Last-Minute Monday

You've survived Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Congratulations, you've made it to Last-Minute Monday. If you haven't done your consuming by Tuesday, you're likely to incur extra shipping charges or special rush charges. Or, worst scenario, your gifts may not arrive until after the holiday is gone.

Amazon spells it out for you in a chart that gets increasingly more expensive from Dec. 17 to 22. Dec. 17 is the last day for free shipping; Dec. 19 the last day to order.

Gifts.com lists the deadlines for ordering online for many of the major stores like Barnes & Noble (12/18), L.L. Bean (12/21), and Niemen Marcus (12/14). Of course, e-mail gifts like a gift certificate from Gifts.com can be done right up through Christmas morning; it's easy as hitting a few keys on your computer.

Red Envelope has free shipping through Dec. 17, but it's pushing the limit by letting you order certain last-minute gifts that ship the same day, so you can order Monday morning.

Shopping Wal-Mart or Toys "R" Us? You're already too late for many of the gifts at Toys "R" Us unless the descriptions specifically state two- to three-day shipping. You've missed the deadline for Wal-Mart's in-store pickup but can still order for delivery.

For electronics? Circuit City gives you until Dec. 18 to place your order. Best Buy, that marvel of efficiency, is taking orders for guaranteed standard delivery until Dec. 20. After that, the charges go up and the likelihood of Dec. 24 delivery goes down. At Sears, if you buy online, but pick up your ordered merchandise at the store, you're guaranteed a wait of less than five minutes.

DealHack has a great store-by-store list that includes deadlines for standard, expedited, and fastest shipping. Dealnews has a similar list. "Sometimes it pays to procrastinate, and it looks like that will be especially true for this year's holiday shoppers," said Dan de Grandpre, founder and editor-in-chief of dealnews.com. He says to expect big product discounts this week.

If your friends and family already know about your little procrastination problem, just get them a T-shirt from Procrastination.com and embrace your inner aversion to shopping.