you can transfer the photos to the digital frame with a Flash drive. The finished digital frame will rotate the images, acting as a constant reminder of past birthdays and other celebrations. |
