Absurd Notions: Holiday Panic Puzzle Page Solution

SOLUTION:

Biff can't get out of the mall in time if he just tries to push his way through the middle, so of course there's a trick. The guy smoking out front is the hint. After grabbing Warren's and Isaac's gift from the two stores on his left, he can go back outside and run around to the Fnord & Tailor entrance, which only takes a minute. (You can learn from this in real life.) He gets Jag's gift in there, and Jay's gift on the first store on his left. His shopping done, he can get back out the door just in time.

Now, for those who were under the impression that the smoker has to be counted three times, I must say I didn't think of it that way. If you think of the canopy as its own space (as I did) the whole thing takes 59 minutes. If you count the smoker at the beginning, it's 60. I admit I originally wrote the instructions a bit sloppily, but realistically you shouldn't have to count him again at the end.
And counting Biff himself is just silly. :=}