Created: 11/27/2008 12:29:12 PM 
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- 'Twas the night before Black Friday, word spread house to house.
The shopping grinch was stirring, with a click of the mouse.
An e-mail is popping up in inboxes everywhere, warning "stores planning to close after Christmas are still selling gift cards for the holidays."
This list follows:
Circuit City Pacific Sunwear
Ann Taylor- 117 stores nationwide closing
Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug ,and Catherine's to close 150 stores nationwide
Eddie Bauer to close stores 27 stores and more after January
Cache will close all stores
Talbots closed 100 stores, but none in Jacksonville, and selling all J. Jill stores
GAP closing 85 stores
Footlocker closing 140 stores more to close after January
Wickes Furniture closing down
Levitz closing down remaining stores
Bombay closing remaining stores
Zales closing down 82 stores and 105 after January
Whitehall closing all stores
Piercing Pagoda closing all stores
Disney closing 98 stores and will close more after January.
Home Depot closing 15 stores 1 in NJ ( New Brunswick )
Macys to close 9 stores after January
Linens and Things closing all stores
Movie Galley Closing all stores
Pep Boys Closing 33 stores
Sprint/Nextel closing 133 stores
JC Penney closing a number of stores after January
Ethan Allen closing down 12 stores.
Wilson Leather closing down all stores
Sharper Image closing down all stores
K B Toys closing 356 stores
Loews to close down some stores
Dillard's to close some stores
Many shoppers love the convenience of gift cards.
"It's easy! You just find what it is they like, go to the store, get it and you're done," said Freddy Vasquez.
But gift cards might not be the gift that keeps on giving.
The Better Business Bureau recently put out a warning, saying Sharper Image filed bankruptcy earlier this year, leaving customers with $20 million in worthless gift cards.
The e-mail does have a kernel of truth to it.
Circuity City has filed for Chapter 11, but they haven't stopped selling gift cards.
A company spokesperson tells First Coast News:
"Our stores that are in the liquidation process are accepting Circuit City gift cards, but stopped selling when the closings were announced on November 3."
"We're aware that there's been a lot of misinformation out on the Internet about gift cards since we filed for Chapter 11.
"On our first day before the court, we sought and received authority to continue our gift card program. We are continuing to sell and redeem Circuit City gift cards in our stores and at www.circuitcity.com. No changes have been made in our gift card program. Our gift cards are being redeemed at their full value and are not burdened by service fees or expiration dates."Another retailer on the list, Linens N Things, is going out of business. Its website says it no longer accepts gift cards online.
But much of the information in the e-mail is misleading and out of date.
Many closings have already happened, some are part of normal business plans, and some are because building leases are up.
Stores such as Ann Taylor, Talbots and Eddie Bauer have all posted notices in an attempt to clear concerns about their financial stability.
Store owners blame the e-mails rapid success on the power of fear, saying it plays on the financial concerns shoppers already have about this holiday season.
Surveys show nearly two-thirds of consumers plan to buy gift cards this holiday season.
Still, some shoppers just don't want to take any chances on the grinch stealing their holiday gift cards.
"Too many stores are going out of business and you dont know if they'll be any good," said one First Coast shopper.
Experts advise shoppers purchasing gift cards to buy one offered by a local shopping mall that can be used at any store, so there is no concern over stores going out of business.
If you have a problem regarding a gift card, you can reach out to the Federal Trade Commission here.
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