Tis the Season

On days like today when the weather is 20 degrees and as I drive my frozen Twinkie down the road. The trees are frosty and the mornings are still dark. I love that some residents leave their holiday lights on all night so that I have the pleasure to enjoy them on my way to pick my students up. It is so peaceful and relaxing. ...then the kids get on the bus. 

The students are all bundled up so much they look like big puffy stuffed animals. Like today, there was this first grader who was late for the bus. He was running as fast as his little 2 foot long legs could move in his big winter coat, heavy back pack and a crocodile  looking hat ( see picture)  on his head that was 2 sizes to big. The hat was so big it was falling down over his eyes resting on his nose. As he got to my service door his stuffed the remainder for his breakfast that was in his hand into his mouth which made his checks puff out and he was unable to close his mouth all the way. He then grabbed the rail and raised his leg up as far as he could to make the step and got on the bus. All I could do is chuckle...it was so cute and funny! 

Then there are the high schoolers, that don’t wear coats or anything to keep them warm. They are standing out there in the 20 degree weather in shorts and t-shirts. I just don't get it. They even complain how cold they are. I frequently respond  to them with “ you know they make these things called coats, that you put over your body to keep you warm.” Of course they just give me that look like Duh! I even had a high school student ask me early in the year if I could make my bus “drift”. Apparently they have been watching the movie  “Fast and Furious”. I explained to this student that a bus is not made to do that. Yet on the days that roads are frosty and icy like today, I do have a tendency to slide around a corner or two. Which I have to  be careful not to hit a light pole or tree on these narrow suburb streets. So I guess today the bus did “drift” at little. 

Over the last ten years the holidays have changed for me as a bus driver. I remember when I would wear Christmas clothes, Santa hats or Reindeer horns throughout the month. I would even give all the students mini candy canes on the last day of school before Holiday break. Then there was the holiday music that I would have play on the radio the whole month of December. Yes, things have changed in the last ten years. I have found that since the district and everyone else have become “respectful to others culture and beliefs” I have had to change the way I can express my holiday spirit. I feel that since I have to be careful not to offend the students, parents and other drivers, I have lost my freedom of mine own expression. It used to be fun and joyful but now it has been about everyone else's feelings. Well, what about mine? I do enjoy our transportation holiday dinner and gift giving that we still do if people want to partake. 

I look forward to these last days before the holiday winter break because I get cards and gifts from some of my students. I wish I had a sticker on my bus that says, “ I drive for Starbucks gift cards” :)  This is one of the times of year that I know that the families and students really do appreciate all I do. 

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas Everyone! 

How it Happened

As my blog gets more notice amongst my coworkers, friends and the school bus community.  There is one question that gets asked the most, “ Why did you become a bus driver?”. Here is that story....

A little over ten years ago I was going through a divorce. I was new to this city and needed a job. I was now a single mom of two young children 4 and 8. So I needed a job where I didn’t need a lot

 of childcare and the flexibility where I could be active in my children's’ school lives. I started out by driving around town and putting in applications everywhere and anywhere. In fact, I was puling out of the Pepsi distribution center here in our area when I looked across the street and saw a sign that read “ Drivers Needed” on the front gate of the school bus lot. I sat there for a minute and thought about it. I had worked with children when I was a nanny for 3 years and ran a daycare center for a year. Also I come from a long line of truck drivers. Both my grandfathers where truck drivers and so are a few of my uncles. So for me it was like “ I can do this!” so I drove over and went it. They asked me a few questions and then sent me over the main office to fill out an application, back then they didn’t have online applications :) I then waited and about a week later when they called for an interview. When I went to the interview I didn’t realize that the whole office staff was going to be there. So the supervise of transportation, the Head Driver trainer & special needs coordinator, the Office secretary, payroll/dispatcher and finally the Fleet/ Shop supervisor all in this tiny room interviewing me. What I remember most about that meeting was that the two ladies did most of the asking of questions and the Fleet supervisor doodled on the paper in front of him...LOL. After the intern view process was over I then had to go take the drug testing and start 6 to 8 weeks of Bus Driver Bootcamp! Ok it is really just training but it took FOREVER!  Because I wasn’t just learning how to drive different types of buses on the streets and how to not hit anything. I also had to watch and read as much information about safety, WAC codes, laws on state and federal levels, district policies and union contract. Mind you none of this is paid! So in 6-8 weeks I got my Masters degree in School Bus Driver better known as a CDL ( commercial drivers license).   

I then had to prove to my driver trainer who I would like to add was the state School Bus Rodeo Champion in our state for 6 years! More on what a school bus rodeo will be covered in a different blog. And no there are no clowns and we don’t ride on top for 8 seconds :).  So after proving that I could drive and student mange I was what the office calls, “ Let loose” to start subbing on routes for drivers. So on my very first solo route was a special needs bus. I remember it like yesterday because it was the one and only time I have ever backed into and hit anything in the 10 years that I have driven!  I had dropped off a student at their house and backed out of the driveway and right into a mailbox. I was so scared and flustered when I got back to transportation. I called the owner of the mailbox and her response was “ Don’t worry about it. in fact I should thank you for squishing it. I have this fish mailbox that I have been wanting to put up and my husband wouldn’t let me. And now I can :)”  when I shared this with my boss, we both just laughed!  Because you don’t always get that great of a response from the people in the community. 

I have to say that this has been a great job over the years. It has allowed me to volunteer for my children’s field trips and events. I was able to go back to college and get my Associates Degree. I have been able to work as much or as little as I needed for income. I had the opportunity to take trips for the schools sports teams and other classes to places I would not have had the money or time to go see. I have met some of the most wonderful people and students over this time as a school bus driver. Now I am blogging for a national published magazine " School Transportation News" which will start showing up on their website in January 2012. 

Frozen Twinkie!

I am cold! Is what I tell my husband when he calls in the morning before I get to work. His response “ why? It is only 25 degrees out”. Leave it to my husband to point out the obvious. My reply, “ Well you get to work in a warm office with a cozy chair and put your hands on a “not cold” keyboard. While I get to work in a frozen Twinkie!” 

I just dread the cold mornings. Just the thought of walking out of the warm bus driver lounge puts me in a “i don’t wanna” mood. So I stand there in the lounge all bundled up like I am ready to climb Mt Everest in my 2 layers of long underwear and workout pants ( remember I am a personal trainer in my other life). I also have about 4 layers on the upper half of me, plus my hat and gloves. I just stand staring at the door to the  bus lot and wish for one magical moment my bus would defrost itself, drive over here and pick me up.  Of course that isn’t going to happen. That is when I look around the lounge at my fellow drivers and whine! I then walk up to a new driver or one with less seniority than I, hold out the keys to my bus, smile and state, “ we have a tradition here. People with lower seniority have to go pre-trip my bus, drive it over here and make sure it is all toasty warm for me :)” .  Yeah that goes over well...nobody takes me serious and just laughs..ugh! “ok fine!” I say and turn around and march my happy now cold biscuits out the bus. It is dark this time of year and I usually wear all black ( personal trainer uniform) which means other drivers can’t see me. which leaves me to dodge all the buses backing up and leaving the lot.  So there I am walking down the row of buses watching all of my co-workers scrapping the ice off all 40 windows and checking their lights. As I pass each one of them they say good morning in their foggy breath. My reply is, “ I can’t work under these conditions! I am going home!..hahaha” yet I keep walking. I approach my bus and I am reminded of this Twinkie TV commercial where the bear in the woods sees a camp trailer. He imagines it to be a giant Twinkie and starts to eat it. Yep, my bus is a frozen Twinkie! All long and yellow with 3 frozen white holes on the top that look like  the cream filling holes on a Twinkie. Well, folks sorry to disappoint you but it is just a bus. A very, very cold bus! One that I have to warm up before all your precious like darlings get in.  I continue to turn on the battery, close the air tank values, unplug the engine block heater cord ( does that thing really work?) and I climb in. I then look at my seat and realize I have to put my biscuits on the frozen vinyl. Why can’t I have heated seats?  Thank goodness I have learn that if you put a thin blanker or towel down first, it will take the bite out of the first contact your biscuits hit the seat. The next obstacle I face is the frozen 14 inch metal round steering wheel staring at me. I am so glad that I am wearing gloves, Because I think about that “Christmas Story” movie where the kid gets his tongue stuck to the cold metal pole. What if that happened to my hands on the steering wheel?  Now that I have got past all of that I do my speed walking pre-trip to keep myself warm and to make sure I don't turn into a popsicle. The funnest part is trying to open frozen emergency doors and roof hatches (AKA Twinkie cream filling holes ). Since I am 5’5”, I have to stand on the seats and pound over my hand on the roof hatches to break them free. I even do my best karate kick right next the door latch on the side and rear door exits to get them to open. Sometimes I have to wait until right before my first stop when the bus has finally warm to get the doors open. I usually do this right before picking up my first students. Since the bus is a diesel, it only warms up on what we have been told “ under load” meaning after it has moved. The question is aways how long or far do you have to move it for that to happen? Well in my case and type of bus ( thomas), it takes until my first student stop for me to notice any temperature change inside the bus, which is about 5 miles. The district gives us 15 minutes  to “pre-trip” my bus before leaving the lot. The first part of my route is only 11 miles long which takes me all of 20 minutes to complete before I start my second. That means that I am in the cold and a on frozen Twinkie for 25 mins before I pick up my first student.  So what do you think my reaction is when the student gets on the bus and states  “ wow the bus is warm!” or “it is hot in here”. I just smile say good morning and  I say to myself, “ Self, I wish they knew that the bus doesn’t just come this way.”  And I am still in all my layers of clothes, hat and gloves! So, if you are one of those parents that gives your bus driver gifts durning the holidays. Please remember this story and get that driver something that will keep them warm!   Here are a couple of suggestions....Gerbing Heated clothing, hats, gloves or a Starbucks card. I am just saying :)

Talk Radio

There are two radios on my bus, one is your basic AM/FM Cassette find ( yes we are in 2011) and the other is a CB radio. The district has paid for about 14 mile radius of air rights. Therefore, anyone and everyone in that radius that has a CB radio can possible hear whatever we are saying. So you have to watch what you say and make sure you don’t use any foul or profanity...not that us bus drivers would anyway.  :)

The CB radio is used for when we back out of our bus stalls and to communicate with base and other drivers.  When I was in training to be a school bus driver they taught us how to use this CB radio properly with the correct terminology list 104 -  received the information,108 - this bus in service and clear- the next person can talk now. I was scared to death when I was a rookie to use the radio. What if I choked and said something wrong and absolutely hilarious?  No worries there, because what I learned after my first week I was there that not everyone went by protocol. I learned that some people would use it like a phone and not a CB radio where hundreds of people were listening in. It is like when you had one to those old baby monitors that picked up your neighbors wireless phone conversations. You know the ones, were all you heard was  was talk, talk, talk about nothing really important from your neighbors.  I also realized really quick who were the people that must love the sound of there own voice. They are the ones that I swear have the wheel in one hand the radio in the other. These people are the ones that are just to helpful!! The ones that mother the other drivers to death! Like where to park the bus, there is a dog in the road, your kids are doing _____! They are constantly on the radio telling others how to do the job. It isn’t like we all didn’t go through the same training and have the same licenses plus we are considered professional drivers. So to those people that think I am writing about them ( which I probably am) stay off the radio, stop being so helpful and let others figure it out themselves!  Next we have to drivers that feel like they have to paint a picture for the other person on the radio by describing the whole scenario in great detail before getting to the point! again this is going on while the rest of the district is saying to themselves “ spit it out already!!”.  Most of us already know what you are going to say.  Then you have base.....we love base.  Some of the drivers find them every entertaining. You see some of them are not from the area or haven’t driven a school bus, and if they have I think that at times they have forgotten what it is really like out in what we call “in the field” or “on the road”. they will say to us over the radio, “ I have your card, so come see me when you get in. I have to tell you..blah blah blah.” and they go into great detail. Question...isn’t that why you pulled their card was so you could talk to them when they get into base and that rest of us don’t need to hear or have anything to do with us?  Base can be such a comedy show at times. Like when a new/sub driver is lost on a route due to the route sheet not being correct ( for whatever reason). So here is base who can’t see where the driver is and I mean direction they may be facing or what street they are on and where on that street are they located. Then they continue to tell them where they need to go or turn around at. When you have other drivers that are in that area and know the route which could be of better help. So we just sit back and listen to the whole thing shaking our heads because there is no way we could get a word in edge wise if we tried!  I know they are there to help and when we do need them they are there...well sometimes. There are times when a driver calls into base and there is no response. So the driver will say “hello...can anyone hear me?” or “is this thing working?” and other drivers will speak up and let that driver know yes their radio is working. Of course base was just on the phone or in the restroom when that happens..lol. Now let’s talk about those who think the radio is a nuisance. These are the people that get called on the radio and when they respond they sound like they are being bothered. You can hear it in their tone...”Whhhhaat?!” or have that “ are you kidding me, why you are bothering me for that?”...LOL! Then you have those drivers that I swear have a brain fart in the middle of talking! they start the sentence and forget half way through what they are saying or what route they are on or where they are. don’t get me wrong, many of us do it and I am not judging, just laughing when they do it! then there is when they run out of fuel....note to others...when this happens don’t call on the radio, use your cell. Don’t get me wrong, this will be get back to all of us and we will tease you! we also like to make comments to each other over the radio that nobody else know what we are talking about, like inside jokes. One of my favorite things that happens on a daily basis is that someone will leave their Hazard lights on flashing while they driving down the road. When this occurs someone else will be helpful and not to point out who it is they will just plainly say “FLASHERS” ...we all look down and check ours to see if it is us. Do you know how many times I just want to get back on the radio and say “ where and are they fully naked?”

Now I know I have talked about all the funny stuff but when one of our drivers gets into trouble we all are quiet and listening carefully on how we can help or hope that they are ok. like when there is a fight on the bus or an accident. because those things do happen and we are a bus family and  we care about our other drivers even when they annoy us at other times just like a really family. So we tease each other about things that have happened on a route over the radio all the time..of course it is with love :) 

Let's talk RAIN!!

Here is a little science riddle for you......What do you get when you put 60 wet children with soaked backpacks into a 40 foot yellow metal lunch box on wheels? 

Anybody? huh huh... can you guess? 

A rolling yellow sauna! hahahahaha!  

 The kids stand out in the rain for 5 minutes with their pretty color printed umbrellas. As I pull up to the bus stop they piles on. Well at least the ones that can get their umbrellas down. So picture this - a kid holding their umbrella like it is a jousting sword. Mind you it is 3-4 feet wide and my bus door is only 2 1/2 feet wide. So the kids push and push trying to get the umbrella through the door multiple times! After I am done laughing I tell them to turn it sideways and then they can get it through. They then hand it to me to put it down.. did I mention it was soaked? Yes, on rainy days I wear rain gear while I drive! Now that the student has the umbrella down they continue to shake it all the way down the isle to the seat they chose to sit down in. Now the floors are wet the seats are wet and the kids are wet...Where do you think all that moisture goes? I goes all over the windows...my windows. My buses front windshield is about 3 ft high and 7 ft across with a 6 inch fan for the defroster, which is trying to keep up with 60 kids wet bodies....while I am trying to see out of to drive! I have learned some tricks over the years. 1) don’t turn on the student heaters. this just makes the kids dry out faster and more moisture in the air. 2) crack all the window down one notch...and make sure the kids don’t put them up when they get on! 3) turn on all my fans in the front to re-direct the moisture out and away from My windows! 

Did I mention that bus drivers like to play in the puddles. Think about it...it is the time of year were the trees are shedding their leaves and clogging up all the drains on the streets. Which creates these great water back ups we like to call puddles. This is when the inner child comes out in us school bus drivers. Our eyes get all big and glassy when we see “the water puddle” that we just have to drive through and try to make the biggest  splash possible, to the point we think there are judges watching to give us that perfect score. So we drive as closes as possible to the deep part of the puddle to make the biggest splash....and we admire our work as we drive away....I just hope that isn’t you that is standing on the sidewalk..LOL! 

I lost my Knob!

The day was going as normal...I arrived for my afternoon route and did my pre-trip. I then followed the other 5 buses over to to high school in convoy style. I loaded my high school students and continued my convoy over to the middle school with the rest of the busses. As I pulled into my signed numbers parking stall, I pushed the “N” on the control panel on the right and pulled our the big yellow diamond shaped knob that say “ Parking Brake”. I then reached over to the left and yanked on the black knob that opens and closes the door for the students to enter and exit the bus. Well, today I realized that I have been really working out and it has been paying off because when I yanked....the Whole knob and metal shaft came with it! All I heard with all the air pressure blowing out the whole like it was the Old Faithful Geyser! I put my hands over it like I was going to get wet or something.. LOL! After I realized how silly it was I just let the air do its thing and called the shop to bring me another bus. At that point I informed all my students of what had happened and that we would be waiting 15 mins for another bus. This is when the kids started telling bus stories of past years...one student “ remember when Chris threw up in the back of the bus?’” ..another student “ Or when that one girl threw a slug at the bus!” I then shared some other stories like when another driver had my bus in the day and toilet papered the inside of my bus and the way I retaliated was by driving his bus and letting all my students empty all of their paper out of their notebooks all over the bus! It took us 4 big school size trash cans to empty and clean the bus afterwards..LOL!  

So we spent the rest of the time telling stories and listening to some of the students say how they needed to use the bathroom and wanted off the bus. ( which we are not allowed to do) So there was a ton of comedy going on with teenage boys! Of course it took longer that I had expected for the other bus to get there...and this is why.  When we need another bus from base one of our mechanics brings it to us so they can fix or just drive the other one back. Well I think that they aren't allowed out of their shop much because this one particular mechanic took the longest route possible to get to where I was. Did he not know that I had 50 high school students on my bus? Really? Seriously? ....I sometimes wonder what people are thinking. Next time I will send then GPS coordination's..LOL! well he finally got there and I had all the students get on the other bus and loaded. When I closed the doors one student called out , “ hey, you know you can drive 5 over the speed limit!” you have to just love them for helping :)

On a different note....bus drivers have a saying “ you can’t live off of a bus drivers salary”. with that said, many of us have other jobs that we do to help us get the bills paid. I am exception, I am a personal trainer and have my own business. So after my route when I lost my knob, I had a meeting with some new clients for my personal training business. As one family walked in I recognized that daughter, I asked her where she went to elementary school and she told me the one that I drive for. I then explained to her parents that I drive school bus also. Later when I was doing her paper work I asked her what grade she was in and she said “ I am a senior and you drove me from Kindergarden thru 5th grade.” WOW....she looked so young and that made me smile. It sometimes amazes me how fast the past 10 yrs. have gone. 

OOpps...I am a sub today!

OMG... this morning was defiantly a “blog” day! My morning started out GREAT! I woke up before the alarm, I had breakfast with my daughter then got into the shower. When I got out to the shower my phone was ringing...me” hello” work “ are you coming in today?”  me “ yes...but it is late start.” work , “ no it isn’t.. how soon can you get here!”  

You see like many families we sitting down at the beginning of every month and we pull out our calendars. Everyone reads off to me what we have going on and I consolidate it to one calendar and post on the fridge. Well in the process of doing this I forgot to mention to my family that the district may have a late start for students but the staff & bus drivers have to still go in at regular time! That is why I was late for my own route today. But that is just the beginning!  here is how the rest went.

So I got to work an hour later than I usually do and they hand me a Route Sheet ( this is what our wonderful office staff puts together for sub drivers) this Route sheet has all the info on it about the one route...like regular driver, stop times, school, etc.  This is one reason I am not a sub driver anymore...I hate not knowing where I am going and trying to read a paper while driving plus student management.. ugh!  

Ok back to the story....So they give me the sheet and I realize this is a “special needs” route.  which means small bus that will have 10 or less students. No biggie right? well these buses are hard to see out of because that are built like a van that just crashed through a box! Well I shook it off since if was my fault for being late right? ..lol! I start the route and head to the first of 5 apartment complexes that are on the route sheet. I pull in and look at the building that I am suppose to be picking up 2 students. The building is being remodeled! Nobody can live here and all I see are men caring building materials. I look around and ask a few other adults and nobody knows anything... great this is starting off perfect! so I continue to the next stop hoping for better luck when “base calls” ...” are you near John’s stop?” I respond “ I don’t even have that name on my sheet”...base “ you are right. well they live at “blah blah” “ I think to myself, ( do I have a pen and paper ready to write this down? or am I just suppose to memorize that while I am driving around this apartment complex maze? ) My response “ I am looking for this address and I there is no name for the child on the sheet. Plus I am supposed to turn Left at a unNamed road?”  Now remember this is all being said on our radios for the WHOLE district to hear!  At that time, another driver pulled up and told me who & where I should be going...while the person at base is giving me more direction from their end...Geeze! I had to have the other driver tell the car behind me to back up so I could turn around and go where I supposed to go. I continue to the next apartment complex that was next to the one I was already in... did I mention Apartment Maze??? ok just checking. I pick up 2 students their and they direct me back to the other Apt complex to pick up the one I missed. I finally go out of this maze and proceeded to cross the street into the next Apt maze. this is the one that “base” instructed me to go to that wasn't even on my sheet. I pull up and there is other special need bus already there picking up. I think great? they are picking up my student... sure enough! I had a parent walk a student over to me and I ask them if their student was going to my school for drop off. They said “no” and yelled at the other parent that just put her student on the wrong bus...lol! So we did an instant switch and proceeded to our next stop. Well I tried to...when reading the sheet it says ( and I quote) T/A ( turn around) Unnamed RD then L/ Fern st and R/ Unnamed Rd. ..this is were I just laughed , because I am what they call a seasoned driver. meaning I have been driving for this district for 10 yrs! With that experience I could figure out where I was supposed to go from the rest of the information. But what if I was a completely new person to the area and to bus driving? LMAO!!! 

I just shoot my head and kept driving. At this moment base informs me that I don't’ meed to stop at the next stop or the last one...thank goodness since I am already 5 mins late to the next one!  I then pull into my 4th apt complex and look for building I. I circle around looking for it.....I see all the other buildings like H, J, k, L, N, Q but no I! WTH?! So I circle around again... at this point one of the kids says, “ did you turn the wrong way again?” LOL..I say “ nope, but this is a good time to sing “ the wheels on the bus go round and round”  and they broke into song!  I never did find the building or the student.. I guess their parents took them after calling base and them informing the parent that I was a “sub” .  I was now off to my last stop and yet another apt complex with HUGE speed bumps! I told the students on the bus to “lift your feet and make a wish every time we go over a speed bump” ..those students are going to have a Very, very , very lucky day!  

The good news is that they made it to school only 5 mins late and safe! 

 I was remind  today that I have got into my own personal “bus driver box” where I only drive my route and am in my comfort zone. I now realize  by doing so, I miss out on these adventurous days of not knowing where I am going, who am I picking up and what can happened on a bus route! 

The First Day Of School!!

This is the moment you all have been waiting for....what was the first day of school like as a bus driver?  Well it started out with “ what am I going to wear?”...lol! You see I planned on riding my motorcycle today because it is suppose to be in the 80’s! So I wanted to wear something warm this morning that still looked good. Ok I got that all picked out jumped on the motorcycle and headed 5 miles on the freeway to “the bus barn”.  I got off the bike, took off all of my gear and walked towards the front door. The first thing I noticed was some animal cut out pictures of a rabbit and such with some saying in quotes. I really didn’t pay a whole lot of attention. so I turned the handle and walked into the TWIIGHT ZONE! it was like I just went back into time and walked into my kindergarden room for the first time. There were “Alice in Wonderland” stuff everywhere!!! with quotes from the movie/book and pictures are all the creatures. so I stopped...went back out the door .... and look at the address. Yep I was in the right place...ok time to continue! From there I moved my blue dot to let everyone know that I had arrived...Yahoo! I then checked my box for any important route changes and notices....and nothing really great to right about. Then came the fun part....opening the driver lounge door! the next thing you hear “ good morning” “ how was your summer” “did they change your route?” “what bus are you in?” ...LOL! 

So from there I walk out to my 40 ft Thomas school bus and continue with my “pre-trip” inspection.  Factoids~ I have 28 seats that fit 3 elementary student at one time and 2 middle/high school students at another. I  will let you do the math on the one, just so you know that is a lot of kids!

After heading out in my bus on my route I pass a couple of my fellow drivers and wave. You see just like Jeep people & motorcycle riders we wave at all fellow bus drivers. the thing is everyone has different style of waves. You have the one finger shoot at you wave, the High Hitler wave and my favorite” clown hand on a spring” wave! you know the one....where the person or kid waves at you so hard that you think their wrist is going to break and that they haven’t seen another person in years. So yes I wave about 20 times  in a 2 hr period at fellow drivers. 

Well ,my high school route and students were about  the same as last year except a few kids that I haven’t seen in 3 years as the attended the wonderful middle school years. But when I got to my elementary route here are a couple of things the kids said as the got on.....” so you decided to take on other year, huh” “ I broke my foot” “ my little brother will be riding tomorrow” “ same seat policy as last year?” “what do you do when we are in school?”...they are so cute and funny! you just have to love them! 

Note to parents...We bus drivers understand your need and want to take your children to school in the first day BUT this makes the roads so clogged with traffic that we are all 5 to 10 minutes late to school for all the other children. Please use what you pay for and conserve energy by carpooling and having your child ride the school bus!

When returning to “the Barn” walk into the drivers lounge and what do I see? Bagels, donuts, cookies and brownies....how do you think we all get the “Bus Driver Butt?!” seriously?! UGH!!

Now to talk about adding heat to the first day of school...you see the bus is a tin can on wheels. Therefore the inside of  a bus is at least 10 degrees hotter than outside. So when your child asks me to turn on the air conditioner, I tell then to put down the window :) But what most new drivers don’t know is that our bus seat is a big sheet of vinyl and makes your legs and butt sweat. so after you have been sitting in the heated bus on vinyl for 2 to 4 hrs...you stand up and looks like you have just wet your pants! So a little tip for you newbies...sit on a bath towel, it works wonders. 

Well, all in all, the day went pretty good. Only 3 students ended up on my bus that were supposed to be on someone else's bus. So I had to make just a few extra stops to get them to the correct place plus my radio knob from up overhead keeps falling off while I was driving hitting me in the head. Yep, just another “first day of school” in the life of a school bus driver!

Preparing for "Back to School"

Every summer right before school starts, I try to take a beach trip. This is my way of mentally preparing myself for the next nine months of the unknown! As I sit here in the salty air and sunshine, I think about what to expect on the first day of school. This year is going to be a little different you see... we usually have a crew / inservice meeting about a week before school starts. This meeting is a mandatory meeting and it gives us an opportunity to put stuff back in our buses like brooms, paper work,..etc. Plus they tell  us all or any changes that where made  or new expectations of us as drivers. We will meet the new sub drivers, which we all check out and take bets on how long they will last ..... just like the new kids in the classroom. (LOL)

 Yet this day is just like the first day of school for the bus drivers. On that day we would act just like the kids do on the first day of school, since this is the first time we have seen each other since the last day of the school year. So you have some people that dress in their best “back to School” clothes, some that can’t wait to tell you all about their summer, then there those who just act like you saw them yesterday. We all go around chatting, laughing and sharing until the boss comes in and makes all sit down and be quiet ... just like a teacher in a class room. 

Ok  now back to my pre-first day thoughts or more like physic visions....The first day of school is exciting to me for a few reasons. I look forward to seeing the kids after the summer break with all the new tans, freckles, clothes, backpacks and hair cuts.  There will be the same old faces but there will be new ones also. It will be at this time that I will find out who moved over the summer... then I get a little sad since i didn’t get to say good bye. 

Once I get to the school, just like the kids we find out what teachers are still there, which ones have left and see some new faces as well. 

You see the first day of school is just as exciting for us as it is the students! 

So from here on end I will be blogging about actual events that happen in my day and life as a school bus driver...hold on this is going to get interesting!!!

30 days and counting

Well, I have 30 days left of my summer vacation before I get behind the wheel of the yellow cheese wagon. As the next school year approaches I think back at all the things the kids on my bus have told me...now one thing you have to know is that  as kids get on the bus they have a tendency to do what I call " vomit information"  at me as they get on the bus. This is as they are walking up the stairs and before they find their seat. So here are some things that I have heard over the years ... ( warning...I may know private information about your family that you may not know I know)

" my mom wears pink thong underwear"
" that's my dad...he just got out of rehab"

Not so funny one.... " my baby brother passed away from SIDS"

" that is my dad's crack head girlfriend"
" my dad lost his job"
" what is sex?"
" we are moving because my dad's business partner is a "Bleep"!
 "my mom got a new belly button and bigger boobs"

Now most of these come from elementary kids...the stuff I hear from my high school students are a little more shocking and I don't think I want to repeat. Yet there are times that they don't realize that the 40 ft metal can on wheels echo's and I can hear quite a bit from where I sit. There have been a couple of times I have had to come home and ask my own teenagers what something meant or was...then I get really shocked..LOL!

So just remember that people who are strangers to you but not your children....May know a little more about you than you think :)

Where is Waldo?

I live in a county that is populated at about 245,3000 people. You would think that is a lot but in reality it isn't. Have you ever heard about the "6 degrees of separation"? well we joke that that here in our county there is only  "2 degrees of separation"...it seems that everyone know someone that you know. With that said, can you imagine what it is like when you go to a parade or fair in the county? I do what I call "Where's Waldo?". When I attend a parade I am not there to see the floats or marching bands....NO~! I am there to scan the crowds and parades for all the kids that I have transported on my school bus over the years. I love seeing them way at the all the people sitting on the sidewalks as they walk in the parade routes. Just last week at the 4th of July I say 10 kids that ride my bus  in the parade. But my Favorite part is when I see them walking with their parents and siblings towards me. Because I do something that just cracks me up!....so picture this....You are having a great sunny day with your family at the fair or parade. As you are strolling you have this women come up to your child, and she starts asking questions like " how is your summer going? Are you done playing soccer? Who will be your teacher next year? ect.." The look on these parents faces is priceless...it is a mixture or Who is this? How do they know my child and all these details? Should I be worried? is this a "stranger danger" situation? ..LOL! Then I introduce myself and the sign of relief in their face is awesome!!!  


On the other side of the coin is the  look on child's face as well.  I swear the kids don't recognized you on the street unless you have this great big yellow thing wrapped around you. Plus I think they believe that we don't live outside of our buses and have real lives / families. so the look of puzzlement is a bonus.


So when school starts in the fall and the kids  are getting back on the bus the first thing they say is " I saw you at the parade/fair this summer!" .....I just smile and reply "yes, you did!"

The purpose of this blog

After driving school bus for 10 years I have shared many fun, sad and interesting stories with friends & family. Many have said that they should make a sitcom out of this topic, like they did with the show "TAXI" from years ago.

You see, no two days are a like.  When you deal with parents, other bus drives, teachers, other drivers on the roads....then add 70 students to that!

This blog will cover all the different personalities that I experience every single day. right now it is summer break. People always wonder what school bus drivers do during the summers. The first day of summer break...we CELEBRATE!!!!! it is not that we don't love our jobs for the nine months that we do them during the school year. It is just that you alway look forward to the end...you know like the end of the book, movie or the bottom of chip bag & glass. We are what you call pro-rated...this is when they take the number of the school days and the amount that we get paid per day...then spread it over 12 months. So even if our yellow cheese wagons aren't running around town stopping traffic every 20 yards...we are  enjoying our summers like school children!

For myself and a few of my co-worker, we joke about having another child instead there goes another year. since our years are only 9 months long and so is a pregnancy, we like to name every year. This year was the year of Chaos!  We had one of our drivers get arrested this year, which really shook up our little family. and that is what we are.... family! We take care of each other when we get hurt, lose a loved one and down on our luck.

We have so many different personalities and age ranges...for instance, I am the second youngest driver in our fleet and I have been here for 10 years. I have seen people come, leave for other adventures and even pass away.

I have watched children, their siblings and parents grow over  10 the years I have been here. many of them don't recognize me outside of the big yellow cheese wagon but once they do I get a ton of hugs, hand shakes and thanks you's ......this is one of the reasons I love my job!

I hope you will enjoy my short blogs about this "Life as a school bus driver"!