Happy Friday — we’re back with more Hot Bones and a small story of local horror and hope.

This past winter, a snake was accidentally shipped to someone’s house, hidden within a soil delivery. Are the back of your knees tingling yet?

The unexpecting gardener discovered the stowaway and gave it to a friend who likely didn’t need to throw up every time they thought of slippery, shoulderless creatures. That’s when they learned that this eastern hog-nosed snake is listed as a “species of greatest conservation need” in Virginia and can’t be kept as a pet.

So here we are, a few months later at the Wildlife Center of VA, where they’ll be caring for the snake as an ambassador animal. But she needs a name, and the org is taking “donation votes” for either Ziggy or Ember.

You can cast your vote here. (I’m on team Ember.) But just know that if you click the link, there are photos of snakes. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but she’s kind of cute.

Do one long thumb scroll for more Cville-specific updates like local events, cool houses, and pets to adopt. And check out Bike Cville for details on those ^ rides.

🐶 Speaking of pets: Patrick Star! It’s the beginning of summer so why not take on a massive new responsibility like training a puppy? Hard to resist the world’s softest ears and spotted paws (husky mix, 10 pounds, almost 3 months old).

🐱 Plus a mystery cat named Pumkin (hold the extra p).

I’m sure I’ve been on many other school buses since, but the last ride I really remember was for my school’s eighth grade ski trip to one of those ice hills in western Maryland. On the ride home, a girl named Rosie had her first kiss at the back of the bus and a boy named Bryce pooped his pants at the front of the bus. So, peaks and valleys, but learning moments all around. (Bryce is now in finance.)

I have a feeling, though, that nothing quite so chaotic happens when the kids step onto Mr. Tom’s bus — for one thing because he can actually hear what’s going on.

Tom Terry is one of the two people who drive Charlottesville’s new electric school buses every day. There are about a million great things about electric buses compared to the diesel counterparts we grew up bumping around on, and one of those good things is that these new buses are designed to be up to 20 decibels quieter.

The connection between noise level and happiness is pretty obvious. No one enjoys running their insinkerator all day. But the connection becomes starker between noise pollution and student attention / behavior.

I visited Tom during my lunch break earlier this week, and I have to say up front that I completely agree with all these stats. As we walked through a parking lot full of yellow diesel honkers, many of them idling or getting ready for a route, it was just so incredibly pleasant to reach the small fleet of quietness on the other side. It was like when you walk out of a concert and start hearing crickets and things like the sound of a night breeze again.

Tom has been driving school buses for the city for six years. He has three children, nine grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. He grew up in the Charlottesville area and has witnessed things changing that I hadn’t even thought about (like a downtown mall full of cars, an actual dam by Woolen Mills, and fishing holes long gone). And now there’s one more thing to add to the list: Driving an electric school bus.

“You have to be willing to adapt to what you’re doing for the bigger picture,” Tom told me about the new rigs that started rolling out this winter.

“My job really didn’t change, but my anxiety level was reduced,” he said. “Now I can take advantage of my senses. I can hear, whereas before [I was] struggling to hear anything outside the bus.”

It took two years to get these on the road, thanks to the diligence of the city’s climate team. They applied for the federal “clean school bus” rebate program way back in February 2024, which eventually footed the $200k bill for each bus. Dominion’s electric school bus infrastructure program paid for the chargers.

Unfortunately, the federal program is basically moot right now thanks to, shall we say, derecho-force political headwinds, so securing funding for additional electric buses (which currently are more expensive than diesel options) is up in the air right now.

Tom estimated that around 15% of the kids riding the city’s school buses get to travel on the new electric models.

As we were standing by the two buses (quietly plugged in, charging for their afternoon routes), it occurred to me that this was the last week of school before summer break. Hype must be high, focus must be low. The thrill of a half-day on Friday must be nearly impossible to channel into anything other than a yalp out the bus window.

I asked Tom if he had any bus rules.

“Do not run on the bus. Go to your seat, sit down, keep your feet out of the aisle, keep your hands to yourself, and no eating or drinking. And have fun.”

Tom runs a tight ship, and the kids love it.

His morning route runs like the meeting agenda you plan for but never achieve. Start time: 6:30am. Pre-trip checks. Then seven stops ending at Jackson Via. Then it’s off to pick up the middle schoolers to take them to Walker. And then Tom works his way back across town to pick up the half dozen high school students with special needs who ride the bus every morning.

He leads the driver training in the middle of the day. (They’re aiming for each driver to be trained to drive each type of bus, including the new electric ones.) And then things pick back up for the afternoon drop offs.

“I’d rather do this than sit around and wait for the rocking chair thing,” Tom said.

All in all, the morning route is about 25 miles, and Tom explained that only uses about an eighth of the bus’ battery. It “fuels up” in the middle of the day, although it could really go days without needing to.

I’m happy to report that whoever designed the electric school models kept all the school bus nostalgia vibes. When I climbed aboard to take a look, everything was the same except for the charger dial on the dash:

When I had emailed the city and climate folks to set up a time to chat about the buses, I’d set my expectations low about actually getting to go for a ride. But I figured I might as well ask since we were already on board. And heck, Tom was down.

So we grabbed the key and Tom turned the engine and I waited for the bus to start but didn’t hear anything. Classic EV trick. We were already running. It’s just that quiet.

As we cruised down Avon and through Belmont, we chatted about some of the other benefits. And I mean we literally chatted, like, cocktail party-decibel chatter. The AC unit was the loudest thing on board.

I don’t want to sound too much like an electric school bus zealot, so I’ll give you a downer stat before the good ones: They’re still expensive enough that the lifetime maintenance and fuel savings don’t yet outweigh the upfront cost. (When these become less expensive with better tech and more economies of scale, my one negative stat will wither.)

And now a quick recitation of the positives:

Ah, and the real kicker: Parents and caregivers are happier because their kids are safer and healthier.

A wild fact is that the transportation sector is the largest source of pollution in the US right now (nearly 30% of all emissions). When I drove home from the ride-along, I got stuck behind two massive dump trucks and that stat really made sense. I could literally see the polluting fumes coming out of the truck like a bad burp.

I rolled up my window.

Big trucks and buses are some of the most direct sensory experiences we have with pollution on a daily basis. We can smell and feel the hot fumes as we stand on the curb, we can hear the roar of the engines and feel the ground shake as they go by, and when we get stuck behind one of these diesel leviathans, we get frustrated and make wildly inappropriate driving decisions to pass them.

Electric school buses have helped me visualize on a local level what a better future looks (and sounds and smells) like. And how great is it that many of the kids in our community are getting to experience this every day? My hope is that after a few more trips on these magic school buses, the students will have cracked the code on getting us closer to that better, cleaner, healthier future.

But I guess that’ll have to come after summer break.

This is an ongoing adventure, and if you’re invested in helping Cville get more of these electric school buses, I highly recommend reaching out to Tray Biasiolli on the city’s climate team ([email protected]). He spearheaded this whole operation and we owe him, and the whole rest of the team and CAT crew, a big thank you. And to Tom of course as well.

As for national actions, the Moms Clean Air Force organization (not just for moms!) has a suite of educational tools, as well as actions you can take and experts you can lean on. Generation180 (headquartered here in Cville) is another great resource to use for getting electric school buses up and running wherever you call home (although you should probably move to Charlottesville if you haven’t).

And if you’ve found other great resources or want to share your experience, just reply to this email and we can chat! Or use this nifty link.

Speaking of peace and quiet: Last weekend’s rain made for the perfect sound machine hike near Old Rag.

If you missed the news earlier this week, Hot Bones is merchin up with a limited release of ultra-soft pocket tees.

A few notes:

🌕 Walk of the week: Blue moons are called that because they’re the second full moon in a month (a rarity), and this weekend we’ve got one. Panorama Natural Burial out near Earlysville is hosting a free blue moon walk at dusk on Saturday.

🐛 Big bug day: This Saturday, you can also spend the day at a dragonfly symposium hosted by the Piedmont Discovery Center out at the Quarry Gardens in Schuyler and on the James River. And if you’re more of a frog person, PDC is also hosting a FrogWatch training session on Wednesday, June 3.

🏠 Historic house of the week: 1880s general store that’s been transformed into a fishing camp / mountain retreat with a huge side porch, renovated bathrooms and kitchen, and something I have not seen in many years, a black porcelain toilet (3 beds, 2 baths, $525k west of Lexington).

🏡 Cool rental of the week: Classic stone cottage with a massive built-in bookshelf in the living room, a balcony off the dining room, and a fully fenced-in yard (3 beds, 3.5 baths, $2,975/month off Rugby Road).

🎂 Big ole civic party: Help kick off the 50-year anniversary of the downtown mall this upcoming Wednesday, with walking tours, free ice cream, a lantern parade, and a special Fridays After Five. (Plus there are lantern-making workshops throughout the month.)

🤑 Nonprofiters, hold onto something while you read this: The Bezos Earth Fund is apparently doing the most birdbrained thing possible short of using cash as toilet paper. They’ve confirmed they’re not giving money away fast enough. Somehow, it’s hard to find places to donate that $10 billion earmarked for climate causes by 2030. Have they voted for Ziggy and Ember yet?

💼 Job of the week: Public Works Civil Engineer for the city, working on projects like bike lanes and trails systems, roadways, stormwater, and water systems ($70k - $88k).

💾 Remote job: Manager for Nature and Water at the media and events company Trellis Group ($75k - $120k with $10k bonus potential).

➕ Enjoy the sunshine this weekend, and don’t forget the Bike Month closing party is on Sunday starting at noon (with rides beforehand).

Have an event or rec you’d like to share? Hiring? Interested in advertising? Share any and all info here.