E.MacBus

Sometimes in life things can change, these changes can result in major decisions having to be made. I made such a decision in June this year. Due to the unexpected losing of my job, I entered the bus and coach business. Taking on an undertaking like that is not for the faint hearted as I soon found out but after lots of tears and tantrums and help from many people we are now in business. I now have 1 19 seat coach for private hire work, 2 service buses to be used in 2 local services we will be operating from 7th January 2013 and 1 25 seat coach which will be used as a spare vehicle in the event of any breakdowns. There are many people and businesses I would like to thank for all the help and understanding during the last few months, things would have been a lot harded without their input. If I have missed you out, I didnt mean it. My family for putting up with me and my financial doom and moods, Roy for the MOT and refurb work, John Lynch for painting, Wullie Sangster for decals and logo design, Kenny and the staff at Kenwil for printing and stationary, Susan Murray for all the support and help in planning and getting the routes established, Fergus for mechanical, electrical, bus stop timetables, website and being there when the need arose, Liam for electrical work in global headquarters and working in the rain to get the depot reader ready, Charlie Livingstone for welding, manufacturing and the bullet proof door in the workshop, Angela from Gauntlet for insurance, Roy and Luise for general business issues, Ricky for maps, John Boyce, John Gay, George and Eddie from McColls for lots of admin. and bus operating help, Mr Sood, Stewart, Liz and Carol from Fairline Coaches for giving me a job, Bert Comrie from Crescent Cabs for keeping me busy with jobs, Jim at JBM for defect inspections, the staff at SPT, the staff at Transport Scotland, Anne at Clydesdale Bank, Colin for endless loans of money, Fiona for timetables, Frank for promotions, Bernie the Brush for last minute painting, Dean from McKenna Brothers for helping me out with the destination blind, Parthiv from Transmach for ticket machines and back up system, the whole operation would have collapsed without you, all the shops and businesses along our routes who very kindly displayed our poster, the people of Lennoxtown for their help, support and custom, I will finish with a extra special thankyou to Billy and Jim Thompson for renting me the premises in Lennoxtown and for all they have done.

Lorraine Keith

Lorraine Keith is a keen showjumper, who got bullied out of the sport in Scotland by a well off gentleman she had been involved with for many years. We are all aware that things can happen when a relationship breaks down but to be nasty, controlling and bullying is not nice. However, our Lorraine always has the answer to her issues and is very astute at doing something about them. She upped and offed, with Bailey the dog and Boston the horse, to Southern Ireland where she has met with success. Pictured here are some of the prizes she and Boston won at a recent event. Look out for them at the Dublin show.

Mull 2012

Here is some pictures of the fun on Mull.

A Week In The Life Of.

Monday

Monday mornings arrived again,
Getting out of bed is such a pain,
Looking around to see whats going on,
Why did I bother comming here at dawn?
To wander round in a trance like state,
To see whats happening we must wait,
Right now guys heres the plan,
Fix the exhaust on that campervan,
It took off down the hill alone,
While the owner was on the phone,
You might say that makes no sense,
Knocking down the garden fence,
She was in the dining room,
Heard a clatter then a boom,
Looked outside upset to see,
Her motorhome had hit a tree,
Please don't make the same mistake,
Remember, pull on your handbrake.

The afternoon went quite well,
As far as I can tell,
Joined wires on Hardies coach together,
Whilst outside enjoying the weather,
Went home half 4 the lawn did mow,
Then into the shower I did go,
I washed and scrubbed the grime away,
Then did suduko of the day.
Was in my bed for half past ten,
Tomorrow it starts all over again.




Tuesday.

Most people want to blether,
About this terrible awful weather,
It has happened in the past,
This unseasonal forcast,
So put the shades and tent away,
Till another sunny day,
Put the sunscreen in the bin,
And get the woolies on again.

When buses come in we have a raid,
To see how much money can be made,
By searching in unknown spaces,
Also in unlikely places,
For coins and notes we look hard,
To finance the next scratchcard,
This one disappointed me,
We just found pennies 53.

Wednesday.

Today we are off on a spree,
Big Hamish and me,
In a small red Citroen car,
Heading through Angus to Forfar,
Collecting a Daf horsebox lorry,
That got involved in a forray,
The rear door is all bent,
That is why we are being sent,
All the way from Torrance town,
So that we can take it down,
To make it better than anew,
Coz thats what we get paid to do.

Oh dear me, what a fuss,
Working on a Lothian bus,
Hit at the electrics near,
At the front, not the rear,
Can we fix it? yes we can,
Just like we did the Asda van.

Thursday.

Thursday at last,
This week went fast,
Stirling is our destination,
We have driven quite far,
In a small Clio car,
To a hairdressers near the station,
Springkerse estate is our aim,
A place that they claim,
Commerce is the norm,
The purpose of this trip,
Is to collect a truck that hit a skip,
And to get it back in top form.


Friday.

Fridays come around once more,
At two o'clock we are out the door,
Lots of little jobs to do,
It goes in fast this is true,
Put wheeltrims on an open topper,
The seasons here for you to stop her,
For tours around the dear green place,
For McKerralls truck we must find a space,
Somewhere on the workshop floor,
This place is packed out to the door,
Put that Stagecoach bus outside,
Itll be a while till you can ride,
Round and round the Ayrshire ways,
The parts wouln't be here for a few days,
A First bus with an electric task,
Its been here a while so I must ask,
Whats the great big hold up there?
Its been in here since Glasgow fair,
Am off it now, its almost two,
Lets hurry home so I can do,
The thing that I like doing best,
Having a well earned weekend rest.

Saturday.

Saturday now delivering,
I hope that telephone will ring,
All night long, going strong,
I will happily bring along,
Your omelette or chicken curry,
I will take it in a hurry,
Straight up to your front door,
See you tomorrow for some more,
Chinese food is very tasty,
We cook and deliver very hasty.

Sunday.

Sunday now, just no pressure,
An Easter day of total pleasure,
Chocolate eggs to be eaten,
A day like this just cant beaten,
Breakfast first, then Asda store,
To buy some things, maybe more,
All the goods to use and eat,
At prices that are hard to beat,
Then I may just cook some food,
Some nourishment will do me good,
A meal for one put on the stove,
Then off to work again I drove,
The fast food deliveries once more,
Bringing hot food to your door,
Finish off at twelve, midnight,
Happy the evening went alright.

So there we've had a week of rhymes,
Documenting exciting times,
Despite all the toil and strife,
Do I have a fruitful life?
At times there seems to be no lull,
There will be soon, am off to Mull,
We are off up there, the 25th day,
5 days of music, dance and play,
It'll not be long till we are merry,
The minute we step on the Oban ferry.

Ted Christopher at the Clachaig.

Ted Christopher is the man to see right now, doing a mixture of self penned songs, vintage pop and traditional will have any venue rocking. He doesnt have a great voice but it does suit the style of the songs he does and his own material is more a story than a song. He adds to his appeal by playing solo non stop for 3 hours, putting multi member bands to shame. The Clachaig was jam packed and a great time was had by all.

No night out is complete without our own extra special food critic moaning about the food. Joe The Tiler and part time food taster said his steak and ale pie was minging. The food wasnt up to the Clachaig's usual high standard but it was presentable and at £55 for a meal for 4 with booze was reasonable.

Tarbert Music Festival. 2011

Tarbert Music Festival was spot on once again, playing were 2 Bob Rocket, The Keelies, Keeperlit, Archie McAllister and many more wonderful musicians. Banjo Mick turned up and provided the music for the party in the car park next to the recycling bins at 3 on the Sunday morning. Kenny and Tony from Shenannigans kept the clients of the Corner House Bar entertained with their ammusing versions of popular songs, aided at times by James from the Ayrshire Asbos, Banjo Mick and Me.

Thanks to the people of Tarbert, the bars and hotels staff, the cafes for feeding us and the harbourmaster for letting us use the showers.

The Wedding. 3rd September 2011

Veronica Ward and Steven McKenna got married in Motherwell Cathedral then had the reception in Stirling Rugby Club. They had 3 bands playing BoxOBananas,The Raggle Taggle Gypsys and some 50s retro band with a mad treble bass player. It was a brilliant day.