In a school packed with tradition, these arethe Traditions with a capital T.
Number one: Flip a butter pat onto the ceilingof the Union. Attention, all interested parties:this is the last year it's possible. Next year,the dining hall will be in Mem hall, andhumanities profs will be left to enjoy the spaceunder the well-buttered vault.
The recommended technique is to launch thebutter with a belt or cloth napkin. On specialdinner days, helium balloons work as well. "I sawsome guys do it," say one enthusiastic first-year."They weighted the balloon, and put butter on thetop."
Other techniques are more reminiscent of MITthan Harvard. For instance, Gregg Phillips '98employed a "five-man butter-launcher" described byhis awed roommate as" eight rubber bands connectedto a central cup."
Number two: Have sex in the stacks of Widener.Studying isn't the only thing rustling the booksdown there. Not surprisingly, no one at Widenerwas available for comment.
Number three: Piss on the statue of JohnHarvard. "As appealing as the thought of baringall for the sake of tradition is to me, I think Ican make it through the next four years withoutit," says Duerte. As a woman, she is skepticalabout the feasibility of this feat. "I mean,unless you're going to be really creative...shemuses.
Men living in the Yard, though boast of havingcompleted this part of the three-step traditionseveral times. "I've pissed on the base [of thestatue]. That's easy. It'd be harder to get it onthe knees or the face," says one first-year withtoo much leisure time.
Some students suggest that streaking duringPrimal Scream should be added to the list ofrequired acts.
Harvard Yard, the oldest part of the campus,has a series of ghost stories connected with it.Jay W. Glaubach '97 documented one story aboutHolden Chapel for a Folk and Myth project.According to Glaubach, Holden Chapel used to bethe dissecting room for the medical school. Onsome dark nights, the chapel is haunted by thefiancee of a man whose body was snatched from hisgrave to be dissected by Harvard Med Schoolstudents.
Although these stories may not be true, somehave a historical basis. Professor Mitchell notesa connection between a current Holworthy ghostlegend and a student prank that occurred in the1820s.
No one really needs a historical basis fortradition and superstition, though. The wholepoint is, some things are more real for beingbased on nothing at all. Rudenstine may neverconsult Mystic Rosa. Gore's plans for 2000 don'thinge upon the stars. But I'm keeping my fingerscrossed for Housing Day. Nancy Reagan is notalone.
In superstition, though, chief is far
St. Patrick's day may be gone, but shamrocksuperstition is a year-round phenomenon.
J.J. O'Brien and Sons, Inc., a localconstruction company, decorates its pick-up truckswith a clover painted on each side. "J.J. O'Brienwon't let a truck leave his yard until it has ashamrock painted on its side," comments oneworker.
Before the potato came to Ireland, the Irishate clover salad to supplement their traditionaldiet of meat, butter, milk and oatmeal, withvitamin C. In the 17th century the conqueringEnglish, not yet aware that everyone should eatfive serving of fruit and veggies a day, scornedwhat they saw as this uncultured Irish cuisine.the Irish promptly decided to adopt the clover asa symbol of ethnic pride.
One of the first incidents of immigrant racialtension in the U.S. was cleared up by GeorgeWashington at Valley Forge, in 1778. Washingtonannounced that he would issue extra Saint Paddy'sDay whiskey rations to all the soldiers, not justthe newly hyphenated Irish-American.