Stop Licking The Windows: The Craziest Bus Driver Stories This Week

A kid looks you in the eye and says, completely calm, “In 2525, everybody in America is gonna die.” Weird, right? Now imagine closing your bus door, looking up at the house you’re stopped in front of, and the address is 2525. That’s where we start, and somehow it only gets more real from there.

We read listener emails from big districts about school bus radios and dispatch channels, the kind of setup that keeps 120 to 200 buses from talking over each other all day. We dig into why radio protocol matters, how one broken antenna can turn a “radio haven” into chaos, and why our unofficial motto might be “Just Shut Up And Say 10-4.” We also swap everyday driver hacks like cleaning windows with a squeegee, plus the small rule-enforcement moments that prevent bigger problems, like stopping kids from throwing gloves before it smacks someone in the head.

Then we get into two sides of the job: the wholesome and the scary. One story is pure joy: third graders and middle school boys bonding while naming backyard chickens. Another is the kind of situation no driver wants, an older sibling trying to force his way onto the bus over a confiscated phone, reminding us how vulnerable that driver's seat can be. We wrap with tips that actually help: assigned seating, quick evacuation practice, giving kids “jobs” near emergency exits, and narrating your driving to stay locked in. Finally, we vent about what grinds our gears, middle school teasing that kills friendships, and nonstop cursing on the bus.

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“These are our stories from the driver’s seat—our opinions only, not our  employer’s or school district’s. Student safety and privacy always come first, so no names, faces, routes, or ‘you know that kid’ details ever make it on the podcast.

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Transcript

Welcome And Weather Small Talk

SPEAKER_00 0:17

Hi, welcome to School Bus Banter. This is episode nine. Boy, we have a lot to talk about today. How's it going, Joe?

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Hi, Jair. It's going great. Sounds like hi. Hi, Jair. I know. I'm wishing we could do this from outside because it's a balmy 67 degrees today.

SPEAKER_00 0:39

I just looked at Facebook and the local weather person in our downtown city said it hit 71.

SPEAKER_01 0:45

Oh, did it now?

SPEAKER_00 0:47

Yeah. And it the rec wow, the last time the daytime high was record was broken for this date was in 2000.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

Nice. Well, I enjoyed it. I do like our winter, um, but I'd enjoyed this break for sure.

Listener Emails On Bus Radios

SPEAKER_00 1:02

Yeah. Well, I'm having trouble enjoying it as far as because I know seven days from now, if you look at the weather, the weather, the high on Monday and Tuesday is going to be 25.

SPEAKER_01 1:12

I don't look that far ahead because of where we live, it changes all the time.

SPEAKER_00 1:16

Yeah, but that temp it ain't gonna be 65 on Monday or Tuesday. They're not gonna be that wrong.

SPEAKER_01 1:22

Well, the job, the job that you can be wrong at and still have a job.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

I guess for sure. Yeah, we had a ton of emails, and uh I am really excited about that. Uh really kind of warms, I'm sure it warms Joe's heart too, but like to get a lot of feedback. So I'm just gonna read them. Uh, they didn't particularly say not to read them. So the first one is from Brian. Brian's in Westerville, and we've mentioned that before. So I'm just gonna read his email. So here in Westerville, our radios have this is all about radios for both of these emails. That is a touchy subject. They have three channels. First is Maine where everyone hears and talks. Channel two is for service only. If we have mechanical issues or get stuck, we reach out directly to them. They bring a backup bus or advise, whatever. Channel three is our travel channel, it's basically CB radio that buses can use to communicate directly with each other. That works great for field trips. Our dispatch can quote unquote direct call us at any time, which is one-way communication between bus and dispatch. They have about 120 buses on the road at any time. We follow strict protocol to keep chatter down, but of course, we have some drivers that like to hear themselves talk. Exclamation point. Stop talking and say 10-4 for God's sakes. Keep keep up the good work telling my colleagues to follow your show, Brian.

SPEAKER_01 2:45

That's amazing.

SPEAKER_00 2:46

So that's the first one.

SPEAKER_01 2:48

That is just like that. We need to make shirts. Just shut up and say 10-4. Oh my god, I love that. That could be our t-shirts.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

Uh, this one is from Josh. It says, hello from the Michigan mitten. If you know, you know. This was a response to the radio portion. So our company has upwards of 150 to 200 buses across three dispatch channels. Our special needs channel, which covers most of our county, main general needs dispatch, which has the majority of our general ed buses, and the Triple East District, which covers our neighboring district, plus a couple of buses that go out further. Wow. This winter antenna fell off the roof. So now one channel is an operative, one channel is severely reduced in range, which is our special needs one that goes across the county. And the last one is now combining all the general needs districts. I'm surprised our Radio Haven has not been pure chaos yet. He attached a picture. Uh, they don't know when it's get getting fixed. I comment, I emailed them back, and I said, Well, if it's anything like our district, it'll be six to eight months. Um for Lost and Found, he says I just collect it every month or so, make an announcement to collect your stuff, or it's getting donated to a church that my monitor goes to. Bus rodeo. Last year I won our company's bus rodeo for our region. And then we had a statewide rodeo where I got and then it cut off. I think he forgot to write what he got. Our rodeo was our company, our company only, which 150, 200 buses, not the districts around that I didn't even know national ones were a thing until after this last one. And then he says, for cleaning, I highly advise to get a small squeegee for windows. It saves so much time, paper towels, and microfiber cloths. That was cloths. That was from Josh. Yeah. And then I had another one from Ed. He reached out on Messenger, and again, the radio thing is just everyone hates it. Just listen to the segment about radio chatter. UCS is the second largest school district in the state after Detroit. About 160 drivers of radio chatter can be exhausting. And I was like, Wow, one channel? He goes, Yep. And I respond, Dear God.

SPEAKER_01 4:55

Wow. Those those are some big districts.

SPEAKER_00 4:58

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:59

150, 200 bus, like, and we're complaining about um the radio chatter on our like what can I say, like 40? Yeah. 40 rounds. We're like, shut up, just say 10-4.

How To Contact The Show

SPEAKER_00 5:11

Right. So I appreciate you guys emailing and messaging. You know, keep it coming if you have any questions. Uh, got some new people in the Facebook group. Uh, one guy hadn't even started training yet. He starts in mid-April and he found our show somehow. So um he's excited to start bus driving. So we appreciate all the feedback. Business, like I said, email schoolbusbanter at gmail.com, Facebook group, the link is in the description, and then our phone number you can text or leak call and leave a message. I will not pick it up because A, I hate talking on the phone. Um, and B, it's just for voicemails and texts. If you text it, I'll text back.

Cleaning Hacks And Bus Rodeos

SPEAKER_01 5:48

Yeah, what did you say? Like something like, if you're calling me, you better be in jail or dead. Um bleeding, coughing up a lung.

SPEAKER_00 5:56

Yeah, yeah, basically. Uh that that phone number is 757-529-1574. So whoo, that was a lot of talking already.

SPEAKER_01 6:08

That was. Can can we go back and talk about those emails a minute? I love I do see some of our bus drivers with squeegeees for the um window, and I gotta get one because I do go through the paper towels, and it's that is a big waste. And at squeegee looks like it gets everything really nice and clean.

SPEAKER_00 6:27

So when you spray the squeegee, how do you scrub it though? You'd have to have one that has a scrub on one side, right? And then the squeegee part on the other. Because if you just sprayed it in squeegee, I don't think that's gonna get the grime off, right?

SPEAKER_01 6:39

Yeah, no, I think so.

SPEAKER_00 6:40

Really?

SPEAKER_01 6:41

Okay, I that especially that foam spray that uh that I have from the mechanic. Yeah, it like goes on as a foam and then just squeegee it off and one paper towel to maybe wipe the end. I don't know. I'm gonna try it.

SPEAKER_00 6:53

Yeah, it's worth a try. I would think you'd like because I know a lot of those squeegeees have like a soft part on the one side and then the rubber, so you scrub it with that, and then you just you know rubber it off.

SPEAKER_01 7:03

So um, I had a couple people tell me that you know there were window lickers the other day, and I'm like, Well, when I start spraying that stuff, it's not gonna taste too good, but whatever.

SPEAKER_00 7:15

You literally had someone licking the window, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:17

Window lickers did you get after them? Uh no, what they're gonna do what they're gonna do, but that's not a battle I'm picking.

SPEAKER_00 7:24

I I will battle that. I'm gonna say, do not lick the windows, they're nasty. Well, I told them not to, but well, yeah, I'm not gonna like you know, move their seats or not stopping the bus. No, no, no, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_01 7:36

I'm like, that can't taste that good, sir.

SPEAKER_00 7:40

Yeah, I was just wondering if you had mentioned it to him, like, hey, oh, sure, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Stories From The Road Start

SPEAKER_01 7:44

So and oh yeah, to hear that somebody else did the rodeo, that's really cool. Knowing that you have your regionals and then you go to state and then you go to nationals. It's fun to train and and do all that stuff and just to see what your bus can do. I like it, I think it's a fun competition.

The Year 2525 Bus Moment

SPEAKER_00 8:03

Yeah, I I I emailed, I don't remember which one. Uh, I think I emailed Josh back that I was like, I don't know if I'll do it again. We'll see. I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 8:12

Oh, it's fun, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:14

So anyway, not fun, but stressful. All right, uh, stories from the road. Joe, what do you got?

SPEAKER_01 8:23

Okay, this this is gonna go dark. Um, real quick. You say keep the energy up. I'm gonna try. So I have a new student came to me like after uh I think about a month after school started this year from another country, caught up quickly, and one of my last stops at the end of the day, and the student came up and said, Miss Joe, in 2525, everybody in America is gonna die. And I thought, oh, you've been watching some horror movies or or something, but the hair on my arm stood up because he was very matter-of-factly like it's gonna happen. I go, okay, can you tell me more? And uh, you know, looking behind my bus, make sure I'm not holding up any traffic or anything. Yes, everybody in other countries will be fine, but everybody in America will be gone in 2525. And it just I'm just like, wow, okay. Do you know how it's gonna happen? No, okay. Um, did you watch a scary movie? Nope. It was on the TV. I'm like, okay, well, I'm gonna talk it up as to maybe you know, parents were watching something and you watch that. At that same moment when I let the student off, I close the door and I'm at like a T. So I'm I either have to turn right or left. And the house that I'm staring at, the address is 2525. No way, and I yeah, yeah. So I'm like looking at the address, looking at the student that's getting off and walking down towards his house, just kind of like, what the hell just happened? And other students were like looking at me like, is this really gonna happen? I have no answers for you. This is just to be continued, right? I went and bought a lottery ticket 2525. I didn't win. No, but how could you not? Right. I mean, that was just um too. I I don't have a lot of stitions, but that superstitions was like too crazy not to have. I do threes, things in threes. Okay. So he he said that. Oh, I saw the house. I needed to wrap it up, so I bought a lotto ticket. I'm a firm believer in like if you don't go to your prom, you're gonna be like missing something, or Hollywood celebrities go in threes, and you know that that so it's not weird stuff, it's stuff that I think a lot of people do.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

But uh so I wrapped it up with buying a lot of ticket, and yeah, I don't even think there was a two or a five in the numbers that night, but yeah, I'm curious if you could follow up with that that person or that person, that kid, and just kind of pick his brain a little bit more. Like, is this weird that it makes me feel like he didn't have any details on it that he literally looked at that address and that's what he came up with?

SPEAKER_01 11:20

No, he he hadn't come up yet, so he wasn't looking out the yet. No, he wasn't looking out the window yet. Okay, but that was like because when I let him out and I shut the door and I took put my blinker on to go left. I'm staring at this house going, yeah, because I thought that too. Maybe he saw that number, but no, he wasn't he wasn't even up there yet.

SPEAKER_00 11:39

Yeah, definitely, definitely maybe a follow-up. I love when he first that asked that. You said, tell me more. That's such a great response. I feel like yeah, you're being curious, and like even in my adult relationships, I'm really trying to, you know, I like to jump in and I like to interrupt. That's my problem. And so I'm trying to use some of that language of like, tell me more about that, you know, just so like you, I don't know. It was just I I that stuck out to me when and maybe that's your commonplace, that's you what you do, but I I think that's really a great way to say that.

Ending The Glove Throwing

SPEAKER_01 12:16

Yeah, I mean, I definitely wanted to hear more, but you know, I had I had two more stops after that, and the kids behind me were getting a little heebie jeebied. So I'm like, okay, let's let's follow this up later.

SPEAKER_00 12:26

Right, right.

SPEAKER_01 12:28

So hopefully I I can I'll elaborate on that at some other time. But okay, that's my story from the road.

SPEAKER_00 12:35

That's a great story. Uh one of mine is uh I put glove throwing, and I don't I don't have a lot on this. I'll make it quick because I have another story, but it this is like a uh story slash grind my gear segment. It annoys me when kids throw shit in the bus. Like, and these kids in the back, they were fourth graders and they were just throwing their glove back and forth, right? I can see them in the back and just flying over, flying over, flying over. And so, um, and the reason I nip that usually because guess what happens? It goes rogue, it hits somebody in the back of the head, they get pissed. Now they're involved and they're not having fun, they're throwing it back at the person, and then I hear Mr. Jerry, dot that so I I try to nip that right away. Like if it's continue, like if it happened to once, okay, whatever. So I talk to these kids, okay, okay. But next day, same thing. Talk to these kids, okay, okay. Next day, same thing. So I moved them, I moved them up.

SPEAKER_01 13:39

I moved, I moved one to yes, no, yes, I'm sorry, move them and that glove becomes yours.

SPEAKER_00 13:47

I moved one of them up and then I separated. I put one in door seat two and one in seat seven. And so if you're on the Facebook group, that picture I posted about being sorry, that was from one of those kids. Because I think he didn't quite realize, like, and maybe do I need to explain that it's just that's one of my pet peeves, or should I be like, no, you listen to me. If I say no, you might not think it's a big deal, but you should probably respect that I asked you not to do it.

SPEAKER_01 14:17

It it is. I I my kids know that the word I'm sorry means you've done something that you know you probably shouldn't have in the first place. So pro pro what is the word I want? Active, proactive that, and don't do it in the first think about your actions before you do them, before you have to say you're sorry. Also, that glove becomes mine, or that squish mellow that they're throwing back and forth becomes mine. The soccer ball becomes mine. I mean, it's just they can have it in the morning, and they won't do it, they won't do it again.

SPEAKER_00 14:48

I think the first time I was like, hey, put the glove, like that's my first go-to is like if it if it becomes a distraction, like put it in your your backpack. And I think I did that, but then they kept doing it, and so I think the one kind of felt bad about it. You know, he wrote the note and stuff, but like some people might be like, Oh, that I'm not picking that battle, that's no big deal to me. But like that kind of just I just don't like it. And honestly, day two, it did happen. It got rogue and hit one of the girls in the back of the head. Now, of course, it didn't hurt, but I saw her pick it up and chuck it, and then I think one of them said, Mr. Jerry, so-and-so's throwing my glove around, and I grabbed that mic real quick, and I'm like, Yeah, she's throwing it around because you have been throwing it back and forth, and it went wild. Like, I called them out right on the radio. You know what I mean? Because, like, that's literally why I say don't throw stuff.

SPEAKER_01 15:38

But when they tattle on each other, that's what's great. Like, um, so and so threw something. Okay, but I saw you throw it first. Don't you think I can't see? I got a big mirror up here, and anything that's out of place where it's not supposed to be, we see that we can catch it, and I think they're surprised by that, first of all, that we can see all the way back there.

SPEAKER_00 15:57

But um, yeah, when it becomes yours overnight, they think about it a little bit, especially if it's something that they're required to quote unquote turn into their parents when they get home. Like, hey, where's your glove? Uh, I left, you know. You know, they're not gonna say Mr. Jerry took it because I was chucking it around. So yeah, yeah. So that incident. What uh what other story do you got, Joe?

Naming Chickens And Seeing Kindness

SPEAKER_01 16:21

Okay, uh, let's see. I want to make this interesting.

SPEAKER_00 16:24

I was gonna say, if I had to pick, I was gonna say, Oh, I oh, so is the first row on the rundown one story and the second row the second story? Okay, I thought they were all separate stories. I think I figured it out now.

SPEAKER_01 16:36

So right, no. So the first row was yeah, that one, and then second one. Okay, we're gonna call this naming the chickens. So on Thursday, okay, I have a very, very full um fifth grade through twelfth grade, right? We don't have many seniors because they drive. So let's say fifth through 11th is my very first run in the morning. And I start at seven o'clock. On Thursdays, I have to add three students for a program that we have here in our district, and they are third graders. So you have now third graders riding with all the way up to 11th grade. And I have them sit close to me. They are girls, they are chatty, they're great, very, very intelligent, um, like to have conversation. But I also have some middle school boys that like to sit right behind me. They like to be first on, first off. And so I'm like, well, in order to do that, and you don't run anybody over the aisles, why don't you sit right behind me? It's not because you're acting up, but these are just seats that you can choose, right? Options you have. And so they sit right behind me. We have great conversations. Um, I have a good relationship with my middle school. I know that is a very hard one to um get your respect and your relationships with, but um, I just start right off every year at the beginning and try and make that connection. And uh so I pick up um middle school boys and they sit behind me, and I pick up these three um girls just on Thursday morning. They all sit behind me, and they were just like the boy that I have has about 29 chickens running around his backyard. And I've gotten eggs from them before, they're delicious. And so these chickens, they try and name them all. And so the girls, the all conversation had already started outside the bus. So as they got on, I'm saying good morning to them, they are naming these chickens, and some of the names that go through now, granted, at this point they're hovering over my two middle school boys, right? So they're just like like right behind them and on the side of them, like, okay, uh let's just name the student Bob, right? Okay, Bob. Um, we're gonna name one of this, one of the chickens pigeon. Yeah, yeah. And then what about like Bob Jr. or or Mary Jr.? And we're like, what's with the juniors? And then one of them said, What about bloody Mary? And my middle school student said, How do you know that word? How do you know what a bloody Mary is? This is third grade. And then uh one of them came up with eeny meeny miny mo. I thought that was cute, and so we're having this conversation about the chickens all the way um through my route, my route. And we get to the middle school first, those boys get off. We're still naming chickens all the way through that route. Now, I don't take them home, right? Because um they are on a different bus to go home. But when I saw my middle school boys and they got on and sat behind me, I just wanted to reach out to them and tell them how cool they were to these third grade girls. Like they were patient, they were engaged in the conversation, they were so like you know, you have boys in the bed. Shut up, shut up, don't talk to me about that. Shut, you know, because if you're seen with the opposite sex, you're assumed that you're gonna be married, right? They can't be boys and girls at this age cannot be just friends anymore. You have to be like, oh, you're going out because they're sitting together. And that that's I think I have that down on the on grinds my gears, is when that relationship turns from just being so innocent to, you know, now you're judged on who, you know, the opposite sex. But anyway, I told them, I said, you guys are with your patients like that. You should think about being teachers. I know it's middle school, but they have that mentality of how they just wrote these girls in, had a conversation, made it easy for me to do my job. So they weren't all just like you know, chatting about random things or playing their um they all got those what are those recorders recorders, thank you. They got the recorders this week. Oh my gosh, what a headache that is, and and engaged in the conversations with them. And so I just I wanted to just say kudos to those, you know, patient boys that um I think I really would like to see them be teachers someday. There's two two good ones in the making, you know, because you can tell that that's not gonna change for them, that's just who they are.

SPEAKER_00 21:00

Yeah, good on you for like reinforcing that with them. That was such a great move because I mean, I'm sure they get it from their teachers because clearly they're good kids, right? I mean, yeah, must have good parents and those kind of things, and but but I think it's always important to to reinforce that. Like, hey, that was super cool. Thank you for doing that.

SPEAKER_01 21:22

It it was, and maybe it'll plant something in their head that now when they get into high school, they're like, Oh, you know, I I want to become a teacher or something like that. They they could even work with special needs, I don't know. They just they they're very calm, they've never they get on the bus, they sit down, they like to be first off. So they they agreed with everything how I positioned them on the bus. Like, you want to be first off, sit here. Okay, it wasn't like oh, we're naughty, we're in the front seat that you say that for, you know.

SPEAKER_00 21:49

I you know, it's it is interesting. You get the the spectrum of middle school kids, like you said, you know, you got the ones in the back that are screaming. I mean, I have fantastic middle school kids and some that are just annoying, and I'm just like do not like you, but I get it. It's a tough, it's a tough age to be. I try to give them grace, but sometimes I'm like yeah, yeah.

When A Brother Tries Boarding

SPEAKER_01 22:13

They uh I I just yeah, I look forward to more. I think we've started something. something because um I saw those girls I actually drove them back from their um from their other class and uh they were still you know on the chicken naming but also they wanted to start a band with their recorders so now we're now we have to come up with band names for them.

SPEAKER_00 22:33

Oh boy. Well that's fun.

SPEAKER_01 22:35

It was great. It was a great morning great morning.

Safety Training And Vulnerable Moments

SPEAKER_00 22:38

Well that's good to hear. I'm glad that you had that uh mine is not so great. Um I we teased this last episode um about the time I had somebody come on the bus. And the state that we're in recently passed a rule in the last couple of years there's a sticker on the bus now if you enter the bus unauthorized it's a$500 fine of like a hundred or a year in jail. Like it's it's serious. Obviously it you know nothing gets created I feel like in Congress or the House or Senate or whatever until there's an incident. So clearly there was some problem with people getting on the bus. But um I had a kid a couple of years ago uh I feel like I I don't want to throw every apartment complex kid out with the bathwater but I do feel like at apartments it does tend to lead to transient sometimes issues you know both parents if there are both parents they're working so they're never home and I get it man like I get it that you know it's it's tough out there but this kid was uh kind of like that just trouble big trouble and and he had a phone and he would bring it on the bus and I would always say hey like you're welcome to use that because that kid if he was on his phone didn't cause trouble with everyone else some people might disagree with me it was an elementary kid I didn't care typically I don't let any devices out for elementary kids so basically I told him you know you can have it and like one day he decided to take pictures and I said give me your phone and he said no and I said give me your phone he said no give me your phone so I pulled over and I said give me your phone so we had this standoff because I wasn't rolling finally gave it to me okay fine whatever so and he's like well when am I going to get it back I was like I'm bringing it to the office your mom needs to come down and get it right because that will create a conversation of like hey your son's phone was taken away so you know let's talk about it so I get there and then the older brother is like 19 he's like no I need that phone I was like no y'all can come down and get it at the he would always get him off the bus and he's like no that's not happening and I was like yeah it is and so I I said I go to close the door and he sticks his arm in so that so the door closes on his arm so his arm probably from his like maybe almost to his elbow is inside the bus. He wouldn't he wouldn't pull it out um so we yeah so okay he's cursing at me the kids are crying there it was like my almost my first stop so there's a full bus the the the little boy that little boy he was like 10 he's crying because his brother's screaming at me so then of course it's causing a scene people are coming over talking to me and they're like what's going on and and then I was like well I got this kid's phone I mean and so they're like well why don't you give it to him I'm like no I'm not I'm not giving it back like I'm sticking to my guns I'm if I do that what is that what does that do right if if I give the phone back what is it what it what happens like okay well he'll he'll just give it back so yeah maybe I should have pictures he took well that's the thing um and I'm sure it was just he was just screwing around but I gotta stick to you got to stick to your guns on some of the stuff you know you gotta be like no this is I can't allow you to take random pictures of people on the bus it's just not allowed so you know this is this is two or three minutes his arm is in there he won't I can't leave right like if I leave and he doesn't pull his arm out so he's not paying attention and I was like I don't know what triggered me but I I qu I opened it and then he pulled it out and I quick flipped the button again to try to get it close could I leave and he stuck it in again. So this is like a five minute ordeal so finally I called dispatch and they called the cops and the cops were on the way but finally for some reason he decided to pull it out and the second he pulled it out I I drove away like I was ready to go so it I was it was a little scary because like what would he have done if he would have got on that bus. Yeah he would have wrestled you for the phone he might have I mean you're in such a vulnerable position in that seat yeah if you think about it like any any kid on the bus if they had any kind of weapon and this walk behind you I mean I always look in the mirror when kids are exiting but like if I'm driving down the road and they bum rush me you know you're screwed. But even him if he comes up those steps and I don't have my seatbelt off and like my steering wheel up like I'm a sitting duck you know so it was pretty scary. Uh I ended up leaving before the police got there. I don't and I should have pushed this and I didn't but like they didn't even file a report and my supervisor said yeah they didn't do anything since you were already gone and they were you know what I mean I probably should have done something right I I I was new right um what you had to see these kids the next day what happened um the I mean I talked to the kids I don't think the kid that took the the pictures was on the bus for I think he got suspended for a couple of days um but yeah after that I think oh I know what it was I think a couple days later and not when he came back the mom came down and apologized oh and I apologized we had a conversation and then the kid was there too the 19 year old and he said he was sorry and we shook hands wow though we made it right like it was fine but in the moment I'm kind of feeling I should have pushed my supervisor to be like no we need to file charges because he tried to get on the bus it says you're not allowed to get try to get on the bus he didn't get on because I blocked him but he would have gotten on like can we at least get a report and I didn't do that. That that ended in your favor very you know on a positive note but there's so many things that could have gone wrong at that time that's that's just lucky you got lucky wow yeah and I I get it I know those kids uh you know it's a struggle I I know a little bit about their home life because you know the I was on recess so I I got information from the principal about what's going on you know not like like tea but just like hey this is what's going on with this kid's life and this family just FYI so yeah not that I had any grace but you know I'm glad he came back I'm glad his mom basically probably dragged him by the ear and said you're gonna apologize to this bus driver we got to work with him for the whole year you know what I mean yeah the moral of the story don't get on the bus and if you do make sure if someone does make sure you have your seat belt off and you can ready to be to jump up get your uh tire thumper ready yeah I don't I don't carry that close yeah it's behind me yeah I would have to find it that would hurt can you imagine that we did some training up north and uh we got to like light a bus on fire see how long you know it took back it up back it up hold on hold on like through the district you did some training yeah yeah long time ago we went up north a few hours up north and a couple hours up north and um we got to see the bus was already you know empty of all its fluids and everything and already on its side and they lit it up just so we could see the cab um how long it took for the cab to fill up with smoke which is about 45 seconds by the way and then they also did some training where you sat in the bus and they came from all different directions to try and spook you and get on and you were just like you just sat there you weren't driving you just sat there and you were talking to fellow you know bus drivers that were sitting behind you and then all of a sudden how fast can these police officers and training stuff get on your bus and it was shocking.

SPEAKER_01 30:54

They just run right up and all of a sudden they're in the bus and you have no I have no reaction until it's way too late.

SPEAKER_00 31:03

Way too because I'm just like hi how you doing you know like yeah it's it's friendly for me and all of a sudden this guy's got you know a weapon or it was all training it was it was the best one we've done so far it was awesome we'll have to ask about that again yeah I can see like that's why I always think about the back door now I feel like the newer buses it's tough to get up like to the back it sits so much higher but on the other buses I mean I you just put your foot on that little step or that little thing in the back and you're in I there's just no way to keep anyone out of that bus if they really wanted to get in it.

SPEAKER_01 31:39

So yeah yeah correct I would I think it's just awareness and yeah awareness you handled that situation pretty good and I would say that kudos to that mom because she did the right thing so you guys can continue to work together.

Assigned Seats And Evacuation Practice

SPEAKER_00 31:53

Yeah because he you we knew the kid was going to be you know the the brother was going to be there and the the kid that I was transporting was going to be there and we had to figure it out like you know but I still I I still kick myself for not pushing it a little bit further and just be like hey this is unacceptable not just because he literally he got a slap on the wrist from his mom. I mean maybe maybe they got a phone call I don't know you know you're not privy to that so but anyway so that was my story it has not happened since and I hope it doesn't happen again. State your expectations for that phone that's what's gonna happen exactly yeah uh tips and tricks Joe tell me about your tip or trick of the week well if you're not doing a signed seats you should be I mean since COVID.

SPEAKER_01 32:39

It just it was for both grades all my grades really you have a signed seat for your high school kids because I have 57 of them and I have 55 seats. So somebody's gonna be sitting you know um they now oh do I love spring sports they started today hallelujah like a third of my bus I didn't have to bring home today because okay sports started. Yeah so I do assign seats for every single child that I have throughout my entire day. But with that I have ones that I know are responsible sitting by our four emergency windows two on each side and then I have the fourth grader responsible in the back for that back door. And we do emergency evacuations we practice those throughout the year right I think our district we have to have three we have the front door only back door only and then front and back door. Well I do if I pull into my elementary early let's say I've got three minutes two two and a half minutes three minutes with the kids on the bus which to a bus driver that is a long time by the way with K through four right and um so I said okay everybody stay seated when we pull in I'm gonna put the parking brake on and I'm gonna talk you through we're gonna practice opening these windows because maybe we have somebody that's never opened them before and they can be tricky and we're just gonna practice we're gonna talk about why we would be going out these windows and so we did each student that was sitting in there they had help with brothers sisters and we opened the windows and shut them and then we did the back door and then we opened the hatches on top because it was so nice out already this morning. So we just left those open um none of my K through four can reach those so that'll be a that'll be a a driver thing but they did really well they and they asked questions like when would we you know go out these windows and it's a it's a far drop so how would we get out there and um I you know I said there'd be um police and firemen or hopefully with ladders or something that you know definitely would help us but I assured them on our run we would never be going you know that fast um to worry about situations like that. Like we barely get over 35 through my run. It was just a great like two and a half minutes to have with my kids and practice opening the they loved it. Put your responsible you got a squirrel you got like I call them squirrelies because they just can't stay in their seat. You know what you're by the emergency window this morning because we're gonna practice that put them in charge of something they love it. Especially those ones that they need to do something. Yeah so that was just my tip or trick is give some kids responsibility and tell them when they can open it obviously if we're going down the road and it's open that's that's not the correct time it's gonna scare Miss Joe thinking we have an emergency so let's not open those but yeah they had a great time and they you know we're talking about it all the way out like we got to open windows.

SPEAKER_00 35:53

Yeah that's a that that's such a great idea again I never think about that stuff. Um and I I do feel like it's good for you to train your elementary kids because then they'll that they'll take that with them when they go to the next bus. Maybe the next bus driver doesn't do that but they'll probably always remember it if you're doing it on a regular basis. So that that's really cool.

Narrate Your Driving To Focus

SPEAKER_01 36:19

I am hoping that you know if they move on to the next bus they're like well we used to practice opening windows with Ms. Joe and I'm like yeah that would be you know something cool and I we'd actually practice the um walkie talk the radio and I said see how I'm pushing the button for the indoor speaker you know to talk to them that's the same how you would do it um going over the radio because we you and I showed that one video of that school bus driver that was like choking or had had heart issues and those students popped up yeah those those students popped up and took over the radio I mean you don't know when you're gonna need that so why not just take a second and say this is how you use it.

SPEAKER_00 37:00

Yeah no that's great. Good job. So my tip is narrate your driving and then in your head. So I don't know if you do this but I do it a lot when I'm driving the bus because you know I got a bunch of little kids on here and I I want to be as safe as possible. So when you're coming up to an intersection and all of a sudden you know you see a car come out to your right and you're like okay I I say to myself okay what that what's that car gonna do are they going to turn right or left um and then you're just driving around you're like oh you see that you know you see the big wheel ripping down the driveway I'm like okay got to keep an eye on that got to keep an eye you know you know and then you're checking your mirrors you're checking your mirrors like make sure you're looking your mirrors like I self-talk a lot. Now I I'm not saying I'm I'm a hundred percent all the time but it does when you do that that narrative in your head it does keep you more focused. I mean literally it does and yeah there could be screaming in the background but I don't know how I can tune it out but I you know unless it's like a shrill or someone took a recorder like your kids got them this week mine got them last week you know I'll I'll nip that and say I you know Mr. Jerry's doesn't want that but yeah narrate your driving and there's also a left turn I make I have to count to three when I look to the left if I don't count to three and I pull out before that it's a blind spot and there's a I could get hit. So every single day twice a day I look right clear I look left I go one two three and if there's no car I turn because I know I have time but yeah it's just narrate your driving in your head you'll you'll you'll be like oh my gosh I am really paying attention with you know just just saying okay what is that car gonna do what do I need you know just to just to be ready that's awesome advice because I can tell you sometimes I'm making my grocery list in my head and you're like how did I get to the middle school already?

SPEAKER_01 38:57

Did I get everybody? I mean that's it's true your mind can just go it's like oh man I gotta pick up cat litter on the way home oh so and so was on my bus this whole time you know I mean it is it's distracting there's a lot going on so saying that's good advice for I mean even those ones we've been on these routes for like 10 years is so automatic that saying that stuff like oh you know what somebody just threw a football where'd that go um there's dog I have so many dog walkers in my neighborhood there's at every corner there's dogs and so I say it out loud I'm like oh there's um DJ the golden retriever there's Max the you know wolf looking dog it I say it out loud because it's just it it tells me like where I am and my route but um yeah it that's really good to do I don't do that enough um but it's really good to keep focused for sure.

Middle School Teasing Kills Friendships

SPEAKER_00 39:52

Yeah I don't think you have to say it out loud but it I'll think of it as like a meditation practice. It's something that has to be practiced. And don't get me wrong there's times where I'm like you I'm like I get to the school and I'm like it's so like I'll they'll get off the bus and I'll be like oh my God I didn't even see them get on. You know what I mean? You know so it's it's not like I don't do that but like I try to do that when I'm driving just so that it just keeps you focused and you know now I do I do that in my car probably not so much. Well I'm probably doing it I'm probably raging out because I'm like hey nice blinker asshole you know what I mean like people that don't use their blinkers and make me wait five more seconds because you couldn't turn your freaking blinker on I want to put this pen I'm holding in your throat I can't do that on the bus. You know what I mean? So I have to keep it in my head the bus has to be PG but when you get into your car it can be you know yeah R rated no don't get me wrong I don't rage out but I'm like I I don't have the patience anymore for people that just it's it's rude not to put a blinker on just for like if I gotta wait there I'm waiting because you're too fucking lazy or stupid to put a blinker on like can't we just all work together and it just no we can't do a zipper merge we can't put our freaking blinkers on so yeah oh zipper merge don't go that's that's we don't have time for that Joe we went 43 minutes but without being explicit and then I just ruined it there. So now I gotta check the box.

SPEAKER_01 41:22

That was really good time for you though let's put that on our list how long you went for sure. All right last uh segment like we like to do what grinds our gears do you want me to go for no you go I just ran my mouth so oh yeah mine's not mine is just gonna um piggyback off of what I was talking about before is um my um kid grew up with the opposite sex best friend from day one of kitty garden until day one of let's say seventh grade maybe eighth grade they were buddies everything um playground stayed after had classroom jobs together teachers pets just you know peas in a pod um one had a uh peanut allergy so birthdays were always peanut free um you know just they were old souls like they knew each other from a past lifetime it was easy for them until they got to middle school god damn that middle school and then they were teased they were not bullied so much but just it just was like oh you're your boyfriend girlfriend no we're best friends well you you just can't be best friends like they were literally split apart and also you know you're not in one classroom anymore you go to several different classrooms and hallways and lockers so you're not together so the relationship just was done it just ended like there was um once I let my kid get on social media and stuff there might have been some hi how you doing there um when they got in high school they would pass each other in hallways but definitely not even what it was you know before and we miss that like it's just so shameful like that just can't continue and I see it on my bus. I see these for like yeah we went to elementary together and now we have that five six building so it's starting at five six now because the class they switch classes they have a hallway yeah and it's just I see sometimes like the like you guys want to sit together you can sit together no I can't sit with a boy or no I can't sit with a girl I'll get to and like oh that sucks that sucks so bad I'm like I want you guys to know that if you want to sit by each other you can I mean you guys are friends you've known each other you know it's just but they get made fun of or you know it's just it can't and and the ones that were making fun of another student was like they're sisters. I'm like you guys can do that at home but leave it off the bus. You're supposed to protect your siblings not mock them when you get on here.

SPEAKER_00 43:58

How do you change that though? Like I think that's always gonna like other than if you you call it out when it happens but like just a general statement how do you end up changing that I think I don't think that's ever going to change no it's not gonna change but on my bus I just say that I say those words out loud like I heard that and they may not even I may not even know

SPEAKER_01 44:17

what they what I heard, but it stops the the conversation of you know those sisters doing that to their to their little brother or something. I'm like thankfully I have a good group that you know they'll just be like yeah if you want to sit here you can and then I shut it down. I shut it down if they're like oh you're sitting by a girl I'm like nope not on this bus that's how that's you know usually what I have to say and then it you know they they meet their they meet other friends and they'll sit with their friends and stuff but it's just it's just it's so innocent you know and then they grow up do you feel like it's it's it happened back in our day too or is it just because these kids have more access to like media that that um yep what I asked two questions. Sorry both because you know the oh yeah I apologize now for the interrupting it's just both it's the social media yeah the bull definitely bullying online but also with me that's when it stopped too like I would walk to school with a whole group of people and then it maybe those people moved and then it was just two of you and if you were seen walking to school you're married you know I mean it's just it's it's ridiculous.

SPEAKER_00 45:25

Although it does happen in the adult world at the workspace I've had someone say something about me and one of our other friends like ooh what are you doing on the bus and I'm like yo we're we're not doing anything we're friends we enjoy each other's company like I'm clearly not with you for a reason you know what I mean like but just like went kept going on about it.

Cursing On The Bus

SPEAKER_01 45:45

I'm just like are you telling this to other people like what I mean we're in our 50s I can say that now oh yeah happy birthday Jared thank you um but yeah I just so it does continue but most of us adults can realize that we don't say that this person clearly is unhinged but um yeah just I well who gives a shit like just hang out with who you like to hang out with that's what I want to give them is that confidence to be like just shut everybody else up just like show them the hand like stop talking to me this is my friend because relationship they'll get hurt you know like why isn't so and so talking to me anymore oh we get teased you know oh I I don't like that it's already tough enough on their bodies on their mental health and going in every day the homework and all that and now they're adding this craziness yeah yeah crap that's what grinds my gears Jar my what grinds my gears and um it kind of a little bit floats into like you just tell them you know I heard that or whatever is cursing on the bus.

SPEAKER_00 46:51

So I have a segment of driving that is all juniors and seniors and it's an extra trip like after my morning run. So most of these kids I don't know their names we don't have a relationship much and that's okay like that doesn't bother me I I'm not the one that's like I'll get a relationship like I have a couple girls that love my trivia and I have to tell them the answer because that I only take them one way and another bus takes them home. So they they they they look for it every day. So I don't know their names but like we have fun. But most of them I don't and there's a bunch of boys that always go to the back and this literally happened today. They I heard the F word and I'm like okay I heard what the fuck and I'm like okay I'm hearing you you are in the back of the bus. I am all the way in the front now I again the heat wasn't on today so you know things were carrying more because you know it's not it's not freezing cold. And then I heard it again and then I heard it a third time on the way and I'm like guys chill out like or I think I said gentlemen chill with the F word thank you something like that. But I'm like guys we are at school okay like this is a school you you are you doing this in your class because I guarantee no teacher would tolerate that and I don't know if I they look at me like oh it's just the dumb bus driver who he doesn't care and and and most of these kids honestly say you know I say good morning to them every day even the ones that are kind of mouthy and most of them say thank you when they get off so it's like there's a few that are just in there and it's just I don't know it just I curse all the time but like I don't curse on the bus.

SPEAKER_01 48:33

If I can't curse you can't curse that's a that's a good one to use right there. Like hey I I swear more than you okay I like to do it.

SPEAKER_00 48:41

Yeah but I can't do it on here then neither can you that's a good way in yeah and I don't I don't and I and I've I've not written them up but there have been conversations from staff about that group in the back and they've been good for a while but like you know one time I think last week they were like basically almost wrestling in the back I'm like guys what are we doing like what are we doing and you know they never they always just kind of stop and it's not like they don't stop but like there's other people I mean that's a full bus. I bet I have on the way out there I bet I have 40 to 45 kids going out. So Joe, what do you think about that? Do you hear a lot of cursing on your bus?

SPEAKER_01 49:20

Yeah funny funny story is I got to sub one of those runs that you do every day um today and going out there to the school is pretty quiet. Um not too many kids because I'm the second bus. Uh coming back yeah good I was very enthusiastic like good morning hi what are you guys in here for you know what kind of special skills and um most went to the back and we weren't even out of the parking lot and I heard one F bomb and I I say something right away because I don't I don't want to get it to two or whatever. So I'm just like hey keep it PG please if I can't do it you can't do it and there they didn't know that I heard them because like you said um well I had some windows down but the heaters were off today so the sound carried up there I could hear it pretty good.

SPEAKER_00 50:10

You know like I wish I did I don't care I don't care but I have to say something because there could be a student on there that does care that never use that language you know that's the rough part like I let it go a little bit I give a little grace and like you know I'm gonna like eventually like that's it's saying like I'm gonna eventually say something like can we just not do it like or keep it low enough if I can hear it everyone else can hear it.

SPEAKER_01 50:33

And I know a lot of kids have headphones on but like I got I got some just I don't know I know they're all juniors and seniors but like I don't know I feel like I have some very just like oh you little baby you know what I mean kid like you know you just want to like cover their ears and like okay earmuffs even though they're juniors yeah yeah clearly they they don't have either you know parents or siblings around that that use that language which I would say my house would be like one of those we don't just drop those you know f bombs all the time but um to hear the kids say it's like oh he's way in the back I'm not gonna like just keep a PG you know and and like you said like if I can't do it you can't do it because I want to do it but I can't no I I think they um resonate with that yeah I think they do too I I I use that on the playground too when we get a report of a curse and I try to level with the boys and I'm just like hey listen I love to swear yeah I free I freaking love it.

Wrap Up And Final Reminder

SPEAKER_00 51:30

It's amazing but listen we got to be responsible when we're at school or on the bus I always throw the bus in there right because some of them don't even know I drive bus. I'm like on school or on the bus we can't curse okay and I I just can't do it. Oh okay okay yeah that's good that's good yeah um as we wrap up quick just personal story about the swearing so my wife and daughter were away for almost a week for a dance competition and then they came back and then I'm just you know I'm just me and I'm like you know drop them fuck this and that the and like not mad and she's like you know I didn't realize how much cursing happens because I missed the cur like she didn't miss the cursing but she was like oh okay we're we're back home that's great I was like oh man I gotta be I gotta be careful with that I guess she's like no it's fine I've just been around a bunch of high school girls and their moms and you know they're no one's dropping an F bomb so I was just been gone from that for seven days so some people try like it when you know when I say it I'm pretty pissed probably yeah because that just doesn't come out but when you say it it's funny and it's appropriate at the time so uh you're I mean there are times when it's not but I you know I do enjoy a good fuck you like especially when I'm road raging uh okay okay um wrapping up yeah are we good so yeah this has been a good show what do you think what do you know what do you want to tell people um I appreciate the emails coming from all different I we have one from Canada I think I saw something from Canada yeah I think it's hard when we we have the Facebook group and then we're getting emails from different people but I believe someone's in Canada. I think the one that is just starting training is in from Central Florida. Wow so keep them coming good luck in Central Florida hopefully you have air on your bus and I'm sure they do love the feedback in the emails because that gives us something to talk about and then take back to our district and say hey we need to do this yeah I love the I love the multiple channels I mean I I don't think we need three but to have two would be amazing. We need more than three we need one channel versus the ones that are always just chatting that I was saying there's some people that need their own channel this is so and so's channel.

SPEAKER_01 53:54

Yeah exactly okay guys thanks for listening as always same boss same kid different stories and just remember just say ten four