As I write this early Saturday morning,
I'm trying to shake off another Aggie football bowl loss.
Here's how it happened – the Ags were up 24-7, then they lost by 35-31.
When I attended A&M, we lost a lot.
The intervening decades brought some bright spots certainly, but the gnashing of teeth Aggies feel this morning is nothing new.
The hope we felt in late August has turned to the all-too familiar resignation of despair at another
poor season finsh.
Moving on, I'm heartened by the
local sports scene as the new year begins with basketball, soccer and powerlifting taking center stage.
On a personal level, I'm healing from the arm fracture in early December and the ferment wish that I don't break any bones in 2025, after breaking a leg and an arm in 2024.
You can't imagine all of the creative suggestions to avoid breaking any more bones friends have offered – mostly in jest – after seeing me with an arm sling during Yuletide events here.
Enclosing me in bubble wrap is perhaps the most humorous and, interestingly, and the most frequently given suggestion.
The other suggestions center on my photography during high school football games, since I broke the arm during a playoff contest.
Trust me, I've had plenty of time to rethink how I will cover all sports with a camera in hand.
Incredibly, my 10-year-old, durable Canon camera escaped damage in the fall that broke my arm.
I will always be grateful for all of the help I had on the Bay City sideline.
At home, it has been an ordeal learning to do everything with just one hand – the one that's working overtime in doing all of the typing that's required in my work.
Just going in and out of closed doors is a task.
On the plus side, I should be out of the sling by mid-January and ready to resume everyday life with two hands.
I'm sure no one will be happier for that bit of normalcy to return than MaLinda and Jessica.
They've been quick to step in the jobs I do for the Sentinel – Malinda with laying out the pages and Jessica picking up my regular coverage beats.
I am careful as I roam outside, but I'm sure I don't need to be covered in bubble wrap.
Happy New Year!
