Tag Archives: college

Why are there no bathtubs at Harvey Mudd?

Legend Transcript:

Note: Commas indicate a pause in speech. Italicized words indicate words said with emphasis.

Informant: Oh, I mean, Mudd doesn’t have bathtubs anymore because someone made meth in them.

Me: Wait, what? *laughs*

I: Not a joke.

Me: Wait, tell me more.

I: This is a real thing, um, one of our dorms, Atwood dorm, when it got installed had bathtubs in it because it was a newer dorm, right? And everyone was like yo bathtubs! and then um, one day, uh, somebody, and by somebody I mean- I think I think I think it was the FBI, um, came to Atwood and they were like Yo! there’s been a suspiciously high amount of like, drugs going through here. And we were like, that’s strange. um I mean it’s a college campus, so we expect the usual amount of drugs going through here, but an unusual amount…but then they were like no no no no not like that, like drug trafficking. and the school is like what do you mean? and they were like well we suspect that someone at Mudd has been, um, like, creating meth. and they were like, what? and then um, the the I don’t know when it was. But anyway, the FBI like, kinda starts to narrow down who the student is and then they come to the realization that this kid has been cooking meth in the bathtub. and, um, and the story ends and he like jumps out of like a 2 story building and like, attempts to get away and then he is caught and then they took all of our bathtubs out because the meth thing.

Background:

The informant said he learned about these legends from a seminar called Mudd lore. He also commented that these stories highlight the “evil genius aspect of our Mudd lore” that is a “kinda little fun and cute little STEM moment.”

Context of Performance:

In-person conversation

Thoughts:

Legends are grounded in the real world as dubiously true. While this story definitely happened in real life, it has since been elevated to legendary status, to the extent that it is told in a seminar. In addition, this story has definitely changed over time. Was it really the FBI, or was it the local police? This legend likely gains credibility because its effects can be tangibly seen on Harvey Mudd’s campus. Where are the bathtubs?

For this specific legend, I think there is something about STEM schools and breaking the law in very nerdy ways, such as creating meth. I’ve heard stories about a student at MIT who also created meth in their dorm room, and even a Boston University professor who was creating meth at their home.

Beer Pong Blowing

“I watched my upperclassmen doing this at my first college parties.  After they dip their ping pong balls into the water before their turn, they would blow on it, and have nearby spectators blow on it too… apparently it’s supposed to coat your ball with good luck.  More like germs, but I don’t know… It’s pretty much counterintuitive to the part where you dip it in the water in the first place.”

Background: The informant is a college student who has witnessed others performing the gesture of blowing on one’s ping pong ball prior to taking a shot in the game.

Context: This superstition was shared with me over FaceTime.

These rituals are reminiscent of the arbitrary “strategies” that schoolchildren come up with that they swear will help secure victory in a meaningless game.  The informant goes to school in a different region of California, yet this strategy is still consistent with what I’ve seen people do at USC; I don’t know how such a custom of blowing on a ping pong ball was spread across college communities.  There also isn’t any kind of online information that confirms this as a phenomenon in the general college community, so it is also unclear whether this strategy even exists outside of a certain geographical radius.

Big-Little Program Reveals

“Okay so… every year our KAPA-milya program has its big-little reveals, and there’s a whole succession of events that the littles have to go through before they get to meet their big.  Generally, bigs know who their littles are a week in advance so they can plan out secret coordinated communications with their littles so that they can make them a nice personalized gift.  On the night of reveals, we blindfold all of them and have them go through an “obstacle course.”

There isn’t actually an obstacle course; typically we just tell them to step over, jump over, go around imaginary strings and potholes… I allow bigs and existing members to spray them with silly string and spray water on them or yell at them, but I draw the line at touching them because that’s an invasion of privacy that… hasn’t worked out well in the past.  

At the end of the obstacle course, we arrange the littles in front of their new bigs and have them perform the “otso otso,” which is a dance that resembles twerking.  After that, we have the littles take the pledge to be a good little and never leave their big behind.  Similarly, the bigs promise to always support their little and then we count down for the reveal!”

Background: The informant is the current Programming Director of USC Troy Philippines.  She oversees the organization’s big-little program, which is one of the primary programs that members who pay dues have access to.  They can be picked up by an upperclassman to act as a mentor.

Context: This process was shared to me in person at USC Village prior to a different Troy Philippines event.

My only in-person KAPA-milya reveals (by the way, kapamilya means family in Tagalog,) happened in the previous fall semester, when I became the big to my two freshman littles.  Getting picked up in Troy Phi also grants one membership to a smaller “fam” in the organization, the fam that their big is in, to provide them with a smaller community within the organization that has similar interests and personalities.  This event in the semester is probably the most important in terms of rites of passage as a member, since everyone who becomes a big and picks littles up has to have been a little and gone through the same initiation process at some point previously.  The embarrassment of having to dance while blindfolded and the overwhelming flurry of the obstacle course is a shared experience that all “initiated” members have.

One Fall

Original Script: Isang bagsak

Transliteration: ee-sang bawg-sack

Literal Translation: One fall

Smooth Translation: Everyone is in this together, and things won’t be accomplished without everyone all connected to each other.

Background: This saying was recently incorporated into one of the gestures and sayings used by USC Troy Philippines.  Members get into a circle and perform one coordinated clap whilst chanting the saying to symbolize their solidarity with each other and other members of the Filipinx community.

Context: This piece was told to me in person, during a USC Troy Philippines programming event.

This is similar to the English saying, “all for one, one for all” where it promotes the idea of solidarity amongst a group of people.  This saying is a direct reference to the political nature of Filipino history and how farmworkers needed to band together.  Created by Larry Itliong, he shared his ideas with Cesar Chavez during the Labor Movements of the 1960’s.  In this context, it is being used by a college Filipino organization in order to promote solidarity and connection between org members.  The political nature of the saying also seeps into USC Troy Philippines’ mission, as the organization also takes measures to advocate for Filipino political issues.

Collective Screaming During Finals Week

Background information: MD is a 21-year-old student at University of California, San Diego. He grew up in Hayward, CA, and is currently living near UCSD campus. Because most of his time at UCSD has been spent online, he has not had much time to engage in school traditions yet. 

MD: The night before finals week, I think everybody opens their window and screams at the same time. So you just let out all the stress you’ve been carrying through the whole quarter in that scream all together. And once everyone is done screaming at that specific time, you just carry on with your studying and whatever else you might be doing.

Me: I’ve definitely heard about traditions like that. Where did you learn about it? 

MD: I saw it on Reddit, I think. I probably was just looking up UCSD culture before I started going there, um, or after I decided to go there. I don’t really know (laughs). But I think it’s kinda similar to what a lot of schools do, like that’s probably why you know it too, like screaming on the quad or in a field or something. I think it’s fun to do something cathartic like that with all your classmates so you can all remember, that, like, you’re all in the same boat. It’s definitely very needed. 

Me: True, true. Have you done it yet this year? 

MD: I haven’t ever done it myself, and I never even heard anyone else do it when I lived on-campus. But to be fair, I only lived on campus for two quarters (laughs). 

This tradition is definitely not specific to UCSD, and I think that most colleges would have some form of this “catharsis” during finals week. It makes sense that this is such a widespread piece of folklore among college students, as it creates a feeling of connectedness and shared identity during a time when students are under a large amount of stress and may feel isolated as they focus on school work. I also thought it was important to note that, because of the pandemic, many people like MD have felt as though they are missing out out traditions and pieces of folklore because of the fact that they cannot communicate with others in the same way.