Austin's greatest hits: Breakfast and a breakdown.

On the last day of our trip, we stopped by yet another Half Price store and then had breakfast at one of our faves:

Kerbey Lane Cafe!

We seem to find our way to Kerbey on most of our Austin trips. This time we hit the one on the Drag.
Good eggs, awesome pancakes: YUM.

After that we headed over to my former church home. I'd heard that our old Biblical Studies Center had been torn down, and I just had to see it for myself. As we turned down University Avenue, I expected to see the BSC gone. I didn't expect it to hit me so hard.

For my first two years at UT, I lived at Tower Manor across the street. Many an afternoon I would head to the BSC lounge to hang out and "study."

When we moved farther off campus, I parked in this lot and used the BSC for my home base. I ate lunch there almost every day. We'd bring our lunches, pick up something from Dobie or grab some chicken fried rice from the egg roll stand in front of the Littlefield fountain. We'd watch Australian rules football or cheesy MTV videos, play pool or ping pong, or just sit back and put our feet up on the wagon wheel coffee table. (This parking lot was the setting for the van explosion scene in that cinematic masterpiece, Man of the House, by the way.)

The old walkway panels are gone, too.

The BSC was a second home to me, and just seeing that empty lot made me cry.

I've always been a sentimental sap, but the tears caught me off guard. It'd been years since I'd even been in that building, and I'm fortunate enough to still be in touch (or at least Facebook friends) with many of my dear friends who made the BSC so special to me.


Now that Austin Grad has moved, the campus ministry now occupies the old Institute building. The BSC was showing its age when I was there, so I can imagine the old place was pretty decrepit! This is a definite upgrade for these young whippersnappers. And with the old building gone, UA can undergo some much-needed renovations. (A college friend's firm is even handling the project.)
And the old Tower Manor (as seen in this 1988 tenant portrait), where I lived for my freshman and sophomore years?

It was torn down several years ago. A much nicer facility now occupies that prime real estate just down the street from the Tower.

Obviously, these old building were just that—buildings. Still, there was something comforting about driving past them when I'd visit campus, seeing yet again those places where so many memories were made. I'll miss that.

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In spite of my maudlin mood, this made me laugh: