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Before school started, all freshman had to attend PREP, a type of orientation. My roommate for that weekend was a legacy to Apple through her sister. I’ll call her Natalie. Natalie was the only person I knew when I rolled into town the week before school started to go through rush. We stayed in a dorm on campus for the whole week. I came armed with my sister’s yearbook so I could figure out who all the Rho Chis were.
My Rho Chi was a Watermelon, so I quickly decided that she couldn’t help me. My roommate was a cute blonde named Suzie, and she was in my Rho Chi group. I guess they picked roommates for everyone by Rho Chi group.
Open House
The sorority dorm was the site for Open House. Each group had a wing in the dorm. Strawberry and Cherry had opposite wings on the first floor since they’d been on campus the longest. Apple was above Strawberry, and Watermelon was above Cherry. We were taken to the doors to each chapter’s hall before the party started. You could hear the sisters competing to scream louder than all of the other chapters, kicking and stomping and clapping, so you can imagine how loud things could get!
Apple- We entered Apple from the courtyard stairs. The sisters were dressed in polo shirts with Apple embroidered over the breast paired with khaki shorts and a weird apron tied around their waists. I couldn’t figure out the point of their outfits, but since I was going to be an Apple, I would get used to them! I was picked up by a very thin girl at the door and taken to the chapter room. The decorations were okay, but the couches were a little shabby. Small talk was really difficult with this chapter. We never got beyond majors/hometowns. I made sure to tell her that my sister was a Cherry. I wanted to make sure she knew that I was Greek material. Halfway through the party, they showed us a video with pictures from all of their parties. They looked like they had fun!
Watermelon- I immediately could see why this chapter was considered to be less desirable...the chapter room seemed empty compared to Apple’s even with all the rushees included. The chapter room itself made Apple’s look like a 5 star hotel! The girls seemed nice but pretty awkward. I chatted with a couple of sisters, watched their video then noted during their tour that none of their rooms were decorated in Watermelon memorabilia.
Strawberry- The door to Strawberry opened, and I immediately saw a HIDEOUS painting on their wall completely in my most hated color. Apparently it was Strawberry’s color since their couches were that color, as well as the carpet in their chapter room. I remember very little about this party since I was stunned by the ugliness!
Cherry- My last party was Cherry. More screaming could be heard through the Cherry door in the dorm lobby, but I was too tired to care. Smiling and making small talk had given me a horrendous tension headache. All I wanted to do was go home and sleep! (I can't imagine how people make it through 8 parties or more a day at big Greek schools!) When the door opened, we marched down the hall and were picked up by sisters who took us to the chapter room. I waved at my sister as I passed her in the hall. Cherry’s chapter room was better maintained than Apple’s. Yet again, the small talk was basic. I didn’t really click with the girl rushing me, though she identified herself as Katie’s adopted big sis, Mandy. We saw their video and then went from room to room so they could tell us about their finances, philanthropy, etc.
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