Rats! Episode 70 – Turn About Is Fair Play

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Do cadets at Virginia Tech still do Turn-About Day? I remember it fairly well. The upper classmen always did their damnedest to make the new cadets miserable all day long, because hey, turn-about is fair play, right? Only I can honestly never recall any new cadet who went out of their way to make an upper classman miserable. Yeah, I can recall some new cadets who did some really dumb stuff (I’m looking at you, freshman who insisted on drinking so much that you ended up puking your feet out your mouth and into the toilet on the very first night you got pass). And I can remember some new cadets who did some stuff accidentally or out of ignorance that didn’t make a lot of people happy (I fell into that category more than once). But I cannot recall a freshman cadet who went out of their way to upset or make miserable an upper classman. That would have been beyond stupid.

So turn-about really wasn’t fair play, and it was never going to be fair play, so whatever.

But I would like to know if the VTCC still does Turn-About Day, and if any rats out there think it’s fun.

About Cynical Woman

Cartoonist, Artist, Geek, Evil Crafter, Girl Scout Troop Leader and Writer. Also, a zombie. I haven't slept in I don't know how long.
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6 Comments

  1. Rat son reports turn-about day still exists. Freshmen get to act like upper classmen, but upper classmen don’t have to act as freshmen. Like so many great old Corp traditions, it has been diluted down so as not to offend anyone. sadly, torture, dragging, flogging-all gone. After the first few weeks as freshmen, they might as well be in Delta House.

  2. The Corps unfortunately no longer practices Turn-About Day, but we do have something called Shadow Day. Basically, we auction off all the upperclassmen jobs in the Corps, and for one day the freshmen do all their jobs- right up to Regi CO. It’s similar to Turn-About day except none of the upperclassmen have to act like freshmen.

    I’m a sophomore this year, and I thought Shadow Day was a lot of fun last year, (even if it was just walking in the middle of the sidewalk and being able watch TV in my room).

  3. We have Shadow Day now. I bought one of my Cadre sergeants, and got a cadre shirt! The upperclassmen that are ‘bought’ are still upperclassmen, but we get to talk to them.

    However, it was freaking amazing. We played with nerf guns in the UA, blasted music, and basically did nothing all day.

  4. Ashley,

    That definitely sounds like more fun than the Turn-About Day I remember. I was run out of my room by screaming upper class men demanding to be inspected!

  5. MShirk,

    Cool. I think Shadow Day sounds more like an opportunity to learn about being an upperclassman than Turn-About Day was. I can’t speak for my fellow rats, but I thought it was sheer lunacy and I was glad when the day was over.

  6. Rat daddy,

    I hate to say this, but on the weekends when I was at VT, Rasche Hall was Delta House. People got pass for an evening and came back puking up their shoes! I hope that has been tamed somewhat. Nothing worse than trying to take care of a rat who’s just been sick all over the company area.

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