In my lifetime, there are a few stand-outs for the must-have Christmas gift years.

In the late ’90s there was Furby, a fuzzy little waddling, talking robot that had frazzled parents lining up for ridiculous amounts of time. As a youngster I had one of the coveted Cabbage Patch Kids, the chubby faced dolls that came with names and adoption certificates (mine had “real” hair). My sister amassed quite a collection of My Little Pony dolls – which appear to be making a comeback.

A couple of years ago my nephew’s grandma scoured her city, waited in line and scored a Tickle Me Elmo that made all of us adults roll on the floor with tears streaming down our faces. While less popular amongst the masses, I coveted my jean jacket, cassette player (yes cassettes) and stacks of books Santa often brought me.

Only 27 days remain to get the last of the Christmas shopping finished.

Don’t panic yet though, this year things may be easiest on those last-minute, Christmas Eve shoppers.

On every countertop in every gas station across the country is some kind of fancy new hand sanitizer. They come in pretty coloured containers, pen shapes with atomizers, squirt bottles in smelly flavours and those promising to leave hands soft and smooth (not likely).

Some companies are slick enough to work the worries of the general public, advertising their product to protect against the H1N1 virus – more commonly known as the swine, hiney or pig flu.

That’s really the impetus behind the hand-washing, sanitizing frenzy that’s taken hold around the world.

Despite the fact that most will have had the vaccine, cleanliness (as some seem to forget) is still a healthy choice. That’s one of many skills my parents instilled. My dad’s a baker, so I grew up in a family business where washing your hands was pretty critical and mom taught me to wash my hands after doing my business. It all seems like common sense to me.

However, the germicidal maniacs have inherited the earth. Now, aside from my regular hand-washing duties, I’ve added the occasional pump of germ killer. I pull it out while watching skating lessons, immediately after the post-hockey-game handshake with the other team and even randomly, mid-story, while seated at my own desk and computer (which, along with my phone, now get routinely wiped with some kind of germ-killing cloth).

So as the germ-killers inherit the earth, I’m frankly looking forward to opening my stocking. I anticipate The Real Wives of fill-in-the-city designer, medical-grade gloves, or maybe some Backyardigans one-time-use sanitizing facecloth, perfect for when I’m out for lunch with my four-year-old nephew.

A SpongeBob SquarePants pre-soaped sponge would be great for the purse; ideal when you need to wipe down an unexpected germ obstacle like a library desk or pay phone.

I have yet to see the Dora the Explorer disinfecting wipes (kid-friendly and perfect for the grocery store shopping cart handle) or the Martha Stewart sanitizing scrubby, for cleaning fruit in the absence of bleach and a dish brush.

There is a niche market that’s being missed, however. Despite the fact many of the water-free hand sanitizers assure us they have aloe or vitamin E therein – dry itchy hands are already in abundance.

Another shortage is trendy face masks. Unfortunately Project Runway Canada hasn’t held a medical mask challenge yet, so there won’t be any of those in my stocking. Luckily, I still have a fabulous germ-stopper that I picked up in Taiwan (it’s blue with a little monkey on it.) Here’s hoping it stays hanging on the bulletin board and doesn’t get any use this winter.

Christine Van Reeuwyk is a reporter with the Peninsula News Review.

reporter@peninsulanewsreview.com