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DAY ONE:
My first class wasn't until 10, but I woke up at 6:30 because I couldn't sleep. I felt like, oh my God, I'm in college, I'm in college, I'm in college! And then I thought, oh my God, rush starts tonight! I forced myself not to start rifling through my closet to decide what I would wear that night so I wouldn't wake 65Mustang. I took a shower instead and washed my hair about three times, making sure to clean and condition each strand because I just knew it could make the difference. When I got done, I found my sister sitting on the edge of her bed, tapping her foot. She rushed into the shower and I figured out why. I had been in the shower for an hour! We both got ready for the day, had breakfast in the cafeteria really quick, and then we were off to class.
I got back to our dorm at 12:30, had lunch in the cafeteria, and went up to our room. We were supposed to report for rush at 5:30, and although 65Mustang had a lab that afternoon to keep her busy, I had tons of time to sit in our room all by myself and worry about my hair, my makeup, and my outfit. I managed to make it through a few soap operas without going too crazy, but finally I just couldn't take the nervousness anymore and attacked my closet. Tonight we were supposed to wear "business professional" clothes, and I wasn't sure what that meant. Mother had been raised to have an outfit ready for anything, so we were set with dresses- I just didn't know which one the right one would be. At last I settled on one that had no ruffles or flounces and had some white trim, so I could wear my plain white pumps with pearl earrings and necklace. I figured that would look "business professional".
65Mustang came back to the room at 4:30 and began getting ready. It turned out that she had already decided what to wear and how to do her hair, so she was much more relaxed. She actually took my comb away so I couldn't tease my bangs "just one more time" because I was obsessed with them. (Remember, this was the 1980's, so we suffered from Big Hair!)
We reported to the student center a few minutes early and broke into our groups. Our Rho Chis reminded us of how things would work tonight and appraised the outfits of any girls who asked them to. The sororities did not have houses on campus, so we would have rush in the student center itself. All the rushees together met in the ballroom, and the chapters were set up for rush in smaller rooms surrounding the ballroom.
Right before we got started, my Rho Chi reminded our group that we were not allowed to have any food or drinks, other than water, in the ballroom or the meeting rooms. I tried not to panic and hoped that I wouldn't get hungry enough for my stomach to growl! Then she added that the Panhellenic Council would provide a short break and snacks in the hallways outside the meeting rooms halfway through the evening, and several girls said, "Oh okay," so I knew I wasn't the only one who started to panic. The Rho Chi also warned us that the girls might be "very, very" excited to see us, so we shouldn't be surprised by anything. I wondered what that meant and looked at my party schedule.
My schedule looked like this:
Midnight Blue
Silver Streak
Violet Sparkle
Sky Blue
Candy Apple Red
Jet Black
And now it's off to the races!
Midnight Blue- The doors opened and they almost screamed at us with a cheer! I thought, now I know what my Rho Chi meant! There were balloons and bows everywhere and the room was decorated really cute. A girl with a big bow in her hair (yes really) grabbed me and introduced herself. We stood to the side and she started talking. And talking, and talking, and talking! She seemed nice, but she sure did like to talk. I smiled a lot and said a lot of "Oh really? Wow! That's cool!" Finally she started asking me questions. I told her about my activities in high school and my GPA, and she said, "Wow, that's really high! We can always use more good students in our chapter!" That comment surprised me because 65Mustang's grades were almost a full grade point higher than mine, and I wondered why the girl would think I was so smart. The second girl I talked to was friendly but not quite as talkative. I got to give her some information about myself, but she seemed to think it was weird that 65Mustang and I were living on campus and not commuting from home or living in an apartment. She kind of fixated on that and hung onto that subject for a few minutes. When it was time for the next party, I left feeling a little confused. The girls had been nice, but I felt like they really hadn't gotten to know anything about me because of how our conversations went. I wanted them to pick me for their chapter because they liked me, but I was nervous that they didn't have enough information.
Silver Streak- The group 65Mustang and I had recs for. I was excited to see if I could tell whether that made a difference. Walking to their party, a girl in my group who was a sophomore rushee "whispered" to another girl that it was okay if we didn't like this party because this chapter was in trouble anyway. Uh oh. I really didn't like that. I didn't know what in trouble meant, but I didn't think it was fair for the sophomore to say that. By the time I decided to turn around and say something to her, we were already at the door, so I dropped it. And then I saw what I thought she meant. This chapter was smaller than Midnight Blue. Most of the sisters in this chapter were rushing two girls. I got lucky though, and talked to sisters by myself. The first girl was really nice and seemed a little shy at first. As I talked to her, I got the feeling that she wasn't shy- she was desperate and was trying not to show it. I was really glad I hadn't worn my watch, because when I do I have the nervous habit of looking at it all the time, and I got the feeling from this girl that doing that would have really hurt her feelings. I could see over her shoulder, and the sophomore (who was double-rushing) would smile, nod, and look around the room distractedly while the sister tried to talk to her. I could see that sister's face and she looked like she was trying not to be hurt. This party was going so wrong for the sisters, and I felt bad. I tried to concentrate on having a good conversation with my sister, and when they bumped, I thought I'd done a good job. The next sister who talked to me was black, and I must have had a startled look on my face when she introducted herself. She laughed and said "Yeah, I get that look a lot." I immediately felt terrible and apologized, saying that I didn't know anything about the Greek system and I'd heard in my rush group that there were black sororities on campus. She briefly explained that there was another group of sororities and stressed that her sorority welcomes people of any race, color, or creed. We ended up laughing a little because I told her I get a lot of looks because I am a twin, and she said, "Well, if Silver Streak is where you belong, we can hang out and get looks together!" I liked her and the first sister, but still, they just had desperation in their faces and their voices. I felt sad for them and wasn't sure I could fit in here, but something in me liked them.
I wasn't sure what to think about the night so far. The first group had seemed nice but sort of scatterbrained, and the second group seemed to be hiding feelings of gloom and doom. I was starting to wonder how I would make it through the night as I walked to my next part.
Violet Sparkle- Oh boy, another cheering group! They were all smiles and claps and happy to see us. The first sister to grab me smiled at me and said, "Hi, 66Camaro!" Oh my God! It was 68VWConvertible, who had been in a high school club with me for two years! I hadn't seen her since then except for two or three times at the mall or eating out. I didn't know she went to this school or was in a sorority! I was glad to see a familiar face, and she gave me a big hug. She said she was excited to see 65Mustang and I going through rush and hoped that we would find our homes. We caught up on what I had been doing since we last saw each other, and she had some really nice things to say about all the chapters. I told her that I was starting to feel nervous after the last two parties and told her which ones I'd been to (she asked). She said that each chapter has its own strengths and the backing of years of solid sisterhood behind it, and I should be sure to participate in each party to my fullest so I would have the best experience possible. Then, bump, they went, and I was talking to another sister who was super nice and shared some of the same interests as me. I left this party feeling good about this chapter and thankful that my rush batteries had been recharged.
Finally, it was snack time! Thank God! I hadn't realized how hungry I was because my stomach mercifully had not growled during the first three parties. We were offered water, juice, crackers, cookies, and fruit trays. It wasn't fancy, but we were thankful for anything! I caught up with 65Mustang for a minute. She said she was having the time of her life. I looked at her schedule, which was: Sky Blue, Candy Apple Red, Midnight Blue, Silver Streak, Jet Black, and Violet Sparkle. I smiled at her and told her she might have a pleasant surprise at one of the parties, but I wouldn't tell her which one. She got mad at me and stuck out her tongue as we walked to our fourth parties.
Sky Blue- I think I am seeing a pattern here with the cheering sororities. Maybe I'm starting to get the hang of rush after all! The room was decorated in a very particular and recognizable theme, as opposed to being decorated in just the group's colors, and it looked super. The first sister who talked to me turned out to be from Mother's hometown, and she was excited to find someone who had been there. We talked a little about that and she seemed to remember to ask me about myself as an afterthought. I didn't hold it against her because it was a nice conversation, and she rarely met people who knew anything about her hometown. The next sister I talked to was an intercollegiate athlete for the college. She explained to me that she managed classes, her sport, work study, and her sorority, and even though it kept her busy, she was a careful scheduler and got it all done. I was in awe of her because I didn't even have to work, I just had to go to school and (hopefully) participate in my sorority, and I wasn't sure how I was going to manage those things by themselves! This sister and I talked about how the sororities can be involved in college life in many different ways. I thought, wow, there's a Greek Week? I left this party with a positive feeling about the chapter, but a few doubts as to whether I could balance my schedule.
Candy Apple Red- I can't believe it is 9:00 at night, and these girls have been cheering nonstop since 5:45, and they act like old pros! The room felt so cheerful, but I wasn't sure it was all because of the decorations. The first sister who talked to me was a junior and an officer in the chapter and was so laid back. She made me feel relaxed, like it was nothing at all to go to 6 parties with hundreds of strangers in a matter of hours on a tummy half full of fruit and crackers. She seemed to really pay attention to what I was saying. The sister she handed me off to seemed equally as interested in me and, surprise, had graduated from my high school's rival! We teased each other about being from Blue High (me) and Red High (her) and laughed. I left this chapter feeling really good. I was getting so tired, but I felt like the night kept getting better as it went along, and I was so glad I'd decided to rush.
On the way to our final party, the sophomore (the one I mentioned earlier before the Silver Streak party) told another girl that this last chapter was the "best" chapter on campus and she really wanted to get in there. I frowned inside because after her behavior at that second party, I wasn't sure how I would react to any place that she wanted to be at.
Jet Black - We went in, and the sisters sang us a loud and cheerful song and were smiling and friendly even after 5 previous parties. This room was decorated in kind of a "classy" way with two main colors and the sorority's colors as accents. Being in that room made me feel sophisticated. The first sister who talked to me was blonde and friendly, and we talked about both me and about her sisterhood, but by that time, I was fading, so I really don't remember anything specific to that conversation. Same thing with the second sister I talked to- friendly, nice, interested, but I was getting so tired. I smiled and talked and laughed, and I thought I must have made a good impression because the second sister hugged me and told me she hoped to see me again. As we walked out, the sophomore who wanted to be in this group seemed to have a satisfied look on her face. I wasn't sure what that meant.
Wow, the night was finally over, and we were exhausted! We met again in the ballroom with our Rho Chis, who reminded us that tomorrow night, we would attend all 6 parties again, and after that the rushees and sororities would make their first cuts. We were reminded to wear something "business casual" and that we would again be provided snacks halfway through the night. Then we were dismissed with smiles.
65Mustang and I walked back to our dorm in near silence because we were so beat. When we got back to the room, we changed and washed our faces and compared notes, but stuck to our rule of not naming groups or giving clues (well, trying, anyway) to their identities.
She had gotten angry at 3 girls in her group who said something mean about one of the chapters, and she turned to them and said, "That's not very nice. You don't even know those girls." I was proud of my sis for speaking up for who I was sure was the Silver Streaks when I hadn't. 65Mustang had a definite frontrunner. She also told me she had figured out the "pleasant surprise" in one of the groups because, although 68VWConvertible didn't rush my sister, she did come by to say hello during the party.
I told 65Mustang that there was a very opinionated girl in my group too, and I wasn't sure what to think of her and her opinions at this point. I told her that the night started off slow for me and got better as it went along until I got tired, but I was having a good time. I wasn't sure I had a frontrunner yet. We were both looking forward to tomorrow night and collapsed into bed to get some rest. That night, I didn't wake up once.
Pit stop time again! Next post will be about night number two!
Last edited by 66Camaro; 04-09-2009 at 02:37 PM.
Reason: used the wrong word, had to add a group name
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