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I arrived on campus so excited to be a part of everything… I got involved in a lot of organizations, went out regularly, and tried my best to meet lots of people. But, I had trouble letting my guard down and although I was friendly, I never really put myself out there enough to make strong friendships that first semester, especially with sorority women. Although a lot of sorority women sought me out and rushed me, I was too nervous to seem like I really liked one group more than another because I was terrified that might get me cut or make me seem like I thought I had it in the bag (even though I totally thought I did).
Also, like any private school, there were tremendous displays of wealth at my school. I wasn't from a family that struggled by any means, but while I thought a Coach or Kate Spade handbag was "designer", the girls I was around looked at Coach in the same way I looked at Old Navy – a basic. It was all about Louis Vuitton, Prada and Christian Dior. I loved my NineWest shoes, but many of these girls talked on and on about their Manolos. Determined to fit in and used to being the best, I decided to not let this stop me. This was in the early days of Bluefly.com, so I started to pay attention and figure out ways to budget to get those must have items as soon as possible. My mother, who never went to college and wanted the best for me, could see that I didn't feel like I dressed right, so she quickly stepped up to try and boost my self confidence and took me shopping over Parents' Weekend and when I went home for Thanksgiving.
I met so many sorority girls in different ways. The main way to meet them at my school was through fraternity parties. Sorority girls wore their letters out at night and it gave us all an opportunity to see what each house was like socially. I also met sorority girls through my classes, a Bible study I was in, and some campus organizations. My dorm was a mixed dorm as well, and the girls on my hall were members of various chapters.
I went home for the holidays and went shopping with my mother for perfect rush outfits. I had never had so many new clothes all at once, and I was so excited to show them off at formal recruitment. Also, I received a couple of holiday cards from sorority women and was super excited to see which sorority's letters I would wear!
I came back a night early for our pre-recruitment meeting. I was so excited and can remember making a list with all of my friends on where we thought people would end up. Most people thought I would go Boston or Atlanta. My roommate was probably going New York or Los Angeles. A lot of girls wanted either New York or Atlanta. And a lot were at least vocally really open minded.
So immediately prior to formal recruitment, this was my perspective on each chapter:
Chicago - One of the best chapters on campus for sure. They were blonde, wealthy, from all over the US, and a lot of fun at parties. They had a reputation for having a drug problem, although I think that was mostly unfounded. I didn't think that I would ever, ever want to be one, because although they were a good chapter, I was brunette and not really that wealthy. I wanted to be the best, but I also didn't want to feel like I stuck out like a sore thumb.
New York - Again, this chapter had a reputation for being smarties. My Bible study leader was a New York and she was really sweet, but most of her friends were Atlantas. Some girls down the hall from me were also New Yorks, but they just seemed a little bit too nerdy for me. A lot of the freshman I knew , including my annoying roommate, really wanted to be New York', which discouraged me further. I would have been okay with being a New York, but I certainly wasn't dying to be one.
Boston - Definitely a great house with a great reputation. Bostons were pretty, sweet, and fun. Some were more Conservative, others went out a lot. They had a reputation for being really wealthy, but at this school, who didn't really. Most of my friends thought I would end up as a Boston, and I have to say, I was incredibly flattered everytime someone said that. I had gone to a lot of parties and met a lot of Bostons at them. Many of my girlfriends all wanted Boston too, and we knew that some of the sophomore Boston sisters were really pulling for us.
Las Vegas - I did not like this house at all, but a lot of other girls did. Everyone I met from this house was kind and laid back, but they just didn't seem to fit in with the school or the rest of the Greeks. They partied way too much and had an unflattering reputation. They might have had parties with all of the cool fraternities, but let's just say it wasn't because those boys wanted to marry Las Vegas girls. I knew that this house was too social oriented for me. I liked to go out, but I didn't think I could keep pace with these girls at all. I knew that the girls I had met from there really liked me, because they called me and invited me to dirty rush parties (tsk, tsk!), which made me scared that somehow other sororities would find out and I would be stuck with Las Vegas.
Los Angeles - This was the most competitive chapter on our campus because there is not one thing you could dislike about them. They were sweet Southern girls, really similar to the Bostons, but probably a little less focused on social activities and more focused on campus activities. I loved them and had the benefit of having gone to high school with their President-elect.
Houston - I don't think I ever thought about Houston at all in the first semester. They had a poor reputation on campus, had a poor recruitment the year prior, etc. My neighbor across the hall was a Houston, but she never did anything with Houston, never wore her letters, etc. I don't even think I knew she was in a sorority until November!
Miami - One of my floormates, Lauren, was a Miami, and I LOVED her to death. She was definitely my closest friend in a sorority and I would have loved to have been her sister, except she told me pretty early on that she would be happy for me to go wherever I chose. I read into this and thought she didn't really like her sorority. Later on she told me that she had really wanted to be a Boston and had grown up with a lot of Bostons, but even though she went there on pref night, ended up with Miami. She said being a Miami was fun, but I could tell it wasn't the same as being a Boston, at least not socially and reputation wise. I didn't have a bad opinion of Miami, but I knew it wasn't the best house on campus and I was sort of nervous that I might end up there and I didn't know how proud I would be to wear my letters.
Atlanta - I still loved Atlanta. They were awesome! Everyone I had met in Atlanta was really nice. Jenny, across the hall from me was an Atlanta, and I loved spending time with her. She invited me out to a lot of stuff and made sure I met plenty of her sisters. I also received phone calls from the alums who helped me prepare for recruitment telling me that Atlanta really wanted me. I had heard rumors about girls being RTP-ed, and it was pretty clear to me that the alums definitely considered me RTP material. This chapter of Atlanta was really involved on campus, had beautiful members, a high GPA and also made me feel like I was one of them.
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