Normandy invasion. Most of these men, in fact, come

Normandy invasion. Most of these men, in fact, come from a military background. Christmas shopping is just another hill to be taken before the holiday war is won.

2. The rest of us.

Generally, we've put off buying a particular present until the last second because we’ve been Waiting to think of— the perfect gift — for that person who's well-nigh impossible to buy for. We were waiting for inspiration in October, in November and throughout December.

Inspiration doesn't arrive, but Dec. 24 does.

It can get ugly out there.

So ugly, in fact, that some desperate people will be tempted to "recycle" a gift they've received to somebody else.

Women do it, too — last year’s perfume, after all, bought by a last-minute shopper (a man, of course), might be the perfect gift for somebody on the church gift exchange. Or an ex-motherin-law.

A survey published last Christmas found that 25 percent of the men surveyed had recycled at least one gift — and about one of every seven of those men said they'd been caught. That's the very definition of a blue Christmas.

So the bottom line on gift recycling is this: If you do it, don't get caught.

What about gift certificates? Well, it's the kind of thing that works once very well. But you don't want to get the reputation as "the one who always gives me a gift certificate. Can't he think of anything himself?"

So keep that idea up your sleeve and don't fall back on it too quickly. Unless it's a gift certificate for a store in France — along with airfare for two (or more). That's a great idea anytime, if you can afford it.

If you're the type who insists on waiting until the last minute, it's a better idea to give yourself some kind of a safety net to work with. That's where maintaining a gift drawer comes in handy.

You see, some people keep presents in a special place around the house for emergencies — parties, unexpected