Okay so today I saw humanity at its best. Today as I was getting off BART to go see a movie. (I saw No Country for Old Men which ironically is about humanity at its worst. Ooh, talk about tragic. And bloody, good Lord!) So anyway--up a ways was a woman who was tumbling down the escalator. She had apparently gotten onto the escalator with a suitcase and then lost her balance or something and was now tumbling over and over down the lower portion of the escalator. Meanwhile her suitcase was slowly ascending. And two women came to her aid and helped her up. I think the fact that she was struggling so hard to stand up was the very thing that kept her tumbling. Had she just sort of collapsed into it she would have eventually stabilized and would then have been able to stand up. But I thought it was great that two women helped her get up. Doesn't it say something about my view of people that I don't think anyone would help a woman who was tumbling down an escalator?
Now I was relaying this story to my friend Mary Sue tonight and she told me this story. A woman was at a big Target in San Diego. If you all don't have big Targets where you live I'm sorry but the ones that are really big and by really big I mean two story Targets have escalators. They don't just have an escalator for people but they also have an escalator for your shopping cart. So anyway this woman was riding the down elevator, minding her own business, when she hears a commotion. Someone had pushed their cart down the human escalator. So a quick thinking employee said turn to the side and brace yourself. Now two things: first, this employee acted so quickly that it was clear this has happened before. The other thing was the woman who pushed the cart down the human escalator was very apologetic and said that she just got confused. Got confused? How does one get that confused. There are big signs that say human elevator/no carts and cart elevator/no people. And the escalators look very different. I mean I have been confused before and have done things without thinking--but I think i would realize I was about to push a cart down an escalator. I was hoping this woman was really old, but apparently she was just a middle aged woman who wasn't paying attention. Can't you just imagine this woman also being the one walking down the runway of life with her skirt tucked in the back of her pantyhose?
Alright, until next time, for God's sake pay attention.
Peace out!
3 comments:
OK, first, a cart elevator sounds Oh So Cool! Heck, a Target that size sounds like heaven to me. But pushing a cart down an escalator, even subconsciously, should require a fine, IMHO. After all, they are putting people's lives in danger! So if the employee has seen this before (obvious by the reaction), I think a fine is DEFINITELY in order! Safety first!
I watched an older woman take her cart down the human escalator at our local Target, too. Fortunately, there wasn't much in it, so she was able to hold on. But I thought the big sign with the shopping cart inside a red circle with a big red line through it ought to be clear even to those who can't read. Maybe they should put big monster truck wheels on the carts, so they wouldn't fit down the human escalators.
I miss Target with the escalator. I miss Target in general.
Post a Comment