Bussing

Boon and I spent Friday on a school bus.

Party!

Not only do we work together, but she and I have kids in the same high school in the same concert choir. So we took a vacation day to pull Mom duty and chaperone one of the buses.

We rode up Tan-Tar-A way to the Missouri Music Educators Association's annual conference. Our little choir was only one of four high schools selected to perform for the masses. Masses to the tune of 12,000 from what I’ve heard.

Big doin’s, indeed.

Have you ridden a school bus full of teenagers recently?

No?

Well let me fill you in on all the niceties.

They smell. They either have too much body odor or too much Axe Kilo.

Boys and girls both use hairspray and since the temperature was about 7 degrees, we couldn’t open the windows. See above.

They make out when they think you're not looking.

They are loud.

They can’t hold their water. After we stopped for breakfast, we only had about an hour to our destination. These are exact quotes from three girls.

I’m about to pass out I have to pee so bad.

I’m serious, I’m having issues, is there anyway you can just stop the bus? I’ll go on the side of the road.

Why couldn’t we have planned a bathroom stop?

For an hour’s drive? A bathroom stop?

One girl held up her big Gulp and looked at me like, ‘duh’.

When I pointed out that they knew we only had an hour and they should have gauged their beverage consumption, she just looked at me.

“What?”

She didn’t get it.

Thank God there was no vomiting.

So, OK. Some things never change. I remember the same exact happenings when I rode the bus, except the boys weren't sporting Axe, they were sporting Chaps. If they could afford it-Polo.

Buses haven’t changed much. Most of them have automatic transmissions now, but you know what? They still smell the same. That funky unique odor that only school buses have. And the seats are the same. No seat belts and they are so close together you can hike your knees up on the seat in front of you.

So, I did.

Hiked my knees up.

I still could.

I was excited.

Other unexpected, wonderous teenage things of note:
They were grateful for the time Boon and I took to spend with them.
They were courteous.
They sang like angels and I cried the entire time reveling in the appreciative gasps I heard coming from the audience of professionals around me.

Because of the crying:
Boon thinks I’m ridiculous.
I think I’m ridiculous.
Big knows I'm ridiculous.

It was a good day.