If Heat Affect Brains, Cars = Ovens

Dude, of course, after I write such a post about how much love sucks and blablabla, it's case of the old couples at the restaurant. And seriously, nothing's fucking cuter than them. I love it when an old couple holds hands. They're the only age group acceptable to sit on the same side of the booth and order one dish to split. I watched a lady help her husband into his wheelchair. That's fucking love. You love a man so much you can scoot his ancient ass into a wheelchair and take him places.

Anyway, we're in the middle of a different season. It's closing in on the end of summer (and the only reason I want to go back to school is sorority recruitment. After September 20th, I really could give a shit.) but this season directly coincides with summer solstice to autumn equinox. It's called Forgetting Your Child Season. Parents Forget Children In Airport? Sorry, folks, that's only funny in Home Alone, and only the first two. Once Macaulay Culkin peaced out, the series should have too. But aside from forgetting children en route to airplanes, the biggest shocker is how many stories are printed every year of people leaving their children in cars for extended periods of time in extreme heat. Please direct your attention to this entry in about.com, specifically scrolling down to the last paragraph.

"Having a visual reminder such as a pacifier or other small baby item on their keychain can serve as a visual reminder. A sticky note with the word "baby" can be stuck on the dash, or even a small picture of baby placed in a highly prominent position that the driver can't overlook. Daycare center operators driving multiple children can utilize body counts, two-part tagging systems (where a driver collects one part as kids board a bus and then re-distributes them when they exit), or a simple name roster check-in/check-out system to offer additional safety assurance. Parents can set up a simple "reminder" system for babysitters, grandparents or other relatives watching their young kids as a memory jogger as well."

...yeah?

In every article, it's always "on the way to work" or "in the store" and they "were so busy they forgot." Really? I mean, really? We're that much on autopilot that we forget we're taking care of a CHILD? A Post-It that says "Hey, dumbass, when removing yourself from the car, remember to take the living thing out of the backseat and I'm not referring to the plants" would probably work better.

Parents are busy and a lot of things are on their mind. However, I would assume that every parent has a lot on their mind because of their child. So are people thinking about their child so much they forget about them? And why does this always seem to happen in the summer? Are people forgetting their children all year but because a car doesn't overheat on the inside in January? Or is the heat tampering with parental brain power?

Clearly it's the last one, with this woman. Giving her 3 year old granddaughter a "joy ride" on top of a moving car for fresh air? Apparently riding with the windows down isn't enough anymore. What's horrible is the woman didn't understand the problem. It's one thing to forget your kid in the car, which is bad enough, but to deliberately put them in danger? On top of a moving car? On top of a moving car? On top of a FUCKING MOVING VEHICLE? They have the car seat laws for a reason. Cars are big hunks of dangerous moving metal. And last time I checked they didn't put the car seat hooks on car roofs. Not a bad idea, though. I mean, you'd drive carefully with your kid on top of the car. And you certainly wouldn't forget them. The second they saw you walk away, they'd cry and you'd hear them and be like "Oh shit, I'm a dumb parent." Lives saved.