Sept 2: Back to school, kiddies

Thankfully I'm long over my fear of seeing the iconic yellow school bus in early September, a chrome yellow reminder that my Summer of carefree fun was over and ten months of oftentimes uninteresting school work was about to begin. These days, they just remind me that Summer is over, a melancholy thought, but hey, there will be another one next year and the Fall/Winter/Spring seasons bring other enjoyable things to do. Ever wonder if all school buses are like the ones we see everyday? Ever wonder if there are different models from different school districts that serve different tasks? Of course, you don't, that's why I'm here to inform and educate you, my reader.

Even the smallest school districts require a school bus to round up the four or five kids, who aren't within easy walking distance of their one room school house. Who said every school bus has to accommodate lots of students? Why have all those empty seats...........

And what about those schools in rugged mountain districts, that have roads a normal school bus couldn't easily traverse, trying to pick up all those eager for learning little beavers? Yes, there is a school bus for those areas as well.........

Nothing would stop this baby from picking up every last "yearn to learn" student. A little blizzard? Not a problem. Not very many school districts face those geographic challenges, but others like to challenge and confuse the young minds put in their charge. What better way than this creative bus........

.......now wouldn't this get you to thinking, as you walked to its front door first thing in the morning?

Other districts like to have their students spend much less time enroute and more time at their studies, so some have slightly modified their buses for a little extra speed. Probably a very good idea not to tailgate one of these quicker school buses.

Another variety of the school bus has been developed, so that it can avoid a youngster, who absent mindedly runs in front of the big yellow machine. What better way, than to quickly apply the throttle to lift the front end and avoid a life threatening person/bus collision.......

.........and what bus wouldn't have an audience at every cross walk to watch this fun?

Most of us living in North America are familiar with the buses that I've shown above. Do you think that almost everywhere else in the world would need some sort of variation of these yellow machines? Of course, even in the poorest areas, the powers that be, strive to bring those inquiring little minds to the old school house. Here are a couple of examples.........

Not at all like those "fancy" buses that do their duty around most of our country, but they hopefully get the job done none the less. I'd rather have our yellow buses remind me of Fall, than one of these creations any year.

So next time, when you see one of these big yellow buses..........well, just remember, no matter what it looks like, don't pass it when its lights are flashing.

It's that time of year again, time for my annual NASCAR road trip, so no blog until next Tuesday, the 9th (just reread some of the old ones).

Until next time........