Kellie Pickler appeared on Jay Leno Thursday night, part of an ongoing series of appearances for the American Idol veteran. She’s as perky, effusive and, well, just darn right silly as always.

After being introduced by Jay, she introduces her trip to New York City to find the perfect Christmas present for the Tonight Show host. She tells Jay she usually shops at “Big Lots”, so NYC was quite a change for her.

She describes the city as having more tall buildings than her hometown of Albemarle, with more lights and more action. Kind of like a big Wal-Mart.

Ms. Pickler needs help finding the right gift for Leno, so she starts off by asking people if they have heard of Jay. A traffic cop thinks she’s asking if he knows who J-Lo is, and after taking her first subway ride, she asks a passenger what the perfect gift for Jay Leno would be. He replies he doesn’t watch the Tonight Show.

She asks a department store security guard what she should buy Leno. The guard is probably six-foot-six, tipping the scales at about 250. He suggests a Star Wars lightsaber, and the next thing you know, the two are having a lightsaber fight right inside the store. Kellie tells the guard that because he’s so big, he probably doesn’t need a lightsaber, he could just step on people.

“Running” into Al Roker, the North Carolina ingénue asks the jovial weatherman what she should get Leno for Christmas. He replies that while it isn’t a well-known fact, Leno likes women’s accessories.

Next up is Lionel Richie, who when Kellie suggests she might buy Leno a Giraffe, Mr. Richie, tells her it is not a good idea – Michael Jackson had a Giraffe that drooled…..

Then it’s on to Taylor Hicks, the reigning American Idol, who responds when Kellie asks what would be the perfect gift for Leno, takes a long pause and says: “All those years, Dad, you were never home for Christmas….”

Next time on camera, Kellie tells Jay she’s going to Chinatown, and she’s excited, because “I’ve never seen a Chinese person”. She gets some lessons on how to say hello in Chinese, and then proceeds to try and greet people on the street with her new-found language. Of course, every time she uses the Chinese phrase, the people respond in English.

Realizing that Jay is Italian, she goes to Little Italy, and asks a gentleman if he speaks “Italy”. Finding a young, well-built gentleman that looks like he is right off the set of the “Sopranos”, Kellie asks him if he speaks Italian, and he says no, he speaks New York, and follows with the classic, “How you doin’?”

Her shopping spree continues, sprinkling in “How you doin’?” to various store clerks and passersby. With the Rockefeller tree lighting up behind her, Kellie realizes what she must get Leno, and then walks out onto the Tonight Show stage with a present for Jay. A very Pickler Christmas indeed.