Urban legends spook students

Students seeking to become true Wildcats robbed this year by the jilted ghost

BY KELLY BINGHAM The Signpost correspondent

OGDEN - A Weber State University student vacationing in Cancun, Mexico was rushed to a local hospital after waking up in a bathtub full of bloody ice and finding a note that read, "Your kidney has been removed - Gracias."

This fictional story is one of many popular urban legends circulating on campus. These accounts are legitimized by the teller claiming he or she heard it from a friend's brother's cousin's former roommate.

Webster's Dictionary defines an urban legend as "a folkloric and often sensational tale about modern life that is repeated in the media and by other means."

Many of WSU's legends are customized versions of well-known stories, such as the unfortunate teacher's aide who got a paper cut licking an envelope and later had cockroaches growing in her tongue.

"Weber doesn't have many of its own urban legends," said Thom Kearin, WSU Department of Sociology associate professor. "The university is still too new."

Urban legends and tall tales play a part in creating campus culture. Despite WSU's respective youth, there are a few stories that creep around campus.

One urban legend mentions a "secret" tunnel that runs under campus from Building 3 to Harrison Boulevard. The tunnel is purported to be the home of little creatures that sneak into Building 3 and steal food from the faculty refrigerator. The tunnel is also rumored to be an on-campus "sin bin" for the campus community.

"Back in the day, professors would sneak down in the tunnel and would drink their coffee and smoke cigars in private so they wouldn't be seen," said Richard Ulibarri, WSU Department of History professor.

Another urban legend tackles the issue of affordable campus housing.

"There is a rumor that some theater students who were too poor to afford rent would sneak in after dark and live in the dressing room in the Browning Center," said Caril Jennings, WSU Department of Performing Arts marketing director.

Urban legends usually contain a grain of truth to give them believability and just enough deceit to make them fun.

WSU has its creepy stories, too; if a person walks around the Louis Moench statue in a circle three times while staring at the statue's face, then its eyes will follow.

The Stewart Bell Tower didn't strike 12 at midnight on Homecoming night, allegedly because the ghost of a jilted coed haunts the clock tower, trying to keep others from becoming true Wildcats.

"My girlfriend and I kept kissing at the bell tower, waiting for it to chime, " said sophomore Zach Webster. "We waited until 12:10 a.m., then just gave up and left."

WSU also has a few humorous legends.

One student got an "A" on a philosophy final by answering the question "Why?" with "Because." Another student confounded a professor who threatened to fail him after finishing a test late by asking the professor, "Do you know who I am?"

After the professor said "No," the student quickly shoved his test in the middle of the stack and smiled as he walked out the door.

And of course, there is the most far-fetched and crazy WSU urban legend of all: If students keep taking classes at WSU, they will eventually graduate!

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