Hanukkah is coming! Unfortunately, I’m not Jewish and don’t celebrate the holiday, but just because I can’t indulge in 8 days of presents doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy everyone’s favorite Hanukkah treat: the potato latke.

Sometimes, the school you picked isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Maybe the culture just doesn’t mesh with you, or maybe you realize after a few months that you want to be studying something completely different.

Unlike the rest of the world, Thanksgiving is my least-favorite holiday. I know, I know—the food, the laziness, the time off from work, the family (well . . . maybe that’s not such a plus)—what’s not to love?

Let’s be honest: we college girls do most of our drinking out of red plastic cups. It might get the job done (and it’s usually free), but it’s far from classy. And sometimes we all need to be a little classy. If you’re looking to add some class to your weekly routine, consider having the girls over for some wine and cheese.

I’m not a vegetarian, but I have a vegetarian boyfriend (and an aversion to all things Thanksgiving). I’m going to his parents’ house for the holidays this year and, luckily, they’re tolerant of nontraditional main dishes, so we’re going to experiment a little.

There’s really nothing better for a busy college girl than a dinner that tastes fantastic but took less than 15 minutes to make. Unfortunately, the two are almost mutually exclusive in my mind. I say “almost” because I can think of at least one notable exception: taco salad.

You don’t have to be a Monet to do nail art, because it’s basically as simple as paint-by-number. If you can copy that complicated stats diagram into your notes, then trust me, you can put a gorgeous sprig of florals on your nail. Plus, your friends will be totes jealous when they all drop twenties on French manicures and your nails look a zillion times better.

So, I live in the Midwest and that means the onset of October is practically winter. I have only about two hoodies and sweaters that are anywhere near stylish, and I really want to do a complete fall wardrobe overhaul, but there’s just one tiny problem—I have about enough spare cash to buy a box of mints from the Old Navy checkout aisle, and that’s it.

I have never really liked meat. The idea of a bloody steak with neatly criss-crossed grill marks on my plate has never been appealing to me, and I have basically limited my carnivorous intake to the occasional chicken breast. My boyfriend is a vegetarian, and I can go for long stretches of time without eating any meat at all. So why am I not a vegetarian, too, already?

It’s like your mom always said: the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Even if you aren’t exactly Julia Child, you can still follow instructions, and that’s all you need to do to bust out a romantic dinner that’ll have him drooling for your food and bolting with you to the bedroom.