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Preference Night
I opened up my invite list and was relieved to find that, for the first time since Open House parties, I had a full schedule. I was returning to From a Distance, Hold On and Pump Up the Jam.
Heather dropped out of recruitment before Preference Night. I am not sure whether this was because she was dropped by all the houses she liked or by all of the houses altogether. I can’t remember what Amy had for Preference Night other than From a Distance which was her clear first choice. Before Preference Night, Amy learned that she had some sort of an emergency at home. It may have been a fire at her parents' home, but I am not sure anymore. Because of that, she could not attend the parties for Preference Night. However, Amy didn’t drop out of recruitment. She told the recruitment counselors what was going on, and they told her they would notify the houses of the reason why Amy was not in attendance at the Preference Night parties.
Preference Night was dressy, with the PNMs and members wearing cocktail style dresses or dressier. I had a pretty, but simple, black dress that fell to just above the knee and had long sleeves and a tie at the waste. The houses did a take on a progressive dinner: The first house served salad, the second a heavy appetizer and the third a dessert. Unlike the other rounds, I can remember the order in which I went to the houses on Preference Night and will do the recap in that order. Here we go:
Pump Up the Jam: There was still daylight during this party, which ruined the mood during the candlelight part of the Pref ceremony. Since this was the first party, salad was served, and I remember having difficulty eating it gracefully. (Once I was on the other side of recruitment, I hated it if my rush crush turned out to be scheduled for the first party on Pref, because you couldn’t do anything about the lighting, salad or fact that there was a chance that the party would be less memorable after the PNM attended the other two parties.) The members at Pump Up the Jam all wore black dresses and looked very nice. These women seemed to have a very strong sisterhood, but I just didn’t feel that I would be happy in this house.
From a Distance: It was dusk when we entered and dark by the time we finished the appetizer. The members wore all white dresses which looked angelic in the candlelit ceremony. The members in this house still struck me as very genuine. This house had the reputation as being the “good girls” who cared about grades and not partying. From my observations, that reputation seemed accurate and was something I liked.
Hold On: The women at this house looked beautiful and were dressed in black dresses. The house looked gorgeous, and I was paired with the woman who I had spent time with during the House Tours and Activities Day parties. The letters I received from the members and the ceremony were both very touching. The women I had met at Hold On seemed diverse from each other, yet they seemed to have a close sisterhood. I felt special and comfortable, and this party solidified that my first choice was Hold On.
So, I filled out my bid preference card and ranked Hold On as my first choice and From a Distance as my second choice. Bid Day was the next day, and all the PNMs were to meet in their recruitment groups in a field to open their bids. We were told that we would get a call if we didn’t get a bid to any sorority. So I went to bed, nervous about whether I would get a call or find that I did not get a bid to Hold On.
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