January 6, 2014

Daily Commute Was Always Interesting...

Growing up on the edge of town, riding the bus to school was a daily affair during the school year for us kids.   I recall trudging down the street at 7:30 a.m. to the bus stop to catch the big stub-nosed bus #33 every morning.  Along the way we'd meet up with my neighborhood friends, then ride the thirty minute commute to school.  

It seemed to take forever to reach our destination as along the way we picked up riders at various stops who quickly filled the large bus.

 

The ride home at 3:30 was much more enjoyable as I recall.  It was always a boon to claim the big back bench seat, which filled the entire width of the bus.  Away we'd go for the long ride home, spilling out riders along the way.  

Sitting in the back of the bus we'd bop haphazardly along, and as we hit every bump in the road we'd increase the thrill by bouncing in the seat in an effort to reach optimum air.  If strategy was correct we'd even hit our heads on the ceiling of the bus.

 

Riding the bus was a necessity but we'd sure make the best of it. 

 

Other times I'd use the commute to bury my nose in my latest favorite book, blocking out the squeals and tomfoolery that was going on around me.  

Sometimes we'd even be lucky to have at the wheel a college student who would crank the latest rock and roll tunes to our delight.  Riding the bus was always an adventure.

 

One day my classmate brought his pet black widow spider for the ride, introducing it to the rest of us.  I recall keeping my distance from him that day.  It seems that there was always something interesting happening on our ride.  By the time we finally reached our stop we were happy to disembark and scattered to our homes for an after school treat. 

 

"Mom we're home!!" we'd holler, shattering the blanket of tranquilty that we found when we raced through the door. 

 

I wonder how many hours of bus riding I had in my school years.  One thing I know is that I have great respect for the operators of our school buses. 

 

The other day I found myself stranded without a vehicle because of a mechanical mishap with my vehicle.  It didn't take long to determine the solution for transportation:  the local Heartland Express bus. 

What a nice ride I had!   And though I didn't sit in the back seat and bounce over the bumps, I sure did enjoy the experience. 

 

Driver Gerald Giesen was a wonderful chauffer and saw to it that we riders were delivered directly to our door stops, even seeing to it that we didn't misstep as we exited the bus.  What a service and how fortune we are to have it at our fingertips at a moment's notice.

 

I guess one never outgrows the thrill of a good bus ride.  Try it some time and I think you will agree.