caught in a crowd

I grab a bus heading downtown. It’s Sunday, shouldn’t take long.

Well, it does.  There’s a Lexington Avenue Festival so my bus needs to detour for 20 blocks.  Then there’s traffic.  A person in a wheel chair.  And a twenty-minute bus ride takes over an hour.

I get to my destination.  The J. Crew Sample Sale.  It’s the last day so everything is marked down an extra 50%.  I figure I’ll start with the women’s sale then go over to the men’s sale across the street.

The better sample sales have fitting rooms and mirrors. This sample sale has neither.  Just hordes and hordes of shoppers.  At least there are plenty of people to ask, "How does this look?" as there is no way to see for myself.

After much searching, I end up with one item:  a basic, boring summer cashmere cardigan in white.  From $188 to $45.

It takes 30 minutes to get to a register. But everyone in line is friendly.  By the time I am ready to check out, I have exchanged numbers with a fellow shopper.  

I leave and hope to cross the street to the men’s sale.  I can’t.   Today is the Gay Pride Parade.  There are so many people on the sidewalk walking is impossible.

But worse, pedestrians are not allowed to cross the street.  At least not from 34^th to 14^th  , and I'm around 26th.  I fight my way to the nearest subway to escape the crowds, and end up in Soho — a nice place to spend the rest of the afternoon.