The Cart-scalator

On Sunday, my mother and I made a trip to the really big big-box store to pick up a few things…the store is so big, it has two floors and an escalator to move people up and down between them…and a cart-scalator to move their carts, too. We felt a bit like Ma and Pa Kettle visit the city here.
Two stories-one for food, crafts and books, one for everything else-makes it necessary to have a people moving system, so there is an escalator in the middle of the store. As we approached the escalator we wondered what we would do with our cart, which had a few things in it. No problem! Between the downscalator and the upscalator [as I like to call them] was a narrow passage with gates…the cart-scalator! We stood and gawked for a moment, watching how people used this wonder…we didn’t want to do it wrong and look foolish!
We were not the only ones first casting eyes upon this modern convenience…children were squealing with delight, seemingly sophisticated young people were laughing and pointing out features, timid elderly folks were backing away…
We felt confident we could get ourselves and our cart safely to the lower level, so we approached the gate. Pushing the cart through the gate, I thought I was prepared, but then the cart was grabbed out of my hands and pulled into the channel. I jumped back and we dashed to the downscalator, arriving right after our cart started its descent. The cart-scalator is timed a little slower than the escalator, so soon we were neck and neck. Ahead of us, a young couple, carrying their baby in a snugli on Daddy’s chest, were watching and commenting on their cart’s progress. An infant carrier perched precariously on the top of the child seat wobbled at first, but then steadied. A coffee cup placed in the bottom of the cart wiggled and jiggled and the young lady exclaimed “Your coffee is spilling!” But no, the young man assured her, the cup is empty.
At the bottom, the exit gate was momentarily blocked by up-going passengers trying to work out the cart loading scheme, but I said “excuse me” and they parted so we could retrieve our cart. We merrily went on our shopping way, a little wiser in the ways of the world and invigorated by our adventure. Simple pleasures for simple people!