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Day Five, otherwise known as...

BID DAY:

I woke up and looked at my clock radio. I still remember after all these years- it was 4:11 in the morning. 65Mustang did not seem to be awake, so I was quiet. I did some things I figured would be helpful in making me want to go back to sleep- I went to the restroom, drank some water, inspected my eyebrows to make sure they didn't need a pluck. Then I lay back down- having successfully not woken up my sister- and tried to sleep. Ha ha ha! I had set the clock radio for 7:45, so I couldn't unplug it, but at 5:04 I turned it around so I couldn't see what time it was anymore. And 65Mustang was sleeping like a baby. How unfair was that?

Suddenly the clock radio blared with the Pet Shop Boys' "West End Girls" and it was 7:45. 65Mustang and I both bolted awake, then looked at each other and laughed. She beat me into the shower, but because we didn't want to miss the phone calls, we each spent about 5 minutes in there! This was totally unlike the shower I had taken on Monday, the first day of rush! We were also starving but really didn't want to leave the room. We decided to flip a coin to see who would go to our cafeteria and get food to go and bring it back to our room. I was born first, so I chose heads and flipped the quarter. It was tails, which meant that 65Mustang got to stay in the room- and I had to go get the food! How unfair was that? (are you sensing a pattern here, lol) I got our food and came back to the room, where we ate in relative silence. 65Mustang called 57Chevy and asked her if she had gotten the call yet. 57Chevy said, and I quote this, "If you call me again before I call you, I will kill you!" and she hung up! So 65Mustang and I had something to laugh about while we watched some stupid morning show on tv.

We were starting to get nervous, because we really had to leave the room by 9:40 to make our 10:00 classes, but then the phone rang at 9:22! 65Mustang grabbed the phone first! Unfair again! I looked at her face as she talked to the Rho Chi, and when a smile crept over her face I knew she would be welcomed into a sorority! Then she passed the phone to me, and I discovered that it was my Rho Chi on the phone. She said, "Good morning, 66Camaro! I just wanted to inform you that I have a bid envelope with your name on it!" I almost screamed, "thank you thank you thank you!" She laughed and said she would see both of us later this afternoon. She told us to wear casual clothes- tee shirts, shorts, and tennis shoes- and to meet at a particular park on campus at the appropriate time.

Oh my gosh! 65Mustang and I were both going to have tons of new sisters! We were thrilled! We both went to our classes, and I don't know about her, but I was squirming in my seat through both of my classes. We met up with 57Chevy, who had also received a bid to somewhere, at the cafeteria at the student center. Her and 65Mustang's Rho Chi had called her after we had gotten our call, so by the time she tried to call us back and let 65Mustang know she was not going to kill her, we had already left. We were so excited, we could barely eat, but we managed to choke down sandwiches because we heard that there would be lots of activities that afternoon. We were just dying while we waited for the Rho Chis to move things from the ballroom to the park on campus (remember, anyone who had an early morning class and couldn't be by their phones until 10:00 had to report to the ballroom by 12:00 to see if they had a bid or not). And finally, fifteen minutes before the appointed time, we walked across the street from the student center to the campus park.

In the middle of the park, there is a small outdoor stage, and the Rho Chis were set up there. They all sat on the edge of the stage, with their legs dangling over, and they were dressed in- black plastic garbage bags and dark sheets? I didn't know what that meant, and I was puzzled. I went to my Rho Chi, and she smiled really big at me as she handed me my envelope. She told me I wasn't allowed to open it yet, because shortly all the rushees in attendance would open them at the same time. I said to her, "No way!" and then laughed. I had been waiting all week, and now I had to wait some more?? Then I asked her why she was wearing trash bags. She grinned and explained that all the Rho Chis had something to show us just before we opened our envelopes. Then I realized that she must have been dressed in her sorority's letters or something! How funny- I knew all along that my Rho Chi was in a sorority, but it had never occurred to me to think twice about that. I laughed to myself.

57Chevy and 65Mustang both held sealed white envelopes. New co-rushee lunch friend held a sealed white envelope. Even sophomore badmouther was there, holding a sealed white envelope. New co-rushee lunch friend leaned in close to the rest of us and whispered some news that was interesting to us-

Sophomore badmouther had only gotten invited to one pref party, and it was not Jet Black's, which was the place that she had been so hopeful she would get into! I was shocked to hear that. New co-rushee lunch friend had talked to a few of the girls while we were waiting, and it turned out that sophomore badmouther had been well-known to the chapters because of her poor attitude towards the non Jet Black chapters during their parties. Apparently sitting in the ballroom on pref night during two parties and only going to see one chapter had taught her a lesson, because she looked happy, and I thought to myself- she knows where she is going and is still happy about it, so good for her.

Suddenly, one of the Rho Chis started announcing things over a bullhorn, and all of us turned towards the stage. The Rho Chis gave us a sweet little speech about the week and our patience and our good attitudes and things like that. And then, they ripped off their trash bags and sheets and revealed their affiliations- and my Rho Chi was a Midnight Blue! I felt bad for a second because I had "cut" them after the first two nights, but what a good Rho Chi she was- she didn't try to make me change my mind or steer me in a particular direction, and she had genuinely been concerned about me when I didn't feel well. I decided to send her a thank-you card when all this was over. 65Mustang and 57Chevy's Rho Chi turned out to be a Sky Blue Metallic.

While the rest of the Rho Chis revealed their affiliations, 65Mustang and I decided to do something corny. We decided we would stand back to back when we opened our envelopes, then turn the cards so that when we turned around to face each other, we could see the other's card.

And then, it was time for the moment of truth! The Panhellenic president announced, "Girls, open your envelopes and view your bids!"

65Mustang and I stood back to back. While we counted to 3, I saw co-rushee lunch friend open her envelope and shout. 65Mustang and I could barely hear each other, but we counted to three and opened our envelopes.

And in my envelope was an invitation to-

join a sorority! :D

I screamed when I read the words on the invitation and saw the colors. I knew that this place would be the right place for me. I hadn't heard 65Mustang scream, and it made me nervous. She asked me if I was ready, and I positioned my card and said yes. She said she was ready, and we both turned around to see that-

we were BOTH invited to become sisters of CANDY APPLE RED!!!!!!

Also known as- CHI OMEGA!!!!

We screamed and hugged each other! We turned around and hugged 57Chevy and co-rushee lunch friend. 57Chevy was invited to Violet Sparkle!! Co-rushee lunch friend was invited to Sky Blue Metallic!!! We all gathered in our new pledge groups and then all of us ran to our new sisters, screaming and jumping up and down and carrying on underneath the "checkered" flag of our new sisterhood!!

The rest of the weekend passed in a whirlwind. We had all kinds of activities that day, including relay races, tug-of-war, and other outside events. On Saturday night, we had a new member sleepover at the Candy Apple Red house. (There were three chapters who had small houses about 10 minutes away from campus- the other two were Jet Black and Sky Blue Metallic.) Later that semester, my sister and I were teary-eyed as we were initiated into our sisterhood- together.

A few notes:

57Chevy had been a legacy to two groups- Violet Sparkle and Midnight Blue. Her big sister in Violet Sparkle became none other than 68VWConvertible!!!

Co-rushee lunch friend and I remained pretty good friends during our college careers, even though our sororities competed against one another during Homecoming Week and Greek Week and things like that. We used to play up our rivalry by doing "smack talk" when we saw each other on campus. :cool:

Sophomore badmouther had accepted a bid to Midnight Blue, the only place where she had been invited for pref night. She apparently did learn some humility, because over time, she thrived and did very well in her sorority. I saw her from time to time and even though we weren't close, we would say hello and chit chat sometimes.

The Silver Streak chapter struggled with membership for about four or five more semesters, then was totally revamped one spring when all the remaining current members (they were numbered in the single digits by then) were granted alumnae status and totally new girls came in. The chapter became very strong and lost its "those poor girls" reputation very quickly after that.

In fact, 65Mustang had attended pref parties for both Jet Black and Silver Streak. That "something" about those girls that I said that I liked those first two days? She must have sensed it too, because she kept giving them the chances that I didn't. It was that chapter that the girls in her group said mean things about, and it was that chapter that was her frontrunner until, on pref night, she felt like their "second choice" when they told her I had not attended pref there. She said suddenly the place didn't feel right to her, and she realized that the place where she had felt "comfortable" all week (I think someone else said that a few times, hmm) was Candy Apple Red.

I did send my Rho Chi that thank-you card, as well as a bouquet of pink roses. :D She had been so sweet to me. I tried to model myself after her when I was a Rho Chi later.

Thank you all for reading my story! I am not a regular poster on Greek Chat, but my friend who is convinced me to register and post my rush experience. I will let her reveal herself if she chooses to. I hope you all enjoyed reading it!