Cheese Club – SUNY Purchase
If you are not lactose-intolerant, you probably love cheese. While on campus, a student might miss homemade cheese recipes. Hence at SUNY Purchase, students formed to relish everything that is cheese. They would even have weekly taste tests so that members and students, perhaps even the staff, could try out various cheeses. This may seem to overdo it just for cheese, but cheese is among staple food not only in the US but in the rest of the world, too. Cheesemaking is also an excellent craft to master. For sure there are online classes for that, but nothing beats actual work at a farm, with the milk straight from the cows. This is most likely in the club’s line of interest, too.
The Durham University Assassins’ Society
In the world of online games, we usually just throw the word “assassin” around, as if it is not a severe crime to assassinate people. No one should normalize hurting people. But this is what precisely The Durham University Assassins’ Society did. They have fun running various games during the school year at Durham University. These games range in duration from a few hours to weeks, where they attempt to “kill” other players using a cardboard knife or a Nerf gun. They even give out awards to its members. Founded in 1996, the club follows strict rules, given the nature of the organization. Among the rules is that any violation of the law, which would involve lawyers eventually, is prohibited. They are also not allowed to put any person or property in harm’s way.
Humans vs. Zombies – Goucher College
Students at Goucher College started a trendy live-action game where everyone starts as humans, and then they either become zombies or survive as a human being. Humans can use defense weapons approved by the game moderator. Those turned into zombies should attempt to turn others, too. There are also safe zones, where no attacks could happen. They are also forbidden from attacking while classes are ongoing. This game was invented in 2005 by Chris Weed and his friends at Goucher College, but this has spread to over 1,000 campuses now. If you are participating in one of these games, a great degree of care must be exercised to remain human. The game would end when everyone becomes a zombie, or the humans have defended themselves for a set time.
The Order Of The Occult Hand
Pranksters relish at the thought of being mischievous and not being caught. Journalists are no exception to becoming pranksters either. It would be a scary thought, however, if pranksters get together and come up with the most creative prank. Such was the case when The Order Of The Occult Hand was formed. Journalists thought that they could insert the phrase “It was as if an occult hand had” into a print and then hope that no one would notice. Police reporter Joseph Flanders was able to do this, and his peers lauded him for being able to do it. This started the formation of the organization back in 1965. Thirty years later, the club’s use of the phrase was finally exposed, and so the members had to meet and choose a new phrase. Thirty years of remaining undiscovered is a remarkable feat, so we give them credit for that!
The Hemlock Society
Some people believe that we should have the right to end our life when experiencing a terminal illness. This is so that we would leave this world according to our terms and not only after life-support are the only ones sustaining us. This was the belief of Derek Humphry, who founded The Hemlock Society in 1980. Lawyers would, of course, argue that only the state can take life legally. Religious figures, on the other hand, will say that we should let nature take its course. But those who joined the organization supported Derek’s cause. Membership, however, reached its peak in the 1990s and declined from there. They eventually rebranded to “End of Life Choices” and then merged with Compassion and Choices in 2004.
Mustache Club – Carleton College
Who does not love a mustache? People had been fascinated with a mustache since time immemorial, and many good men have sported them over the years. Many famous men have mustaches like Tom Selleck, Hulk Hogan, Burt Reynolds, and even the late Freddie Mercury. Students at Carleton College are encouraged to not only group facial hair but also to invite women to support them. The club recognizes the role of women in spreading awareness about mustaches and is calling on them to express their love for it. This is considered weird because it focuses on the sole part of the human body that others might not consider as essential. But with diversity, it is always good to note that we all have different preferences. We also give the club credit and kudos for involving women.
The Ejection Tie Club
This is an ironic club because the requirement to get in is first to be ejected. Yes, it means pilots of fighter planes or other types of aircraft that had to remove themselves from the plane and then survive. It is also an advertisement of sorts because those who are likely to survive would have made investments in a Martin-Baker seat, the seat used by the pilots, and helps them during the ejection process. You would think that this club would have only a few members. After all, how many plane ejections have we heard on the news? Virtually, none. But the club has over 5,800 members worldwide. This might make you afraid to fly planes, but do not worry as ejection usually happens in military aircraft. Flying also remains the safer option when traveling long distances.
The Harvard Tiddlywinks Society – Harvard University
This sounds like a club dedicated to a fairy-like creature, but it is not. The organization was formed for the appreciation of the interactive board game played using small discs called winks. The objective is for the winks to land on the winks of the opponents by flipping them using a squidger—a larger disk. If you think of it, this is just like a chess club. The organization follows the rules of the games; they also have local and national competitions. Manual dexterity is needed in the game as the players can be extremely competitive. With online classes being the norm now, however, it would be difficult to play a physical game. Perhaps a digital version could be developed, where users can flip using the mouse instead.
The Beefsteak Club
Steaks used to be limited and expensive that regular people could not afford it. But now, steaks are everywhere and are affordable for most people. But in England, they had taken the love for beefsteak to a whole new level by forging a society dedicated to loving and eating steaks. This is an ultra-exclusive club that only allows 24 individuals to become members. Only when one of them passes on that a new member can be recruited. So no, not even the Prince of Wales can get in that easily. As the name suggests they celebrate everything beef steak. During their meetings, they fire up the gas stove or the grill and eat the steak cuts. They talk about how fantastic steak is, sing about it, and even wear funny outfits and a badge with the words “Beef and Liberty”.
Students for an Orwellian Society – Columbia University
Harry Potter clubs exist for a reason. That is because the fans have a deep appreciation of the work and the author. The same enthusiasm can be observed from students who saw it fit to organize under the core belief that George Orwell’s Ingsoc, a totalitarian-style regime is the best way to rule the world and the countries. Ingsoc is the totalitarian government used in fictional Oceania in the book 1984. You probably would think this is an extreme organization. A totalitarian state, after all, may not have a need for lawyers, human rights advocates, or priests as everything would be controlled by the state. This ideology is not limited to students of Columbia University as other universities have established their own SOS chapters.