Ever since Kate Middleton stepped into the public eye, there has been much scrutiny surrounding her weight. The 5 foot 10 in. tall duchess is rumored to weight in at just under 100 lbs which, according to her BMI of 14.35, is seriously underweight. (Anything under 18.5 for women is considered underweight.) Now, once again, everyone is worried about young girls and how they’re going to respond to Kate Middleton’s body. “If the Duchess of York is dangerously thin, then maybe I should be too,” are the thoughts that people fear the young girls of today will undoubtedly have, especially since so many of these girls idolize these women. Although this strong influence hasn’t necessarily been proven, I don’t doubt its existence.

However unpleasant it is to see someone being so heavily scrutinized in the media, everyone knows that with the spotlight comes the criticism.  The one thing I can’t come to grips with though is the idea that Kate Middleton is being criticized for being underweight because of her influence, and NOT because of her health. In my opinion, there needs to be a conversation held  about the role of the media and their own perpetuation of the ideals of beauty.

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Recently, a few of my friends and I got into a bit of a disagreement over who pays on a date. Although a few people agreed with me that if the relationship is long-term, the couple should split the costs for practical reasons (after all, especially if you’re on a college budget, it’s hard to bear the burden of all expenses), the overall consensus was that the guy should always pay at first. Some said the first date, some the first three dates, and others advocated up to the first year. My friends argued that if he’s trying to win the girl over, this is the way to do it. Some even joked that it was payment in exchange for what they hoped would be a different type of payment later on.

Personally, I’m still in disagreement with the others on this one. The idea of letting anyone pay for me is just. . . wrong. It makes me feel uncomfortable and goes against every fiber of my feminist being. I’m a strong, self-sufficient woman; I work and take care of my own personal expenses, so why should I have a guy do it for me? And, even more to the point, why should I allow him to pay for me if I can’t pay for him? If we’re going for equality, then why is he footing the bill every time?

At the same time, I can see my friends’ point: the way our society functions, refusing to let a guy pay is usually a girl’s way of expressing disinterest. Social protocol practically dictates that if you like the guy, you let him pay.

Which, to me anyway, is a little twisted.

It’s not just paying though. There are plenty of cases in which being a feminist – or even just embracing feminist ideologies – makes things all the more difficult to figure out. We all know the whole career versus family scenario; since the woman’s place used to be the home, now that we’re in the workforce we’re always trying to balance both. But what about life goals and focuses, especially in college?

The two things that seem to dominate my life, my thoughts, and my conversations are school and boys. Everything is about one thing or the other. But the former always takes priority – it has to, right? We’re in college for education and a chance at our dream careers first, and romance second. That’s why so many people I know are so upset over a friend of mine choosing to graduate early and just work until her boyfriend’s business has taken off so she can become a wife and woman of leisure. She’s throwing away her entire potential for a guy and an old-fashioned idea that women are defined in society by their husbands’ successes rather than their own.

But, on the other hand, she’s not constantly talking herself out of liking a guy or making a move. Another friend and I have been talking about how she needs to hold off on figuring out her guy issues until after her MCAT. And yeah, that’s a life-directing test, but I’ve put off confronting a guy until after my debate competition, after a paper, after an exam- there’s always something academic to justify why dealing with romantic problems has to wait. And wait. Because school always comes first, should always be the focus, and I should never, ever let a boy sway my focus. On anything. Not even the optional one-paragraph writing assignment for the class in which I’m pulling an A.

Part of it, obviously, is the drive to do well. But part of it is also a reflection of the roots of that family versus career conundrum. You want to have the success and happiness that women fought for- and that you genuinely want and have worked for- but you can’t figure out how to balance that with the hormones and the simple desire to have someone in your life. Anytime you start to focus on guys, it feels like you’re sacrificing part of yourself, of your work. But how much are we sacrificing for this idea that career is everything?

Don’t get me wrong- I work hard, and I have a strong sense of where I want to be in five years. I have a career and a life all planned out. I want to work in international human rights, travel, save the world and the people living in it. But I can’t, for the life of me, figure out where a guy would fit in. And even now in college, I have my classes, my thesis, a job, clubs, projects- things that will help me achieve. But at what cost? I feel like I’ve been so worried about betraying my feminist ideologies that I’ve purposely pushed any chance at romance not just to the backseat, but hanging out of the trunk.

And sure, even if I were to make concessions I’d still have issues letting a guy pay for me. But does it really have to be that strict of a trade-off? Or is there a balance we’re just not seeing?

[This story was originally posted by Rachael - University of Miami.]

Sometimes it seems like the more money they have, the more homeless celebs think they should look. Like, I know you have tons of beautiful clothes in an effing huge closet in your fabulous house. If you’re not going to wear them, at least give them to me.

Let’s be real, even when these celebs look like complete sh*t, they’re probably wearing more money than I spent on my entire summer wardrobe. But, they still look homeless. Here’s a few of our fav celebs in Zoolander-style Derelicte-chic.

initiating the gallery...

Our favorite lady rockers

8 rules to a booty call

80′s classics that need the big screen treatment

Pull off animal print without looking like the zoo

Mmmmm….David Beckham

The greatest romantic movie scenes

Did sobriety kill Amy Winehouse?

8 celebs known for being bad tippers

Dating tips you can learn from a vampire

[This summer a dream internship with Lucky magazine moved me from Austin, Texas, where I’ve spent all 21 years of my life, to New York City for the summer. Come along for the ride and follow me through this column as I take on all that the city has in store for me. I’ll share tips I’ve picked up along the way about everything from how to pack (stop, drop and roll people!) to dating to fitting in (or standing out) and so much more.]

There’s nothing quite as sweet as a summer love. Summer flings happen at the best time, on the cusp of classes ending when summer fearlessness sets in. Throw the city into that equation and the possibilities really are endless. So spend your free time this summer on dates that you’ll remember even if the guy was less than memorable.

Tip #29 – Reach new heights.

Can’t help but roll your eyes when you hear about how a girl got proposed to on the top of the Eiffel Tower? Believe me, I’m right there with you, and yet somehow a date at Top of the Rock just feels so right. It doesn’t have to be cheesy! Spend an unreasonable amount of time in the control room, where the neon lights are controlled by your body movement and challenge your date to a dance-off. I suggest you go at night when the city really comes alive, and see if you can find your apartment roofs hiding in between the thousands of twinkling lights from the top of Rockefeller Center. It doesn’t have to be cliché and romantic as long as you’re both having fun. After you visit the top, grab a drink at the bar in the plaza where the famous skating rink resides in the wintertime. Read More »

Do you spend a lot of time playing Rock Band with your roomies and pretending like your entire town is listening and cheering you on? Oh, that’s just me and my roommate? Don’t tell her I told you.

Anyway, there are plenty of things you can actually do (apart from pretend to be a great drummer on your Wii) to rock your college years. Like what, you ask?

• You can get involved and make a name for yourself. Because who doesn’t want to be recognized by everyone they pass while walking to class Friday morning with a hangover like a plane crash?
• Why don’t you hit up the local karaoke spot? So what if it sounds like three cats are dying all at once when you sing…drunk people will eat it up. And at a karaoke bar in a college town, I can guarantee you that everyone is drunk.
• Pull a Lady Gaga and show up to class in an egg. Professor, I needed time to incubate on my thoughts. Get it? Incubate? Even better if this is biology. Read More »

Hollywood’s most secretive celebrity couples

Two of Hollywood’s hottest men are coming together…for a movie

Why you should embrace being single this summer

The other Lohans that want to be famous like Lindsay

Nifty and creative ways to store your jewelry

Why plants are even better than boyfriends

Ok Go’s new music video is even weirder than the treadmills one

These products are kind of genius

What are your favorite summer films?

Katy Perry has never been known to be a wallflower. She’s also never been known to not look amazing in any of her crazy ensembles. So when she turned up to The Smurfs premiere on Sunday in this adorable Smurfette dress, we couldn’t help but be jealous of how hot she looks!!

The dress, which featured an image of Smurfette — who Katy voices in the new movie — emblazoned in jewels, had a gorgeous, flirty shape that she paired with amazing (blue, of course) Louboutin heels. She also had smurf-patterned nails to match her ensemble. Thankfully, she kept jewellery to a minimum, with just a simple bracelet, letting the dress do the talking- which it certainly did! Read More »

And I don’t mean dirty in a good way. I mean gross, like they don’t wash things. And I’m not just making this up because I know a few dirty boys. Clorox did a study and found the proof.

Here’s a few reasons why men are disgusting:

1. They wear dirty underwear. This is one that Clorox just came out with. Come on guys, I’m not gonna say I won’t wear a shirt a few times before I wash it. But underwear?

2. They don’t wear socks. This might just be from personal experience with my mom constantly having to buy my brother those little balls you put in shoes to make them stop smelling so horrible, but I’m pretty sure my brother is not the only one.

3. It’s a mystery how often they shower. Some of them may shower a lot, but you can’t really ever tell. For girls, our hair gets nasty and it’s really obvious when we skip a shower. With guys, however, they could go a week and the only indication would be the smell. And I would guess that some of them do. Read More »

[Life after college is hard. Like really hard. But it's not so hard that you should curl up in a ball and watch E! marathons all day long. Not only are we covering the experience from a first-hand perspective, but we're now covering it from a how-to-survive-it perspective. Every week, we're going to bringing the best advice to getting through your first post-grad year. Because sometimes, your grandmother's "just go to law school" advice just doesn't cut it.]

So you’ve made it to the real world and you got yourself a real job. Congrats. Oh, and just a quick head’s up before you put in that order for business cards. You’re overqualified for your job. No matter what it is, you’re overqualified.

How do I know?

Because almost every entry-level position requires the bare minimum in terms of skills — especially if you went to a specialized school for a specific major. So forget what your professors told you about the industry and get ready to roll up your sleeves and be an intern-plus. What makes you an intern plus? You’re going to get paid to do very elementary work.

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