25 Things to Miss About Waco, Texas

It's the end of an era. Last week I finished my jar of Avalon Organics Vitamin C face cream. Despite the price tag, I live/swear by this stuff. It's so smooth and creamy and leaves your skin smelling like oranges. I recommend it to anyone who can find a jar. Just one problem, I have not seen this product anywhere outside of Texas. Before I left Waco, I did a mad raid of the grocery store for any products like my Avalon Organics, stock piling as much as I could. Now that I'm on my reserve jar, I watch the amount dwindle every morning and can't help but think about all the things there is to miss about ex-hometown.

25. HEB-One word, MAGIC! A few days ago, I started a sentence with "I found this-- at HEB..." and was quickly teased, "uh, this is Mississippi, Lindsay. We don't know what that is." It's a shame, too. I think the rest of the country is missing out. Where else can you find bacon flavored Mayonnaise? Among other notable items I added to my cabinets over the years- dried okra, Synergy Kumbacha, Central Market Green Chile Tortilla chips (amazing with half an avocado), Seasonello Bolonaise Seasoning (straight from Italy),and Lobster stuffed Salmon pinwheels. Really, it's amazing I didn't gain 45 pounds during my college years (See number 20). I have hope, however, because a coworker currently living in Starkville told me one day that she makes trips to Tuscaloosa just to go to their Target. Here's Hoping.

24. Grackles- Every fall Waco, Texas (and several other cities in Central Texas, I must add) becomes an Alfred Hitchcock movie. The Grackles invade on their migration south and for months every ledge of every building, power lines, bridge, billboard, and any other surface has a solid row of black birds, chirping away. Be careful, for you'll learn the hard way that if you park under the tree in the HEB parking lot, your black CR-V will become a black and white Polk-a-dot CR-V. We wouldn't want that, now, will we?

23.The Green Dome of the Pat Neff Tower- Anytime any affiliate from Baylor wins anything, that dome is lit green. It's really quite convenient if you went to the movies with your friends and forgot to check the score of the Women's Basket Ball Game.

22.Shopping- speaking of shopping: 2 bookstores, Ann Taylor Loft, Old Navy, Kohls, Dillards, Sports Academy, (*ahem, HEB), Nine West... need I say more. All you Vicksburg Folks know. Ain't no driving an hour to get to Madison.

21. Austin/ Houston/ College Station- OK, so maybe there is driving an hour to do something. But really, what's a few hours when you're going to see Les Miserables in Houston? Or going to the chic little vintage store in Austin. Gone With the Wind on the Big screen anyone? I never complained.

20. The Bear Trail- The 2.45 mile trail that looped around the outside of campus not only kept me fit but, most importantly, kept me mentally sane. I walked it nearly everyday, if only to enjoy the breeze and the sunset.

19. All University Sing- Speaking of being fit. Practicing a 7 minute high intensity Broadway style act 14 hours a week will do the job in a pinch. But nothing compares to Parking Garage practices, Waco Hall performances, and standing in the freezing cold for hours waiting on score results. If you do it right like I did, you get initiated with bronchitis and a double ear infection the first week of performances.

18. Always having a place to go on a Friday night- Most of you are at least nominally aware of my friends, often referred together as "the girls" and separately as Kimberly, Jennifer, Rachel, and Valori. I often made the 2 minute walk between our apartments on a Friday night to do nothing more than hand on the couch and solve Sporkle Quizzes.

17. Birthday Cake Ice cream- A novelty outside of Texas, Bluebell's Birthday Cake Ice Cream is seriously the best thing in the world. It's presence in the Memorial Cafeteria Fridge always guaranteed that I would be having dessert that night.

16.Bluebonnets- I'll miss my annual picture in the bluebonnets so much, I named my new car Bluebonnet in honor of the official state flower of Texas.

15. Sic'Em Bears- There's nothing like doing a Sic'em Bears with thousands of fellow Baylor fans at homecoming, football games, basket ball, or just because someone thought it was a good idea at the time.

14. The things my parent's love to do- I have to confess I asked for their help in compiling the list. Here's how it went.

Mom: "Oh, oh, oh! Pei Wei!"
Dad: "Health Caaaamp"
Mom: "Chipotle!"
Dad: "Teryaki Joes"
Both: "Duble- R!"
(notice a trend in this line of thought?)

13. Taco Cabana- Every Sunday night= a regular Steak Quesadilla with a regular Coke (no, Dr. Pepper!)

12. Homecoming- Bond Fires, Parades, Football Games... Pigskin?! What more could a girl ask for from life?

11.Carol Science Building- My favorite, Favorite Building on Campus. In true Baylor Fashion, the Carol Science building does not house the Science department but the English department and I'm fairly certain that is why I was a Creative Writing Minor. The building was built in 1910 and there is a huge wooden staircase that lifts straight through the center of the building. I always imagined Gilbert Blythe racing through the halls with his medical school buddies going from class to class. To bad the building isn't on Prince Edward Island.

10. My Real Housewives/ How I Met Your Mother buddy- Really, dissecting how Kim Richards' behavior may or may not be a result of alcoholism (The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills) is no fun when your the only person watching (*ahem- Amanda-*ahem). Also, one word: Cockamouse.

9. Dia-Del-Oso- Really, what other school gives students an entirely made up holiday off of school? Then you just get all confused because the mail still runs and everyone else you know has to go to school that day.

8. Tex-Mex- That's right folks, the good ol' El Sombrero just isn't cutting it anymore. (I may make a concession for a cup of charro beans from Cilantro's.) While I am mournfully not a mega fan of the Austinesque restaurant, Chuy's, I find my true love in Ninfa's Spinach Enchiladas. Oh man, so tasty.

7. Floyd Casey Stadium- Booking it across the field while being chased by 400 other screaming freshman in an attempt to cheer the football team onto the field and touch RG III.

6. Common Grounds- Cowboy Coffee or a Hotel California, it never matter which drink I ordered, Common Grounds always perked up a rough day.

5. Gut Packs- Yes, Gut Packs do deserve their own number. If you've never been to Waco, you need to go, even if all you do is go to Vitek's and order a Gut Pack. (Extra credit points are awarded for a visit on game day). Here's how it goes: fritos, baked beans, pulled pork, original sausage, cheese, onion, and pickle. Oh geez, now my mouth is watering.

4. Christmas on 5th street- I loved getting bundled up to go see the Christmas Tree lighting in the Quad, and then standing in line with hot chocolate while waiting for a carriage rides. Also, there are camels.

3. Collins Dining Hall- flying saucers, blueberry pancakes, and the best salad bar on campus. It was a must at least once a semester even after the meal plans disappeared.

2. Kolaches- I mentioned kolaches the other day and got very strange looks. For all you non-central Texas folks, let me explain. Kolache (Cech origin) is a name for two different kinds of pastries. The first and original pastry is a sweet bread that had a dollop of fresh fruit, jam, or spread in the center. (Think flavors like blueberries and cream, apricot, pumpkin pecan.) Moving away from the original meaning, the term "kolache" is also used to describe something like sausage in a blanket. It's popular, in Central Texas because of the high number of Cech Immigrants to the area.

1. The Bells of Pat Neff- where else can you walk home from your 6:00 Orchestra class and hear the bells play "Amazing Grace" or be reminded its Veterans Day because you hear "God Bless America."

So there you have it. My list of 25 things to miss about Waco.

And just for good measure: A picture of a Kolache, because you know you want one.

Where I Hang my Hat: Vol I

I have news. Big news.

Ok, so maybe not quite so big to anyone else, but for me, we're talking mucho macho grande. I officially have an apartment complete with a number and an address!!!

How many of you out there have already had your first place? How well do you remember it? Do you recall the feeling of "I'm so grown up now!" True, I've been living on my own for four years now, but the first two of those years were in a dorm room= does not count. The last two of those years I had an apartment... and a roommate (consequently, the same roommate I had the first two years). I'll always remember the Jamestown apartment, in all its glory: The constantly dripping facet in the kitchen, the roommate upstairs that played the bongos to all hours of the morning, the way the bedroom door always shut when the A.C. turned on. Oh, and I mustn't forget all of our neighbors: Shirtless Guy, Party Animal, Cat Lady, Girl with the Pink Bedroom, Kick-Butt chick, Asian Boy, and Girl- With-A-Thousand-Dogs. I have great stories to tell. Like the time Girl-With-A-Thousand-Dogs' Chihuahua ran into our apartment as Amanda was going to class one morning, only to hide under our dining room table and pee on the floor anytime anyone touched it. Or like the time it snowed and our across-the-courtyard neighbor (Shirtless Guy) decided to chill all his beverages in the yard.

It hasn't really sunk in that this new apartment, however, will be the place that I live- "My First Place" in fact. I think its still an ephemeral idea floating around. Furniture is being collected/bought. I know where its all suppose to go, like giant crossword puzzle that needs to be figured out. I've collected trinkets and books, and even have a set of the cutest dishes you've probably ever seen. But it has still yet to become the solid reality of four walls, a floor, ceiling, plumbing, and electricity. This weekend, however, it has become a little more solid.


First, I would like to introduce you to my parent's new favorite child...

Didn't know they had gotten a dog? That's because they didn't. This is our neighbor's dog. We think they might have named him "Wally," but we're not sure so we just call him "Doh deeDoh."
He hangs out at our house quite a bit. Mom and Dad seem to enjoyh is company but I think that's just because he's more of a surrogate "GrandDog." They can play with him all day but when it comes feeding time he's high tailing it back over to his house.

Now you have to know my parent's in order to know that they are big DIY people, and they're really quite good at it. Over the years I've watched them do all sorts of Home Improvement projects: play house building, hardwood floor installation, uninstalling and reinstalling old/new kitchen cabinets. I sort of think that they live with the motto "why pay someone to do it when you can enjoy the adventure of doing it yourself?"Of course, the adventure only last so long when you find yourself on your hands and knees on the bathroom floor at 2 in the morning trying to re-grout the tile.

Anyway, I'm now in possession of some beautiful odd-n-end furniture thanks in part to Uncle R and Aunt J and the First Monday Flea Market, Canton Texas. I wouldn't think it unfair to say that many post college girls trying to furnish their first apartment might not like the idea that the pieces don't match, but they don't have their mom's standing between them and the new furniture with her hands up saying, "don't form an opinion until we're done." I say, "Have at it guys."
Saturday they primed...

Sunday they Painted...



And by Monday I have the most adorable set of matching furniture...

(End Table, Coffee Table, and TV stand- and behind that you see a bookcase, part of my day bed for the guest room, the spools soon to become tables for my balcony, office chair, and bar stool)
The most adorable part of the entire set, I think are the glass knobs.

Even if my apartment has yet to become real to me, my garage it serving a reminder that something different is about to happen.

"If Left Alone"

Change: to make the form, nature, content, future course, etc. of something different from what it is or from what it would be if left alone.

This blog is supposed to be about change. Changes in life, location, environment, responsibilities, self identity. It is the change from a child to an adult. Change from a student to an individual whose actual job is to go to school. The change of moving to a new place and trying to start a new life. I like this definition of change. To make something different from what it would be if left alone. Noticed how I haven't written a post since May 15?

Aside from a four hour ceremony at the end of the school year, change hasn't really happened. I moved home, put my stuff away, and started the same job that I've carried for the past 4 years. (Alright, its a slightly altered version of the same job. More on that to come later.) Seeming as I'm afraid I'll lose all my readers if I wait for something terribly exciting to happen in my life (still months away) I though I'd take a moment to reflect not on the changes in my life, but their absence.

When I was younger, I thought routine and commonplace would be my enemy in life. How horrible it would be, I thought, to be 30 and expected to settle down, stay in one place, have kids, go to soccer practice and worry about groceries, gas, and dinner. It would be as though all the excitement of life ended. All the firsts: kiss, car, apartment, job, promotion- just coasting to the end. (Rarely in my younger days did I pause to consider that the commonplace and everyday happen to you when you are prepared to meet it with open arms. Your goals and desires do, in fact, change through the years.)

I lived for the day I graduated high school, always knowing I wouldn't go to college in Mississippi. Please don't misinterpret my meaning. I was and am not one of those kids who grew up hating her hometown. Indeed, I love where I'm from, and love it all the more as I watch myself interact with other societies.

I blame my parents entirely.

It's kind of like how I blame my dad for introducing me to the love of my life, Mr. History, when he could just have easily introduced me to Mr. Neuro Science or Dr. Corporate Law, but that's a different story for a different day.

At the time I graduated high school my parents and I had visited 45 states and 5 foreign countries. Come August the count goes up to 49 states and 16 countries.

Lesson: There are billions of people living billions of different lives all over the globe. I think its always been a part of my life's goal to live as many little lives in my one big life as possible.

Anyway, back to absence of change. I no longer think routine in the great enemy of life. I think its Comfort. Not the comfort that makes each day a pleasant sigh of breath, though. I mean the Comfort that prevents what you should and would do if it were absent, the " if left alone." It's this Comfort of growing up in a small town where you know everyone that prevents you from taking the opportunity to travel or go to school somewhere new. The Comfort of school prevents you from getting a job, or the Comfort of a job prevents you from going back to school. The Comfort of a relationship that prevents you from doing anything in the singular form. I do alot of battle with Comfort in the summertime.

I like my job. It gives me the Comfort of independence and money. It gives me the Comfort of childhood memories and an intriguing status among the public. I adore the Comfort of wearing my uniform. Most dangerous though, is that my job crosses over with my "Mr. History" just enough to lull me in a false sense of security. The Comfort allows me to think I can do this for the rest of my life, and I could. But at the end of the day this is not what I burn to do. Park Ranger Lindsay is not who I yearn to be (right now at least). So imagine the frustration. I'm in daily battle with my old enemy Comfort, while waiting with open arms form my knight and shining armor Change to whisk me away from it all. Unfortunately, Change is still too far away to save me yet.

It appears I'm all dressed up with no where to go.

Day Tripper

What’s the best thing to do when you have some free time? TRAVEL! I purposefully decided not to go home between my last final and graduation for the specific purpose of absorbing every last moment I could spend with my friends. We’re unfortunately living on borrowed time. Baylor is coming to an end.

Since three of the five of us were non-Texans, and therefore not privy to a year of Texas history/ hours of Texas pride being drilled into the marrow of our being there was one important part of Central Texas we hadn’t experienced yet: The Alamo.

Actually, it was all of San Antonio that Kimberly, Rachel, and I hadn’t seen, so we took off last Tuesday and headed to that part of the state- straight down I-35. We spent the entire afternoon walking around the Riverwalk, eating TexMex, and taking a River Cruise. And, after a quick history lesson compliments of Wikipedia, the three non-Texans were ready for The Alamo the next morning.

There were a couple of things left to do once we returned to Waco. One was a trip I’d been waiting to take a long time. What’s the first thing you think of when you hear “Waco, Texas?” The Waco Mammoth Site? Sorry try again. Jeff Dunham (apparently a fellow Baylor student, along with Willie Nelson. No one is sure if either of them actually have degrees from here, though). Incorrect as well. What about David Koresh and the Branch Davidians? Ding, Ding! I’ve spent four years wondering where Mount Caramel was and Thursday we finally completed our expedition. This was as close as we got….

Each tree behind the chapel is planted for someone who died in the fire. There are supposedly nameplates at the base of them. Also on the property there are (so I’ve read) remains of parts of the compound, the ruins of a pool liner, and the old school bus. This was as far as we were willing to go so I can neither confirm nor deny the existence of these items.

Trivia: did you know that the Branch Davidians still exist today. Not only do they still own the Mt. Caramel property (and use the chapel to worship every so often) they have a church in downtown Waco somewhere on North 17^th Street.

After such a harrowing visit we drove out to West, Texas to indulge ourselves in kolaches from the Czech stop bakery. I feel now that I have seen all there is to see of East Texas. It’s time to see something else. Bring it, Alabama.

Post Final Recooperation

My last final was on Friday. It started at 4:30 and I was walking away as free as a bird an hour later. For three months at least, I'm not a student: no assignments, no reports, nothing I have to read. Freedom. I totally lived the dream on Saturday, an afternoon spent on the couch reading and doing nothing else (except for the occasional nap).

My friends and I have a biannual tradition. Each semester, we take a dead day (or in this case a free day after dead week) and head to Practically Pikasso, a paint your own pottery place. This being our last Pikasso visit, there seemed to be a theme to our pieces.


We choose our pieces...



and plotted our designs.



( Some of us plotted more than others)




Then we got to work... ( note Valori's tendency toward radical rebellion as she decided to paint a flower pot.)



Kimberly splattered cutely,



I painted letters intently,

Valori posed cheerfully,



And Rachel wrote thoughtfully.

End the end we had a beautiful conglomerate of wonderful masterpieces:

Valori's "Friends flower pot"

My "Baylor Bears" frame

Jennifer's cool stripey frame.

Kimberly's splatter work.

Rachel's signature work.

Royal Weddings, Last day of class, and Formal Announcements.

Twenty years from now, I'm going to be able to tell the story of my last day of classes at Baylor and how that day was marked by Prince William and Kate Middleton's marriage. It'll be a good story. Since my only class was canceled, I was perfectly alright with staying up until 12:30 in the morning and then setting my alarm for 3:30. Let the party begin!!! That's when Kimberly, Valori, and Jennifer showed up. Amanda even woke up and we had coffee and cinnamon rolls and strawberries while we watched the BBCA (totally legit coverage guys, totally legit). We hung out until the kiss at 8:00 when the girls left and Amanda and I went back to bed. I slept 'til 12:00. Why? Because I can. I don't have to be anywhere or do anything until next Friday when I have my last finals.

Aside from Kate and Wills' exciting news I have a formal announcement of my own, well most of you will know already, but I'm going to tell you anyway....

I'm heading to the University of Alabama in August to study history. Yay! Also, I filled an application for an apartment last weekend and am signing the lease tomorrow. Double Yay!! More news on this and my thoughts later. For now, I'm going to head back to the royal wedding coverage. Cheers!

Scholarships, Fellowships, and Assistantships- oh my!

Amidst the haze of confusion that was applying to graduate school, gaining acceptances, and trying to figure out what to do with all of them, I determined that I really, really wanted to write a post about money. It's perhaps the most important factor in judging whether or not to accept an offer of admission, yet it was the one I had the most questions about. So here's what I learned, maybe it'll help you sometime in the future.

1. Never EVER accept admission without financial assistants. This is my first rule of life. It stands particularly true if you're going into the humanities (i.e. English, History, Philosophy, etc.) because the last thing you want is to a.) not finished your degree or b.) not be able to find a job in the field you're going to school for and be stuck with the loans. A department's offer of financial assistance is often related to their confidence in your abilities. You are a gifted and talented student: don't underestimate yourself, and don't let others do it for you.

2. Schools will always fund Ph.D.s before Masters programs, so you have to look extra hard for funded Masters, especially with the economy the way it is now.

3. You remember that children's song about God answering prayers? "He might say yes, He might say no, He might say wait?" It's the same things with graduate schools. I've heard all three through this process. I've gotten notices of rejection because certain programs couldn't fund me. I've gotten acceptances to schools who admit "while we can't fund you now, we might be able to in the future." And, most importantly, I've gotten schools that say, "please, come! We'll pay you to do it!

4. Financial assistance is usually talked about in packages. One of my offers that came through had three components. 1) tuition waiver- yes please take my tuition away, especially since it'll be out of state 2) stipend- think of this as annual income. It can range anywhere from a couple of thousand to 25K+. 3) health insurance. This is more helpful for older graduate students trying to support a family.

5. There is a variety of things you may have to do for this money. No, I'm not talking about that. One of my offers is a fellowship, i.e. I don't have to do anything for this money. It's kind of like a scholarship, only that's not what its called. Not sure why, but that's not the important part. The important part is that later when you're trying to compile a C.V. make sure you include the fellowships, it's a rather prestigious vote of the department's confidence in you. Other offers include teacher assistantships, which range from anything between grading papers to teaching classes. Also there are research assistantships, which I believe are more common in the sciences, therefore I have a small working knowledge on this.

Ok, so there you have it, a five point crash course on understanding graduate school funding. Of course, there is a lot more to it than what I've written here, but these are the basics. It's a really interesting topic if you really think about it, and if you happen to have more questions, I may be able to find you and answer.