Category Archives: Dartmouth College

Safety Talk

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Title: Safety Talk

Informant info: Alfredo Gurmendi, Location: Hanover, NH, Date: 5/20/16, Dartmouth Student, male, Class of 2018, went on Hiking 2 trip

Type of lore: Customary/Verbal (Prank)

Language: English

Country of Origin: U.S.

Social / Cultural Context: Experienced during First-year trips, on the campus of Dartmouth College in Sarner Underground before leaving on actual trip

Transcript: After everyone gets checked in in front of Robo and we are led by the H-Croo members in dances and songs and do some ice-breakers with our group, we were told by our trip leaders that there will be a safety talk and are then led to Sarner Underground. Our trip leaders tell us that there will be a quiz based on the material covered in the safety talk and that we won’t be allowed to go on the trip unless we pass it. Once we get to the little room where the talk is going to be held, we all sit down and a couple of upper classmen come on stage and begin to tell us how important it is that we pay attention to the following talk because it may save our lives. They begin talking in a very serious and matter of fact manner about things like splints and first-aid stuff and some kids are actually sitting there taking notes to make sure they don’t fail the quiz. Suddenly, however, the people on stage break into song and dance and a full-length performance follows including a bunch of parody versions of popular songs, including a version of the “Frozen” song about going to bathroom in the woods. The show closed with the Dartmouth version of “Welcome Home” and a full-fledged dance party ensues at the end of the performance. It was a brilliant prank that definitely set the tone for the whole trips experience. Here we are, a bunch of kids that have no clue what to expect from this new place, ready to believe anything we are told and absolutely terrified of failure, so of course we’ll totally buy into the idea of a mandatory quiz. But then the complete reversal really breaks the ice and makes you feel more comfortable in this new community.

Informant’s comments: It really breaks the ice and makes you feel more comfortable in this new community

Collector’s comments: See overall comments on trips pranks

Tags/Keywords: Trips, Prank, Safety Talk, Verbal, Customary

 

Story 4: “Support Networks”

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Support Networks

Informant Information:

Cathy has a daughter who has Down Syndrome. She is fifteen years old, and has recently joined  the “My Own Voice” choir. “My Own Voice” is a choir for children with special needs in Andover, Massachusetts. 

Type of Lore: Not Applicable

Language: English

Country of Origin: United States of America

Social/Cultural Context: This story again is not folklore, but it is a touching story about the kinds of support that newly special needs family receive upon learning of a diagnosis from friends, family and providers.

Informant Comments:

When I found out [my daughter] had Down Syndrome I was 18 weeks pregnant.

I had an ultra sound that showed a heart defect.  I had an amnio that day. A few days later we got the news that [she] had Trisomy 21.

I reached out to two friends I had that had siblings with Down Syndrome.

They were both very positive and loved their siblings very much.

They had both lost their sibling with DS from illness. One from a heart defect that could not be repaired at the time he was born. They can now repair that heart defect😊

That friend said to me ” I won’t judge you but I know you will love that baby”. She also told me about how her brother with DS cheered her up when she was a teenager crying or upset about silly teenage stuff.

The other friend told me also about fond childhood memories of her sister with DS.

When I told a man on the board I am on (Board of Assessors), he said ” I have a cousin with DS. She always played with us just like my other cousins”.

[My daughter] is 15 years old , but those are the supportive responses I remember the most😊

I could not forget to mention Dr Allen Crocker at Childrens Hospital Boston.

He was a strong advocate for Children with Down Syndrome.

He met with us prenatal and spoke ok the positive things we would experience . He said we would never have to worry about drinking or drug abuse issues 😊

 

Best Regards,

Cathy

Collector’s Comments: 

We know that this is not folklore because this story involves individuals talking about other individuals in their families, but we do believe that it is significant how other people were so forthcoming with their stories of support and stories of their own siblings and experiences with the disorder. There is a theme in this of how people stressed the attributes of their family members that conveyed how those members of their family experienced many things as typical children do; all families face challenges with their children, those with special needs just have a different set of problems than most.

Tags/Keywords: Special Needs, Children, Down Syndrome, Story, Expectations, Health, Support

Shrapnel Charm

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Title: Shrapnel Charm

Informant info: Michael Rodriguez. Informant attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH as a United States Army Veteran. Informant enlisted in the Army in 2003 and was a member of the 1st Battalion 8th Marines Bravo Company, which is an infantry military unit. He was stationed out of camp Lejeune North Carolina. Informant served in Iraq from June 2004 to December 2004. He was awarded a Purple Heart. He was from a military family, as well. Informant is 31 years old.

Type of lore: Material Lore, Charm

Language: English

Country of Origin: USA

Social / Cultural Context: Informant was asked if there were any charms that they had related to the military or that he had while in the military. He said that one of his charms was the shrapnel that the doctor took out of his leg and he keeps it in a little vial.

Associated file: Shrapnel Charm

Transcript: “They took a piece of shrapnel sort of that was very close to my man parts um and i was like i want to keep that, man. They’re not supposed to.. there supposed to test it for like heavy metal toxins, but um i was like no just give it to me. So, I have it… I have it in a little vial. It’s a little smaller than my pinky finger nail.

Informant’s comments: Informant kept the shrapnel that was in his leg. He claims that it is a charm. He said they put it in a little vial and that the doctors were not supposed to have let him keep the shrapnel.

Collector’s comments: The shrapnel came from the incident that earned him his Purple Heart.

Tags/Keywords: Charm, Material Lore, Purple Heart, Shrapnel

Night in Leverone Field House

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Title: Night in Leverone Field House

Informant Info: Myself (Garrett Martin), Date: 5/28/16, Location: Hanover, NH, Dartmouth Student, male, class of 2018, went on canoeing trip

Type of lore: Customary (Separation Stage of Rite of Passage Ritual)

Language: English

Country of Origin: United States

Social / Cultural Context:  Experienced while participating in First-Year Trips, On the campus of Dartmouth College

Transcript: The night before actually leaving campus for our trips, instead of sleeping in our dorms, the entire trip section is taken to Leverone Field House where we sit with our trip group and do various bonding exercises. At one point everyone stops and we are read some Dr. Seuss story, I forget which one, but maybe “Oh the Places You’ll Go” or something like that.It is here that we divvied up all the food and gear that we would have to bring along the way and made sure that everyone had everything that they needed for the trip.

We all went to bed at around 9 or 10 or so and slept on the ground in our sleeping bags. We were woken up, very early, 5 o’clock I think, by the opening song from The Lion King being played through the loud speakers in the Field House and packed up and left for the beginning of our trip.

Informant/Collector comments:  This is representative of the separation stage of the rite of passage that is Trips as a whole.  The entire trip section is sequestered in a given space that is relatively separate from campus and entirely separate from their standard living quarters and is really the beginning of the transition into the trips process.  This is somewhat similar to the slavic custom of sitting with the family in the home before leaving on journey.

Tags/Keywords: Leverone, Trips, Separation, Rite of Passage

Dog Tags

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Title: Dog Tags

Informant info: Michael Rodriguez. Informant attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH as a United States Army Veteran. Informant enlisted in the Army in 2003 and was a member of the 1st Battalion 8th Marines Bravo Company, which is an infantry military unit. He was stationed out of camp Lejeune North Carolina. Informant served in Iraq from June 2004 to December 2004. He was awarded a Purple Heart. He was from a military family, as well. Informant is 31 years old.

Type of lore: Material Lore, Superstition, Charms

Language: English

Country of Origin: USA

Social / Cultural Context: Informant was asked if there were any charms that he had while in the military or related to the military. Informant said that he carried around his own dog tags along with dog tags from his great grandfather from when he served. He claims that they were good luck charms.

Associated file:

Dog Tags

Transcript: “Uh, kind of. I mean i still have… I usually wear like I mean I have my dog tag my identification tag. I have my great grandfather’s from World War II.”

Informant’s comments: This was his first thought when i mentioned charms and he seemed to think his great grandfather’s and his own dog tags were charms.

Collector’s comments: These could be scene as contactor contagion because he carried around both dog tags in the hopes of having good luck like his great grandfather.

Tags/Keywords: Charms, Dog tags, Military

Story 3: “Exceeding Expectations”

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“Exceeding Expectations”

Informant Information:

Jeanette has a son who has Down Syndrome. He is nineteen years old, and has been a member of the “My Own Voice” choir for a few years. “My Own Voice” is a choir for children with special needs in Andover, Massachusetts. 

Type of Lore: Not Applicable

Language: English

Country of Origin: United States of America

Social/Cultural Context: This story again is not folklore, but it is a kind of story that often has a shared sentiment among special needs families. These more personal stories are typically shared individually or with close friends of the family.

Informant Comments:

 Prom - The Whole Prom Crew

I have more than 19 years of stories!

The most recent that was especially heartwarming to me:

[His] 5th grade general education teacher had each of his students write a letter to her or his future self, the letter to be mailed to the students as they were preparing for high school graduation.  [He] received his letter last week.  In the letter, [He] spoke of friends who are still his friends today, and future plans.

I am happy to report that [his] closest friends from 5th grade are still his friends today.  Additionally, his circle of close friends has expanded.    The attached picture includes friends from 5th grade and newer friends, all of whom will likely be friends for life.

[His] goals included working in his best friend’s bookstore and becoming an artist.  His best friend has changed his goal from owning a bookstore to working in a library or bookstore, a vocation that is well-suited to his personality and skill sets.  [He] has taken art classes throughout middle school and high school, and in the fall he will be taking a drawing class (for credit) at MassBay Community College.  His artistic passion will serve him well as a pre-school teaching assistant or patient relations representative in a hospital pediatric unit.  I’m confident that both will be jobs yielding a competitive compensation package, including benefits.

When I found out in-utero that I my son had Down syndrome, I had 3 concerns:

  •  Would he be healthy
  •  Would he have friends?
  •  What kind of future would he have?

I am happy to report that he is healthy, he has a close-knit circle of friends, and he has a bright and happy future doing things he is passionate about.  What else can any mother ask for her child?

Collector’s Comments: 

We found that similar to Story 2, this story relayed similar sentiments addressed in the Holland Poem. Families who have a special needs child often redefine their expectations for their children, and are then even more astounded by their accomplishments. Additionally, many people who find out that their child has special needs for the first time or is outside of the special needs community often do not hear these tales of triumph and achievement. We feel very fortunate to have been trusted with this submission.

Tags/Keywords: Special Needs, Children, Story, Leadership, Expectations

“Cafe au’ Lait”

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Cafe Au’ Lait

Informant Info: Libby Flint, age 59, New Orleans resident of 36 years, originally from Upstate New York and Vermont. Collected May 22, 2016 via iphone.

Verbal Lore: Folk Speech, slang- associated with material food lore

English/ French

United States of America

Context: coffee with steamed milk, otherwise known as a latte in the rest of the US

 

 

Transcript:

“people  here drink Café au’laits rather then lattes”

Collector Commentary: The Cafe Au’ Lait  is the common term in NO for coffe with steamed milk. it is originally a french term and is used in french speaking canade and France as well as New Orleans. As a slang word it is not uniqe to NO within the world sphere, but it is unique to NO within contemporary American (United States of America) folk speech.

Keywords: coffee, latte, cafe au’ lait

 

“Brake Tag”

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Brake Tag

Informant 1.Info: Caitlin Flint, age 21, Metairie, Louisiana. Collected May 22, 2016 on Iphone.

Verbal Lore; Folk Speech, slang

English

United States of America

Context: an inspection sticker for a car registered in the state of Louisiana. Needs to be annually renewed to  make sure the  car is in proper working order.

Transcript (if verbal lore)

“The third slang word is ‘brake tag.’ Brake tag is an inspection sticker that is given to you by the DMV- the Louisiana department of Motor Vehicles.  When your car has passed inspection and is able to be drived. You need to get it renewed every year or two. It is the exact same as an inspection sticker in any other state. I do not know why it is called Brake tag, but everyone I know has- everyone I know who is from New Orleans has always called it a brake tag, so  to use it in a sentence ‘oh, hey Dale,  I noticed that your brake tag was expired, you may want to go stop by the DMV to get a new one.’ That would  be about it.

 

https://youtu.be/brvHekK2hEQ

Informant info: (Left to Right) Sadhana Puri, age 20, Jessica Link, age 20, Alex Ledoux, age 21 all from New Orleans, LA. Collected May 15, 2016 on iphone

“Alex: I looked up some things like what’s New Orleans slang, because I wasn’t sure what was slang and what was just normal. Brake tag was on that and I was just surprised that not everyone knows what a brake tag is.  It’s something you get on your car you put it in your windshield.  You have to get it changed every year, but like  I feel like they don’t necessarily check all the time.  You know you can get away with it.

Jessica: They don’t but also you can get a ticket. For having-

Alex: Yeah you can get a ticket so it’s like-

Jessica: I think they have them in some other states, but I don’t know what they’re called in other state.  But I knew that they were only called a brake tag in New Orleans or Louisiana

Alex: Really I did not

Sadhana: I thought it was all states, I thought it was just all states.  I thought it was just a general term.  It was surprising to me that it’s a New Orleans term.

Jessica: We have brake tag stations. There will be a sign that says brake tags, and I know what that means, it’s just on your car a sticker.

Jessica: I think other states, at least some have it, but I don’t know what they’re called.

Katelyn: Is it on the upper-

Alex: They check your brakes.

Katelyn: They check your brakes

Alex: Well they’re supposed to, but they usually just give you one

Jessica: Oh yeah this is that spelling of brake.

Alex: They’re supposed to check your car and make sure it’s like up to code or whatever the terminology is.

Jessica: It’s good

Katelyn: So it’s like uhm, shoot I forgot what it  is called.

Jessica: y’all have them

Katelyn: We do I forgot what it is called, it’s not called brake tag.

Sadhana: What do you call them.

Alex: What would it be called, I feel like brake tag is self explanatory.

Katelyn: It’s like registration you like update your tags.

Jessica: just a tag.

Katelyn: Tags.

Jessica: I think they might call them something else in like other places too, I’m not sure. Yeah.”

Collector’s comments: The term is so wide spread that most New orleanians don’t realize there is another term for the stickers, as such it is an entirely unique word to the city and a good example of New Orleans.

Tags/Keywords: New, Orleans Brake tag, car, Inspection sticker

Link

Beaucoup

Davaron Stockman, age 20, LaPlace, Lousiana. Collected on May 22, 2016 via iphone.

Verbal Lore: slang

Language: French

United States of America/ France

Comes from French phrase “merci beaucoup” or “thanks a lot”, typically used to mean “a lot or too much”

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cs6mXe8ipo

“Well, first off we have the word beaucoup. It is the French word for a lot. Growing up I would always hear my mom, um family members, use the word beaucoup in a way of saying there’s a lot of something. So, I would hear my mom say things like I have beaucoup money or you don’t have to worry about paying for that. I have beaucoup this, beaucoup that. Its just, Its just a word for a lot.”

Collector Commentary: The term is a French word that has been absorbed into colloqiuial New orleans English speech. As such, it is a french word that is used in French speaking places but,it is unique as a NO slang word beause it is used in English speech as a synonym for “a lot.”
Tags/ Keywords: Beaucoup, French, a lot,

Marine Corps Ball

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Title: Marine Corps Ball

Informant info: Michael Rodriquez. Informant attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH as a United States Army Veteran. Informant enlisted in the Army in 2003 and was a member of the 1st Battalion 8th Marines Bravo Company, which is an infantry military unit. He was stationed out of camp Lejeune North Carolina. Informant served in Iraq from June 2004 to December 2004. He was awarded a Purple Heart. He was from a military family, as well. Informant is 31 years old.

Type of lore: Customary, Ceremony, Tradition

Language: English

Country of Origin: USA

Social / Cultural Context: Informant was asked if there were any ceremonies related to the military. He replied that there was the Marine Corps Ball on the Marine Corps birthday. Informant claims that there is a ceremony every year where the people either still in the military or retired wear their dress blues to. It occurs on the birthday of the marine corps. He claims that there is a ceremony during the ball where the youngest and oldest active military member will cut the cake.

Associated file:

Marine Corps Ball

Transcript: “Every year we have the marine corp ball, which is on the marine corps birthday. We have that and even like  when you’re out it’s a pretty serious thing. so Im like not in any more but each year theres a marine corps ball I usually get invited to the one here in Hanover. Been doing that for a couple of years because the Dartmouth Grad student thing. And then um theres another one over in New London. I did my undergrad at Colby-Sawyer so I know the people over there. So, you carry that on and the oldest and the… we always read the commandants message most of the time it’ll be the current commandants message. Sometimes like if the person running whatever sort of Marine Corps birthday in your area doesn’t like the New Commandant will sometimes read the old Commandant’s. You’re not supposed to do that but sometimes it happens. But ya you get in your dress blues.”

Informant’s comments: He seemed to not really care for the idea of not reading the current commandant’s message.

Collector’s comments: Informant talked about the youngest and oldest tradition later and how they cut the cake together.

Tags/Keywords: Cake, Military Ball, Youngest, Oldest