Holiday gift ideas abound on campus

The holidays are getting closer while the shopping crowds are growing precariously larger. Why not avoid the mad rush for the mall and do all your shopping on campus?

Here are a dozen gift ideas from UW–Madison that can reduce the stress of holiday shopping. These gifts can only be found on campus and all benefit its academic, social, and outreach programs.

Sports tickets: Catch a wrestling match at the UW Field House, or watch the women spikers dominate their next opponent. Tickets for varsity sports events, which includes volleyball, wrestling, track and soccer, are available on a per event basis or in Badger Bundle Ticket Books, which contain 15 tickets valid for single admission to any 2000-2001 season varsity sports event. The bundles save you 30 percent on regular ticket prices. Cost: For adults, tickets per game are $5 and bundles are $50. For students, youths under 17 and senior citizens, tickets per game are $2 and bundles are $20. Contact the ticket office, (608) 262-1440 or 1-800-GO-BADGERS, or visit in person at Gate B of the Kohl Center, 601 W. Dayton St. For more ticket information, visit http://www.uwbadgers.com.

Cheese: Yes, Wisconsin is known for cheese, whether its being eaten or used as an article of clothing, and it seems only natural that the state’s largest campus has its fair share. From Babcock Hall Dairy Store and the Food Science Club, choose from an assortment of gift boxes with 20 different types of cheese. Prices range from $12 to $40. Contact the Babcock Dairy Store, (608) 262-3045, or visit at 1605 Linden Drive.

Calendars: The “Memories for a Lifetime 2001” calendar, a 14-by-20-inch wall calendar, features 13 full-color images of familiar campus scenes, including Bascom Hall, Lake Mendota and Camp Randall Stadium. About 80 percent of the calendar’s cost is donated to the Chancellor’s Undergraduate Scholarship Fund. This unique partnership between the university and the University Book Store generated over $42,000 for the fund last year. Cost: The calendars are $12.95 and are available at all University Book Store locations. For more information, visit http://www.univbkstr.com. To order, call (800) 957-7052 or visit: http://www.badgerware.com.

Book borrowing privileges: Membership in the Friends of the Libraries gives special benefits to the book lover while supporting UW–Madison’s superb research library system. A membership card allows access to Friends lectures, Friends magazine, borrowing privileges, and invitations to special library events. Cost: $35. To order, or for more information, call (608) 265-2505, or visit 976 Memorial Library, 728 State St.

Marching music: For the UW Marching Band fan, what could be better than the UW Band Store? It carries a wide variety of merchandise, from car flags to hats to key chains, and even CD and cassette recordings of the band in its finest moments. For a complete listing of items for sale, visit http://www.wisc.edu/band and click on “band store”.

Art stuff: The Elvehjem Museum contains a gift shop and a Holiday Shop, each with a wide variety of art-related merchandise. The museum shop features gifts associated with the museum’s collection, such as “Paris 1900: The ‘American School’ at the Universal Exposition,” a catalogue of beautiful paintings and decorative art that complements the museum’s current featured exhibition. The Holiday Shop is filled with cards, ornaments, and other holiday décor. This Dec. 15, the museum shops will have a faculty and staff promotional special coinciding with the opening of the museum’s next exhibit. For more information, call (608) 263-2240 or 262-9329. Also, a shopping service is available to faculty and staff: call (608) 263-4171.

Overnight in the Union: Memorial Union has 6 guest rooms, four of which have beautiful views of Lake Mendota. Call well ahead of time as the rooms are in high demand. Prices range $53 to $78 for Union members and $60 to $85 for non-Union members. Call (608) 265-3000 to book a room. For more information, visit: http://www.wisc.edu/union/info/guestrm/muguest.html

Maps: An exquisitely detailed map of Wisconsin’s land cover compiled from satellite images is available through the State Cartographer’s Office. The 42-by-50-inch map depicts the state with its 13 distinct types of land cover, including deciduous forests, farm fields, and wetlands. The map features objects as small as 300 feet across and is a useful tool for travelers, hunters and outdoors enthusiasts. Cost: The map is $10 plus tax, shipping and handling and comes rolled in a sturdy tube. To order, call or visit the State Cartographer’s Office, 160 Science Hall, (608) 262-3065, or the Wisconsin Geological Survey, 3817 Mineral Point Road, (608) 263-7389. For an online order form, visit the State Cartographer’s Office Web site at http://www.geography.wisc.edu/sco

Terrace furniture: Bring the Union terrace furniture home to your own patio (as soon as the snow clears). Lightweight metal tables and chairs are available in Badger red and Wisconsin white. Cost: For Union members, chairs are $168.30 and tables are $289. For non-Union members, chairs are $189.95; tables, $339.95. Order online: http://www.wisc.edu/union/mu/muserv/furniture/order.html

Animal loving cards: For a minimum $5 donation, the School of Veterinary Medicine will send an attractive, four-color holiday card to the recipient of your choice. The card acknowledges in the recipient’s name your contribution to the veterinary school’s Companion Animal Fund, which supports health care studies into diseases and afflictions that affect companion animals. To view the card, visit: http://www.vetmed.wisc.edu. For an order form, contact Laurie Linquist, (608) 263-7934; lindquil@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu. Deadline for ordering: Friday, Dec. 15.

Engraved tile: Buy an engraved 12-inch-by-6-inch tile for a new Terrace near the expanded Arboretum Visitor Center. Cost: $135. Deadline: Dec. 31. You can also buy plantings and other items. For information, call the Arboretum Development Office, (608) 265-2538.