It blows, in a word.
To be honest, when the snow hit yesterday, I was downtown in Chicago, attending a class on GIS/Community Analysis. I knew it was going to snow, but the class was scheduled and frankly I’d rather have been there than here. But once the snow started falling, my cell phone was off the hook with bus issues.
Principals wondering where their afternoon buses were. “Um, I’m guessing on the road, running late?”
Athletic directors asking if their teams had rides to their games "yup, you got a game, we’ll get you there.
It goes on…
By the time I was back in-district and home, I was on the phone and the radio trying to find a driver who had to take a Jr. High basketball team home. She was on the way, delayed because of, uh, lessee…the snow?
Snow-blow the driveway, come in watch the weather, check my Accu-Weather secure link for updates, welcome the Bus Kid home, because she drove from Cleveland, in snow since South Bend.
Call the boss at 10, make plans for each of us to hit the roads at 3 AM to check conditions. Up til 12:30 with the kid, talking and catching up.
Wake at 3, stumble to the car, and drive snowy rural roads. Some have been plowed, some not so much. Some are sheets of ice, but all in all, not nearly bad enough to justify telling the superintendent to cancel school. Betcha didn’t know that even though it’s the superintendent that makes The Call, it’s usually the Bus Guy (or chick, YMMV) that tells him what to do.
Finish cruising roads around 4:30, come to the office, some early birds are showing up. Help the mechanics start buses - something we do when it’s extremely cold, or snowy. Grab a long brush and clear a few windshields. I just do the buses that are assigned to women, older folks…The people that could use the help.
Our lots are plowed by the grounds people for the district, but they didn’t touch the 50 or so feet of sidewalk. Help a couple people do that.
Now it’s 5:30. (I haven’t showered since yesterday morning. Oops.) Unpack the computer, get stuff situated in the office, check messages and mail from yesterday. Go out to the driver’s lounge and do my best Hill Street Blues on them. Hey, let’s be careful out there today.
BTW - yesterday, in the snow, not even so much as a dinged fender. This place had 20-something preventible accidents last year, none major, but that’s a lot. So far this year, we just finished our third month with only two, and neither was preventible. Both times we got rear-ended. These folks are doing a great job this year. I can deal with kids being late in bad weather, accidents suck ass.
Later, once they start running routes, remind them on the radio to be careful around bus stops. Kids play in the first big snow of the year, watch out for that as you pull up.
Phones are going off the hook. The roads, while clear enough to get a bus down, are slow. People want to know if there’s school, or where their bus is, or can the bus get the kid at the door today because “do you expect little Johnny to WALK to the bus stop in the snow???”
Sheesh.
The crossing guard at an elementary school called off and a supervisor has to run from here to cover. She’ll be late, and I’ll be crucified because there will be kids standing at a busy intersection with no one to cross them for a few minutes.
There’s good news though. I’m not going to be here til 5. Nope. No way.
