Of all the things that should be on your holiday shopping list, but aren’t, spare batteries hold a unique quality. If you buy the right type of battery, you can save tons of money over time. Make this the year you stop throwing out money on disposables.

Faithful readers know I’ve been raving about rechargeable NiMH batteries for years. Having enough spare NiMH rechargeables tucked in a kitchen drawer will see you through the darkest night … literally.

Truth be told, no one is ever excited to rip the gift wrap off a battery charger and set of rechargeable batteries (even if you’ve made the gift wrap yourself).

Just give ‘em time.

With enough in the proverbial drawer, you’ll never have to endure the inevitable post-holiday question: “Brother can you spare … a battery?”

I bought my last batch of spare batteries (Sanyo Eneloop NiMH AAs) last winter. They’ve held up well and I’ll be adding more of the same to the collection this month.

No one’s ever been fired for buying too many spare batteries.

Or have they?