It’s hard not to smile when you first see this now-notorious picture from last month’s Glamour. Whether fashion mags are just trying to cash in on a long-neglected market or they’re actually making a concentrated effort to diversify their glossy pages, it’s incredibly refreshing to see a “plus-sized” woman with a tiny paunch being portrayed as confident and sexy rather than dumpy and in need of an emergency juice fast.

And the lady on page 194 isn’t this week’s only bright spot—our posts since Monday have been full of pluses. For example:

- Something called the Amethyst Initiative wants to lower the drinking age, which should come in handy when your study group wants to start pounding shots. Drunk studying for midterms: CC tested, commenter approved.

- Dressing up for Halloween doesn’t necessarily mean looking like a hooker, unless, you know, you want to look like a hooker with a sense of humor.

- Getting ready for unscheduled boot-knocking is simple…

… as is buying fresh, healthy produce.

- And speaking of produce: it’s finally pumpkin season! Mmmmm, pie.

- There are bright-eyed, bushy-tailed freshmen out there who are somehow excited about writing papers. That’s just heartwarming.

- AskMen.com’s list of 2009’s most influential dudes is light on substance, but heavy on eye candy. As far as I’m concerned, Don Draper can top any list he wants.

Of course, this week wasn’t all sunshine and pumpkins—we had to deal with bad kissers, Spencer Pratt’s continued douchitude, and, er… how to deal when your guy wants to use the back door. But for now, let’s focus on the positive. Have a great weekend!

You may find yourself asking, what does it take for a man to leave his mark on society in this day and age? AskMen.com made a list of the 49 most influential men of 2009, as voted by the readers. And apparently, the AskMen readers believe that the man that has most inspired them this year is Don Draper, the main character in AMC’s series Mad Men.

Leave it to the male gender to vote a fictional character (who is sexist, racist and cheats on his wife) into the number one spot. This man’s biggest mark on society is his abuse of alcohol and cigarettes. Now there’s a man to look up to.

After reviewing the list it looks like the majority of names have had more influence on my late night fantasies than my actual life. Sex symbols such as Robert Pattinson, Roger Federer and Ashton Kutcher, to name a few, littered the list of “influential” man-meat. But to be fair, the vampire trend has really taken off thanks to Pattinson’s cold stare, so I guess he is influential in his own right. Read More »

This Week’s Article: Reverse Emasculating Trends by askmen.com.

This week’s article warns men to get rid of emasculating trends in their relationship. I didn’t realize this was such a problem, but apparently men are being emasculated from coast to coast and someone at AskMen thinks it needs to stop.

And he means business.

The article puts men in their place right from the start: “When women emasculate us, it’s often because we let them do it. Our wives don’t want to think of us as anything less than men — they only think about us like that when we act like that. All those emasculating trends in our relationships, we’re complicit in them. If you no longer feel like the man of the house, it’s at least partly your fault.”

Of course, showing any signs of having an actual human soul will lead your girlfriend to see you as a girly child and treat you as such. If you’re not pounding your chest and tearing the flesh off a dead zebra, something is very, very wrong with you. And your lady hates it.

Let’s see what the “men” at AskMen advises the boys to do: Read More »

This Week’s Article: Why Do Single Women Like Taken Men? by askmen.com.

This week’s article lists a number of reasons why women are (supposedly) attracted to taken men. Let’s see what they have to say…

AskMen says: “In the Garden of Eden, Eve sinks her teeth into the one piece of fruit that God instructed her to avoid — so began a long line of women who wanted, oh so badly, what they could not have.”

I Say: Actually, I’m pretty sure Eve convinced Adam to eat the forbidden fruit instead of biting into it herself. Nevertheless, I don’t really find bible references to be the most accurate explanations of human behavior.

AskMen Says: “Significant others are a reflection of the people they date. That’s why it’s in a girl’s best interest to act like her boyfriend’s PR rep: to mention whenever possible that he studied at Harvard — oh, and he plays in a band. When she boasts, her listeners see him through the rose-colored glasses that she wears.”

I Say: Of coarse, the only way women can make themselves seem like decent human beings to to boast to others about the great things their boyfriend does. Read More »

This Week’s Article: 5 Lies All Women Tell by askmen.com.

This article’s tag line is: “If she’s said any of these things to you, she’s lying.” Starting off with a gross generalization is never a good thing, but let’s take a look at what lies the boys at AskMen think we’ve been telling. All of us. Every time we speak.

“I’m not mad at you.”

Askmen says: “Oh, yes she is. Don’t think you’re getting off that easily. This lie is one of the most frequently used in relationships. Typically, women who have been hurt by men in their lives — often inadvertently — use this phrase as an emotional defense. For example, if a guy forgets his girlfriend’s birthday, calls her by his ex’s name or commits any of the other minor screw ups that most men do on a daily basis, women usually can’t just let it go. They dwell on it, letting worries whittle away normal feelings of well-being like a dog gnaws on a bone.”

I say: This is true some of the time, but there are definitely times we really just aren’t mad! Really! And if we are, we don’t all let it “whittle away normal feelings of well-being”; we can get over things, you know. The best way to get around this confusion is to encourage open and honest communication from the start of a relationship. Read More »

Men are tricky creatures. As much as we may wish we could read their minds, it just isn’t possible (yet… come on, science!). But don’t worry, I have discovered a trick to help us understand them a little more.

We all know guys that have picked up Cosmo from time-to-time (or have a monthly subscription) to help them figure out what their women are thinking. Hell, I bet a bunch of guys are reading CollegeCandy right now to try and figure something out about their girlfriends. Well ladies, we can do the same thing! Taking a peek at the kind of dating and relationship advice guys are being fed is a great way to get into the mind of a dude and see why he acts the way he does. Every Wednesday I’ll be doing just that. Hopefully, this will explain a few things…

This Week’s Article: Her Best Friend Is A Guy by askmen.com.

As someone who has a lot of close platonic male friends in her life, this article particularly irked me. And by “irked,” I mean “pissed me the hell off.”

The boys (they are not men) over at AskMen refuses to believe that a male and female can truly ever be good friends. As they say, “we’re operating under the assumption that heterosexual men and women cannot be best friends; sex always gets in the way.” I know many people may believe this, but I am living testament to the fact that it is not true. I would never dream of sleeping with my best guy friends, who I absolutely adore, and I know they feel the same way about me. In fact, the mere thought of it all makes me puke in my mouth a little.

Moving on… Read More »

Men are tricky creatures. As much as we may wish we could read their minds, it just isn’t possible (yet… come on, science!). But don’t worry, I have discovered a trick to help us understand them a little more.

We all know guys that have picked up Cosmo from time-to-time (or have a monthly subscription) to help them figure out what their women are thinking. Hell, I bet a bunch of guys are reading CollegeCandy right now to try and figure something out about their girlfriends. Well ladies, we can do the same thing! Taking a peek at the kind of dating and relationship advice guys are being fed is a great way to get into the mind of a dude and see why he acts the way he does. Every Wednesday I’ll be doing just that. Hopefully, this will explain a few things…

This Week’s Article: “Open Up to Her?” from askmen.com.

A reader writes to Doc Love (really? Doc Love?) because he has been having problems with the woman he has been dating for 21 months. He writes: “Caprice is now saying she doesn’t know if we’re compatible. She still says she loves me and is still touchy with me (so I don’t think it’s just Womanese). One of her specific complaints is that I don’t communicate, and that she doesn’t really know me. In your book you say not to talk too much about yourself and only tell her things that will raise her Interest Level. I shut my mouth and make sure I listen, but if she asks what I think about something and I think my answer will lower Interest Level, I don’t say anything. Should I open up more?”

Doc Love’s first move is to remind the writer that he is always right. He says: “”The System” works all the time on everything. If you missed something in the Dating Dictionary or misinterpreted my techniques, then it’s not a problem with my book; it’s a problem with you. So please don’t say it only works ‘up to a point.’” Wow, way to hit that cocky ball out of the park, Doc Love. You really think you have all the dating answers? There isn’t one single situation in the whole world that the Doc Love “system” might not work for?

I’m really hating this guy already. Read More »

No one can deny that the male ego is truly an amazing (and monstrous) thing after reading the article, “Why Women Can’t Be Bosses” posted on AskMen.com. In a breakdown of the reasons why women apparently suck at being in charge, the article really makes some rather interesting points (interesting = far fetched, misogynistic and disgusting), some of which include how women don’t know how to control their emotions, how they hold grudges, and apparently all – yes I repeat, all -  have queen bee syndrome.

This has to be a joke, right? I mean, no guy really feels this way about women, right?

Take this line, for example: “In order for women to compete with any level of competence, they have to adopt masculine qualities.” Seriously? Wow. I wonder to which male qualities the writer is referring. Is it the ignorance, the insolence, or just the immaturity to write such absurd blogs like this one? Read More »

AskMen.com just released their list of the Top 49 Influential Men of 2008. The list includes celebrities, athletes, businessmen and other world-changers. Kudos to all these outstanding gentlemen for all their accomplishments, and extra kudos to the dudes who made this list and also happen to be really smoking hot. All 12 of them, to be exact.

We sifted through the list of influencers to find the best of the bunch. Influential and hot…this is a list of pure perfection. What more could a girl ask for?

12. Michael Phelps- With 8 Olympic gold medals under his Speedo, Mr. Phelps can stroke my breast breast stroke me any day!

Read More »