| Author | Message | ||
     Soparents Supporter Username: Soparents Post Number: 2823 Registered: 5-2005  |
Try Ozzie's cleaners on Vauxhall Road. It's a drive thru. Very pleasant, do good work and problem solved with the kiddies! | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 9226 Registered: 5-2001  |
Wouldn't it be easier all around if you dropped the kids off with the dry cleaning? If they have same day service, the kids have been bathed and at least you'll feel as if there were more accomplished by dragging them in. Probably cheaper than a babysitter, too. Of course, you'll want to request that they be wrapped like laundered shirts, seeing as how the dry cleaner plastic has "no kids" printed on it. | ||
| Innisowen Citizen Username: Innisowen Post Number: 2337 Registered: 3-2004 |
SLK: I think I would have asked you (or whoever the owner of the car/parent of the kids was) something like: Are they OK in there? Are you going to be finished soon so you can get out to them? Can I help? before going to the step of calling the cops. I may be missing something but another couple of minutes of observation by somebody would probably have seen you going back in your car and driving away with your children. Understandable action on someone's part to be concerned about children in a car. But the follow-on action was too hasty. Sorry you had to go through that. It must have been a bit unsettling for your children as well. | ||
| Zoesky1 Citizen Username: Zoesky1 Post Number: 1649 Registered: 6-2003  |
What minimum age is acceptable to allow children to wait in the car if it is locked, off, in a parking lot, for about 5 minutes? Really interested to see what people think. | ||
| Shanabana Citizen Username: Shanabana Post Number: 1019 Registered: 10-2005  |
Yeah, what legally is the cut-off? Children are children up until 18 years. | ||
| Shanabana Citizen Username: Shanabana Post Number: 1020 Registered: 10-2005 |
ps: I've done that really stupid thing too.  | ||
| Shanabana Citizen Username: Shanabana Post Number: 1021 Registered: 10-2005 |
pps: does anyone ever do this in their own driveways? | ||
| S.L.K. 2.0 Citizen Username: Scrotisloknows Post Number: 1924 Registered: 10-2005  |
RL, Yup, you got me Einstein....I was sitting in Gleason's parking lot thinking "I am a republican therefore I am above the law and if any good samaritan gets in my way for leavin my two children in my car then by golly I am going to get really angry...." I feel like personally attacking you but I will refrain. Knowing my luck Dave will ban me unlike he did Soda for calling me....aaaa, what was it? Oh yeah, a "bullying macho sh**head..." Sleeping at the controls Dave? You shut me down for much less. BTW RL, I don't think admitting on a public internet board that you have a kinky wife is setting the moral stage for properly raising children, do you? Phil who? -SLK You go Elizabeth.... | ||
| Tom Kerns Supporter Username: Tom_kerns Post Number: 401 Registered: 6-2004 |
Dave said... "Obviously, you should have left the kids at a bar."  | ||
| Diastole Citizen Username: Diastole Post Number: 20 Registered: 7-2005  |
Republicans have such conveniently short memories... http://www.southorangevillage.com/cgi-bin/show.cgi?tpc=3127&post=553041#POST5530 41 | ||
| anon Supporter Username: Anon Post Number: 3011 Registered: 6-2002 |
greentree: You'd also have to specify "no starch". | ||
| Wendy Supporter Username: Wendy Post Number: 3047 Registered: 5-2001 |
I respectfully disagree anon. Young kids can handle so many more carbs than we grownups. Starch should pose no problem at all. | ||
| Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 159 Registered: 11-2005 |
Dude....these are YOUR kids. Not ours. Do you really need us to tell you this? Or is this your way of punishing yourself for how you are feeling inside, but you aren't able to admit it to yourself and others yet? Looks like you took every great precaution you could think of, except wearing a condom. | ||
| Costanza Supporter Username: Vandalay Post Number: 1765 Registered: 8-2004  |
SLK now stands for Sometimes Leaves Kids. | ||
| Crazy_quilter Citizen Username: Crazy_quilter Post Number: 404 Registered: 2-2005 |
a few years ago the cops were in our back yard early in the morning (6 a.m.?). My neighbor looked out his door and they yelled for him to get inside. Turned out later that someone had ditched a stolen car and taken off on foot. They hid in my back yard and a couple of hours later around 8 a.m. there was another neighbor mom loading up her son for school. She ran back in the house. The guy came out and tried to get in the car! Luckily she had locked the door. i have a question. how far would you have to walk away from the car for it to be abandonment??? | ||
| combustion Citizen Username: Spontaneous Post Number: 467 Registered: 4-2006  |
I agree with Susan about not confronting the parent. A lot of parents go nuts if you even try to give the tiniest bit of advice. I can't imagine telling a parent to not leave their kids in the car and not end up with some psychotic nut going postal on me. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12514 Registered: 5-2001 |
Slick, so has DYfS done a home study yet?  Seriously, leaving a four month old in a car with a two and a half year old is a recipe for disaster, as Bajou points out. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 9233 Registered: 5-2001 |
Crazy - did the mother leave her child in the car when she ran back in the house? If she did, that's more nuts than anything else I can think of. | ||
| S.L.K. 2.0 Citizen Username: Scrotisloknows Post Number: 1925 Registered: 10-2005 |
SLK- I did wrong and apaprently broke the law. But this doesn't make me a bad father. I just don't think the cops should of became involved. Others apparently agree with me. I am the type that would confront someone on this but i guess i can't expect the entire world to be like me. -SLK Ken Scout, was the condom comment really necessary? | ||
| The Oracle of MOL Supporter Username: Oracle_of_mol Post Number: 248 Registered: 2-2005  |
Soda has been suspended. --The Oracle of MOL | ||
| Brett Citizen Username: Bmalibashksa Post Number: 2651 Registered: 7-2003 |
SLK you did not break any Law. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12518 Registered: 5-2001 |
New Jersey has laws on endangering the welfare of a minor. Apparently this violation didn't rise to that level since the police didn't arrest Slick. | ||
| Brett Citizen Username: Bmalibashksa Post Number: 2652 Registered: 7-2003 |
I'll post again; http://www.kidsincars.org Q22: How many states have legislation about leaving kids alone in cars? A22: Eleven states have laws protecting children left unattended in cars. The states with this legislation are: California , Connecticut , Florida , Illinois , Louisiana , Maryland , Nebraska , Nevada (Effective October 1, 2005), Pennsylvania , Texas , and Washington. Gleasons is in NJ right? | ||
| Ken Scout Citizen Username: Lightningken Post Number: 160 Registered: 11-2005 |
The condom comment is a direct result on your insistance that this issue is about the guy who called the cops, not that you left your kids in the car........to pick-up dry cleaning. Do you really want everyone here to tell you that your handling of this situation is OK? Do you secretly (or not so secretly) believe that it's perfectly fine for adults to leave infants locked in vehicles while their parents run errands? Or are you merely seeking for us to propose alternative means of Conflict Management between you and the Mystery Cop Caller? Are you truly that petty, or did you actually invent this entire ridiculous situation to engage folks on MOL in an Argument because you are bored? I would hope its the latter. | ||
| Costanza Supporter Username: Vandalay Post Number: 1766 Registered: 8-2004 |
Brett is correct about the law. Since no law was broken, it's probably time for Patrick Fitzgerald to start his investigation. | ||
| Joan Supporter Username: Joancrystal Post Number: 8206 Registered: 5-2001 |
Brett: Did you also check for "child left alone" legislation in NJ which may not specifically mention locking children in cars without a responsible adult remaining in the car with them? The issue really isn't whether a law was broken. The police responded because they had no way of knowing where the adult was and they were concerned for the safety of the children. I would rather live in a town where the police take such a situation seriously than one in which the police would give higher priority to staffing a speed trap. | ||
| Brett Citizen Username: Bmalibashksa Post Number: 2653 Registered: 7-2003 |
No I kinda figured that a website for a national organization that is devoted to leaving kids in cars was enough of a source. | ||
| SoOrLady Citizen Username: Soorlady Post Number: 3499 Registered: 9-2003 |
So, as I understand it, SLK agrees that leaving his kids in the car was a stupid thing to do, but not necessarily negligent. MOLer's vary on the degree of negligence. SLK is mad that a good samaritan called the cops instead of trying to find the children's parental unit. MOLers also vary on this one. (I would have stayed by the car and called the cops after 5 min. but if you came out before 5 min. you would be wishing you were dealing with the cops) As I see it, there's only one question left. What did their mother have to say about this? | ||
| fabulouswalls Citizen Username: Fabulouswalls Post Number: 245 Registered: 10-2005  |
SLK - I am sure you did not mean to endanger your own kids. You won't do it again, right? I have confronted people and have been flipped off or told off for doing so. Calling the cops may or may not have been warranted. I wasn't there. My guess is the conversation would have gone like this: fab: EXCUSE ME! Did someone leave a couple of little kids in the car. slk: Oh. Those are my kids. I will be out in a minute. It's okay, the doors are locked. fab: That is not safe either. You should get the kids from the car. slk: Who the hell are you? fab: Just someone who cares. slk: I care. I don't need you to tell me how to take care of my kids. fab: Whatever. Jerk. (dials cops) | ||
| Crazy_quilter Citizen Username: Crazy_quilter Post Number: 405 Registered: 2-2005 |
i don't think it was so bad to run into the house. the kid was school age. i do it all the time! I'm carrying a bunch of stuff and the kids, get them in the car and remember something i left inside. i usually leave the house door open and try to be only a few seconds. okay, here's my confession, i left my 8 year old in the car in front of king's so she could keep an eye on her 6 month old brother who was sleeping, while i mailed something in the post office. i could see them thru the window the whole time. How times are different from when we were growing up: my mother, who is a social worker, was going for a job interview with child welfare (!) in Los Angeles when i was 6 years old and my sister was 4. She left us alone in the car. i remember this because i had to use the bathroom and got out of the car and took a dump at the curb! | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 9239 Registered: 5-2001 |
Fab - I'm with you. If I see a kid in potentially imminent danger, I don't care what the parent thinks of me or says to me. What's almost worse than the parents who have cursed me out have been the ones who just look at me like they have no idea of what I'm talking about. At least I feel like the hostile ones are defensive because they realize the problem. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 9240 Registered: 5-2001 |
Crazy - it sounded like the mom ran into the house and left the kid in the car with a criminal running around nearby. That's what I think is nuts. I don't have kids, but 8 seems old enough to call for help. A few years ago, there was a street fair on Maplewood Ave. I was cutting thru the walkway from Dunnell road into the parking lot by Village Coffee. As I walked past a car parked at the back of the lot, there was a kid about 3 or 4, standing outside the car with the door open; no adult in sight. I asked the kid where his mommy or daddy was. Mommy was at work, daddy was playing ball or something. Who are you looking for? He named some person. Do you know where XXXX went? He's at the fair. I took the child (left alone in the car and about to wander into the parking lot) by the hand and started toward the street to find a cop. As we walked past one of the street vendors, the child recognized the adult. Turns out that he was a friend of the family, babysitting the kid. He figured that Maplewood is such a safe place that he could put him down in the car for a nap. It wasn't overly hot and the windows were open, so he figured all was well. I can't begin to tell you what I said to this guy. And I can only think that, had the mom known how "responsible" her babysitter was, she would have choked him. | ||
| MeAndTheBoys Citizen Username: Meandtheboys Post Number: 4406 Registered: 12-2004  |
Fab, my answer to you in the conversation you outlined above; "Thanks so much for your concern. The kids are fine, I can see them from here and I'll be out in just a minute. Thanks though." | ||
| Hoops Citizen Username: Hoops Post Number: 1985 Registered: 10-2004  |
Ok I confess. I saw SLK drive up to Gleasons as I was leaving but I sensed something funny was about to happen as he was driving very slowly trying to get into the closest spot to the front door. I saw him look into his back seat and say something to himself (well at the time I thought he was talking to himself) and then he looked at all his windows trying to see if they were up, I guess but his look was a bit strange. I saw him physically lock each of his doors which also struck me as strange since he seemed to be alone in the car but maybe he is just a very careful guy. He then looked into his car through the window, smiled and gave what seemed to be a maniacal laugh - but I mean I wasnt that close so I am not sure. Once he was in the cleaners he kept looking back at the car so I became very suspicious. Now, I dont really know what a terrorist looks like so I figured anyone that was so worried about their car, who left it so close to the cleaners and kept on looking at it might have some kind of WMD in there. So I called the cops and got out of there. I wasnt waiting for that thing to blow up in my face! It wasnt until I read this thread that I realized there were kids in the car. Shoot, if I knew that I would have just gone into Gleasons, cursed him out and left. | ||
| MeAndTheBoys Citizen Username: Meandtheboys Post Number: 4407 Registered: 12-2004 |
 | ||
| Oldstone Citizen Username: Rogers4317 Post Number: 920 Registered: 6-2004 |
hey slk, is this your way of inching your way to the top of MOL's most popular? you sly mf, you.  | ||
| fabulouswalls Citizen Username: Fabulouswalls Post Number: 246 Registered: 10-2005 |
Meand - Really? | ||
| Crazy_quilter Citizen Username: Crazy_quilter Post Number: 407 Registered: 2-2005 |
greenetree, the cops were in my yard, but it was very early and we just happened to see them. the rest of the neighborhood had no idea anything had happened. so the mom with kid, had no idea there was someone loose in the neighborhood. i guess the cops figured the guy had hoofed it on out of here, or they caught one guy and thought that was all there was. come to think of it, it was pretty lousy police work to leave the guy squatting in our backyards for two hours! | ||
| MeAndTheBoys Citizen Username: Meandtheboys Post Number: 4409 Registered: 12-2004 |
Fab, absolutely. | ||
| fabulouswalls Citizen Username: Fabulouswalls Post Number: 247 Registered: 10-2005 |
It is dangerous to leave unattended children in the car. It doesn't matter if it is only "for a minute" and whether you "can see them". |
