hursday • August 7, 1997
The Battalion
behind the Shadows of
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3-2-1 Blast off!
Northgate store brings back childhood memories
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Photoc;raph: Rony Angkriwan
jdreon Henry, owner of The Factory, looks into a display case of stickers and vintage items at his store in Northgate.
it
The Factory, above Copasetic Cafe in Northgate, is one of
the few vintage clothing stores in the area
By Jenny Vrnak
The Battalion
Ihose looking for alternative
gear in Bryan-College Sta
tion may find a good place to
atulart at The Factory, a store in
lorthgate that features everything
om skateboards to clothing.
Owned and managed by
idreon Henry, a sophmore mar-
ntfefeting major at Blinn College,
fie Factory provides a unique
scifireak from the usual monotony
eftiffstores in town.
Henry said even though the
ihop features alternative clothes,
li' here is something for everyone.
©1 '% sell so much different
Pj M/'-' Henry said. “We’ve got T-
^ 'hills; shoes, jeans, skating
One day, I saw
this space was for
rent. So I borrowed
$1,000 from my
grandfather and
opened the store.”
Adreon Henry
Owner of The Factory
videos, incense, stickers — just
about everything.”
The Factory features brands
such as Fresh Jive, Pound, 37
and Planet Earth. Henry said
among the most popular
brands are World Industries
and Scapegoat, which was cre
ated by the store.
“Scapegoat is really popular
around here,” Henrysaid. “It’s prob
ably a tie between the two brands.”
Henry, who grew up in Bryan,
got the idea for the store when
he was in high school. He made
his own shirts and sold them out
of his car and school locker.
“One day, I saw that this space
was for rent,” Henry said. “So I bor
rowed $1,000 from my grandfa
ther and opened the store.”
Please see Factory on Page 4.
By Rhonda Reinhart
The Battalion
T here is a generation of peo
ple who grew up watching
The Dukes of Hazzard,
playing Pac-Man and who saw
Star Wars at the movie theater
the first time it was released.
Those days are gone, but cer
tainly not forgotten.
Blast from the Past, a North-
gate store that buys, sells and
trades vintage toys and col
lectibles, offers a trip down mem
ory lane that is likely to stir nos
talgic feelings in people of almost
any age.
Susan Moses, who owns the
store with her husband Jim, said
they try to carry a variety of toys that
range from the 1930s to the 1990s.
“Our biggest items are Stars
Wars originals,” she said. “Most
people are looking for stuff from
the ’70s to the ’90s. It’s very ran
dom what people will want.”
“We have a little bit of every
thing,” Jim Moses said. “We have
little odds and ends people might
remember from years back.”
Blast from the Past carries every
thing from “The Bionic Woman”
board game to Garbage Pail Kids,
and these toys are not just child’s play
anymore. Many people take their toy
collections seriously.
Joe Stanaland, a senior wildlife
fishery science major, said toy col
lecting is like accomplishing a child
hood dream.
“I think every little boy had the
dream of being the first kid on the
block to have all the stuff,” he said.
“And when you get older and get a
little bit of money, you can go out
and get the stuff. Since they’ve
opened, I know I have spent $300 to
$400 on Star Wars purchases at Blast
from the Past.”
Susan Moses said while rekin
dling childhood memories spurs a
lot of people to start toy collections,
some hold on to their toys because
they think the items will be valuable
one day.
“I always tell people to collect
because you enjoy it, not because of
the value,” she said. “Not everything
goes up in price.”
Stanaland said toy collecting is
gaining popularity among college
students.
“A lot of people have a stereotype
of toy collectors as people with
taped-up glasses, but you would be
surprised at how many college stu
dents are collecting toys,” he said.
“It’s neat that everybody is collect
ing this stuff, but a lot of people are
collecting toys because they think
they will be worth something some
day, and it’s really hurting the col
lector’s market.”
Blast from the Past opened in
October 1996, and it is the only
store of its kind in Bryan-College
Station.
“We’re pretty much it,” Jim
Moses said. “There are other an
tique stores, but none that special
ize in vintage toys.”
Stanaland said he has had more
luck finding what he wants at
Blast from the Past than any
where else.
“If they don’t have
something, they’ll
put down your
name and what
you’re looking
for,” he said.
“And a large
percentage
of the time
they’ll find
someone
with what
you’re looking
for, and they’ll give it
to you at a fair
price. Their
stuff is never
marked up.
They always go
by a catalog price.
Susan Moses said the store is
mostly just a hobby, so she tries to
make prices fair.
“I like to have fun with it,” she
said. “1 like to make people happy,
and I like to see the glimmer in peo
ple’s eyes when they complete their
collections.”
Her husband agrees that toy col
lecting was a hobby that turned into
a business.
“Toy collecting has been growing
in recent years,” he said. “Toy col
lecting is fun. Some people collect
baseball cards, some collect auto
mobiles, and some collect toys. It’s
just a matter of what you enjoy.”
Graphic-. Brad Graeber
fruckin’ along: Aggies get behind the wheel and take it on the road
By Jenny Vrnak
The Battalion
r hose who have ever traveled outside of the state
lines of Texas might have noticed something—
there are not as many trucks on the roads.
Not only is Texas the No. 1 pick-up truck state in
merica, it is also the No. 1 pick-up truck state in
ie world. Texans, on the average, buy and drive
lore trucks than any other area on the planet.
O So, what makes trucks so important to Texans?
For many, trucks are just glorified horses — they
in haul large loads and they will get a person from
ere to there without any fuss or hassle. But, for oth-
^ ipeople, trucks are almost a part of the family,
hey are tended to and cared for, and sometimes
fen loved by their owners.
Jimmy Johnson, a sales representative for Fred
town Ford/Mercury, said Texans often like the
ystique a truck brings.
“People are starting to use trucks for more than
just work,” Johnson said. “Trucks are larger, they feel
safer and they’re big enough for work and family.”
The most popular brand of truck in Texas con
tinues to be Ford, although Chevrolets are not far
behind in sales. Of the 250,000 pick-up trucks that
were sold in Texas last year, almost 92,000 were
Fords and over 86,000 were Chevys. Dodge comes
in a distant third.
For those who love pick-ups, there is no shortage
of truck material available. Countless magazines,
such as Truckin’, are devoted to discussing trucks
and the latest trends, models and best deals. The In
ternet has hundreds of Web sites for devoted pick
up lovers. There are truck chat rooms, for those who
feel the need to talk to other truck fans.
There is even truck lingo. Words such as “dooley,”
“power stroke” or “conversion” have their own
meanings for pick-up owners. David Maxwell, a
sales representative for Tom Light Chevrolet, said
brand allegiance can be strong.
“We get people here who say, ‘My daddy drove a
Chevy, so that’s what I’m going to drive,”’ Maxwell said.
Once owners buy a particular brand, they rarely
switch to another. Johnson said most people will
usually stick with the same brands.
“People will pretty well drive the same brand,”
said Johnson. “They are accustomed to they feel of
one brand.”
Trucks are not just a man’s vehicle any more.
Truck companies are reporting a definite rise in the
number of women that are buying pick-ups. Lloyd
Sturgeon, a sales representative for Bossier Jeep/Ea
gle/Dodge, said there are a combination of reasons
for women to buy trucks now.
“Women now are more educated about trucks
and they are strong decision makers when it comes
to buying one,” Sturgeon said.
Please see Trucks on Page 4.
Photograph: Rony Angkriwan
Shawn Scott, a junior agricultural economics major,
drives a 1996 Ford FI 50.
AGGIE RING ORDERS
THE ASSOCIATION OF FORMER STUDENTS
CLAYTON W. WILLIAMS, JR. ALUMNI CENTER
DEADLINE: August 7, 1997
Undergraduate Student Requirements:
You must be a degree seeking student and have a total of 95 credit hours reflected on the
Texas A&M University Student Information Management System. (A passed course, which is
repeated and passed, cannot count as additional credit hours.)
!. 22 credit hours must have been completed in residence at Texas A&M University, providing that
prior to January 1, 1994, you were registered at Texas A&M University and successfully com
pleted a fail/spring semester or summer term (I and II or 10 weeks) as a full-time student in good
standing (as defined in the University catalog).
60 credit hours must have been completed in residence at Texas A&M University if your first
semester at Texas A&M University was January 1994 or thereafter, or if you do not qualify under
the successful semester requirement. Should your degree be conferred with less than 60 res
ident credits, this requirement will be waived after your degree is posted on the Student
Information Management System.
!■ You must have a 24) cumulative GPR at Texas A&M University.
i. You must be in good standing with the University, including no registration or transcript blocks
for past due fees, loans, parking tickets, returned checks, etc.
Graduate Student Requirements
If you are a August 1997 degree candidate and you do not have an Aggie ring from a prior
degree, you may place an order after you meet the following requirements:
• Your degree is conferred and posted on the Texas A&M University Student Information
Management System; and
I- You are in good standing with the University, including no registration or transcript blocks for
past due fees, loans, parking tickets, returned checks, etc.
you have completed ail of your degree requirements and can obtain a “Letter of Completion"
tom the Office of Graduate Studies, the original letter of completion, with the seal, may be
'resented to the Ring Office in lieu of your degree being posted.
Procedure To Order A Ring:
If you meet all of the above requirements, you must visit the Ring Office no later than
Thursday, August 7,1997 to complete the application for eligibility verification.
If your application is approved and you wish to receive your ring on October 2, 1997, you
must return and pay in full by cash, check, money order, or your personal Visa or
Mastercard (with your name imprinted) no later than Friday, August 8, 1997.
Men’s 10K-$301.00
14K-$409.00
Women’s 10K-$174.00
14K - $200.00
Add $8.00 for Class of ‘96 or before.
The ring delivery date is October 2, 1997.
improvisational comedy
Last show of the summer
We put the “fun” in
sum-fun-mer!
Saturday, August 9
10 p.m. Dixie Theatre (doors open at 8)
Tickets are $6 available in advance at Rother’s
Bookstores and Marooned Records.
http: //http. tamu. edu: 800 0/~f slip
PART-TIME POSITIONS
Universal Computer Systems, Inc. is looking for candidates for the following positions at
our College Station office. Operating hours of the facility are 6 a.m.-10 p.m., Monday
through Friday and 8 a.m.-IO p.m. Saturday. Candidates must be able to work at least
15 hours Monday-Friday & every other Saturday and have completed at least one
semester of college.
Parts Inventory - Responsible for maintaining inventory of more than 2000 parts that the facility
may handle at any one time.
Data Entry - We handle computer repair for all our clients nationwide, with over 60,000 pieces of
equipment per year. Our data entry positions are responsible for maintaining info, on more than
2000 parts both shipped from and received at the facility.
Technician Trainee - Technicians will learn to use an oscilloscope and multi-meter to
trouble-shoot and repair malfunctioning hardware. Each individual will be trained thoroughly in
the repair of one particular piece of equipment including CRT’s, terminals, keyboards, PC’s,
mainframes, controllers, modems, and others.
Cleaning and Reclamation - This group must maintain upkeep of all equipment received and
shipped from the facility. Involves disassembly of equipment, cleaning and reassembly of
equipment.
To apply, please call our Personnel Headquarters. E.O.E.
Universal Computer Systems, Inc.
1-800-883-3031
http://www.ucs-systems.com
UCS hires non-tobacco users only.
The Battalion’s now offering
access to The WIRE
A 24-hour, multimedia news service for the Internet from
The Associated Press
The WIRE provides continuously updated news coverage from one of the
world’s oldest, largest news services via The Battalion’s web page.
•A comprehensive, up-to-the-minute news report combining
the latest AP stories with photos, graphics, sound and video.
-Headlines and bulletins delivered as soon as news breaks.
http://bat-web.tamu.edu