Interesting note left on my windshield

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
I usually use my Radian XT in a RF position and thus have the harness routed in the second-from-bottom slots.


I'm not currently using the seat, and had taken the RF boot off of it the other day. The seat was just sitting in my car, unrestrained, for two days. I then decided that it was a bad idea to have that incredibly HEAVY seat just sitting in the car, so I buckled it in, FF, and locked the seatbelt. That way, it won't fly around my car. So, I now have an untethered, not even "installed" (but buckled in) Radian XT sitting outboard, behind the driver's seat of my car.



So... fast forward to this afternoon when I was running errands. After leaving a store, I went out to my car and saw that there was a note on my windshield. It said:



Hi. Sorry to be nosy, but I noticed your child seat in the back of your car.
I noticed that it is installed forward-facing and is not tethered. I just want to let you know that the occupant is safer in a tethered seat.
I also noticed that the harness is in the low slots. If your child is small enough to need those slots, then your child is probably too young to be forward-facing. If your child is too heavy to be rear-facing, then he is probably too big for the slots that you are using. The harness should be moved up.
If you require assistance with your child seat, please contact your local police department.





As I was reading the note, I noticed that the woman loading stuff into the vehicle next to me kept looking at me. I nicely asked her, "by any chance, is this note from you?"

She turned beet-red and said, "Yes. Sorry to be nosy, but I couldn't help but notice. I am kind of freaky about child seats."

I said, "Oh! So am I!" I then explained WHY my Radian XT was "installed" FF and untethered. I assured her that the seat is normally RF and that I am a HUGE advocate of ERF. I then invited her to come to this board. :)



So, ladies and gents... we are not alone. There are others out there who are leaving notes on windshields. :p








I was impressed with the length of the note the lady left. That must have taken quite a while to write out! :thumbsup:
 
ADS

wendyroo2001

New member
Awesome. I wonder how the people who really need the notes take that? I see lots of carseats installed badly, but what would people do if you left them a note like that, if they actually needed correcting? Good for her!
 

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
Good question! I too wonder.


I didn't need the note since my seat isn't actually being used like that, but I appreciated it. Someone cared enough to take the time to write that note. Wow!





Oh, if anyone is wondering why I don't just bring the seat inside since I am not using it, it is mainly because my right leg is in a soft cast/walking boot and the Radian is too heavy for me to try to carry with my injury. I am hoping that my leg will be healed enough in a few days to be able to carry the Radian inside. :)
 

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
Whoa, I might have declared her my new best friend right there on the spot, lol.
:D

I know! I SO wish some of my "real life friends" were as into this stuff as I am. They all think I am crazy. :p I need friends like the lady I met today. :p
 

ZephyrBlue

New member
Good for her! And she wasn't afraid to admit it when you asked, LOL!! So glad there are other informed people walking around out there, besides us car seat geeks :eek:
 

NannyMom

Well-known member
That was awesome! LOL, as I was reading it I was wondering who here wrote it :) (until it got to the PD part at the end).
 

kate4478

New member
I think you found a new best friend! :love: LOL, I think I would have wanted to run up to her and hug her!
 

Patriot201

Car-Seat.org Ambassador
That was awesome! LOL, as I was reading it I was wondering who here wrote it :) (until it got to the PD part at the end).

I was thinking the same thing. :eek: Then I thought, "Nah... someone at c-s.org would have referred me to SafeKids or to c-s.org." :p
 

Ali

New member
Wow! I'm glad there are others like us!

I hated the day I had to clear out my classroom and had to put DDs GN with a spare turbo on top of it in the front seat. I buckled it in, but was waiting for dirty looks.

DD was not with me :)
 

mommyto4

New member
That is really cool. I never see anything like that around here. We still have most people turning their babies at 10-12 months old. It's crazy.
 

Mommy2Marcus

New member
I think you found a new best friend! :love: LOL, I think I would have wanted to run up to her and hug her!

:yeahthat:

That is awsome that someone else was very informed & even cared enough to take the time to write that long of a note. She would have been my new BESTEST friend!
 

cookie123

New member
I have a rf radian just sitting there in the rear passenger side belted but not really installed. I took it with to try out the Complete Air. I don't know if you can tell it's not installed correctly. Maybe I'll get a note!!

I too don't want to deal with it. I had surgery on Weds and heavy lifting is out. So, it's just there for now!
 

Jonah Baby

New member
Not to steal the spotlight, but I also have a happy-ending story to tell.
A woman on Freecycle was giving away a "Quality Child's carseat needing a seamstress's touch". She said her friend was going to throw it out, but she wanted to rescue it. The posting continued to say that it was a high quality German-made seat (she never said what its actual brand name was) and that it was a bit older than 6 years.
I emailed her in response to say, as politely as I could, that I was looking into becoming a carseat safety technician. I told her how carseats expire after roughly 6 years of age and what possible safety issues could arise from using an expired seat, even IF the seat can pass a thorough inspection. I informed her how foreign seats may pass higher safety tests than US seats, but rarely are foreign seats legal to use here. Again, I don't know what the actual seat WAS - maybe a Britax that she thought was German made? She was also precautioned about repairing covers on seats, as they may pose a safety hazard still. I did my best to remain very happy that she wanted to recycle it, but it just wasn't safe for kids anymore.

The woman posted back this morning saying that she was taking it to a landfill - two people had emailed her and informed her of the safety hazards of using it. She said she had no idea that it could be so dangerous, but she definitely does not want a child to get injured from using it.
I think I'll email her again with a big thank-you.

For as many people as there are out there unwilling to learn or care for proper safety measures, there IS someone willing to.
 

brittany741

New member
I would have tackled her and squeezed the ever living tar out of her while letting out a squeel!!!!

That's awesome, and glad to know we're not alone.
 

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