This is one of the fun things about writing columns.
I get to tell the stories that others wonder about……………even if it’s only a few people. I get to ask the questions we all want answered and then I get to tell everyone what I discovered.
So, it is with this case: the yellow car.
Yellow car? Don’t tell me you haven’t seen that sporty bright yellow car on Grand Avenue during the past two years? It’s always parked near or by Austin College. So, in the big picture, this would be a no-brainer…….the owner is connected to AC in some way.
You’d be right, BUT here is the rest of the story………………
After being blinded by the brightness the first couple times I saw the car, what really caught my eye was the license plate. The plates are registered in Alaska! Now, how many Alaskan license plates have you seen lately?! Right! Zero! I haven’t either, so it struck me as unique…….(This is why I’m such a good reporter!) I thought to myself that I need to get the full story one of these days.
It only took two years, but it’s ‘one of these days!’ The owner and driver of that yellow car is Lexi Beeson, a sophomore at Austin College. And yes, she is from Alaska; she is here to play basketball for AC.
Beeson explained that when she decided on a college, an aunt bought a car in the aunt’s state (Washington) for her. Then, of course, it was registered in her father’s name in Alaska where they live.
“My aunt and a friend towed it all the way here,” explained Beeson. “Then, they drove back to Washington. I think it’s really cute; it’s my little convertible.”
Did you have any idea what color it was before it got here?
“No, all they said was it’s a little Mazda car,” smiled Beeson. “I love the color; there’s not many around like it.”
For the record, it’s a 1992 Mazda Miatta and as Beeson says ‘it rides really good.’
“It’s not fast; I mostly drive it in town,” laughed Beeson. “I stay off the highways.”
Beeson, who is from Kenai, Alaska, (two and a half hours south of Anchorage on the peninsula) is a guard on the Lady Kangaroos basketball team. She finds life in Texas ‘a little different.’
“I like the warmer weather,” said Beeson. “You never can wear shorts in Alaska not even in the summer, but you can here almost year around.”
She noted that winter highs in Kenai are about five degrees above zero with highs in the summer about 60 degrees.
“I like it here even if it’s small,” Beeson said. “I like school and basketball is fun.”
Beeson is majoring in Business and Spanish with a minor in Exercise Science. She hopes to get an MBA as well.
One of the best parts of the basketball team is how diverse it is, according to Beeson. She is from Alaska and there are players from Oregon, Michigan, Arizona and California on the team, too. Michelle Filander is their coach.
“It’s a cool team,” concluded Beeson.
As ‘cool’ as your car? It has been two years now, do you still get asked about the car?
“Yes, they still ask me about the car and those Alaskan plates,” she smiled.
