Back Up Units

I will never, ever be able to look at a back up rig the same way ever again.  I'm lucky enough to work out of the same squad most of the time, and when it goes in for service we usually get it back a few hours later.  Sometimes another ambulance covers our district, sometimes they just have us at the shop ready to respond in an extra car if everyone in the city suddenly calls 911.

When something more than routine maintenance comes up, we always get a back up bus.  It looks great and runs okay, but it's gettin' a little ragged around the edges.  It's definitely not my favorite squad to run in.  It kinda smells like a cross between grandma's house and a locker room.

Check out these ambulances, though:

 

I guess I could do way worse back up wise than a 6 year old car with 150,000 miles on it.  I know folks at other departments and agencies that are in 10 year old rigs that have more than 300,000 miles on them, but even they are riding in luxury compared to this.

I guess the moral is be thankful for what you have...