1. Title: The KAF Cup and the Dartmouth 7
2. Informant info:
Sydney Walter is 19 years old and from Austin, TX. She is a Government and Women & Gender Studies major at Dartmouth College. She is involved in Student Assembly and spent her most recent term in India, studying gender inequality. Most importantly, she is a frequent KAF-goer.
3. Type of lore (Genre and Sub-genre): Verbal Lore, Legend, Urban Legend
4. Language: English
5. Country of Origin: May 15, 2016, Hanover, NH, USA
6. Social / Cultural Context:
KAF (King Arthur Flour) is a popular cafe located in Baker library. Students often meet here to socialize, take study breaks, and hang out. Because of the number of workers is small, students often develop personal relationships with the workers (who usually aren’t Dartmouth students). The following urban legend describes a story surrounding one of the workers, and how his handwriting led him to complete the Dartmouth 7 with a student. The Dartmouth 7 is a tradition at Dartmouth, for which two people must have sex in 7 distinct places on campus.
7. Associated file: N/A
8. Transcript:
“…So basically what happened was this one worker at KAF — who everyone knows — has really crappy handwriting and people can never read the names he writes on the cups. According to my friend, one time he wrote on this girl’s cup and she mistook part of her name as reading: ‘7?’ Partially as a joke, the girl waited around until after he got off his shift. She then approached him, showed him the cup, and told him that she’d love to. Later that night, they completed the 7. I basically heard this from a friend of a sister in my sorority, so I have no idea if it’s true. It’s really funny, though!”
9. Informant’s comments:
“Since I know the KAF worker personally, I find the story especially funny. He really does have terrible handwriting. But, I heard different versions of the story through like four different people — it’s definitely grown from what it actually was. I think they definitely hooked up, though.”
10. Collector’s comments:
Similar to the Foco stories and other types of lore that we reported, this legend is generated around one fact (the KAF worker’s poor handwriting, in this instance) and then the layers of the story are added as time goes on. I think the close-knit community of Dartmouth adds to the prevalence of the story — as many students visit KAF, have personal connections with the workers, and can relate to the legend itself in some way or another.
11. Tags/Keywords: DDS, urban legend, KAF, Food