Just in time for the second episode the newest season of The Hills, I was presented with the opportunity to kick back and chat it up with Lo via my cellular.

Um, obviously I couldn’t wait to take that phone call. I watch and obsess about the show enough to pretend those girls are my homies – especially the fantastic and now more frequent member, Lo. If I got her on the phone I could get all the gossip and maybe convince her to invite me out to L.A. for some Pinkberry and bonding time.

Unfortunately, I didn’t woo Lo into becoming my BFF, but I did get some insight into life in front of the camera, her life with Lauren and the reality (or not so much so) of The Hills.

How do you feel about the way you are portrayed on the show? Is that the real Lo?

“I’m pretty confident on how I’m portrayed on the show. Sometimes they go a little too far with the comments I make but I am a good friend to Lauren and I think that they show that well and I bring some comedy to the show. I am an honest person and like that in real life. I’m honest but I’m fun.” Read More »

I never studied abroad as an undergrad–the programs my school offered always seemed pointless to me. Instead of sending us to a foreign school to meet new people or learn a new language, my college had set up satellite campuses around the globe. I’d have the same teachers, the same peers, even the same dorm life, just transplanted to a new city. And since I was an English major, that new city had to be London, because that’s where they offered the classes I needed.

I thought it would be fun to have a change of scenery for a semester, but I had heard many a tale of study-abroad-gone-useless: “I never went to class, I just got drunk all the time”. “I only hung out with other Americans”. “We lived with other English speakers, so we never even bothered to work on our French”.

So I decided to skip the whole semester abroad experience and go all out–after graduation, I’d go to grad school in another country.

I applied to a few universities, one in Dublin, Ireland, two in London, and one south of London in the seaside town of Brighton. Because of rolling admissions, I heard back from the three UK schools almost immediately–accepted! Yes! Having never been to England, however, I wondered how I could possibly choose. So…I flew to London. For the weekend. In a jet lag-induced haze, I wandered the city, taking photos, visiting campuses. I took a train to Brighton and tried to imagine myself at school there. I made my choice. I bought a London guidebook.

On graduation day, I got another letter in the mail. It was from Ireland, and informed me that I had been accepted to the school in Dublin. My well-laid plans were suddenly de-railed–the masters program in Dublin was exactly what I wanted, and the school had a bit more prestige. At the advice of friends, professors, parents, strangers, whoever…I changed my mind.

I moved to Ireland in the Fall.

When I arrived at Dublin airport on a sunny day in late September, my entire life packed in two suitcases, it was the first time I had ever set foot in Ireland. I knew no one, and my program wasn’t supposed to begin for another few weeks. I was entirely alone…

[I'll be chronicling some of the best and worst experiences here, so stay tuned!]

Christian Siriano says “fierce” is so not fierce

Thomas Edison, you are NOT the father…of recorded sound

However, Heath Ledger might have fathered a love child

10 women unsexier than Sarah Jessica Parker

Lindsay Lohan: Back to Bleach

Dina Lohan: As portrayed by Tracy Ulman in ‘State of the Union’

Bush gets booed (alert: loaded statement!)

Looking for some condoms to match your new shoes?

Welcome back, Kathy Lee Gifford

First babies, and now an appendix!?

Let me broach this very touchy subject with the help of my friend, Mr. Extended Metaphor:

Think about your body as a complex system of roads (sexy, curvy roads).

It’s easier to take the normal route “home”, so to speak, than that scary, deserted back road. After all, you’ve never gone that way, you don’t know what to expect and what should happen, heaven forbid, if your car breaks down?

But what if this mysterious new path is wonderful? What if it gives you the single best drive home of your life? Or even just one or two fairly pleasant trips? It would be a shame to miss out on this lovely new view because of fear or misconceptions.

Misconceptions like: anal sex is only pleasurable to men and women do it only to please their male partners. In reality, the anus is filled with nerve endings and as is says in the Guide to Getting it On (yes, I own a copy), “It seems that the wall between the vagina and rectum may swell when the woman is sexually aroused. This wall might tug on the same verve that transmits vaginal orgasms to the brain.” In other words, women have anal sex for the same reason they have any other kinds of sex (well, ideally): because it feels good. Read More »

I was sick of dating “bad boys” and dudes from the not-so-smart category. I wanted to date an intellectual, a nice guy.

Instead, I got Mr. Deceptive.

Mr. Deceptive was definitely smart, but he wasn’t as nice as he made himself out to be. He was a Nice Guy Poser.

I think the first time I realized this was when I saw him interacting with a florist he used pretty regularly. (Yes, he sent flowers to people often enough to be a regular at a florist! And no, that doesn’t make him the dream boyfriend you’d think it would.)

During this particular visit, Mr. Deceptive wanted to arrange to send flowers to a colleague’s wife’s funeral.

“How much do you want to spend? ” the florist asked as he started to show Mr. Deceptive the flowers he recommended.

“Oh, about $50 or $60,” Mr. Deceptive answered.

Even I, who admittedly knows nothing about funeral flower arrangements, thought that seemed a bit low. Turned out I was right. The florist hesitated and looked at Mr. Deceptive quite hard. “May I suggest you send a live plant to the person’s house, instead?” he asked carefully. Read More »

This playlist could be appropriately titled any of the following. Please choose according to your “situation”:

“I’m About to Regret This, Aren’t I?”

OR

“No. I Don’t Want Breakfast, I Just Want Sex.”

1. Stronger Than Me — Amy Winehouse

2. In Tha Mood – Esthero

3. Come Here Boy — Imogen Heap

4. Like A Boy – Ciara

5. Talk Show Host – Radiohead

6. Back it up, boys – Peaches (yes, it’s true, Peaches could have her own sex playlist)

7. Brown Skin – India Arie

8. Put The Needle On It – Danni Minogue (the HOTTER Minogue sister.)

9. Maybe — Toni Braxton

10. Freak Like Me – Adina Howard (yes it’s old school and still. so. great)

11. My Place – Tweet

12. There’s A Place In The Whiskey — Gretchen Wilson

13. Erotica – Madonna. (I mean, Obviously)

[Any songs you would add to this list?? Let us know! We're always dying for a bad decision making soundtrack...]

Go beyond the cruise ship, past the safari, further than you’ve ever gone before… study abroad in the Galapagos with the Isabella Oceanographic Institute (IOI) this year!

This is seriously one of the coolest programs I’ve come across.

1.As they note on their website, teaching inhabitants to conserve is essential to ecological preservation.

My boyfriend’s mom often laments that her twin goals—environmental friendly goods and fair trade seldom coincide for this very reason—local inhabitants often use inefficient and environmentally harmful practices to produce their goods. But honestly who can blame them? Especially given the poverty of these places?

That’s why the IOI’s program is so amazing. You actually get a chance to participate in an environmental program that works with local residents towards ecological preservation. Read More »

Herb Peterson, the McMastermind behind the Egg McMuffin, died last week at the age of 89. The egg-cellent treat has been curing hangovers and serious morning cravings since 1972 and Mr. Peterson’s genius will certainly be missed.

Though the Egg McMuffin has a place in the halls of fast food history, not every snack can be so lucky. As a junk food enthusiast and resident gross food researcher, here are my Top 3 Fast Food Flubs.

#3 – Tacos at Burger King (2002)

In a word, they were disgusting. For some reason, the King decided to make a trip south of the border and added 50 cent tacos to their dollar menu. They were soggy, poorly seasoned, used American cheese and the beef may have been horse…or vomit. I don’t know who quarterbacked that decision in the Burger King boardroom but I hope they were sent packing. Better question, I don’t know why I wasted a hard earned dollar from my high school wallet to try them out.

#2 - KFC Famous Chicken Bowls (2006) Read More »

Deflowering a virgin is something that guys think about…and they usually think about it in one of two ways: they either are dying to do it because they love the idea of being a girl’s “first” OR they’re terrified of it because they can’t emotionally throw down and they don’t think it’d be fair to rob a girl of her innocence without being able to give her foot massages and take her out on dates.

However, when I deflowered my first and only (or so I hope to be my first and only) virgin; I wasn’t thinking about either one of these things. Because I didn’t know he was a virgin. I had just met him.

Here’s what I DID know:

-He was bangin’ hot.

-He was a few years younger than me. However, he was 19 and legal.

-He was shy around me and I thought it was cute.

-He was willing to drive two hours to meet up with me the day after he met me.

-He still lived with his parents.

-He worked at Jamba Juice.

Here’s what I found out during the act:

-He was afraid of giving oral. I taught him how. (In my defense; I believed that there was a possibility he could have been inexperienced with oral, but still experienced with intercourse.)

-He had no idea how to take charge in sex. (Yawn. I hate that.)

Here’s what happened after the act: Read More »

In my last post I discussed how, despite President Bush’s claims of success within Iraq, secretarian violence continues to force Iraqis to leave their homes in fear of their lives. At least four million Iraqis have left their home country since the beginning of the war.

Leaving Iraq is only the beginning of their problems. Thanks to this large number, it is increasingly difficult for an Iraqi to gain asylum.

How difficult you may ask? Read on:

→ According to the Independent, Iraqi asylum applicants within the European Union rose by 98% between 2006 and 2007. In 2006 there were 19,375 and in 2007 there were 38,286.

→ Within many countries traditionally known for their openness to refugees such as Sweden, the saturation of the system brought on partly by the deepening Iraqi refugee crisis, is resulting in a backlash. Read More »