[scrantonicity]

Once again, I was very nervous when I met up with my group outside Dasher on Day Three. I felt fairly certain that I was not going to be asked back to Comet, but I still clung to a little bit of hope - maybe that girl yesterday had been sick? Or maybe she was having personal problems? Maybe she realized after I'd left that she hadn't really given me a fair shot, and I deserved to come back! I anxiously took my schedule from Boston and tore it open.......








Party 1 - Dasher
Party 2 - Vixen
Party 3 - Dancer
Party 4 - Blitzen
Party 5 - Prancer

I was STUNNED. NEVER in a million years had it occurred to me that I would be dropped from Jack Frost as well as Comet!!! I was absolutely heartbroken. Why did Christina have to make me feel so comfortable and at home if she was just going to cut me? Had she really been genuine with me, or was she faking it the whole time? I was incredibly upset, I just didn't understand this process at all. Did I even have a say in where I ended up, or was I just being paraded from house to house for show? In hindsight, this would've been an opportune moment to talk to Boston, and tell her what was going on in my head, but I didn't. I just sat there, wallowing in my own misery, and wondering if I should just drop. I decided to text Mary and see what her schedule looked like. She responded immediately: "I'm dropping." What?? Mary was not the type of girl who just up and quit right in the middle of something - and neither was I, I decided. I asked her why, and she told me she'd also been dropped from Comet and just didn't like any of the houses she was left with. She didn't seem to want to give them a chance, and seeing how stubborn she was being made me more certain that I shouldn't just quit. I felt bad for her, but I also thought she was making a huge mistake. Still, I had to worry about myself. There could still be a place for me among my five choices... right?

My day began, thankfully, at Dasher. I say "thankfully" more because this meant I didn't have to leave the tent where I'd gotten my schedule. I'd been very iffy about this house all week, and hoped I would get a better feeling today. Once more, I wasn't picked up by Sasha, which was a little disappointing. I thought talking to someone I knew and trusted about her sisterhood would be more comforting than talking to a stranger. Still, my rusher was a very nice girl. And that was about it. Nothing really stood out about Dasher today. They had a cute video with tons of pictures, but everything seemed a little... forced. Leaving the house, I just felt sort of... blah.

My next house was Vixen, so I was a little bit more excited. I'd really liked most of the girls I'd met here. I was even more happy when Ava (the girl from Day One) picked me up at the door! Unfortunately we weren't given very much time to talk before it was time to watch their chapter's video. I wasn't too impressed. They put a lot of emphasis on famous Vixens, a lot of whom were merely reality TV "stars" or wives of notable politicians. This really rubbed me the wrong way. Was that all Vixen could turn out? Women just smart enough to marry powerful men? I was sure that couldn't be the case (Ava was pre-Med!) but it seemed like a bad call on their part. I then met two more girls, but I didn't have as much of a connection with either of them as I had with Ava. I left feeling kind of let down.

Next up was Dancer - I have to admit, I was not thrilled about going back here. Neither were a lot of girls, apparently. The tent was just buzzing with talk like, "Just stay in the bathroom the whole time," and "Just don't talk to them, maybe they'll cut you." Wow! I may not have felt like this was my future home, but to be rude to a rusher on purpose? That just seemed ridiculous to me. I made up my mind to give this house a fair shot. I was kind of happy to get picked up by Emma (the girl from Day One) again, but I was also being double-rushed. The other PNM had apparently chosen the "Just don't talk to them" route and it made this party feel like it stretched on for hours. I felt horrible for Emma, who was trying SO hard to engage us both. Finally, it was time for their video. I couldn't help but notice that there seemed to be a lot less PNMs in here then there had been at the beginning - I guess there were a lot of girls that decided to hang out in the bathroom. I remember I felt just awful for the Dancers, and made sure I paid close attention to their video. It was pretty good, but it just didn't make me feel like this could be my home. I felt guilty as I left. I didn't want to lead Emma on or take an invitation from a girl who genuinely wanted to be there.

Blitzen - I have to admit, I was curious to see how this party would go, because I'd been on the fence about them from the start. Jessica picked me up at the door again - what was with all these familiar faces today? Didn't anyone else want to meet me? We spent a good amount of time taking a house tour, joined by Jessica's roommate "Liz" and her PNM. I had so much fun! Jessica had a great sense of humor, but when her and Liz teamed up, they were absolutely hilarious! They told us stories about all the random, funny things that happen when you live in a house full of sorority sisters. While Liz was showing her PNM a different room, Jessica took me aside and asked me how my day was going. I told her the truth: "Not so great, until I came here!" She seemed to really appreciate that. She pointed out all sorts of fun things in her room, including some gifts that her big sister had given her. She told me how excited she was to be taking a little sis this year and I couldn't help but think that if I ended up in Blitzen, I would definitely want Jessica to be my big. Back downstairs, it was time to watch the video. It was so cute - instead of just having a slideshow of pictures, they had actual videos of their flag football team, a dance competition, and sisters getting funny awards at semi-formal. They also had interviews with sisters interspersed throughout the video, and Jessica was one of them! She looked very embarassed about this, and I thought it was cute how Liz and another sister were poking her in the ribs and jokingly trying to get her to uncover her face. I definitely didn't want to leave when it was time! How could this be, that a house I had been so iffy about yesterday was now my absolute favorite??

I was in a very good mood when I got to my last house of the day, Prancer. I wasn't feeling very nervous or anxious anymore, mainly because of what a great time I'd just had at Blitzen. I really wanted to just breeze through this party, rank my houses, and go. The first girl I spoke to wasn't entirely memorable, but then it was time for their video. Wow! I loved it almost as much as I'd loved Blitzen's! There weren't any videos, interviews, or fancy editing but a lot of their pictures were just hilarious! The sisters would whistle and holler and say things like, "I love my little!" during the funnier parts. They also had more elegant pictures, like from Formal, Convention, or Founders' Day. They seemed to do a LOT every semester - mother/daughter, father/daughter, socials, philanthropies, service, IM sports... these girls were really active! I was so impressed, and actually pretty surprised by how impressed I was. After the video, I was bumped to a second girl. My first impression of her, I'm ashamed to admit now, was that she was quite big. It didn't take long for us to get into a great conversation, and I immediately regretted thinking that of her. She was amazing! She was full of energy and had the most contagious laugh and smile. The rest of the party just flew by, and not once was there a lull in our conversation.

As I made my way back to my group's tent, I was so amazed by how this day had turned out. After feeling completely crushed and let down at first, I now felt that I knew for sure which three houses I wanted to Pref. Ranking was a breeze, for once:

1. Blitzen
2. Prancer
3. Vixen
4. Dasher
5. Dancer

That night I learned that Kate had been asked back to just four houses today: Cupid, Blitzen, Vixen, and Prancer. I was just as curious about where my roommate would end up as I was about me!

Stay tuned for Prefs!