For pref day, we would build a "pond" in the middle of the living room and surround the "pond" with chairs, where each rushee would sit. We would give each rushee a little "boat" made of styrofoam with a candle in the middle and each rushee's name written on the sail. At the end of the pref ceremony, we would light the candle and tell the rushee to float her little boat on the pond. It was really beautiful - all these floating candles gently illuminating the room and each rushee's name ...

Except for one girl, who we were really rushing hard - she was everything you looked for in a PNM, and the rumor was that she was torn between us and another chapter, but was leaning toward picking us first. Wouldn't you know it - as soon as she sets her boat in the pond, it drifts to the middle and her name goes up in flames.

We didn't know what to do - we couldn't exactly walk through the pond to put it out, because we would have gotten lit by the other candles. I think we handled it the best we could - we just kept singing until her boat burned to the water line, where it extinguished itself.

Needless to say, she pledged the other house. Can't imagine why - I mean, it's not like we set her hair or dress on fire ...

Fortunately, we pledged a lot of the other girls from that pref party, so the burning boat didn't turn off too many other PNMs. And FlameGirl ended up going inactive after she was initiated in the other house, so in the end it all worked out.

Looking back, I wonder how it must have looked as we kept on singing - sort of like Nero fiddling while Rome burned?? I guess we were trying to act cool like it was no big deal, but we probably could have done something else ...

Hi all:

This was kinda embarrassing, but funny @ the same time. I was COB-ing Tri-sigma, and one of the events was cookie baking @ the house.

I get there, and we're making cookies. The sororities' president sits down next to me to "rush" me if you will. As we're talking, I'm mixing the butter and cookie dough. It wasn't cooperating w/me so a sister offered me an electric hand mixer. So as the president is engrossed in our conversation, I start the mixer, and the dough/butter mix FLIES UP AND SPLATTERS IN HER FACE!!!!I WAS MORTIFIED!!! She laughed it off though. I guess it was on too high, lol.:)

Same night:
I walk into the house. I'm impressed. There's a weird spot in the carpet w/ no floorboard underneath it that dips down a bit. Well, I walk in and I'm all "ooohs and ahhhs" at all the old paddles and composites they have. I stepped right into that patch of carpet, tripped (in the middle of talking to someone) and said " Hey, um, your floor is sinking."

I was 100% certain I wouldn't be invited back after all my klutz moments!!
Well, I was a dork, but I guess they saw through it , cuz I was invited back twice more and here I am a new baby violet:)

I think sometimes a "disaster" makes you memorable/endearing, especially if you handle it with humor and good grace.

Turning a PNM's boat into a pyre may be in a category beyond "disaster", however....

While we are discussing fire...
 

So for our pref. night we all get invited to go to our founder's home to hold the ceremony. We are really excited because her entire home is decorated with an ADPI theme. So we decided to float our letters in her indoor pool; on these huge styrophome letters we place lit candles. After our first party, we are waving goodbye and singing and all of a sudden we hear screams. Our Alpha had floated into the side of the pool and one of the candles had been sucked into the filter causing a huge fire. We were all mortified, because we had one more party on their way and we had caught our founder's home on fire. The man of the house put out the fire and we were able to open the glass atrium around the pool. However, the black smoke stains on the walls and the huge smoldering hole in the floor made for an interesting topic starter with out pnm's. Needless to say, our gracious founder is allowing us back this year, no hard feelings. :eek:

As an old RVP I have some great stories.

The first one involves one of our chapter members. We were holding a rush practice and we were going over difficult questions/topics/situations, etc. We generally have to double rush (take in two girls) bc our chapter is small, and so this member actually raised her hand and asked me, "What if my two pnms get into a fistfight?" I was like WTF?! I think I actually asked her, "Why in the hell would your two pnms get into a fistfight?" She depinned a few months later.

Next, while a pnm was walking into our party, she fell down the stairs, totally ate it. It was soooooooooo funny but we were trying not to laugh too hard.

Then while we had this kind of jungle/Hawaiian type theme going on, one of our tiki torches (not lit, thank GOD) fell over and hit a pnm on the head. I was sooooooooo freaking embarassed.

One that rivals some of the other b*tchiest pnm stories: We had these two girls go through who was just horrible. They both were well known XYZ rush crushes and we knew they had it in the bag, but I mean SERIOUSLY......who acts like this? The whole time, they were looking around and laughing at the decorations and stuff, and making fun of some other girl because of what she was wearing. THEN they got into a conversation along the lines of, "if by some horrible chance we dont' get into XYZ, what will we go?" they were having this conversation between the two of them, by this time my sister had kindly removed herself from the conversation and just kinda stood there and listened. So they decide that if XYZ doesnt' take them that ABC would be a disappointing but acceptable second choice. OMG. Now, this was during the first round of parties, and our chapter is very small, so we cut very few girls after first round. WELL........let's just say we didn't invite them back. I had talked with them for a short period of time and I went and told my advisor, if we allow those girls to ever step foot back into this room, I'm quitting.

Re: While we are discussing fire...
 

Ah, nothing says Dedicated Alumna than letting a chapter set your house of fire for a rush party!! I hope y'all dedicate a funny award or whatever for her!!

Bumping this up for the 2004 rush season!

This is why sometimes I think it's perfectly acceptable to leave a PNM in the corner by themselves!!

PsychTau

I still say the PNM who announced she "could use anything as a weapon. I could kill you wiht this fork right now." takes the cake.

Crazy Rush stories
 

Hi everyone, I'm pretty new here but I thought I would add my stories. Some are pretty crazy but not as crazy as others I've heard on here! :-) I was an active member for 4 years. Of course we had interesting characters come through.

One time I picked up a girl who had to be one of the most unfortunate looking people I have ever seen. I hate to sound superificial but we're talking 5 feet tall and close to 200 pounds, no makeup on whatsoever, hair in a blah shoulder-length, a dumpy T-shirt and jeans. But I figured I've gotta talk to her so I might as well give it a shot and be nice. I ask her the usual stuff and she says right away she is from LA, her dad is an executive TV producer for blah blah blah and she knows all these celebrities in fact they had Dylan McDermott over for dinner just last week...this girl wouldn't stop name-dropping and mentioning how much money her dad makes. I could hardly get a word in edgewise about Sigma Kappa, our sisters, etc as she told me about going to high school with so-and-so's kid. It was all I could do to keep from laughing, I have met these types before but usually in the form of drop-dead gorgeous girls. From what I heard she did this at every house, I guess in effort to impress them but with looks like she had it was useless....she got dropped by every house except the chapter that was recolonizing after day one.

Thought that was long? I have one more :) Not about a PNM but its a rush story nonetheless

Right before my first rush as an active (informal Spring rush) we were getting the house ready for PNMs to arrive. Some sisters go outside to decorate the front walkway, writing the PNMs names in chalk (it was the invite only/bid day). Suddenly one sister comes running in, saying "Call the cops! There's a sicko outside!" apparently while the girls were outside a man was in the bushes watching them, pants in one hand and one-eyed trouser snake in the other. As soon as our member noticed him she ran inside and he walked off towards the fraternity next to us. We thought he was gone then realized no he was hiding behind their deck, still watching and..."finishing up" I guess. New members and cops show up within 10 minutes, 5 of our girls were giving their accounts to the cops as girls line up out in front catching every detail. Sure enough the cops go, bust the guy and cuff him all within 20 feet of our front door. The guy was holding his pants and a jar of hand cream. Pretty sick stuff! :eek:

Re: Crazy Rush stories
 

OH MY GAWD! :eek: I am speechless on that one.

Re: Crazy Rush stories
 

aww man, i am trying to get over the stomach flu. this did not help:eek:

Last year, the night before skit night of rush there was an electrical fire in our chapter room.... So, the house had to be evacuated, and a fire truck came. Of course, our house is in the very middle of sorority row, so the girls from all the other houses start coming outside to see what's going on. The, 2 more fire trucks came.... Great! We didn't really freak out until we saw them taking the big huge fire hose INTO our house!

Well, it turned out that there was only a little hole in one wall by the light switch... less than a foot wide. So, maybe we didn't really need to freak out.

Oh, but the story gets better.......

After the fire trucks left, one of the younger girls started really freaking out, having an anxiety attack or something... She kept saying that the house was gone, and they were like, "You're sitting on the front porch!" :rolleyes: So, then the fire trucks and an ambulence came AGAIN to take care of the girl!
:confused:

So, yeah it was interesting. At least some of the other houses maybe got a laugh out of it, and it made for an interesting story for the PNMs the next day.

On the topic of fire...
 

I forgot all about this until Lindz posted her story and it reminded me!
When I was going through rush I was at my second pref party at KD. I loved this house and the girl rushing me was so cool I had already gotten to know her throughout rush, and it broke my heart being there because I already knew I was going Sigma Kappa. Anyway so the KDs and the PNMs are seated in the dining room at these long dining tables (probably 10 people each side at least) with flowers and lit candles, back before all the rules about no real candles being used came out it was really beautiful. And of course the girl rushing me is pulling out the ol' pref night charm & tears and its just a very special moment when one sisters asks her to please pass a napkin. As my rusher reaches over, she knocks over a candle and sets the paper tablecloth up in flames! Seriously I don't know how it caught fire so fast, but finally a couple a girls started dumping all the glasses of soda onto it.
Not a funny story for sure! But a rush event to remember. I felt so bad for my rusher too, she probably thinks I didn't join because of her clumsy goof :(

I hope you're feeling better smiley :)