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The Round 3 (Skit) Parties!
Trumpet - I was trying to keep my outlook positive as I waited outside to go in this house, but I couldn't stop thinking about how uncomfortable I'd felt all week with this group. Nevertheless, I couldn't afford to be very picky at this point, so I tried to give them another chance. Their skit was pretty cute although at that point I hadn't seen any others to compare it to. Once I'd gone to my other parties that day, I realized Trumpet's skit had placed a disproportionate amount of emphasis on socials and mixers with the fraternities, which made me a little uncomfortable. Also awkward about this party was that they didn't bring the lights back up after the skit was over, so I talked to my rusher in awkward darkness. She was nice enough, but at this point I was really convinced that this wasn't the house for me.
Saxophone - Standing outside this house waiting to go in, I was more nervous than I'd been yet. This party was do or die. I HAD to keep Saxophone on my schedule. They were the only "good" chapter I had left. The pressure was on. I watched the skit with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. I smiled, hummed along to the songs (even Justin Beiber, whom I hate), and laughed at all the jokes (even the ones I thought were corny). I used my very best manners when talking to my two rushers and oohed and ahhed over all the cute pictures they showed me from various Saxophone events. The entire house was covered in pictures and the more I looked at, the more I loved these adorable and fun girls. As usual, I loved my rushers here and could see myself really fitting in with them. As they led me out the door at the end of the party, I threw in a "hope to see you tomorrow!" for good measure and hurried away to my next party confident that I'd just achieved a rush party worthy of a writeup in the "How To Be A Perfect PNM 101" textbook.
Violin - If I hadn't been unimpressed with this group before, I sure was after this party. I made a genuine effort to give them another chance, but their sloppy attempt at a skit was painful to watch and all the PNMs were casting awkward sideways glances at one another the whole time, unsure how to react to the forgotten lines and half-improvised dances. My rusher was sweet and the house was decorated beautifully that day, and it broke my heart to see how hard these girls were trying, but they just weren't up to par with the other houses at all. I left knowing I'd probably "cut" this group.
Piano - As my mom suggested, I tried to give this house a fair chance. After all, it would be good to have another house I was okay with in case Saxophone didn't work out. So I tried to go in with an open mind and forget everything I thought I knew about this group. I was pleasantly surprised. The skit was the best one I saw. I didn't have to force myself to laugh like at Saxophone because I found the jokes legitimately hilarious. I hummed along to the cute songs, some of which were among my very favorites. The walls inside the house were plastered with t-shirts from organizations Piano's girls were involved in, and the sheer number of shirts was a testament to how diverse this group was. As my rusher and I walked around, I spotted shirts from lots of organizations I was interested in, including music ensembles and campus ministries. My rusher herself mentioned that she was a campus tour guide, and when she said this, some synapses fired in my brain, I had a sudden flashback to my own campus tour, and I told her she had been my tour guide. She didn't remember me, which was a little awkward, but I was positive it was her. I left this house convinced that my mom had been right about it not being a "bad" house as its reputation in my community suggested, but it didn't matter anyway, because I was going to be a Saxophone.
We would be able to attend up to three parties for the final round (Preference), so I could "cut" one house that day. I regretted having to choose just one to "cut" because I was so ready to put on my Saxophone letters and just be done with Rush. But rules were rules, so I "cut" Violin and headed home.
As it turned out, all the cuts had been really heavy in between rounds 2 and 3, and many of my new friends were upset after losing their favorites once again. We went to an amazing "comfort food" restaurant near campus that night for some Milkshake Therapy. As we slurped down our dinners, I learned how my friends' days had gone:
Kat had gotten only two Skit invitations, Violin and Piano. She had been super upset about this at first, but Piano had grown a lot on her today and she was convinced she wanted to end up there. She admitted, however, that she was legitimately worried she'd be dropped from rush that night. I was blown away that someone like her, who seemed to have it all, was having such a tough week.
Sara had five invitations for this round and had lost her previous favorite, French Horn. She now had her sights set on Double Bass and was convinced she'd be able to land the bid.
Amy had five invitations for this round including the same four I had plus Flute. We consoled each other over the loss of our common favorites, Percussion and Guitar. Amy now badly wanted Flute, and I kept my mouth shut about my frustration with that house over the pet issue, not wanting to put a damper on her excitement.
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