Every wacky Georgetown tradition that makes no sense

When I was applying for universities, above all, I looked for schools that had close-knit communities. Georgetown has exactly that, and it’s undeniable that its traditions reinforce the strong sense of community.

That said, a few of them in particular just stand out to me as kind of weird.

If you have ever taken a tour of Georgetown before becoming a student here, your guide definitely mentioned these traditions: sitting on John Carroll’s lap, stepping around the seal in front of Healy, and going to Epi’s after a night out. But I’m here to call bullshit:

Stepping around The Seal

Tale as old as time, if you step on the seal you’re not going to graduate in four years. I have yet to see any students step on the seal. Mindlessly, we step around a part of the ground, right in front of the doorway out of fear of not graduating on time. I don’t blame us. School is hard. We don’t need a stupid seal causing us more problems.

But what kind of sicko came up with this superstitious claim? One foot on the seal and all your hard work has gone to waste, not to mention all the money you pay for your education. What a fitting metaphor for college life, no matter how hard you try the possibility of failure will still be right on your doorstep.

My theology professor once said, “I just step right on it. It’s right in front of the door.” But then again she doesn’t face any possible consequences from stepping on the seal. If you think about it, to someone who doesn’t know about the seal myth, we probably look completely insane. Avoiding a part of the ground, that doesn’t have dog shit on it, is just odd.

My theory has always been that someone just made up the seal myth so that the seal wouldn’t get ruined from people stepping all over it. Yeah, it’s bullshit, but I’m still not going to any chances…

Sitting on John Carroll’s Lap

The funniest part about this tradition is that it’s not even allowed. I love seeing people climb on to the statue and then GUPD comes around like “Eh, get down from there.” And yet, everyone does it. Let me tell you something, you aren’t fully a Hoya until you’ve sat on a big brass man’s lap. It is truly a transformative experience to be in good ol’ Carroll’s arms.

But honestly, who decided that was a nice place to sit? It gives me creepy mall Santa flashbacks. You know, sitting on someone’s lap that everyone else already sat on and then posing for an awkward picture. Basically just so you can say you did it. Someone really thought to themselves, “this is a nice statue, but it would be even better if my butt was on it.” Like, come on, when you think about it outside of the context of it being a Georgetown tradition, it’s a little weird.

Going to Epi’s at 2am after a night out

If you’ve ever eaten anywhere after 11pm, you probably know the food get substantially less appetizing. The same goes for Epi’s, which is open 24hrs. Pulling a graveyard shift is hard work, and I’m sure the last thing a sleep lacking chef wants to do is cook for drunk girls yelling “oh my god, a grilled cheese would be so good right now.”

If you’re the sober one in the group, you’ve had your heartbroken when you recognize your favorite Epi’s sandwich just isn’t as good at 2am as it is at lunch time. And yet, you still go every time your friends suggest it on a Friday night. But what do they know? Given their less than sober state, they could eat a shoe and call it gourmet.