Last night Alice and I attempted some holiday shopping at Colonie Center. I say “attempted” because insomuch as actual gift purchasing the only thing I got was an impromptu one for Alice . . . and a new star for my tree. I really enjoy getting gifts for people and finding just that thing I think they will most appreciate. I do not, however, like the pressure of having to do this and so holiday shopping in general is more me walking around reminding myself that I’m not supposed to buy all the things I want. At least in that I succeeded spectacularly!

Uschi also had a photo with Santa courtesy of an anonymous blog reader. I’m happy to say it was a far less disturbing experience than the photo I had done last week which may well have scarred me for life. So it turns out that there’s a specific day that Santa has photos done with pets, which one of his helpers very specifically pointed out when I redeemed my gift. To which I replied that Uschi wasn’t technically a pet and the guy got kind of tetchy with me about how Santa wore a “special suit” on Pet Day and it would be up to him if he was okay with having the photo done. Somewhere between me introducing myself to Santa and putting Uschi in a sit in front of him the photographer noticed that she’s a guide dog and spent the next twenty minutes apologizing to me about the misunderstanding. Honestly, I wasn’t really bothered by the whole thing, but before we had walked away he invited me back to have photos with the Easter Bunny. All in all, though, it was one of the most pleasant trips to Colonie Center that I’ve ever had. No one was specifically rude to me about Uschi and everyone that came up to inquire about her politely asked whether she could be petted.

I can’t say the same for Denny’s, where we went afterward, but it was still a highlight since we had a Hobbit-themed meal and milkshakes.