The Unlicensed Daycare, or, This Won't End Well

[Sheldonrs]

Do these kids have pure black eyes? ....

Or slightly lighter eyes? :-)

[dendawg]

Or slightly lighter eyes? :-)

Or bright eyes?

[cleorose]

When I was in highschool (eek the 90s ), I remember a story of a kid who was riding a bike to school. A car came flying up a residential street hit the curb and killed the kid on the bike who was on the side walk waiting to cross the street.

Just cause there is a posted speed limit does NOT mean people obey it. On post there is this hill and its near a school. Around school time when it lets out, is usually the same time most of the post gets off work. LOTS of people FLY down that hill and through the residential streets. 20 mph we have seen them clocked as fast as 70. The mps started posting cops at the bottom and they would post not one BUT THREE cars. And they ALWAYS had people pulled over.

My kids don't get near a street unless I am there with them. I am a big fat cow and yes I will sprint my fat ass across the yard if my two year old even just goes to the curb. And he will get his little ass spanked and drug into the safety of the house.

We had a hard time with daycares not sure what it was but it was tough. We went thru four home providers BEFORE the hospital and three after the hospital. Of those 8 daycares in 2 years, only ONE was not registered. And their job was get him at 530 am, feed him breakfast let him watch tv til bus came at 7 am. put him on the bus. he would come home he would get a bag of chips and watch tv for 30 minutes til I picked him up. Seems simple enough. Nope my son who was in kindergarten would fall asleep on the bus. One day her kids came home and she didn't even realize my son was not with her kids. Then I showed up and I was freaking out. My 5 year old son was asleep on the bus that was now closed up and in the bus parking lot. ALONE. Mommy invented some all new creative cuss words. Last time I used that provider and I paid the $20 a week for him to ride one of those charter type buses.

I had a provider on post who let our boys climb to the top of the tree. About 40 feet up. That about gave me a heart attack. She was registered. Licensed for CPR, FIRST AID, went thru all the on post classes and the SRS requirements. Pretty damn strict on post and in kansas. She was inside while 5 kids ages 8 (my oldest ) down to her 2 year old were climbing trees and running thru the shared yard, jumping over fences where there are strange bark happy dogs. etc. Luckily they were never bit.

[Ben_Who]

Update

Update: Moving van in front of the old lady's apartment today. Possibly explained why there haven't been any kids flinging themselves into traffic there for the last few days.

Addendum: It's possible that they simply moved their uncontrolled riot to another yard, but given that they will no longer be re-enacting the Carnaval de Rio in the street between my apartment and the main road, I'm partially satisfied.

Addendum to the addendum: I say "partially" satisfied because it doesn't solve the overall problem of children in our neighborhood not just dancing in the streets, but refusing to get the hell out of the way when a car's going by. I had a little girl do that "hold up one hand in the traffic cop 'stop' signal without making eye contact while crossing the street" thing about six feet from my bumper today. If she'd had a cell phone I would have mistaken her for a very small high school freshman.

Postscript: I'ma run over that stupid pedal car next time I see it sitting unmanned in the middle of the road at 2 AM.

Postscript to the postscript: I'm being facetious. That thing's huge. It could probably do me some damage.

[notalwaysright]

There's that saying, let's take off all the warning labels and let things solve themselves. Yes, people need to be careful in residential areas. But they also need to teach their kids that cars are dangerous.

I used to get a little cranky when my old neighbor would put out one of those "children playing" things in the street so that her kid could play IN the street. We all had large front and back yards, along with nice big flat driveways so there was no need for the kid to be in the street.

[Seshat]

Who lets children PLAY in the street anyway? (I know, I know. Way too many people.)

Streets are shared spaces intended for transit. Parks and gardens are shared spaces intended for relaxation - including play. Playgrounds are shared spaces intended for play. Children should be playing in private spaces, or in shared spaces intended for play. Playing in transit spaces is dangerous!

[NecessaryCatharsis]

Who lets children PLAY in the street anyway? (I know, I know. Way too many people.)

Everybody here. Road hockey isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

[EricKei]

Around here (nothing commercial nearby)...? Kids get to *ride bikes* in the street, but otherwise they stay in the yards. In either case, their parents and other locals are watching them like hawks. Even the 3-year-olds know to shout "CAR!" when one gets to an intersection (even the cars just crossing the street, rather than coming down it). This, however, is the exception, not the rule.

[purple]

Who lets children PLAY in the street anyway? !

I did but it was a quiet cul de sac (10 houses) in a small neighborhood (less than 100 houses). The tareseal was the best for skating on and all the children played on it however we got out of the way of cars.

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

Everybody here. Road hockey isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

But of course one of the time honored traditions of road hockey is yelling "CAR!" and getting the net and stuff off the road as fast as possible.

[Jay 2K Winger]

But of course one of the time honored traditions of road hockey is yelling "CAR!" and getting the net and stuff off the road as fast as possible.

"Car!"
.....
"Game on!"

[Geek King]

"Car!"
.....
"Game on!"

Heh, my mind went there too

[Sleepwalker]

Our neighbor ran one of those. The older kids were locked outside-we peed/crapped in the bushes. Younger kids were all stacked in a room inside. It was shut down when one of the toddlers was strangled by a telephone cord while unsupervised.

[drunkenwildmage]

Had one across the street of from my house. In the AM, kids would be dropped off, and in the evening, parants would pick them up. That house did get repoed and one of the neighbors went through the house, looking at it as an investment property told me was pretty filthy on the inside. They had a bunch of cats that trashed the carpet, etc. Walls were chewed up pretty bad, and the old owners also turned 1 car garage into a giant litter box. Just dumped a bunch litter on the floor,and never cleaned it up.

[Sapphire Silk]

Everybody here. Road hockey isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Kickball, where I come from

Had one across the street of from my house. In the AM, kids would be dropped off, and in the evening, parants would pick them up. That house did get repoed and one of the neighbors went through the house, looking at it as an investment property told me was pretty filthy on the inside. They had a bunch of cats that trashed the carpet, etc. Walls were chewed up pretty bad, and the old owners also turned 1 car garage into a giant litter box. Just dumped a bunch litter on the floor,and never cleaned it up.