Unlike many of my friends, I didn’t spend my summer working my butt off at some incredible internship, or traveling around the globe checking out exotic places. I put my seven years of competitive swimming to use and decided to teach people how to swim at a nearby university. Not only did I get to enjoy the gorgeous Miami weather on a daily basis (when we weren’t having torrential downpours) and get to look at the even more gorgeous guys, I learned some very interesting things.

For example, even the cutest little girl’s vomit will be vile when you are covered with it. And, even though the adorable boy you teach can’t be more than 40 pounds, his “accidental” kicks to your lady parts will make you see stars. Every. single. time.

Since I don’t plan on teaching swimming or working with kids in the future, I didn’t anticipate learning anything super important through this job. I figured I’d be in the sun, make some money, and get really pruney fingers now and then. But while I was teaching these little kids how to stay afloat in a large body of water, they were teaching me a much bigger lesson. Read More »

It all…it all happened so suddenly. One moment I’m completely single with fewer prospects than an English major (I can say this since I’m an English major), and the next I have a guy friend sitting in front of me saying “I like you. I like everything about you.” And…uh…this is a totally weird a rare phenomenon but I like him too. We like each other at the same time!

I asked him if he’d like to be dating-ish. His response? He liked me enough to do away with the “-ish”. And for as much as I badger guys for being commitment phobes who don’t know what they want…I was the one who wanted to keep the “ish”.

It’s not that I don’t think he’s smart and funny and sexy and the coolest person I’ve met since Zach Braff (I know. I met Zach Braff. I’m excited for me, too). It’s just that I’ve jumped head first into things about seven times too many. And now that I know what can happen, there’s a little bit of hesitation to drop those three little letters that act as my flotation device. Am I smart or cynical?

To tell the truth, falling for someone goes exactly the same way every single time. You get giggly around them. You get antsy when they haven’t called, and then can’t hide your annoying smile when their number finally pops up. You don’t eat because joy and snuggles are fulfilling enough. And to tell the truth, it all ends the same way. In tears. And if not in tears, in a pint of Ben and Jerry’s mixed intermittently with shots of vodka. Read More »

It’s a fact of life: unless you marry your high school sweetheart, the older you get, the more relationships you’ve had. And so has your significant other. Not only are there more relationships, but they are more meaningful. There are shared pets, friends that knew ‘them’, ex-apartments, ex-fiances, ex-spouses, even children.

Before I entered the world of adult dating, I didn’t really understand the importance of these factors in forming a new relationship. My lovely older sister used to lose her mind when her boyfriend (now husband)’s ex was mentioned, and I couldn’t understand why. She was history, why was the mention of her name so upsetting? I didn’t care about any of MY boyfriend’s ex-girlfriends. Of course not, they’d dated as teenagers or college students (when they were drunk most of the time, I’m sure), and topped out at a year, two at the most.

Once I joined the grown-ups, I had a new appreciation for ‘the ex’, as she became a more significant being. My boyfriend was with his ex for 8 years, and when I first found that out, the thought of her made me INSANE. Totally irrational, I know, but I’m working through it. It’s far from complete, and I’m sure it will evolve, as all things do, as I age. But for the time being, here are a few things I’ve found that help deal with this relationship reality in a healthy way. Read More »

With the economy suffering, a lot of airlines have slashed their baggage allowances.  This season, more than ever, it’s important that you pack wisely when you’re heading out to the golden coast of Spring Break wonderland.  And, really, there’s no reason you should be packing everything but the kitchen sink, because each morning the  “what to wear” dilemma probably consists of the options, “solid bikini,” “patterned bikini,” “string bikini” or “tankini.”

No matter where you’re headed for a week-long holiday this spring, there are a few things you definitely DON’T need to bring.

1. Your laptop. If you can’t go a week without updating your Facebook status or checking out Perez, it’s sad.  And if you can’t go a week in paradise without updating your Facebook status or checking Perez, it’s scary.

2. Your entire shoe collection. Shoes can take up the most room in your luggage, and if you’re heading to a beach resort, you really only need a pair of flip flops for the beach, a cute pair of strappy heels for partying, and a pair of sneakers for touristy excursions.  You’re not going to miss your knee-high boots. Read More »

In this week’s In Touch magazine, a “friend” of John Mayer explains that the reason he is often so distant and, well, douchey, with his girlfriends is because he had his heart stomped on at 16. He was madly in love, something went wrong, and he promised never to have his heart broken again.

Awwww.

I bet that made you melt, right? I mean, it’s adorable and endearing that heartthrob John Mayer had his widdle heart bwoken! And it finally explains everything from Jessica Simpson to Jennifer Aniston and all those girls in between! It all makes sense. You are totes on Team Mayer now, aren’t ya?

Well not me. Read More »

Britney’s going all out for Halloween.

Save money on mags; read this instead.

The perfect year-round nail color.

NBC is getting rid of the chimes? WTF?

Internet dating: even the old people are doin’ it.

31 things you should know about Halloween.

David Letterman totally calls LC out.

Everyone needs this bag. Puma got so chic!

The all-in-one glass: a college girl’s BFF.

Seriously – when did Shia get so hot?

It’s time to unload all that baggage.

Craigslist and Google come together to get you laid.

In high school, I was more or less obsessed with Bright Eyes. I absolutely adored Conor Oberst and all his whiney, scratchy-voiced angsty music, not to mention his sexy eyes & all-around hot emo boy demeanor.

I was also extremely depressed, dropped out of high school (only for a semester!) and spent three hours a week in intensive outpatient therapy.

However, times have changed and I traded in my razor blades for wine glasses and my sorry, pathetic teenage attitude for a much healthier, positive one. I became happy. Baggage-less, I thought. Completely devoid of any negativity from my past.

And then, as all love stories begin, I met someone who I had absolutely everything in common with and with whom I got along flawlessly for the first six months. I thought I was over my years of self-loathing and teenage drama, and if I could hold a healthy, (somewhat) adult relationship, then I was convinced.

Seriously, this relationship was awesome. We were like male and female versions of each other: We were in the same major (yes, boy magazine journalism major!), loved cheap beer and foosball and basically couldn’t keep our hands off of each other….any time, anywhere.

But, eventually my insecurities came to the surface and the relationship became a huge emotional mess, for both of us. I’m talking the whole screaming at each other in public and then pouring beer on each other to even the score kind of mess. There it was again; all that baggage I thought I tossed years ago, staring me right in the face, mocking what I thought was my new life and new super-happy relationship.

I might be an extreme case (in fact, I know I am), but after the failure of this relationship, that was all lovey-dovey, fairy-tale, red roses on the outside, I began to question, quite Carrie Bradshaw-esque-ly, if we can ever really escape our pasts. Read More »

News flash: Miley Cyrus is still illegal

…Which apparently Roger Clemens is into

Baggage that will blow a second date (hint: it ain’t Prada)

Shia Labeouf is hot. Literally.

It’s fatsploitation, ya’ll!

I unapologetically love Harold and Kumar

Dating site for intelligent people–oxymoron, much?

There is such a thing as going too far for a cause

I was worried Speidi wouldn’t make it to the White House!

And for an old-school, battle-rap throw down