Break is over.

What a way to end the year! The Aggies took care of the Wolfpack very nicely in the Gator Bowl. And we were rewarded with Spice Cookies, Cheese Stix

and Moravian Sugar Coffee Cake from Dewey’s in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Delicious!

Thank you, Lee!

And no better way to start the New Year than with great friends at Carney’s Book Club. 

College Station version of Tipsy Tuesday

 During the holidays we heard our girls were visiting their Waco relatives, so we wandered up that way to have lunch with them.

In spite of the rain we were able to get some walking in, including a walk over to the new Zachry Engineering Building on the campus of Texas A&M.

Atrium

Sculpture

Captain spent many hours in the old Zachary Building. As one of his former classmates stated, “That building was brand spanking new when we were sophomores, now it is old enough to need a complete rebuild. What does that say about us?”  Captain is quite impressed with the sleek design of the new building including the learning studios (previously known as classrooms.)

We have had our Texas fix including brisket, ribs, Mom’s sweet rolls, hamburgers at Top of the Hill,

many games of pinochle and dominos and a new pair of boots.

Break is over and we are headed west. Next stop, Menard, Texas.

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Gems in Aggieland

You know how it is; you live in a town but don’t see its gems. Let a new person arrive and you discover some surprises. That has been the case as ABN explores College Station on foot.

More than one local mentioned they didn't  realize it is a very walk-able and bicycle friendly city. With the large number of students who choose cycling over driving, bike parking lots like this one can be found throughout the A&M campus.

Of course, not everyone uses a bike parking lot.

Some locals don't know about the multi-use path around the perimeter of the campus.

A&M golf course with Kyle Field in the background from the multi-use trail

Did you (the locals) know you can walk to the campus from almost anywhere in the city entirely on a sidewalk? This delights ABN as she doesn't like to drive (bet you didn't know that, did you.) She took advantage of the sidewalks to stroll over to the MSC (Memorial Student Center) to visit the art galleries. A Rodin exhibit is featured in the J Wayne Stark Gallery.

Unlike the Rodin Museum in Paris where one sees famous sculptures like The Thinker, The Kiss and Gates of Hell, this exhibit is mostly busts of historical folks 

in which multiple originals were made from the sculptor’s first conception in plaster or clay.

Upstairs in the Forsythe Gallery, is a nice exhibit of works by founding members of the influential Taos Society of Artists.

If you do wander over to the MSC, remember to take your hat off before entering.

(No worries if you forget, no doubt an Aggie will tap you on the shoulder and remind you.)

The true gems of College Station are the A&M students who are very much a part of the community.

And this is how the green-ways are kept immaculate.

So what did Captain do while ABN was out exploring?

Repaired a gate,

washed windows,

grilled

and met up with friends for donuts or beer. Main topic of conversation? The Aggies' chances against the powerful Crimson Tide.

Leaving Faculty Club on Thursday evening, we happened upon Aggie Yell Practice.

So, what about the game? (Alabama 33, Texas A&M)14) Can we just move on? 

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Howdy

from College Station, Texas. More precisely from Rudder Tower on the Texas A&M campus,

where we meet with friends at “Faculty Club” on Thursday evening. (I have photos of some of our friends, but neglected to ask permission to post on the internet.)

Settled into what has become our fall routine, ABN is taking advantage of the miles of biking/walking trails and extensive amounts of sidewalks to explore the town.

One of the treasures found while walking.

Texas A&M has very limited student accommodations on campus leaving most of the 60,000 plus students living in houses and apartments. The students are very much a part of the community. We continue to be impressed with the friendliness and respect shown by the students, whether on campus or around town. Earlier this week, ABN got caught in a rain shower on one of her walks around town. A female college student pulled up in a car and offered her a ride.

With so many students commuting by bicycle, College Station is very bicycle friendly with bike lanes as well as the bike paths.

On Thursday sister-in-law, Anna, and ABN left the “boys” with their mother and took a day trip to Galveston.

Lunch at Willie G's on Pier 21

Anna on

the "Duck," a land and water sightseeing tour.

After a hardfought game against Tennessee last week, the Aggies are off this weekend. Speaking of last week’s game (and you knew we would), this is the street in front of mom’s house, which is about a mile from campus, on game day.

And what a game! 5 ½ hours we sat at Kyle Field! From the fly-over, piloted by an Aggie and a Volunteer,

through the half-time

to the final score.

What about the game? Well if you haven’t seen the recaps, then you are not a college football fan. The Volunteers gave the Aggies all they could handle. In spite of the passion, we witnessed southern hospitality and respect from fans of both teams.

“Walking back to the parking garage, we have to cut through the Quad. Lots of chatter and whooping all around until all of a sudden there was complete silence. Our [US] flag was being lowered. Everyone stopped and stood respectfully until it was done. Only then did the chatter and whooping resume.”(This was copied from sister-in-law’s Facebook page, but was witnessed by us.) Makes one proud to be an Aggie and Aggie spouse.

Today we are glued to the TV, pulling for Tennessee to upset Alabama. Go Vols!