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What Bid Day Is Like For New Members Versus Sisters

Bid day

Opening Bid Cards


New Member: Congrats! The opening of bid cards is the light at the end of the feet-hurting, fake-smiling tunnel that is recruitment. The clapping has subsided (for the time being), and you’re praying that your name will be signed on a card beneath the letters of the house where you felt “at home.” Anticipation and excitement will fill the room, followed by screaming, jumping, and clapping (you fit in so well already, ugh).

Sister: Nostalgia and low-key mild depression set in as you realize you’re no longer the young freshman you once were. Just looking at the new members jumping so energetically and youthfully stabs you in the heart. Every tear of their envelope being ripped whispers, “You’re washed up.” Could you even jump like that anymore if you tried? Wait, yes, you’re still only 21. Back to reality.

Bid Day Party


New Member: Pretty much everything after opening bid cards can actually be extremely awkward for new members. It’s a blur of hugging people who “just knew” you’d end up being in their house. This is also a point of realizing that a vast majority of recruitment was a huge blackout of names, and sometimes even entire conversations. Word to the wise: if a girl is hugging you, wants a picture with you, or is soooo excited you joined, she was probably assigned to talk to you at some point during recruitment and then watched like a hawk to see where you’d end up. So humor her and smile.

Sister: This part is also awkward for sisters, because some are pumped that their rush crushes joined, while some are solemnly watching their crush go running into the arms of another house. A few will take this as their time to mourn the one that got away, but hopefully that’s a minimal number of girls. Plus, you can get over it considering you only knew her for a day. For everyone else, the party after opening bid cards is mostly just a time to get a good Insta and finally use that caption you’ve been planning since you heard what the Bid Day theme was going to be.

Professional Pictures


New Member: Turns out the Bid Day chair didn’t think Insta would cut it, so here come the professional photogs. Thoughts going through your confused new member head during this time are usually along the lines of:
“Okay, slightly intimidating but I can roll with it.”
“Who’s the girl next to me? We’re taking a candid laughing picture and I don’t even know her name.”
“Who’s the sister jumping in front of the new member class’s picture? She looks like she thinks she owns the place.”

Sister: TIME TO SHIIIIINE. By now, Bid Day is exciting but obviously not intimidating whatsoever. Thoughts going through sisters’ heads during this time:
“I am Beyoncé.”
“Look at my squad.”
“I own this place.”

Bid Day After Party:


New Member: New members are strongly encouraged to stay in after Bid Night in order to bond and meet their new pledge class and braid hair and watch movies and have pillow fights till you collapse and fall asleep amidst feathers and popcorn. Basically. Or at least it’s some variation of staying in and doing our best to meet each other and bond as much as one can bond with seventy-five girls and no alcohol. I recommend you do the same.

Sister: The bonding has been done. We did our time sitting in the house, making small talk, and attending sisterhood events. And really, I’m thankful for it and know it’s the reason I grew to love my sisters and chapter as much as I do. But to every thing, there is a season. And for sisters, Bid Night is a time to celebrate the end of recruitment, drink away the sorrows of no longer being young and innocent, and then cheers to the new member class and hope they don’t fuck up your reputation continue your legacy and tradition on campus. Then again, of course they will. You picked them, after all.

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