Tuesday, August 17, 2010

There are 760 students at The Kids elementary. We are the ONLY ones to walk to school*. It's less than 10 minutes. There are kids on our street who are "car riders". Those parents are running their car engines and ac longer than that. There are kids on our street who are bus riders. The bus ride to school is about 40 minutes, to home about 7. We were at our house when the bus let out at the top of the hill.
All of this works together to make the walk the best choice-though it is pretty friggin difficult still for me to get up that steep hill we live on-really for me it is the only choice, though she may ride the bus some days.
When I was a girl there were times we lived in town and walked to school. We rode the bus when we lived out in the country. The only time I was a "car rider" was when I went to high school 30 miles from where we lived.
Anyway, what is up with all this "car rider" stuff? I have to ferry them all around enough as it is, let 'em walk(with me of course-I need the exercise) or ride the bus.

*this could go on and on about lack of sidewalks, lazy people, ruining the environment, what's wrong with the world today, setting a good example for our kids, I used to walk 20 miles in the snow uphill both ways...you get the picture. I'll save all that for when I'm less hot and sweaty-or maybe never.

10 comments:

Nej said...

We always had the option to ride the bus...and I used that option if I had a million things to carry (which was often, I played a million different instruments in the band, etc)...but I walked whenever I could. It was silly not to!!!!!

Lazy lazy lazy....

You know...I bet you start a trend, if you keep it up!! Are there any other kids in the neighborhood that could walk with you guys???

Brook said...

there are at least 3 kids that go to that school on our street and 4 on the next street over. I'll let you know if a trend starts-sidewalks would help alot.

Victoria said...

I love that she's walking. Yeah, I'm not a mom, but I remember walking to school. I worked things out during that walk, you know? Anxiety, mental prep for the day, ("unwind" /switch gears after school on the way back). And if you're walking with her - she will always remeber this. It's all good.

Huff Daddy said...

Sadly, I don't think it is as much about laziness as it is parents' fear of predators.

wv = obonic, now that's funny!

Spellbound said...

Loved walking to school as a child and walking home for lunch some days. I did that until high school and then I rode the cheese most days. We had one car for the family and my mama sure wasn't going to take the time off her busy day to drive us. I never thought to complain because that's the way the world was. The difference is that I walked by myself from the time I was 5. Worst thing that ever happened to me is a bite from a small dog on my street. No one sued anyone, the neighbor apologized and the dog was locked up after. Lord I really am old.

ginstonic said...

Except for 1sr grade, I always rode the bus to school due to long distances (in FL our neighborhood school became over crowded so my street was bussed to another neighborhood - that was when bussing made sense - also another subject) But I have walked to work and I guess the only time I drove kids to school, was when I was taking you to Moultrie.

Brook said...

Victoria I am enjoying the the strange 5 yr old conversations we have-and you are right it is time to transition, something out just add water culture forgets about.
HD-Of course I walk with her, and will continue to walk most of the way with her probably even when she's in 4th grade(I will still need the exercise after all)if we still live in this neighborhood.
Spellbound-We walked in herds and if someone wasn't in the crowd we knocked on their door to see if they were ahead of us or sick. It worked.
Mom-I agree that busing can make great sense but it is really sad that there are so few neighborhood schools these days.
The more of us there are the more like rats in a crowded cage we become.

Huff Daddy said...

You could move to Ohio and swap places houses with my parents. They live across the street from the elementary. The middle school was about a mile behind it. 90% of the time I walked, but I could take the bus, which i thought was pretty dumb, even in 8th grade.

We recently stopped at the Barnes & Noble at Biltmore Park in Asheville. If they had a Publix in there and a school, I'd sell all of our cars, buy a Smart Car and move thee tomorrow.

Brook said...

HD that place is pretty cool isn't it? We've enjoyed our visits there too. BDD and I have decided after years of discussion that our ideal situation would be to live in town and walk or take the bus to work, stores, restaurants and schools and have a house out in the "country" with no neighbors within sight or hearing distance for the weekends. A nice fantasy. The 'burbs suck.

WanderingGirl said...

It's too bad that so many bad things happen on buses anymore. Too much bullying and fighting, etc. We walked, we rode buses, and we drove cars when we were old enough. Mom drove us in her nightgown when we missed the bus. We live 8 miles from Luke's school, and it would take him more than an hour to ride the bus here, so we will be picking him up when he comes to our house. It's just how it is in the "country" of southcentral VA.