Shields Library is closed through January 1. Requests for books, digitization services, and interlibrary loan will be fulfilled after the new year.
Gerome the gnome highlights a frosh dink for Aggie Traditions Day
In celebration of Aggie Traditions Day today, Gerome has decided to highlight one of the past Aggie traditions, the frosh dink.
The frosh dink tradition, which featured members of the freshman class wearing caps known as dinks, dates back to at least 1923. According to the California Aggie Freshman Handbook that year, “Freshman must wear the Frosh hat at all times and should be proud to do so.” The dinks, which were blue with a gold button and had “Cal Aggie” lettered in gold across the front, were worn by all freshmen to classes and meetings. If the freshmen won the Frosh-Soph Brawl, which occurred during the first month of classes, they could stop wearing the dinks immediately. However, if the sophomores won the brawl, the freshmen had to wear the dinks until the Pajamarino Rally, which was held during Homecoming Weekend. This campus tradition went out of fashion in the 1960s.