Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 10, 1984)
Monday, December 10, 1984AThe Battalion/Page 3 r? !sn’tni ti; s to m Kettle — not just food to students can win apart!®: 1 either: favorj ide ofrlj teopp® writer tl ig mg apanj I fork ongeri:| m." :y have. By MIKE DAVIS Reporter On any weeknight — and espe- dally during finals week — it is not uncommon to find Texas A&M students crowding a local restaurant, feeding their minds as well as their stomachs. Patrons who enter the Kettle restaurant on University Drive looking for a nice, quiet meal may be surprised at the number of ta bles covered with text books, term papers and coffee cups. “Iff go to the library, it’s either so quiet the silence is ringing my ears, or there’s a' bunch of people up there having a social life,” says Guy McCord, a senior business analysis major from Plano. With so many students eating, studying and socializing at the Kettle, McCord says the noise may bother other people, but it doesn’t bother him. “I always go off in a corner,” he says. “I never have any problem unless somebody is yelling and screaming.” Lana Poynor, a junior political science major from Fort Worth, says she also has problems with the library so she goes to the Kettle to study. “In the library the lights are so bright, 1 feel like I’m in an insti tute or something,” Poynor says. Poyner, who usually doesn’t go until after midnight, says she studies at the Kettle not only to break the monotony of studying, but also to drink coffee. “I come just to drink coffee, so I’ll stay up,” she says. Deena Elliot, a junior agricul tural journalism and theater arts major from Beasley, is also a late- nighter. “It’s my first year to be a dou ble major,” she says, “and I keep weird hours now. I need to stay awake by drinking coffee. I have to pull all-nighters so much now, and I don’t want to bother my roommate.” Sometimes McCord studies early in the morning. “A lot of times I get up at 4:30 a.m. and come in here early be cause it’s real quiet,” he says. “It’s not noisy, the music is not blaring and it’s not crowded at all. My mind is fresher. I don’t know why other people don’t do it.” Tim Lyons, the Kettle’s assis tant manager, says the manage ment doesn’t mind when students come and study. Lyons says the only problem occurs during the bar rush ; — between midnight and 1 a.m. when the local bars close. “If we get a big crowd, and we need the tables, and they’ve (the studiers) have been in here a long time, then we’ll probably ask them to leave,” he says. Lyons says once the rush is over, the studiers are allowed to return for as long as they wish. Though he would like every one to order food, Lyons says he doesn’t mind if the students don’t eat while they study. “Sometimes you just don’t have time to look up from your books,” he says. Marsha Sprouse, who has been a waitress for the Kettle for 11 Stations get toys for needy children Photo by MIKE SANCHEZ Students study and eat at the Kettle restaurant. years, says she enjoys waiting on the students. “The students are always nice,” she says. “If it looks like it’s busy and we need a table, they’ll always volunteer to get up.” Sprouse says the restaurant usually has about 10 or 12 stud iers a weeknight. Many of them come in after midnight and stay half the night, she says. Kettle waitress enjoys catering to students By MIKE DAVIS Reporter Bobbin Kaissi loves her job. She’s a waitress. “If you’re not a waiter or a waitress, there’s something wrong with you,” Kaissi says. Kaissi, 25, works at the Kettle Restaurant on University Drive where many Texas A&M stu dents study. Though waitressing is some times hectic and fast-paced, Kaissi says the students maxe the hard ships of her job worthwhile. Employers sometimes consider her a rebel because she defends the rights of the students, she says. “They (the students) deserve a break from anybody who will give it to them,” she says. Kaissi says getting to know the students is the best part of work ing at the Kettle. Though she enjoys waitressing, Kaissi says once in a while she needs a break from the stress of the job and says a change of pace is the best remedy. For Kaissi, change means col lege, but she says she’ll probably return to waitressing and just work fewer hours. “I enjoy it (waitressing), but I don’t want to do it the rest of my life,” Kaissi says. “There’s no re tirement plan. If there were a re tirement plan I might consider it.” Kaissi, mother of two, says the flexible hours of waitressing allow her to spend more time with her children. However, waitressing has its pros and cons. “You are on stage all the time,” she says. “You always have to be in a good mood.” She eases her job by reading peoples’ body language, clothing and mannerisms. “The way they come across to you when you first ask them if they want anything or if they need anything else — that’ll tell you how they are,” she says. “If they want to be left alone they’ll just say, ‘coffee,’ and that’ll be it. Otherwise they’ll start a conversa tion with you.” By KEN DORSEY Reporter As the saying (sort of) goes, you better not pout, you better not cry and you better have given a toy to the toy drive. For the past three years, KORA and KTAM radio have distributed donated toys to needy children in the Brazos Valley area. Roy Gene, KTAM program direc tor who also is known as Santa Claus, said the drive ended at 10 a.m. Sun day after 100 broadcast hours from Post Oak Mall. The station has collected as many as four thousand toys during pre vious drives and workers think they easily collected at least this many during the past weekend. “Our goal this year was ten thou sand toys,” Gene said. However, one of the biggest prob lems the station has faced in the past has been that up to one-third of the toys donated to the station have been broken, dirty, or just not usable. Gene said these toys were up thrown away. “Fortunately,” he said, “it looks like there have been very few items donated this year we won’t be able to use. “There also is an extreme increase in the number of new toys.” KTAM will sort out and distribute the donated toys from the old Bryan Eagle newspaper building. Gene, said. “We have tried in previous years to deliver the toys ourselves,” he said. “We don’t have the manpower to do that this year. “We’re asking people to come to the Eagle building to pick up their toys.” Some of the toys, however, will still be distributed by Santa’s helpers. The Bryan Police Department asked KTAM to donate toys to their Christmas program. They plan to have one of their officers dressed as Santa. He will go out and deliver gifts those needing them. The Bryan-College Station Jay- cees also have asked for toys for their Boy’s Club Christmas party in north Bryan. Midas Muffler also will give toys to about 100 children in the area. In addition to these helpers, the station has gathered information from various organizations and churches on a computerized disc which lists the names of those who are in need of some of the donated gifts. Faculty workshops offered to enrich college teaching By LINDA SCARMARDO Reporter The Texas A&M University Cen ter for Teaching Excellence will con duct two workshops in January for faculty and teaching assistants. “The purpose of the workshops is to enhance college teaching,” said Dr. Libby Gardener, assistant coor dinator for the center. Topics for the faculty member workshop are motivating and eval uating students. Evaluating students will include problem-solving, essay, true/false, matching, multiple choice and completion. Dr. Glenn Ross Johnson, coordinator of the center, will give the workshop which will be in 100 Harrington. Gardener will give a teaching as sistant workshop Jan. 11 in 108 Har rington. The topics are motivation, classroom control and evaluating students. Gardener said both workshops will be from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and will include a discussion period, al lowing participants to discuss prob lems and successes. Gardener said similar workshops are held every January and August. Those wishing to attend one of the workshops should enroll by Jan. 9. They can do so by calling the sec retary at the center. Participants do not have to pay for the workshops. “jEhe expenses will be absorbed by the center,” Gardener said. How to create good advertising The fact is, good ideas don’t care who have them. What good ideas do care about is who recognizes them. Your chance for recognition is the National College Newspaper Cre ative Advertising Competition. First prize — $2,500 cash scholarship. For participation kit, contact this college newspaper office; or call toll-free (800) 255-0803. There are no entry fees. Sponsored by: Ooi CMA College Media Advisers THIS COLLEGE NEWSPAPER