Transportation Summer

Remember when school let out for the summer, what a great feeling - freedom!!! A whole summer to bike, picnic, swim, hang out with your friends. Sometimes adulthood is a bummer, sure, we have our fun times but responsibility is always lurking.

A school district transportation department is operating year round. Summer is the time to fine tune routes, adjust the times, directions, add/delete stops, prepare maps and all of the planning it takes to keep the buses running smoothly and on schedule. Our Dispatchers do a great job!

My job is to purge the files, update forms, check driver authorizations, pay bills, process purchase orders, arrange for drivers to cover open house at the schools for busing information, order supplies, submit print jobs, update, manipulate and purge my computer files, track fuel/oil, mileage, complete end-of-year required reports for fuel/oil, mileage, insurance coverage for buses and motorpool vehicles and the list goes on.....

Our mechanics are repairing and checking the buses, 100+, and motorpool vehicles, 60+. Each year they have to be ready for inspection by the State Patrol for safety purposes. They do a great job and are a great bunch of men. One of our mechanics was called up for duty and is now serving in Afghanistan as part of a helicopter crew. Say a prayer for him and his family. He has been involved in some very dangerous missions. Roger emails me as often as he can and I post them and any pictures he sends on the bulletin board so everyone can read them.

One gentlemen, John, who works in the Maintenance Dept. and served in Special Forces, lost four buddies, he had served with, in a helicopter crash. John recently returned from Norfolk, VA where he attended the funeral. We were all praying that Roger wasn't involved and were relieved to learn he wasn't.

Today I brought my vacuum cleaner and carpet shampooer to work, it was "take your cleaning equipment to work day." (kidding) I took care of several work projects needing attention and then vacuumed and shampooed the dirty/ugly flooring in the entry to the driver's lounge. I had enough residue to make 8,453 mud pies when finished. I also shampooed the rug the custodian had placed there - didn't know it had a color!

Wow, talk about looking and smelling better. I vacuumed the spider webs (hate them!!! a future poem) from the corners and washed the glass doors. Now for the fun part....I taped the metal frame of the bulletin board and painted the cork a medium mocha brown, then sponged it with a lighter shade of mocha.....paint covers a multitude of sins.....looks like a new board.

Tomorrow I bring the camera to take a 'before' picture. The walls are light beige and it is a very dull and dreary entryway. I'm going to paint a mural on the walls, cartoon type, and of course 'transportation' related. A school bus going up the hill, mountains - snow of course, a pond with ducks and cattails, a small development in the background, kids waiting at the bus stop with lunch pails and a dog, a schoolhouse and playground equipment, bushes, trees, flowers. And above the lovely 'alarm panel' some orange cones and a sign that says "10 M.P.H. IN THE BUS YARD." Of course, up high and on the mountains will be evergreens, down low deciduous trees.

I found a great metal umbrella stand and have an eye out for a small bench. At last the entry will be a welcome, bright, colorful place for the drivers to walk through. I might even stencil "Through these doors pass the greatest bus drivers on earth!"

I'll close with the usual....a poem. This is one I wrote as a tribute to our great bus drivers. They're special people!!

Later!

Love,

Carol

THANKS FOR A GOOD YEAR - 1996-97
By Carol Glitschka 6/97

HERE’S TO THE DRIVERS OF RIGS BIG AND YELLOW,
YOUNG OR OLD, LADY OR FELLOW.

BEHIND THE WHEEL OF A BUS BIG OR SMALL,
PRE-TRIPPED, WARMED UP, YOU PULL OUT OF THE STALL.

AGAIN YOU WILL TRAVEL THE ROUTE THAT YOU BID,
A.M. AND P.M. AND SOMETIMES MID.

AMBERS AND REDS YOU MUST ACTIVATE
OUT COMES THE PADDLE AND TRAFFIC MUST WAIT.

START AND STOP, OPEN AND CLOSE
LOAD AND UNLOAD THAT’S HOW IT GOES.

CROSSING ARM EXTENDED, YOU COUNT AS THEY CROSS
NOT TO BE VIGILANT WOULD CAUSE A GREAT LOSS.

MINDFUL OF SAFETY AND A SCHEDULE TO KEEP
WHILE KIDS YELL AND LAUGH OR SOMETIMES WEEP.

IF YOU’RE A SUB, YOU DON’T KNOW THEM BY NAME
“SINK-THE-SUB” IS THEIR FAVORITE GAME!

SNOW, ICE, SLEET, OR POURING DOWN RAIN
YOU’RE DRIVING YOUR CHEV, THOMAS OR CRANE.

PARENTS TO CONTACT, STUDENTS TO CONTROL,
OF PATIENCE AND TOLERANCE DOES TAKE IT’S TOLL.

INCREASING PAPERWORK, STACKED UP A MILE,
FORMS AND LOGS AND RECORDS TO FILE.

ONE FOR RECORDING MILES, FUEL AND OIL,
ANOTHER FOR POSTING THE HOURS THAT YOU TOIL.

GREASE ON YOUR CLOTHES, GAS ON YOUR SHOES,
INACCURATE MAPS, FOGGED WINDOWS, UNION DUES.

NOT PAID WHAT YOUR WORTH, FOR THE CHILDREN YOU TOTE,
YOU’RE EXPERIENCES EACH DAY, TO MOST, ARE REMOTE.

SO THIS IS MY WAY TO MAKE YOU AWARE,
THERE REALLY ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO CARE!!

I GIVE YOU APPLAUSE, YOUR GOOD WORK I EXTOL,
AS YOU POST TRIP AND PARK, HOPE YOUR SUMMER’S NOT DULL!!

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER - SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!