LAS CRUCES - Are you finished Christmas shopping? Me neither. But don't feel bad, we are not alone. The Associated Press reports that 40 percent of holiday purchases are made in the final 10 days before Christmas.

That means a lot of us still have to go in search of items so we can cross off the names on our lists.

Just remember, this is Christmas shopping, not hockey. There is no need to throw elbows or bloody any lips. Stores may be crowded, but most are open early and late this week - some until midnight - so you have more time to plan your attack.

Heck, a lot of stores are open well into the late afternoon and evening on Christmas Eve. The Kmart stores will be open for business until 10 p.m. on Friday and Walgreens stores won't close at all.

Las Crucen Shirley Gonzales admitted she still has "a few things" to buy this week.

"I don't like going out in the crowds," Gonzales said. "So I go very early."

Susan Palmer, marketing director of the Mesilla Valley Mall, said there will be good customer traffic all week, and she expects shoppers to roam the mall's stores on Christmas Eve until closing time at 6 p.m.

"Some people shop right up until the last minute," she said. "Last year, we were closing at 6 p.m. and at 5:30 there were 40 people in line for Santa Claus."

Janyce Leone, owner of Solamente de Mesilla near the Mesilla Plaza, said that this week will be good for business, and will get better as the week progresses.

"Christmas Eve is my best day of the

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year," Leone said. She said she'll keep her story open until at least 9:30 p.m. on Friday as people go to the plaza to enjoy the town's Christmas Eve festivities.

"People are milling around the plaza, they're in a Christmas mood, buying last-minute things for hors d'oeuvres, last-minute stocking stuffers," she said.

The Associated Press reports that there are strategies for the last-minute shopper:

•Shop extended hours. Not only are some stores still planning Christmas Eve discounts, it can be much quieter to shop at off hours, like very early in the morning or very late.

•Order online and pick up in the store. With a little extra leg work, you can still get things that are too hard to track down in person and that shippers wouldn't bring before Christmas. Many stores - including Walmart, Sears and others - now offer same-day in-store pickup of online orders.

• As Christmas approaches, toys will start getting more expensive. Evidence of that came late last week when Bloomberg news reported that Walmart, which slashed toy prices earlier in the year, raised prices on some toys back to pre-sale prices.

• Convenience stores have always been great for in-a-pinch shopping.

Brook Stockberger can be reached at (575) 541-5457

Christmas Eve shopping

Most stores will open early and stay open late this week. Call you favorite store to find out hours. On Christmas Eve, some stores will close earlier than normal. Here is a sampling of the closing times for some stores on Friday:

•Harbor Freight - 5 p.m.

•Mesilla Valley Mall and stores - 6 p.m.

•Kohls - 6 p.m.

•Dollar Tree - 6 p.m.

•Target - 7 p.m.

•Family Dollar - 8 p.m.

•Walmart - 8 p.m.

•Kmart - 10 p.m.

•Walgreens - open 24 hours, will not close

•Mesilla shops - Some stores plan to close in the afternoon while others will remain open later.