Rosie the Roach met a tragic end on the staircase of the Anthropology building at Texas A&M University. Whether it was death by stomping, or all the drinking and smoking finally caught up her, we may never know.
She lay lifeless, on her back with her legs in the air, unnoticed for at least two weeks before one kindhearted soul marked the significance of her loss with a paper grave.
Professor Michael Alvard shared the touching sentiment and the incredible shrine that grew on social media over the following fortnight.
“There has been a dead cockroach in the Anthropology building’s stairwell for at least two weeks. Some enterprising person has now made her a little shrine,” he posted along with this picture on Facebook on December 4.
Ever the observant anthropologist, he continued recording his observations, posting this later that day:
“Interesting…” he noted of the flowers, Band-Aids and bulldog clip left in honour of the departed insect.
The tributes – including a lollipop, cigarette (because what roach doesn’t love a smoke) and a ‘Never Forget’ sign – kept flowing:
He posted the following day: “There is a candle now and a little coffin for the carcass… And for the record, I had nothing to do with the genesis of this memorial.”
Top Comments
This probably started as a dig to the cleaning staff. My university's chemistry department cleaning stuff is much the same - we've got a lot of cobwebs and daddy-long-leg spiders in the buildings, and the bins routinely either aren't emptied (fun over a long weekend when you come back to bugs in your office) or never come back. They also left all the doors unlocked and open when cleaning the floors one weekend, resulting in multiple thefts from offices (fortunately not the chemical labs).