Shopping carts have been pushed around since the day they were invented. Finally the rolling baskets are getting a little pick-me-up - literally.

A recently opened two-story Target at the Westminster Mall features a cart escalator so shoppers with carts won’t have a problem getting from one floor to the other.

The modified escalator has a track in between the human escalators that takes the cart up or down at the same pace as the customer.

This was so impressive that I got a cart to go up and down the escalator, each time with the same amount of amazement. I’ll admit that I really wanted to ride in a shopping cart up the cart escalator but I didn’t feel like getting kicked out of the store.

- Brian

Which is the worst tan on a SqueezeOC staffer?

Nothing says summer like the big sweet juicy red meat of a watermelon.

For summer solstice I wanted to treat the SqueezeOC staff to the juiciest watermelon I could find. Only problem was I knew nothing about choosing one.

Nobody on staff knew how to choose a watermelon either, so we searched the Internet for some advice. Some sites said the watermelon should sound hollow when you slap it. Other sites said it should sound full. The National Watermelon Promotion Board says a sweet watermelon should be symmetrical, firm and “heavy for its size.” The NWPB doesn’t even suggest slapping the melon.
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I’m alive!

Apparently some people thought I died on the mountain since I didn’t blog after the first day. My cell phone lost reception when a storm rolled in and I couldn’t call in any more blogs for the rest of the week. Sorry.

Team Mt. Whitney returned on Friday, June 8. We’re all healthy and alive. I’m happy to say that I bagged Whitney. This was my second attempt to summit.

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Maybe I’m a dork. I love going to comic book and anime conventions to mingle with devoted fans wearing silly costumes.

I always convince myself that I go for the people watching but the events are genuinely fun and I’m always surprised by what I come across at these fan conventions.

This weekend I found myself at Star Wars Celebration IV at the Los Angeles Convention Center. This year, the annual event celebrated the 30th anniversary of the original “Star Wars” movie.

Storm Troopers were a plenty at the convention. These troopers tried to arrest me.

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This weekend the SqueezeOC/OC Register Mt. Whitney team was supposed to start our weekly climate hikes to train for our big hike on Whitney in June. Our first peak to bag was Baden Powell, a 9,399-foot peak in the Angeles National Forest.

I left for Baden Powell at 5:20 a.m. Sunday morning. My plan was to get an early start, have some lunch on the summit, read a book and wait patiently for the team who was supposed to be two hours behind me.

The team never showed. Actually, I never made it to the summit. The roads were closed to the trailhead and I was stopped by an unfriendly CHP officer who told me to turn around because snow and ice made the roads dangerous.

I did the next best thing in the Angeles Forest and visited my favorite watering hole, Switzer Falls.

I’ve seen some strange things on this short, five-mile hike: bad graffiti, soiled undergarments, foreign fizzy pop cans. Nothing really surprises me on this trail.

When I saw this furry animal covered with a blanket I’ll admit I was baffled, intrigued and a little scared.

Were there animal poachers in the area? Did someone finally capture Bigfoot?
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Teletubbies, Doodlbops, and Wiggles beware. You’re about to be yesterday’s news.

A friend who works on a studio set hipped me to “Yo Gabba Gabba,” a new kid’s television show that’s ready to sweep the world of kid’s television shows that are incredibly creepy.

The show is supposed to debut on Nick Jr. in Fall 2007.

A team of Orange County musicians and artists created “Yo Gabba Gabba.” The main characters include Brobee, Foofa, Muno, Plex and Toodee.

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Finally! This week in the mail Jessica and I got our permits to climb Mt. Whitney this summer. We’ll be trekking up the mountain Wednesday-Friday June 6-8. Hopefully we’ll make our summit attempt on Thursday June 7.

If you’re going to be on the mountain at the same time, send me an e-mail at bquines@squeezeoc.com. Maybe we can make the trek together or share food and have a powdered mashed potato and Top Ramen feast.

After our descent on Friday June 8, we’re planning on having a mega-feast at base camp - possibly some Sloppy Joe’s, hot dogs AND a big fat juicy steak. I’m sure there’ll be some carrot sticks or tortillas for the vegetarians.

To get tips from Jessica and I on climbing Mt. Whitney click here.

Call me crazy.

When I saw Mount Baldy covered in snow after Thursday’s snow/rain system, I got an itch to climb the beast.

There’s something about wind, ice and snow that excites me. I feel more comfortable hiking in the snow then on dirt and rocks. I love the crunching sound of snow and the uncertainty of the footing with every step.

I like the danger. It’s almost arousing.
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Over 84,000 musicians, sound engineers and other music industry folks crowded the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend for the four-day North American Music Merchants (NAMM) convention.

The annual trade show is a musician’s dream with more than 1,500 companies showing off every kind of music product imaginable from guitars and drums to accordions and djembes. The best part is most of the companies have demo products out for everyone to play on, bang on and druel on.

Here’s some footage we took with our NAMM cam.

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