USC Lore – Squirrel Massacre

NN is a business student as USC, and shared a story she had heard about the squirrels on campus:

NN.) So basically, talking about the squirrel massacre, I did see a post by, I believe it was the Sack of Troy or Daily Trojan, it was one of those on Instagram, talking about USC having to euthanize the squirrels. I don’t remember which one, but our professor just told us about a rich kid who got bit by a squirrel and had to, like, file a lawsuit. But I also know, I’m an RA at Birnkrant, so one of my freshman residents was walking to, like, EVK and a squirrel like fully jumped on her.

Me.) And you were there to see this?

NN.) Um, no, but she came back and like, was asking me for a first aid kit and I saw her arm and it was, like, it was kind of bad.

Me.) Oh, wow.

NN.) I think she, I mean I gave her, like, a bandaid, but like, that didn’t really help, so I think she had to go to like an animal specialist, which is kind of funny.

Me.) Oh, wow, yeah.

NN.) She was scared she would have, like, rabies or something. That was really scary, I would be, like, really sad.

After I had collected this story from her, it came to light that the story had originated as an April Fool’s Day prank by the university’s satirical news publication, The Sack of Troy. While this prank was misinformation brought through social media by an organization, it shows how the information from authorities (I use this word loosely in this case) can be augmented by people’s personal experiences and become folklore. By adding her exposure to effects of squirrel attacks, she had added legitimacy to the story that otherwise wasn’t there. Information can knowingly be false, but become true through these mechanisms. While the April Fools day prank is over, it’s likely that the image of campus squirrels as violent will proliferate through the increased exposure that they have received.

Ghost Car Alarm

Nationality: United States
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/5/23
Primary Language: English

Text:

My informant, from Fresno California, recounts a paranormal experience.

“So here’s my ghost story. So. Last January, so January of 2022, my grandfather’s wife, so I guess my step-grandmother, died pretty suddenly. And that summer, we went to go visit him at his house, right? And we were there. And then all these little weird things started happening. Like, my grandfather gave me this pair of sunglasses that had been his wife’s and I put them down in a very obvious location but when I went to go back for them, they weren’t there. So I was like ‘Oh my god, is she hiding them from me?’ and then my mom was looking for them, and she was like ‘You know, if you don’t want her to have the sunglasses, that’s fine, but can you just show me where they are?’ and then she turned around and they were right there!

Another thing, is we were just sitting in the house and my step-grandmother had this car she liked to drive, and it hadn’t been used in a while, and all the sudden, the car alarm just started going off out of nowhere! And apparently that’s like a thing, like my mom said when her grandmother died, (she told me this story way before this happened) randomly the car alarm would go off in the grandmother’s car and people were brought over to look at the situation but could never figure out what was wrong with the car.”

Context:

“It’s like a thing I guess, like if you believe in ghosts, that ghosts will tamper with electricity and things like that to communicate because they’re limited. 

“I think it’s possible it was her ghost. I mean, I don’t know if I really believe in ghosts, but enough people have had enough supernatural experiences that I think it’s something to entertain. I guess it just means that she’s still around. She was there, or her spirit was there.”

Interpretation:

I found it interesting that both the informant and her mother had experienced the phenomena involving their grandmother’s car alarms going off as a form of haunting, adding a generational element to the paranormal encounter. The informant’s tone indicated that the spirit or force was not dangerous or malevolent. She emphasizes that the experience just means that maybe the spirit of her grandmother is still around. This implies a belief in a soul that can exist outside of the body, and perhaps in an afterlife, although the informant did specify that she did not necessarily believe in ghosts (but is open to entertaining the idea).

The Green Ribbon

Nationality: United States
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/5/23
Primary Language: English

Text:

My informant, from Fresno California, told me a scary story she heard as a kid.

“This is kind of like a ghost story. There was once a woman, right? And a man. And they entered into a relationship. And things were going really well between them. Things were going great. They were going on these little dates, you know? But the thing is, she always wore this little green ribbon around her neck. Right? And he’d be like, ‘Why do you wear that?’ and she’d be like ‘Don’t worry about it’. So he’s like ‘okay…’

“So they continue on having their relationship. They get married. They have many children. The children grow up. They go to college. They’re very successful. 

“And their relationship continues, and he’s like ‘Hey, you still haven’t taken off that green ribbon, it must be pretty dirty under there. You even shower with it on.’ She’s like ‘Don’t worry about it, it’s, you know, a fashion choice or whatever.’

“And then the years go on, they’re in retirement, they’re playing golf together, everything’s great. But still. He’s like “Hey, we’re like 80. And you still haven’t taken off that green ribbon. And it must be dingy by now, but it’s, like, in good quality’ And she’s like ‘Ah, you know, I just like wearing it, I guess.’

“And then she starts to get really sick. And it’s really sad. She’s bedridden. And he’s tending to her. And the doctor comes out to him from the bedroom, cause it’s like the doctor that visits the house. And he says to the husband, ‘Look, she has like 5 minutes.’ And he’s like ‘Oh, damn, okay.’  So he goes inside. He’s like ‘You know, I gotta ask you, in our final moments… First, I love you, but also, why are you wearing that thing?? Still? You’re dying!’ She’s like ‘all right. I’ll show you, okay?’ So she pulls off her green ribbon, and her head topples off. And that’s the end of the story.”

Context:

“I think I first heard that like in elementary school, I think around Halloween, one of the teachers told us that one. I’ve told it maybe a few times, I think I also told it in Highschool, it was around Halloween, and in my English class my teacher was like ‘hey, does anyone have any ghost stories?’ I think I used that one.”

Interpretation:

The informant took her time with the story, and was constantly checking in to see if I was still along for the ride. She also injected comedy whenever she could to try and keep it engaging. I think this approach is the result of telling this story in a larger setting, with many distractions (i.e., a classroom to other students.) This story has a ritual element to when it can be told: It’s a scary story, so it is told at Halloween, particularly at school. 

The Fresno Nightcrawler

Nationality: United States
Age: 22
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/5/23
Primary Language: English

Text:

My informant, from Fresno California, told me a story of a local cryptid.

“Around the parts where I’m from, we have this legend, this thing called the Fresno Nightcrawler, right? Now, no one really knows the origin of the Fresno Nightcrawler, right? Or like what it is, but that’s the mystery of it. Because there’s actual camera footage of like a camera set up outside of a Fresno residence where there’s this one white thing shaped like a U, right? Like walking on its legs? And you’re like, ‘What is that?’ And it’s like kinda grainy footage so you can’t really tell what it is. And then it has like a little child come out? Like a smaller one. And they’re kind of walking around together. And then they go back into the forest, and no one knows what it is, but I think people have said that there’s been sightings? I’m not really sure.”

Context:

“What I do know is that what really is more important about it is the joke, like ‘Oh, the Fresno–’ Like as an emblem of the city, if you will. Well, I wouldn’t say it’s an emblem, I don’t know. I was like, ‘Maybe if I wanna get a Fresno tattoo, I should get a Fresno Nightcrawler tattoo.’”

Interpretation:

The informant’s assessment of the legend as a sort of symbol of Fresno may suggest that people in this area are seeking out something that will make their city unique. I think it is significant that the informant delivered the story in a humorous tone, and even noted that the important part of the legend is the joke. It does not appear to be a cryptid that the informant takes particularly seriously. Instead, The Fresno Nightcrawler seems to be a humorous symbol that residents of Fresno can perhaps find camaraderie in or share a laugh over. 

Close Your Eyes

Nationality: American
Age: 21
Occupation: student
Residence: USC
Performance Date: 4/3/23
Primary Language: English

Text: “There once was a little boy named H. He stayed up late every night and made his mother very angry by not going to bed on time. But one night, he wanted to try and keep his eyes open until morning, without getting a lick of sleep. But on that very morning, his eyes were shriveled up like raisins and he could no longer see. When his mother came in, she screamed. She told him, “Close your eyes forever.” After that, the boy never saw anything out of his eyes again. And you want to know why? Because your eyes need to be closed for a few hours while you sleep, in order for them to reset. Keeping them open for a long period of time and blinking to comfort them only goes so far. They need to be closed for hours in order to keep your eyes healthy.” – Informant’s mother

Context: This scary little tale was told to the informant when his mom would get mad at him for staying up too late. She used a tale in order to get him to go to sleep and used the scare tactic to make him want to sleep. As a 7 year old, this story scared him enough to stop staying up so late. The informant laughed when telling this tale because it is so stupid and probably made up by his mom. However, it worked.

Analysis: When I was little, my parents would tell me that if I don’t go to sleep, my nightmares will happen in real life in order to get me to go to sleep. Similar to this tale, they were both tactics used to improve our lives. Sleep is one of the most important things for a human and yet, a growing child. It teaches us a lesson that will help in the long run and actually made us both go to sleep. Although my version was more of a myth type and the informant’s was more of a tale, they both made us follow the rules set by our parents.