One down..........

Today I had to fire a driver, which is never fun. I gave this driver more chances than I care to admit, however she just didn't get it. She was her own worse enemy. So today, tomorrow and for the next few days, I am going to have to spend my entire day reassuring the other drivers that I am not on a witch hunt. There are so many things the other drivers just don't see so when we have to fire someone, they don't see that it is for a valid reason. Because this is a personnel issue, I can't share any of the details with them, so I have to convince them that I had a valid reason without giving them any information. This is a difficult task and one that I really am not looking forward to. Talk about a waste of time!! I have work to do.

I am totally convinced that if we had the money to put a psychologist on retainer that we could keep him busy all day. There would be a revolving door in his office. So many drivers with so many issues and I'm not trained to solve these kinds of problems.

Stress, stress and more stress. I am so looking forward to the end of school. For us it is about the 3rd week in June. However, starting now, I have to begin the process of pushing one school year off of my desk and start the next. I am already working on bus routes, etc. for the 08-09 school year. While everyone is enjoying their summer vacation, I will be getting ready for September. We are the only business that I know of that has to totally reinvent themselves every 10 months. Bus runs totally change because the school population totally changes. What a pain in the neck. Every time I think about it I remember to thank my husband for picking this business. It was his choice, not mine. We should have chosen to haul dirt instead of kids!!!!!

Fuel.............

Here is something I don't understand. Why is it that Americans are not screaming about the cost of fuel? I realize that this effects my business greatly, however this effects each and every one of us! Every single thing that we purchase in our lives is going to increase as a result of higher fuel costs. Why are Americans just laying down and allowing this to happen? I just don't understand. Why did the government feel the need to bail out Bear Sterns and help only a select few, but they are ignoring the masses by allowing this to continue. People are making huge adjustments in their lives actually having to think about where they drive. Parents are having to eliminate after school activities for their kids, summer camp enrollment is down, food is going through the roof, and restaurants are empty. You are going to see so many business go out of business because of the cost of fuel. Forget the luxury business, they are done for! Restaurants, florists, spas, gift stores, etc are all going to be hurting.

Here is my plea - help me find some way to get the attention of the government. What can we do? Any ideas?

Short Lived Peace

I just spent 4 wonderful days in Orlando with my daughter Kim and my three grandsons. We really had a great time even though it was quite exhausting. It was wonderful but very short lived peace............

The moment our plane hit the tarmac, I recieved an email from the Superintendent of Schools stating that he saw one of my employees, two days in a row, using her cell phone while driving students. In Connecticut it is illegal to use a cell phone while driving and also illegal for any school bus driver to even a hands free devise. This law is not new. This bus driver knows better. My blood pressure instantly went up. I could feel it. All the peace I had while away instantly went out the window.

Needless to say, I wasn't overjoyed to return to work this morning. I had to deal with the cell phone issue, too many voice mails to count, and then got a message from one of the principals telling me that one of my employees was selling candy bars to the kids on the bus!! Please, tell me it isn't so!!!! Do you know how difficult it is to try and explain that your employees just don't have any common sense? Both these issues should have never happened if the drivers just used their heads. Is that too much to ask?? So incredibly frustrating.

We'll see what tomorrow brings.................

The Dentist

Today one of our bus drivers took my mom to the dentist. My mom is 83 years old and can't drive herself. Actually there isn't much she can do by herself so one of our bus drivers doubles as a home health aide for her. Well today mom had a dentist appointment at 11:00 a.m. The driver had a minimum day at her school, a 1:30 p.m. dismissal. Now you wouldn't think this would be a problem, however it was. At 1:10 p.m. the driver calls the office to say that my mother is still sitting in the dentist's chair. The first thing that I thought was what the heck could they possibly be doing to an 83 year old mouth that could take over 2 hours!!! As of this moment, I still don't have that answer. The frustration with this entire story is this: If you were the driver wouldn't you have thought to call the office just a wee bit earlier than 1:10 p.m.? The second thing is this - if I have to sit in the dentist's chair for over two hours at the age of 83, please just take me out to pasture and shoot me!!

Each day when a bus driver has a run to do they must perform what is called a pre-trip inspection on the bus. This is a "run-through" of the bus, checking 217 items on the bus each time it leaves the yard and completing a DVIR (Daily Vehicle Inspection Report). This is what was written on a DVIR this morning.........
"occasionaly my bus makes a loud noise like an unevenly loaded washing machine during the spin cycle, but when I let my foot off the accelerator it stops." We have all male mechanics and they don't know what an unevenly loaded washing machine sounds like!!!!