[clemsongirl]

Hi y'all! I'm typing this out since my last party ended before we can rank the chapters and I figured I'd do it now. Today was Philanthropy Day, so lots of videos and slideshows. Without further ado:

First was Gemini! The Gemini philanthropy was something that didn't really affect me directly but that I had volunteered for in the past, so I was excited to see them again and learn more about what they did to support it. I enjoyed their video and activities, and it seemed like all the actives truly enjoyed volunteering their time. The girls were funny and sweet and overall I had a good time here.

Next up was Aquarius. I already knew about the Aquarius philanthropy from when I went to their COB event last semester (one of the actives said to me that it was the first time she'd seen it and that it was top secret and I wanted to say, "Uhh no it's not, I've seen this before!"). Due to the nature of it they weren't able to get as hands-on as some other groups, but I didn't hold that against them. Two of the actives I talked to were actually in the same class that I'm taking this semester, which was either a freaky coincidence or they recognized me and purposely bumped to me, but either way I enjoyed myself. I was double rushed here but they handled it very well.

The last party of the morning was Leo. Although I knew a few Leos I had no idea what their philanthropy was about so I was excited to learn more about it. I was actually really disappointed by the presentation because besides the standard national video they didn't make it seem like they cared all that much or did all that much for their philanthropy. They did have an active who was affected by the philanthropy's cause speak for a bit about how important it was to her, but I didn't get that sense from the rest of the chapter. None of the actives I was with really spoke about it much, and the girl walking me out actually said "Oh shoot, I didn't really talk about our philanthropy with you guys!" , leading to a super-rushed last minute discussion. The girl from my state who said hi to me before came over again to greet me, which touched me. I think that the girls seem really sweet, but overall I'm not feeling it here.

After my lunch break I headed over to Sagittarius. My mom had always done something small to support the Sagittarius philanthropy, but I hadn't realized it until I started looking up sorority information online and realized that the little thing my mom had always done was actually for her sorority philanthropy, so even though I've never been directly affected by their cause it still meant a lot to me. I was not disappointed at all here! The girls were funny and sweet-we talked about random things like siblings doing laundry and shrinking our clothes-and the philanthropy video focused specifically on their chapter and the work they had done which really impressed me. I also spoke with several girls who had gone through recruitment and joined as sophomores, so I could tell this group had clearly done their homework with me! The president and recruitment chair also came by and said hello, and I overall felt wanted and super hopeful to go back tomorrow.

My second of four consecutive evening parties was at Capricorn. I didn't know what their philanthropy was at first, but they did a really good job of explaining it while showing how funny and tight they all were. I could tell that they cared about each other and had a close sisterhood. The actives I talked with raved about how much they loved volunteering for the local philanthropy, and it was clear that they were all very passionate about helping out. I left feeling awesome about them and hoping to see them again tomorrow.

Fiesta numero tres was at Cancer. Their topic was more serious and hit a little closer to home than some of the other topics (no pun intended with the name I swear), but the actives and the video conveyed that they were serious yet still wanted to enjoy themselves while volunteering. The girls seemed to genuinely like each other and were the most passionate for their philanthropy of all the groups I saw today. I had a wonderful time and would love to go back tomorrow.

The last party I had today was at Taurus. I had no idea what their philanthropy was coming in, so I was ready to learn more about it. Unfortunately, I didn't really see the point to it, and I just didn't feel like it addressed an immediate issue or made a lasting and visible difference. I felt bad for being so indifferent to something they were so passionate about but it just didn't move me to want to get involved. I was also double-rushed here but none of the actives seemed to be able to balance the conversation between me and the other girl I was with, so it was a lot of the other two girls talking about people they knew and me feeling completely left out. This happened a couple of times and I was a little miffed when I left because I felt ignored. The other PNM was also a little rude and acted like she was too good for the party, so I didn't really enjoy myself. I didn't talk to any of the nice girls I had talked to the day before, which disappointed me as well.

I haven't officially put my rankings in the computer yet but when I do this is what they will look like (we can go back to up to six tomorrow so I'm only ranking one):

Sagittarius
Capricorn
Cancer
Gemini
Aquarius
Leo

1. Taurus

I'm sad that I didn't have a good experience at Taurus like I did the first time, and I will be happy to go back again, but I will be really said if I lose Sagittarius, Capricorn, or Cancer. I get my schedule early again tomorrow so I'll just have to hope for the best!

ETA: My other friend in a different Pi Chi group got invited to the maximum nine parties today! She had:

Sagittarius
Capricorn
Cancer
Pisces
Aquarius
Aries
Gemini
Libra
and either Virgo or Taurus (the first friend reporting to me didn't remember)
This girl isn't even sure if she wants to continue past tonight, and here she is with a full schedule! I hope I see her tonight so I can ask her how she's feeling. She's a legacy to at least Aries and Aquarius, possibly more, so I hope they're treating her extra well.

Also, funny rushing story time! Friend Number One went to Pisces today, and at one point she asked the active rushing her what she was involved in. The active replied with something along the lines of well my major is super difficult so all I really do is Pisces stuff. When FNO asked what her major was, she said communications! No offense intended to any comm majors but saying that to a girl double-majoring in German and industrial engineering in the honors college was probably not the best way to go! Needless to say my friend was not very impressed with the group on the whole.