One more before the real thing...

[LOVEinZTA]

All I have to say is that if I were a Carebear, I would DEFINITELY be Bedtime Bear. I'm notorious for taking naps.

[twinkle555]

loving this thread!!! cant wait for prefs

p.s- my Carebear would be Perfect Panda...it took me FOREVER to get him off Ebay!

[AOE2AlphaPhi]

I can't wait for your next update!

[ClassicBeauty]

Updates por favor!

[AnatraAmore]

The Beginning of the End:

Sure enough, right around 11pm, the phone rang. My Rho Chi called to let me know that I had been released from recruitment. She offered to submit my information to the Greek Office so that I could participate in COB and/or Informal to which I said okay.

I was upset, but not totally surprised. Something had just told me that it wasn’t right. I decided to swear off sororities. Maybe my best friend was right, they’re dumb anyway. The hardest part was helping Roomie to get ready the next night when she Pref’ed Funshine and Cheer. Meanwhile, I realized I had lost my ID somewhere along my travels. I headed out to the fields where we practiced, figuring that it must have fallen out of my bag after practice. When I arrived, I noticed a large group of people off to the side and decided to check out what it was. Big mistake. It turned out to be Bedtime Bear’s Preference Ceremony… the one I had hoped to be at. As I got back on the bus to head to my dorm, I began to cry hysterically. When Roomie returned, she was so full of excitement I didn’t want to burst her bubble, so I listened to her babble on and on about how great of a time she had and that she wouldn’t mind being a member of either one and on and on. Finally, we fell asleep.

The next day, she went to pick up her bid and was excited to receive a bid to join Funshine!!! She came back that night with a basket of goodies and a t-shirt. Sororities at our school also decorated doors, so when she opened the door, I was again confronted by more things that reminded me that I wasn’t good enough to be in a sorority. Roomie was going out to a bid night festivity with her new sisters. As she got ready, we talked and I assured her that I would be fine. Just because I wanted to rip all the decorations off the door and burn them, that didn’t make me bitter, right?

After she left, I was so lonely and depressed. I didn’t even know what to do with myself. A few minutes later there was a knock at the door. My RA came up to talk to me. She explained that she knew I was upset and it was okay if I felt I couldn’t talk to her about that topic. There was another female RA on the 5th floor who would be available if I needed to talk. I thanked her for visiting. Some people from down the hall came and we went and walked the city until we were so tired that we couldn’t walk anymore.

Roomie knew I was still struggling to deal with my disappointment and she was very supportive, but it was hard, constantly watching her go out and be happy with her new sisters and we did begin to grow apart. At the end of October, I had a family issue and found out that I had to move home at the end of the semester. I was crushed. That week also happened to be Big/Lil week, so Roomie was getting awesome presents each day left anonymously from her Big Sister left in our room. So, in addition to being upset about having to transfer home, I was also again confronted with my rejection from sorority life. (Which I had convinced myself that it was dumb and I didn’t want to be a part of anyway…)

Then one day that week, something strange happened. Our room was decorated by Carrie’s big sister, but my side was done too. Each day she got goodies and I got something too! Usually it was a note or a little stuffed animal, but it made me feel so much better and more included that someone was thinking of me. To this day, I don’t know if it was Roomie doing it or her Big Sister (who turned out to be our RA) – but it made me see that I really wanted to be a part of Greek Life and I was hoping to check it out when I transferred home to Bridgewater…

[Ocalagirl]

Oh I so can't wait to hear more!!

[fhchick22]

This story keeps on getting better! Im so sorry that you got released from recruitment, the girl I went out to rush with got released and I got pref'd for my number one choice. It was hard because we did eventually grow apart, your roomie or her big are such awesome people!!

Cannot wait to hear the rest of it!!!!

[BabyPiNK_FL]

Were your roommates parents upset that she did not join one of her legacy chapters?

How kind of her big to decorate your side as well and put a little something for you as well. Honestly, I think that despite everything, I'm so glad that they helped you to believe again in the spirit of "greekness".

[AnatraAmore]

My roommates family wasn't upset that she didn't join her legacy chapter, most because she decided to go through recruitment at the last minute and they were just happy she joined a Greek organization.

On with the story!

A New Start!

Okay, I promise that this part will move much quicker than the last! When I transferred home to Bridgewater in January, I was just in time for their formal recruitment. I decided that I had nothing to lose and I had a much better insight into the whole process. Plus, there were only 3 groups at BSC. That had to be easy than before, right?


Night I:

I should start by saying that recruitment is super relaxed at BSC – you can show up until the 2nd night of recruitment and register. There were 3 rounds – 2 open houses and then Preference. So, I showed up on Night 1 and was told that I was in Group 2. (There were 3 groups.) There were 6 Rho Chi’s, but I don’t remember any one of them being mine specifically. Mostly, they just lead us to the door of the room for each sorority and let us in.

My first party that night was Wish Bear. As I walked into this room, I noticed that things were very relaxed. Girls weren’t really partnered up and we stood in a circle talking with a bunch of PNM’s and a bunch of sisters. This chapter seemed really diverse and I really liked them. As I looked at scrapbooks and items from their chapter, I could totally see myself with these girls. Maybe it was because I had done all this once. Or maybe it was just that I was more comfortable with these girls, but it was different this time around.

The second party was True Heart. This group was really small. The way they were spread out, it was very obvious that they were small. Also, as we walked around the room, I noticed that there was almost no mention of social events. That struck me as strange. All they wanted to talk about was how much work they did for the community and how involved on campus they all were. I met one girl who I swear was my twin from birth – we looked so much alike and even had the same personality. Although I thought they were a bit strange, I was excited to visit them again the next night.

Our final party of the night was Tender Heart. These girls were CRAZY! They were so excited and it was contagious. You could tell that they liked each other and they seemed to have a lot of inside jokes (which isn’t always a good thing during recruitment, but it made me see that they hung out outside of meetings and really knew each other.)

Overall, I left recruitment that night feeling like I really made the right decision in deciding to go through recruitment at BSC. I felt a much deeper connection to all of these woman and I was much less intimidated, since all of the groups had about 40 members, half the size of most groups at my former school. Also, the overall opinions and feeling about Greek Life at BSC is so different - it's definitely not a big deal like before, but I liked the laid back atmosphere way better.

[AGDLynn]

Were these same chapters at the other school?

[LegallyBrunette]

yay for tranfers

update, please

[ufpiphi]

Great story. I can't wait to hear the rest!

[AlwaysSAI]

I understand exactly how you felt after being released. It's tough, but it really does all happen for a reason.

Hurry and update!!!!!! I'm itching for more!

[luv n tpa]

Originally Posted by LegallyBrunette

This totally makes my day--I'd been hoping for another Theta Phi thread!

Hooray for Theta Phi's!!

[howtheSunrose]

Can't wait to hear more. I'm interested in your experience with going to a less competitive, smaller rush. You're keeping us on pins and needles!