The year in faces and memories

5:05 today signaled the end of my freshman year of classes at Butler.  I know you probably hear this all the time, but I honestly cannot believe how fast it has gone by.  I can only hope that my next 3 years here hold just as fantastic memories as this past year has.

A couple of weeks ago I was so excited to come home for the summer, but as the end is drawing nearer I am beginning to have a change of heart.  I know next year will be a blast, living in the sorority house and whatnot, but I'm going to miss my room in Schwitz and my roommate/best friend.  So, what better way to culminate the end of a great year than with pictures from my favorite memories and of my favorite people?

Here we go, we'll start at the beginning, naturally.

One of the first weekends on campus, SGA put on a movie night on the mall.  Emily and I went out with a bunch of new friends to watch Iron Man 2.  Dang I miss that tan.

It's a Butler tradition to have your picture taken on the bulldog statue each year...we accomplished this the night before classes began.

Toogie (my dancin' fool of a neighbor) was the first of our group of friends to celebrate her birthday at BU.  A big group of us went out to Buca di Beppo and ended the night with Step Brothers and Flying Cupcake.

HALLOWEEN!  Emily, Ali, and I got all dolled up to go to SNU's Voodoo party...while we got cold waiting outside and never actually made it in, our costumes were great, right?!

Perhaps the most exciting memory I have from this year was living out my lifetime dream of going to NYC.  While I have probably blogged about this a million times, it was one memory that I couldn't leave out.

Recruitment was a week filled with laughter, tears, stress, and the most fun I have probably ever had.  They say it's the week you never want to relive, but that you'll never forget.  100% true.  The humor behind this photo is that Toogie, Micaelina and I didn't know which hand we were supposed to use for the DG salute, so we took one picture with each and deleted the wrong one at the end of the day.

Secret Crush, & my twin!  DG has a traditional formal where if you choose, an older sister picks a date for you, and on the night of the dance all the guys line up with paper bags on their heads and your date is revealed!  My date wasn't a secret, but it was still fun to get to watch the other girls be surprised.  Katie (the beautiful specimen in the purple dress) is my twin, this means we share the same big sis in the house.  I couldn't have asked for a better gal!

Spring Break was the perfect week of sun filled skies and relaxation.  Emily and I stayed with my grandparents in Naples, FL and had an amazing time!  We laid out, shopped, and even paddle boarded (which I was extremely skeptical about, but ended up loving!)  We have since began planning the rest of our spring breaks for our remaining years at Butler!

Houston we have Bulldogs.  I had the opportunity to make the voyage to Houston and watch the Dawgs represent Indiana Basketball in the Final Four tournament this spring.  What an awesome experience!  We spent the weekend traveling, game watching, and even singing along to a free Kenny Chesney concert.  Did I mention we got floor seats for the National Championship?

Little 500 was one of the most fun times I have had this year at Butler, and we weren't even on campus!  Emily, a great friend & sister Allison, and I made the trip to IU to stay with a few of their friends from home.  We attended a paint party (obviously) and spent upwards of 2 hours getting the paint out of our hair that night and the next day.  Olive oil was our best friend that day!

Our second formal of the semester was Royal Wedding themed, and took place this past Friday night in honor of....The Royal Wedding.  I had Allison find me the perfect date and we had such a great time!  How great to get to go out with a bang!

So, this year has definitely been filled with its share of tests and trials, but all in all I grew as a person, made some of the best memories of my life, and met friends that I know will be in my life forever.  

Emily

the perfect roommate, great friend, role model, and comedic relief at all hours of the night.

Ali

my newfound cousin, my other half, perfect work-out buddy, has tons of cute clothes to borrow, and always there.

Toogie

the hilarious, beautiful, dedicated, and fun-loving dancer that I get to continue to live with at DG.

Allison

one of Emily's best friends from home who is one of the nicest people I have ever met.

Katie

the most perfect, cutest, and possibly smallest twin I will ever have.

And so so so many more that I simply don't have the time to name.  I owe all of these wonderful memories, countless sleepless nights, and endless hours of laughter to you.

Thank you.

Don't Judge a Book.....

At the start of my 2nd semester at Butler, I decided to go through the process of formal recruitment and pledge a sorority.  After a stressful, nerve-racking, and insanely fun week, I received a bid from Delta Gamma and couldn't have been happier!

I'm sure many of you have stereotypes in your head about sorority girls, and if you know me you know I don't really fit the stereotype.  However, neither do any of the girls at Butler.  

Or so I thought.

After recruitment was over I was so excited to be a part of greek life on campus.  I had this idea in my head that everyone in all the houses were still friends, and didn't care about the names on the outside of the beautiful greek row mansions as much as the personalities of the women on the inside.  That everyone was simply in a different house because they felt at home there for different reasons.  This was the case for me anyway. 

Through the initiation process I have come to find however that there really are pretty harsh stereotypes for each house, and just by being associated with 2 or 3 greek letters you might have a black mark across your forehead.

Do you think that's right?

I don't.  & I'm not okay with it either.  People I've never even met, don't even know their names, scowl at me and my sisters when we go out.  & the things they are saying about us aren't very nice either.

(Just a disclaimer, yes I understand EVERYONE has done this at some point or another, & yes I know I'm guilty too.)

But what's the point of passing this judgement on other girls, who in theory have more in common with you than not.  We did all go through the same recruitment process with the same intentions of affiliating with the Greek community.

I personally think the HEINOUS comments posted to sites such as College ACB about which song represents each house 

(DG's was "I just had sex" by The Lonely Island if that tells you anything about the stereotype we're up against) 

or a rank of all the houses based on the "hotness" of their pledge class,

do nothing but create pointless drama and gossip between we Greek women.

Not only that, but when we are all up against stereotypes, anytime someone slips up it gives "proof" or satisfaction to the ones spreading the gossip.  & then the stereotype monstrosity comes full circle & guess what?

NOBODY WINS.

Just like any time you gossip, it might feel awesome at the time, but as soon as someone hears you that shouldn't, or they get dirt on you, 

You. Feel. Like. Crap.

So here's what I'm thinking:

If we all stop trash talking our fellow Greek women, & stop spreading rumors creating stereotypes, we can have more fun, make more friends, and show the non-greek community that Butler's greek life really is different.

Plus, my mom always said the only reason you gossip about someone else is because you are jealous of something they have.  

I know I absolutely made the right decision pledging Delta Gamma, and I hope all of my sisters and fellow Greek women can say the same about their choices.  So don't give anyone a reason to think you aren't where you want to be, because we are the ones with the power to eliminate these stereotypes with our words and actions.