Ok back!
So from being on campus for a year, plus going through the first round of recruitment I knew a few things about each house:
Tomatoes- Tomatoes were generally accepted to be 'the best' house on campus. I had gone to one of their Open Houses in spring. At the house I had met this really great girl, we'll call her Anna. She was on the Exec board of the sorority as well as Student Government. She seemed really down to earth and not at all like the rep that the house had for being snooty. I was definitely excited to see what Tomatoes had to offer.
Carrots- I didn't know much about Carrots. I had liked their house when I had visited last year but I didn't have any strong feelings really one way or another about them.
Artichokes- I didn't know much about the Artichokes either. I knew that they had the highest GPA of any sorority pretty consistently which was pretty important to me because I'm looking to go to Med school and I felt like I could connect better with girls who understood how important school was to me. My old roommate had pref'd this house last year but had listed it second because she had heard rumors about a 'party' reputation. I wasn't going to hold much truth to these rumors, it seemed unlikely that the house with the highest GPA would be a 'party' house.
Spinach- Spinach was the smallest house on campus. I had a friend who had pledged there but dropped out because she felt that girls there had been nasty to her. I really didn't want to get this house.
Potatoes- I didn't know much about Potatoes. They were a fairly new chapter, and I didn't know anyone in the house.
Eggplants- I had really liked the Eggplants when I rushed last year. They seemed like really classy, well put together women and I loved their philanthropy. I was really excited to go to Eggplants.
Lettuce- Lettuce had been one of my favorite houses the year before. They were also considered one of 'the best' houses on campus. However, they had had a scandal with one of their members involving drugs the year before. I wasn't going to let one bad apple ruin the bunch, however. I was definitely excited to learn more about Lettuce.
Mushrooms- My previous roommate had pledged them last year, though she had not been very active in the sorority. We had had a big fight in the Winter and I moved out. I had found her an extremely vain person who cared more about this sorority's prestigious status than connecting with girls in it. I pretty much ruled out this house because even if I did like it, we disliked each other enough that I'm sure she would never allow me to join her sorority.
Squash- I knew a couple girls in squash through my new roommate and a couple from around campus. I liked the ones I knew from around campus, but the one's a knew through my roommate really rubbed me the wrong way. They had been very rude when they came over to our house during the summer. I had apprehensions about this sorority.
Cucumbers- I knew a lot of girls in Cucumbers and I liked them all. They had had a reputation as a 'lower tier' house but were working hard to turn that around. They were generally respected as an up and coming house.
Though I realize now I should have given more of a chance to other houses I really had my heart set on Lettuce, Eggplant and Tomatoes.