James – Last day of free bus passes!!

Today my bus passes all run out. I had a very good send off though, I took the bus early this morning from the party I had been to. The weather, though everyone seems to be complaining about it, was fantastic and very autumnal. As I sat on the bus and looked out, feeling fantastic for some reason, I saw everybody making their way home and probably feeling tired and hung over but it was brilliant for me. On top of this, I just managed to get the bus I needed when I would have missed it were I 30 seconds later. I must say it was a near perfect end to a jolly good month.

Hopefully you will enjoy my invitees Beth and Lucy’s blogs as much as I just know you enjoyed mine.

James – The magic 46

I had just got out of work today and was walking down the road to see a 5b that can take me home go by. Gutted, I ran down to the bus stop so I wouldn’t miss anything more. When I got there, I saw that the next bus was in 18 minutes. I really wanted to get home and relax. I was strolling around frustrated when I turned around to see my saviour; The number 46 appear out of nowhere. Although the signs weren’t very helpful in this it was a very pleasant surprise. I must dash now, I’m off to get my favourite bus, the 46, to a party.

Kay – Going out with a bang

5b to Brighton for the reading rehearsal – we had the most awesome performance of scary/funny/weird stories and poems ever. If you missed it, feel bad, it was an astonishing event.

Caught the 5 home at around 10:45 in the evening. I had no idea!  The first thing that tipped me off to how different evening bus use is to day use was that the bus pulled up a few yards short of the stop to let off a young man who threw up … and up … and up. Four times, in fact.

As he stumbled along Old Steine, I noticed that he had a really bad cut on his face, not a joke one either, a serious gash dripping blood down onto his jeans.

The top deck was full of young people absolutely stinking drunk. I use stinking advisedly, as at least half of them wafted strong odours of vomit around the place, so I went back downstairs, wondering if I was turning into the kind of person I’d always hated – the ones who say ‘young people today … etc’.

When the bus pulled up at North Street, there were two St John’s Ambulance and another driver waiting because there was a young man on the top deck whom the driver hadn’t been able to wake up. They did manage to rouse him, discovered he was on a bus going in the wrong direction, and he too stumbled away up the street, clearly almost comatose with alcohol.

And so I take back everything I have said this month about grumpy bus-drivers. If they have to deal with vomiting, blood-stained, stinking, zombie-like hordes of passengers on a Thursday before eleven in the evening, what must their lives be like on the weekend Night buses? No wonder they are sometimes a bit abrupt, if that’s what driving a bus in the evening is like.

Peters – Break Down, Fast Walk

I decided that I would take a different route to work tonight. Rather than the number 21 to London Road I decided to catch the bus into town and then the 5a to Preston Park (which I sometimes catch when I cannot be bothered walking from London Road). Well I managed to get on the 5A in town to go one stop when it broke down.

The driver was very apologetic and said we could wait on board for the next bus to come along. That would have made me late for work so off I jumped and had fast walk to Preston park. Just as I arrived at work with 2 minutes to spare the same bus and driver passed me. Typical lol. I am sure the walk did me good.

Anyway, am at work now and would much rather be in bed so good night to all you lucky bed goers, have a good sleep.