Some of us at UConn may have heard of Moon Club, an organization that specifically discloses that they are not a cult. But, does anyone really know what it is?
what is moon club?
Moon club meets every full moon (once a month) under the flagpoles near the Philip E. Austin Building. If you RSVP in time, you can even get an Insomnia cookie. I heard about this club last semester and was immediately drawn in by their Instagram page. It is chock full of moon memes and frequent posts on their story.
I have had the pleasure of attending Moon Club twice this semester. When I first found out about the club, it was relatively small and only had a few dozen people at meetings. I was immediately surprised when I showed up and there were hundreds of students who were passionate enough about the moon to attend. The first meeting I went to had live music by the Naked Air Band, which was amazing. Standing under the moon with a bunch of students listening to live music is a unique and indescribable experience; but a great one, to say the least.
A few things typically go down at Moon Club meetings. If it happens to be a cloudy night, whenever the clouds move away from the moon everyone will start cheering and chanting for the moon. You will likely see at least a couple of brave students climbing and hanging out in trees. A lot of people end up standing around with their friends, unsure what exactly they are supposed to be doing. Even if you didn’t RSVP for a cookie, there’s a good chance you’ll still get one. For the most part, students just go for the opportunity of being completely unhinged. It’s hard to expect what exactly will happen at each meeting.
halloween meeting
At their most recent meeting, the Moon club was Halloween-themed. Everyone showed up in a costume and there was even a costume contest (some of my favorites included a Woopie Cushion, an astronaut, an avocado, a yearbook, and Spiderman). This meeting, in particular, was very interesting. I took the opportunity to simply observe as much as I could. Upon arrival, there were a bunch of people just straight-up laying on the ground. There was a healthy amount of clapping and moon chants, some informal live music, cheering, a drum circle, and even a girl doing Tarot Card readings (I got mine done; it was pretty cool!). This time around, there was a professor acting as an advisor because of how many people have been coming (both meetings I went to had a police presence).
my favorite moon memes
Honestly, I think the memes are the best part of Moon Club. Here are some of my faves.
overall IMPRESSION
Moon Club is a lot of things, and many things I still don’t understand, nor am I clear about whether it’s a cult or not. Overall, it’s a very inclusive and friendly environment that has united all sorts of students at UConn. UConn Moon Club has even inspired other schools to create their own moon clubs! I will likely attend other Moon Club meetings and will 100% continue to follow their Instagram. I think most people can agree that it’s one of the most interesting and confusing clubs on campus. But hey, praise the moon (and not the sun)!