Behind The Name Skoolie Express

Growing up my family didn't have cable television so my available library of shows was somewhat limited. I honestly can't remember the exact circumstances where I stumbled upon Matt Groening's Futurama. It was probably one day when I was at a friends house enjoying the variety of TiVo at the time. I'm guessing he had recorded some episodes from when it would air on Adult Swim and from then on I was hooked.

For those who may not know, Futurama is a Simpsons-esque slice of life comedy featuring the antics of Phillip J. Fry, a delivery boy who is frozen and re-awakens in the year 3000. In the future Fry meets his best friend and side kick Bender, his love interest and moral compass Leela, and his long distance Nephew Professor Hubert Farnsworth who owns a delivery company called Planet Express. The show goes on to display the antics of the crew as they embark on delivery missions, it ranges from scientific humor, to social commentary and everything in between.

Something about Futurama really spoke to me, it had it's share of topical humor but underneath that were layers of humor beyond the obvious. The science behind some of the jokes really would add up and it was this smart humor which really made the show for me. The sci-fi setting also was a hit for me having grown up with Star Wars and dreaming of flying so that just really sold me on the show. I picked up the box set for the first and second seasons and dove in. Yes this was in the days before Netflix and other streaming services where we had to go out and buy the physical versions of the media we want to consume.

To this day, Futurama is almost certainly my most watched show. I still own the four original seasons on DVD and have access to everything else through various streaming services. If an episode comes on, it only takes me a brief moment to identify which episode it is and where in the series it takes place. Futurama became a comfort show to me, I would watch it during tough times when I really needed a laugh and to fall back on something familiar.

So how does that tie in to the bus? Well, the Skoolie Express moniker pays homage to the Planet Express delivery company and it's ship, Planet Express ship. Although talking with Robin today she has also decided to refer to the bus as Lela in homage to the pilot of the ship from the show. Once we have most of the projects done and finally get to the vanity portion we intend to paint the outside in a similar color scheme to the Planet Express ship as a constant reminder of a show both Robin and I fell in love with.