Men of the Skull Chapters 15 & 16: "The Rules" and "Typical Day"

These are two short chapters which if this were published, would be cut.  The idea was "completeness."  Chapter 15 would be worked into other parts, but 16 would just go bye bye.  I could work in a couple of details to other chapters.

The reason I'm posting them here, aside from "you get to see it all" is because I'm interested to hear if, when you played drinking games in college (assuming you did) or where ever, if you used similar rules, different rules, or any rules at all.  The drinking game rules seemed fairly consistent across the fraternities and apartment parties I attended during my time.  I mention drinking game rules in an earlier unrelated blog entry as well.

Me and friends doing "popsicle" rule during a drinking game at a party.  2004

I mention the "It rule."  This references an earlier chapter, from when I pledged.  To quote:

We were no longer people, so we couldn’t refer to ourselves with any pronoun except as “IT”.  In fact, the long “I” sound was not to be uttered.  Any word that contained it would have that sound replaced by "it."  

We no longer had names- we had numbers.  I was number five, I mean f(it)ve.  

One of the few pledge brothers I am still in touch with was "four."  I still call him that occasionally, and he calls me "Fitve."  (Fit-vee)

The dates I put on these entries were just dates between other chapters, and are not significant.

Just the thought of how much I drank in college... wow.  Since my DUI in 2012, I've cut back to almost nothing.


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Chapter 15: The Rules

Sunday, October 19, 1986 Battered by rebellious aide, Aquino’s coalition totters

            Played a lot of drinking games in college, and that meant following a lot of rules.  Figured I’d explain them to you so you don’t get nailed and have to consume.

            There were three major rules for drinking games at Penn State:

• No using the words “drink,” “drank,” or “drunk.”  (“Consume” was the most popular alternative, though “imbibe” showed up occasionally as well.)
• No using proper names.  If you used the same nickname three times, it counted as a name.
• No pointing.  Just like at Drexel, using an elbow was acceptable.

            At many parties, these rules were assumed to be in play.  When Dave and I played, even to this day, we declare them as “standard.”  That means when you get to make a rule, you say standard rules and all three are in effect.

From Oct 20, 1986 Daily Collegian

            Every house had its own pet rules.  At Skull, we had one standing rule:  Bull Moose- Never consume with your right hand.  It was always in effect.  One time Brother Trips made a pitcher of gin and tonics for some people at a formal, sipped it right handed, and was bull moosed.  The penalty for being caught?  Chug whatever it is you’re drinking.  And Brother Trips did it too.  (That was the end of the party for him, though.)  It was many years after college before I would consider drinking right handed, and years after that before I was comfortable doing it.

            One rule I called a lot was the “it” rule.  The long “I” sound was illegal- instead the player must say “it.”  Sound familiar?  Yeah, pledging was good for something.  I never had a problem with this rule.  Go figure.  Everyone else struggled with it.

            Other rules were fairly common, like “no cursing.”  Some were aimed at certain goals, like “For every queen dealt, girls lose a piece of clothing.”  There were toasts, taps, tinks, clinks, and howls.

            The usual penalty for fucking up a rule was a drink, however that was measured where you were.  It was usually a mouthful though.  If beer was in short supply, it was a sip.  It was never good for a guy to sip though- ever.

            I was quite a stickler for the rules, because I wanted the people around me drunk.  I guess it made me feel superior, I don’t know.  In any case, I knew the rules and I rarely fucked up.  I was probably not much fun when I got on a tear, but that’s life in the big city, right?

Chapter 16: Typical Fall 1986

Monday, October 20, 1986 Soviets oust 5 American diplomats

            A typical day started waking up way too fucking early to make an eight o’clock class.  I’m not a morning person so that was really hard.  If I was drinking the night before, pretty much forget it.  Class from 8AM-10AM, then I went to the house for lunch.

            Most days, I’d go from lunch to work at BK and work like 12-3 or something.  I’d then go home and shower the smell of pickles off me.  That was the strongest smell there- not grease, not onions, but pickles. 

From Oct 20, 1986 Daily Collegian.  I LOVED the Lasagna Shop

            Then off to class, then a half hour, then some days to a late class.  If no late class, then I had dinner at the house.  As time went on, I’d more often eat with Judy and Virginia.

            Thursdays were parties at the house.  Saturdays were football and parties.  Sundays were watching football on TV and homework.  It was all fairly regular. 

I tried not to cut classes because after all I was paying for all this.  If I had to cut a class, it was either the eight AM any given day or the five o clock Friday one.  I didn’t realize how cutting the five o’clock one would fuck things up.  I learned the hard way.

           

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