Archive for May, 2009

Facebook Makes Breakups Even Uglier

torn_edges_01We are the Facebook generation.  With this glorious title comes many responsibilities (well, sort of): we must immediately inform our friends of any and all actions we take and decisions we make during our day.  This includes what TV show we’re watching, what we are eating, the status of our relationships and, subsequently, our break-ups.

Now that Facebook is in the picture, there is a whole new slew of issues we must face when dealing with a heartbreaking, make-you-wanna-sit-in-your-room-alone-crying-to-sappy-music breakups.

Before Facebook (BF): You break it off with your lover and tell everyone that you ended it, so you need your besties and Ben & Jerry’s, like, stat.
After Facebook (AF):
You break it off with your lover and they change their relationship status first, making it look like it was their decision.  Which it was not. Ok, maybe it was, but did they have to change that so quickly? Now you’re getting 45 FB messages and wall posts asking if you are OK.

BF: You rip up all your pictures, cutting out your ex’s face and even burning the particularly painful ones.  Ah, satisfaction.
AF:
You untag the 1,938 pictures of you guys as a couple.  It takes four hours and is in no way satisfying because there is a sad lack of sharp objects and fire. And the pictures are still fully intact.

BF: You carefully orchestrate a plan to “accidentally” be at the same social function as your ex, looking fabulous and with what looks like the next Calvin Klein underwear model.
AF:
You post pictures from a bender with your besties, carefully editing out the embarrassing bits (oh, thousands) and making sure to post an appropriate, make-him-jealous Facebook status (“Sooo tired but had the best time EVER last night!! <3 Mike” Note: Mike is not your ex). Read More »


Marriage is Like a Country Club…

wedding[We'd like to take this opportunity to welcome our favorite love, sex and relationship blogger - Lena Chen - to the CollegeCandy team. Lena is smart, funny, and her perspective on all things relationship is incredibly thought provoking. We're so pumped to have her here, so be sure to let us know in the comments what sorts of things you'd like Lena to discuss!]

Marriage isn’t a right; it’s a privilege. Depending on the time, place, and partner, getting married could be harder than getting into Harvard, if not downright impossible. As recently as fifty years ago, miscegenation laws would have forbid me from marrying my boyfriend (or any man not my race) in certain areas of the United States. Before that, the legal and social benefits to getting married were denied to minorities, immigrants, and the poor for centuries. Marriage is, for lack of a better analogy, membership into the biggest country club in the world.

For me, getting married would be a personal endorsement of some of the worst societal norms in existence.

The supposed “right” to marry has never been much of a right at all, and our understanding of marriage as a basic liberty is unique to contemporary times. Thanks to my predisposition for heterosexuality, it’s a liberty I could easily exercise, but I’d much rather march in a rally than down an aisle, because I find it difficult to take part in a practice that is denied to others (plenty of them my friends). Even with the best of intentions, I can’t imagine that my own wedding will serve any purpose but to reinforce existing norms, such as the idea that a relationship is only valuable if recognized by a third-party institution. Read More »


Candy Dish: Lady Gaga’s “Style”

lady-gagaLady Gaga really doesn’t like clothes.

The claws are off for Gwyneth and Scarlett. Rawr!

You snooze, you lose….weight.

T.I.’s road to redemption a whole lot shorter than expected.

The Snuggie alternatives.

A look we’re totally loving.


Let it Rock: I Almost Forgot About You

warm-up-music.jpg

You know those artists that just seem to disappear all of the sudden? One minute they’re in your life (and in your head) and the next, you don’t really know where they are and you spend your days wondering if they took some office job somewhere.

This week’s new releases are all just like that. Once upon a time, I listened to these artists, but it’s been a while. And I was all “Oh my God, you’re still around?” when I heard they had new albums. I can’t even recall the last time I thought about Tori Amos, I happy pushed Eminem from my mind long ago, and it had been a couple years since I really enjoyed Kate Voegele. And this week, they’re all back! Read More »


Candy Dish: Jessica Biel is Too Pretty

jessica_biel_introWoe is Jessica Biel.

The top five greatest American Idol finale moments.

These people should not have children.

Lisa Rinna’s lips aren’t real?!

Kate Hudson is A-Rod’s latest conquest.

5 jobs for easy money.


Hot and Bothered? Your Bra Knows What to Do!

cleavage_bra

You know what I love about being a girl? The fact that when we get aroused, there’s no awkward visible growth of body parts.

Well, thanks to lingerie companies, that’s all about to change.

A European lingerie company has invented a bra that boosts your cleavage when you’re aroused. That’s right, your girls will be lifted and pushed together whenever you start daydreaming about the hottie sitting across from you in lecture.

What’s the point.? Is it to get the object of your desire all hot and bothered, too? Maybe get somethin’ lifting over there? Or maybe to give you the extra confidence you need to get up and approach him?

I’m really not so sure (nor do I understand why women wouldn’t want their boobs to be nice and perky all the time), but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to try it. I’ve always wondered what it would feel like to have a physical reaction to someone, and for around $50, I finally can.


Day-to-Night Styler: She Wears Short Shorts

Year-9-girls-picnic

[We all live busy lives: we go to school or work (or sometimes both), we try to keep our lives in order and, on top of everything else, we try to maintain a social life.

It can all be a bit overwhelming at times, especially when you’re running here, there and everywhere, and in the process of it all, still trying to look cute.  On a weekly basis, I will be posting a guide for an outfit that looks super cute and casual during the day, but you can easily rock out at night with a few accessory additions and/or a change of shoes.  And maybe, just maybe, it’ll help ease the stress of life a little bit because, hey, when we look good, we feel good, right?]

This weekend marks the unofficial start of the summer season and that means cool ice cream treats, hot days, hotter boys and less clothing.  I figured that in honor of Memorial Day, I’d do a Day-to-Night Style that can easily be worn from a picnic in the park to a night bar-hopping with your buds, all with a few key extras you can store in your beach tote.

Because why should you sacrifice quality daylight hours to go home and do a complete wardrobe change? The summer only lasts so long and we gotta make sure we get the most out of it. Read More »


CollegeCandy Says: Check Those Breasts

hannahHannah Powell-Auslam is the youngest breast cancer patient doctors have ever seen. At only 10 years old, Hannah has recently undergone a mastectomy on her left breast to remove a malignant tumor.

Hannah’s mother noticed a lump on her daughter’s breast after she had complained and took her to get examined. The doctors initially told her that she was too young to have breast cancer, but the doctors were wrong.

In addition to having her breast removed, Hannah will have to undergo chemotherapy to kill cancer cells that spread to her lymph nodes. Because she never mentioned the lump to her mother before (what 10-year-old would ever know to do that?), Hannah’s cancer spread beyond the initial area.

While this is an incredibly rare situation, Hannah’s case is a reminder to all of us to check ourselves monthly and report anything strange or abnormal to a doctor. It may not be common, but breast cancer can affect anyone, regardless of their age, and the best way to beat it is to catch it early.

So, go. Step away from CollegeCandy (but don’t forget to come back!) and give yourself an exam. It only takes a moment and could really save your life.


Do It Yourself Tuesdays: Leather Huaraches

greenleatherfootbedBThe summer season is here, and that means the season of sandals! But are you tired of wearing the same Old Navy flip-flops that everyone else has, or are your Rainbows almost worn out to the point of nonexistence? If you have a shoe addiction like I do, these homemade sandals will add a whole new dimension to your shoe closet. And with these homemade kicks, you will never have a shoe twin again.

Huaraches are traditional Mexican sandals or flip-flops made with woven leather straps and rubber soles. They became extremely popular due to their reputation as being long-lasting, comfortable, and inexpensive to make. Oh, and someone in the fashion world decided they’d be cool again. Either way, you don’t have to spend money on a shoe that everyone else will inevitably have – you can make a pair of the originals yourself!

Materials:
Rubber sole material, about 5mm thick
Very long strips of leather (as thick or thin as you want them).
Scissors
A hole puncher Read More »


Life After College: My Deep Pit of Despair

crying_couch

Considering the fact that I’ve done nothing but sulk (with the occasional break for a anxiety panic attack over my future) since graduation, it’s relatively amazing that I was able to find time in my self despair to write this blog. Graduating college is worse than I ever imagined. Probably because I always imagined going straight from graduation to an awesome job with an awesome apartment in an awesome city. (Thank you, Lauren Conrad!)

Instead I’m sitting at home covered in hummus (I couldn’t find the pita chips so I’ve just been eating it straight) yelling at my sister to answer the damn phone. I can’t take that old-fashioned landline ringing.

My mother’s turned into a hovercraft and a social butterfly. She spends half her time leaving me alone on the couch to go out with friends (pray tell, when did she attain those?) and the other half asking me what would make me feel better. To which I answer, “Umm I would like you to build a time machine and transport me right back to the part of Freshman year where it stopped being awkward.” So far she has failed at this task. She has one more week to reach success before I give her the next “make me feel better task” of finding me a job. Read More »