There are a lot of complicated things in life – like trying to figure out what’s going on in the Middle East, or why Charlie Sheen is still famous, or what outfit to wear this Friday night. But your Facebook relationship status should not be one of them.

Lesson 12:  “It’s Complicated” but we don’t need to know that.

There are so many things wrong with the “It’s Complicated” status that sometimes I wonder if Facebook just threw it up on the profile settings just for kicks and giggles. Maybe this so-called relationship status comes with the territory of our generation’s tendency to overshare on social media sites, but this is almost as bad as your sister posting a home video of giving birth to her firstborn on Facebook and tagging it, “a miracle.”

Why would you feel the need to tell the world that you are basically incapable of having a real relationship? And if you are capable of having a real relationship, this status says you blatantly prefer the drama of an “It’s Complicated” situation more. Because really, if it’s that complicated, you probably shouldn’t be with the person.

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The Middle East has erupted into chaos and revolution in the past few weeks. As a college student primarily focused on keeping my grades up and keeping my liquor down, I’ve never put too much thought into this region of the globe. Sure I read the news and know the latest happenings, but I accept everything I hear as the truth.

And there’s a lot that just isn’t true.

Seeing women wearing Western clothing, protesting right alongside the men made me realize that I have a lot of preconceived notions about the Middle East that might be wrong. And I doubt I’m the only one who just accepts what they’re told when it comes to this part of the world.

So today I decided to use my free time to do a little research on the Middle East, find out how many of the facts I believe about life there and what it truly means to be a Middle Eastern woman.

Myth #1: Every Muslim woman must wear a veiled head-covering

Fact: There are different types of veils that Muslim women can choose to wear to preserve the modesty which is illustrated in the Koran. Most dramatic is the Niqab, which covers up every surface of bare skin, leaving only a slit for the eyes. More common is the Hiqab covering, which is placed on top of the head and around the neck. The wearing of these head dressings is strictly regulated in some countries – including France, Turkey and Tunisia – yet in many countries, there are female politicians and women in power who opt not to wear any covering at all. While in some of the more conservative countries it may be law to wear some type of head covering, in other countries, it’s a personal choice.

Myth #2: Women in the Middle East cannot be granted divorces.

Fact: While the marital process is heavily influenced by father figures who often determine the suitor for his daughter, judges are allowed to grant divorces to women. Take the case of 10-year-old Nujood Ali as an example.  While her story is hard to think about (we’re talking getting married off at the age of 10 and being beaten and raped by her new husband), it offers hope. She was granted a divorce by a Yemeni judge who applauded her for her bravery. While indeed a difficult process, her story has inspired other young women to leave their unhappy, often arranged marriages. So despite what you may hear about women’s rights in the Middle East, the brave women are finally seeing that they have a choice and are getting the rights they deserve.

Myth #3: Women in the Middle East do not receive schooling

Fact: While few women make it to secondary schooling, due either to arranged marriages which forbid women from being enrolled once married, or lack of funds, girls do receive an education. How far they go depends on their societal status.

The situation is complicated in the Middle East, especially seen through Western eyes. Women in the Arab countries face discrimination and lack the independence that we take for granted daily. But their oppression does not mean they don’t want an education or equal standing in their countries. And that is clearly something we’ve come to see over the past few weeks as more and more women stand up to their dictators and push for a better life.

It’s inspiring and it’s encouraging and, as a woman, I hope these women get everything they’re fighting for.

Fashion Week.  A place for designer’s ambitions, dreams and hard work to spill out onto a runway in front of an intense, anticipating public eye.  In front of other sweaty-palmed designers.  In front of Anna Wintour and Blake Lively’s mane.

Excuse me for sounding dramatic, but isn’t that what Fashion Week is all about?  Being dramatic? Based on my nightly routine of viewing pages and pages full of lustful fashion lines this week, that seems to be the case. In fact, it seems that Fashion Week exploded this season.  It exploded right on my face.  And now I’m left blinking at a screen full of lace, sheer fabrics, bold colors, drapery, fur and tribal makeup.

At first, I couldn’t decide if I was liking anything that was popping out from behind the curtain. It looked like MC Hammer and Lucille Ball barfed onto some fabric, smeared the regurgitated styles all over models with paint on their faces and let it go on a long strip of runway.  The chic, bold colors and ’40s-inspired ideas came together awkwardly and I was pursing my lips like Ms. Wintour.

But after taking a moment to sit back and appreciate the artwork, craftsmanship and deeply thought out designs and styles, I started to find some beautiful pieces.  And I. mean. beautiful. Then I started drooling. Then I started Googling ways to make a couple thousand dollars fast so I could get my hands on some of these things. Then I got scared about selling my eggs/body. Then I gave up and just got excited for these thoroughly anticipated clothes to hit the racks so I can window shop with that glazed over look in my eyes before I pop into Forever 21 for the knock-offs.

Ready for some Fashion Week porn? Here are a few of my favorite things that came down the runway this week: Read More »

What do you get when you combine a fame hungry parent, a hysterical child, and a pop-sensation? A viral video sensation!

At some point in the last year the country has gone absolutely insane over Justin Bieber…and it’s not limited to teenage girls and lonely housewives. Apparently little kids are on the bandwagon too, but they’re not mailing their Limited Too training bras to him — no they’re throwing hissy fits about the fact he lost at the Grammys. And their parents? Their parents are grabbing the video camera and milking their CLINICALLY INSANE children for all it’s worth. Because when it comes to good parenting or making your child a Z-list celebrity, you know what comes first.

Like if my elementary school child was having a mental breakdown over Justin Bieber’s Grammy loss, I would sit him down, have a nice little sanity chat, assure him Justin Bieber will be fine (millions of millions of dollars of fine), and maybe try to get him involved in some extracurricular activities that don’t involve Bieber. No second grader should be crying over Justin Bieber’s career. Nor should a three year old!

Then again I was still jamming out to Raffi in second grade and crying over the fact my mom refused to buy me Gushers…so maybe I’m way off base here.

College life can get pretty crazy — especially when alcohol gets involved. Especially when that alcohol comes from a cooler labeled Jungle Juice. So this week we were in the mood to hear some crazy “only in college” stories and asked you in our weekly Monday Facebook poll “where’s the weirdest place you’ve ever woken up?”

And we were pretty surprised with the answers. We were expecting “a random frat” or “a local’s basement”, but here’s what we got instead:

“In the middle of a buffalo field.. haha” – Aqueena Schoorlemmer

“With my legs half in a river!!head in a bush!!” – Jack Barofka

“In the bathtub wrapped in my duvet” – Gloria

Want to see the rest of the answers? Check out our fan page! Want to see last week’s question? Click here! And don’t forget to share your weirdest wake-up below!

College kids, start kissing your trays goodbye. In an effort to make campuses across the country more green, many universities are kicking the habit, instead forcing students to carry their plates and drinks through their dining halls. As a college senior, it’s been ages since I’ve eaten at a school cafeteria but I can only imagine the chaos this is causing for those with tiny hands and huge appetites.

While the push for less water and food waste is admirable, let’s weigh the pros and cons of a tray-less world:

Pro: Only being able to eat what you can carry means less food and less of the dreaded ‘freshman 15′ weight gain. We can dig it.

Con: Having to walk past that group of hot dudes to get your second third fourth serving of soft-serve. Damn you, tasty sprinkles!

Pro: Going tray-less eliminates the needs to waste gallons of water to wash them clean! Word to Mother Earth!

Con: I don’t know about you, but us East coast kids need something to sled on when the snowflakes start to pile up!

Pro: Less food is wasted when you can’t just grab-and-go. Start saying goodbye to the old “my eyes are bigger than my stomach” excuse.

Con: Having to balance silverware, a giant soda and a chicken wrap while digging around for your credit card is a recipe for disaster. Do I look like a professional juggler?

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Dear “That Guy”,

Your ability to drink in excess and ruin 95% of pictures taken at parties gets me hot and bothered. I think it’s uhh… adorable that you maintain your appearance to the point where I question your sexual orientation. I guess I respect the fact that you tweeze, bleach and pluck more than me. The fact that you care about your “fresh kicks getting smudged” more than your future or GPA is super sexy…?

Babe, what happened to you? Before you became “that guy” you were once “just one of the guys.” You were playing Madden instead of photoshopping your Facebook pictures. You couldn’t tell Armani from Target. Your cellphone lived in your pocket instead of clipped to your ribbon belt, and for the love of God, why are you orange-r than an Oompa Loompa?! I liked you without your bromosexuality. I’m not interested in the Brody Jenners or the Gotti wannabes!

Why does your tee shirt have more sparkles on it than Limited Too’s entire Spring Collection circa 1998? These glittery numbers are worsened by being “slim fit” to show off your “killer pecs.” Maybe they work for Hulk Hogan, but they don’t work for you and they definitely don’t work in public. Do society a favor and wear clothes that fit. And if your shirt has a collar? I don’t care if you’ve been popping it ever since you can remember. Old Yeller that nonsense. Put. It. Down. Read More »

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Last night’s episode of Jersey Shore was… graphic.  (Although it was a welcome relief after last week’s throwdown.) From the pooping to the pranks and the male crying, I felt like I was watching something on HBO. Let’s just say though, the pooping really was a cornerstone of the episode. Between Deena being constipated and weighing 40 lbs more than the first episode, someone losing their “dirty drawers” (my money’s on Snooks….) and the boys sticking poo poo pads under Deena’s pillow only to later find them under their own, this ep should have just been called “Sh*ts and Giggles…and Ronnie Tears.”‘

And in that vain, I thought I’d rate every major moment of the episode by on a scale of 1-4 poops. (Obvi, 1 poop is bad and 4 is good.) You with me? Let’s get this sh*tshow on the road!

1. Snooki and Deena “Caking Vinny“
After a lot of angst and drama over Ronnie/Sammi and the girls and boys choosing sides (plus Ronnie crying for the hundredth time), Snooki and Deena decide to combine their meatball powers to “cake Vinny” and begin the most epic/fail prank war of all time.

Survey Says: Three Poops. But only because this is the moment that started it all. Read More »

Boys, boys, boys. Here at CollegeCandy, we love them. A lot. And being that we have a lot of time on our hands to search for them on the web, we thought we’d use it to our advantage and yours and bring you a little eye candy that not only makes us drool but also tugs at our heartstrings. So here’s your chance to meet some of the most talented guys in the world…who rock. Like, for real. (They’re musicians, people.)

Name: Michael Schulte
Age: 20
Location: Flensburg, Germany
Type of Music: Acoustic/Pop
Why He Rocks: Michael’s passion for music is so inspiring. And his voice may or may not take our breath away. Okay, it does. Ahhhh.

What age did you start singing?
There’s no specific age I started singing, as I always loved to sing. I remember singing for hours when I was a little boy and that it really started to bug my brother and sister.

When did you decide you wanted to make your talent into a career?
I always had the dream of being on stage, just me and my guitar in front of a crowd of thousands. But the first time I really realized that this dream could actually come true was in 2008 when I started to post videos on YouTube and people from all over the world were like, “Wow boy, you got it!”

What was going through your mind when you were getting hit after hit on YouTube?
It really was a great feeling to see that more and more people seemed to like my music and my voice. I have always been singing, but never really sang in front of other people. So one day I decided to post a video of me singing on YouTube, and after just one week I had over 1,000 views. People wanted to hear more, so from that point, I kept posting videos. My first goal always was to get 10, 000 views on one video. When I got there my next goal were 100,000 views and then 1 million hits. And I did it! It was also truly a wonderful feeling to see that the number of subscribers was increasing each day.

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