Union Square

We took Maggie downtown to Union Square on Saturday to see the Christmas decorations and hit the big stores. We do it every year and Maggie always enjoys it, until she runs out of gas, And she generally runs out of gas about 20 minutes before we really give up and go home so she was pretty worn out by the time we got back.

We planned to leave around 9 AM, but were slow out of the gate. By the time we left it was nearly 10. That is a crucial hour in parking and crowds, but we marshaled on. As I drove down O'Farrell St, I spied a parking place about three blocks before Macy's  but it was three lanes over and I couldn't make the merge in time. We pushed forward thinking we could find a handicapped spot.  HA! Not a chance. Everything was taken or there were "no parking" signs. In addition, every parking lot was either already filled or there was a huge line of cars waiting to go in. We ended up parking at Steve's office, which is about 8 blocks away.

Once we made the trek back to Union Square we made quick work of buying a couple of gifts and then headed for the windows at Macy's. Again this year, the windows are full of kittens and puppies that you can adopt from the SPCA. It is really cute and a very popular attraction. People were very nice and let us get Maggie's wheelchair right up to the windows but the painted window frame was higher than her wheelchair on the Stockton street side and she couldn't see anything. We went over to the O'Farrell side and she got a good look. The kittens were playful and sweet, but Maggie was unimpressed. Then she saw the sleeping puppy and thought that was hilarious. I guess she's a dog person.

We went up to the 7th Floor of Macy's which is Christmas decoration Central and looked out over Union Square but Maggie and Steve were merely silhouettes when I tried to take the picture. It's funny because I stood in Union Square the evening of the tree lighting ceremony and took a picture of Macy's so these shots are nearly exact opposites (even day/night). We would be standing one story from the top in the picture of Macy's

We had to head to Union Square itself to see the giant tree (visible in the shot from the Macy's window) and then into the St. Francis Hotel to see the castle.

  As you can see from the picture, by the time we got to the castle, Maggie was exhausted. I suggested that Steve go and get the car while I fed her, but we realized there would be no where to stop and load her in so we made the trek back to his office together. Maggie was wiped out, but she had fun. She had a nice quiet afternoon.

Because I am her mother and feel everything she feels, I took a nap as soon as the nurse arrived.