Ah, the LDR . . . it’s one of the most talked-about relationship types ever, and for good reason—there’s just so much to say about it. Should you do it? Shouldn’t you? For some people, it’s not so bad, and for others, it’s absolutely never going to work. But if you find the right person and it just happens to be the wrong time in your life to physically be in the same place, is an LDR worthwhile? Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons:

ADVANTAGES

Be a total pig: If you’re not exactly Mr. Clean, your significant other never needs to know unless he or she comes to visit, in which case you can do a total sweep of the house in time for the arrival. In fact, it’s easy to cover up a lot of bad habits if you’re in a long-distance relationship. As long as you can hold off pounding down the Cheetos or compulsively biting your nails for the short times when you do actually see the person you’re dating, you can otherwise freely indulge in your vices.

Time for yourself: This is a biggie. If you still like to hit up the bar with your friends or spend all your spare time watching college football games, there’s no boyfriend or girlfriend to stop you in an LDR. In a way, it’s the best of both worlds—you get to date a great person while still enjoying one of the biggest benefits of being single: time. Read More »

[I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not the epitome of prim and proper- heck, who really is nowadays? But looking around at the misguided youths of today *ahem drinking buddies*, I’m starting to think that Miss Manners might have been onto something.

While you may never need to know how to greet a duke or how to tell which fork is REALLY the oyster fork, knowing how to deal with people whom owe you money, how much to tip, and how to address the ever annoying licorice-in-teeth conundrum without being rude might actually come in handy in the real world. I'm not trying to be your mother - oh goodness, no - I'm just here to help you out of those little etiquette dilemmas. So here goes: a quick lesson in etiquette. The sh*t you might actually need to know.]

These days, it seems like the etiquette rules of the past just can’t keep up with the changing face of communication. Now, I like my cell phone as much as the next person, but there are some things you just shouldn’t do with a phone…

- Having a cell phone lets you talk whenever, whereever, but that doesn’t mean you should. It’s rude to talk on the phone in restaurants, movie theaters, libraries, lecture halls, opera houses (does anyone actually go to those?), etc. Keep your phone on silent. Duh.

- What’s more, it’s rude to talk loudly. I don’t mean the “slightly-above-normal-speaking-level” loud. I mean the “STRAIGHT-UP-SCREAMIING-INTO-YOUR-PHONE-LIKE-IT’S-A-MEGA-PHONE“ loud. If you have to scream, take it somewhere private. Otherwise, realize that the other person will hear you whether you’re screaming or whispering (preferably, talking normally). Plus it makes you look super crazy if you’re walking down the street screaming into a hidden Bluetooth. Read More »

Happy late Earth Day! You probably don’t think of tech gadgets when you think of saving the planet but you should. I mean think about how many new cell phones you’ve gotten in the past two years. For most people it’s at least two (or more if you’re accident/drop-in-the-toilet prone).

Where do you think your old phones go? There’s no magical cell phone farm where they go to live out their last days in a texting spree. It’s more like a industrial landfill where they sit until the end of time.

And well that’s just not great for the Earth. The amount of tech junk that’s hanging out would make Captain Planet cry.

So what can you do to help with that? Well, you could buy less stuff, but that’s not too realistic. Especially with all the cool shiz that comes out monthly (thank you, Apple!) and the short life many of our gadgets have.

So what can you do? Why recycle, of course! Read More »

[Like a magpie, you gravitate towards things that are shiny: cell phones, TVs, anything that allows you to play Rock Band. But just because you love ‘em doesn’t mean you know much about ‘em. That’s where we come in.

Every week we will be highlighting the best, coolest and shiniest in technology. Consider us your personal Geek Squad. And let us tell ya; with CC on your side, geek has never looked so chic.]

So it’s March. Time of leprechauns and half-nice weather. It’s also a time of sales. Tech sales. So here’s some sites to find some cool stuff for cheap. Because everyone loves cheap.

Outlet PC

So maybe you’re not quite ready to sit on your floor and build yourself and an awesome machine, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need stuff for you current comp. And I don’t know if you’ve noticed or not but cables for your comp are EXPENSIVE and get lost every time you move. This site isn’t flashy but it does have all your basics on it for really cheap.

Newegg.com

Slightly prettier site with a much larger variety of things to shop. Not just PC, but everything tech. From XBox 360 products to new TVs to laptops, this site has it all. The prices are REALLY reasonable making that decision on whether or not to get that extra controller just that much easier. Not to mention the phones. So if you’re plan is coming up on it’s two years you can shop an upgrade from your house. Or you can check out if you can get a better deal by going elsewhere. Read More »

If you’re at a bad party, you can call it a night, call Saferides, and make it back to your dorm in one piece. Then again, if you’re at a good party, you can live it up, sleep until noon the next day, and then relax your hangover away to get back to the daily grind.

On spring break, however, once you get off the plane at your final destination, you’re in it for the long haul. Though you anticipate your vacay being the highlight of the semester, it can be grueling to go all day, every day, and, being far from home, there’s a lot that can go wrong. Nothing is suckier than getting sick in a foreign place, fighting with your tripmates, or getting into a sticky situation in an unfamiliar place. Make sure you make it back to school in one piece this spring, by taking a few simple precautions.

1. Do your research.

Get some maps before you leave. Ask people you trust if they can recommend a good hotel. Try to brush up on the local rules or laws of the place you’re headed. The last thing you want to do is get lost, check into a lodging that is reminiscent of hostel, or get in trouble for something you didn’t even think was wrong.

2. Pack wisely.

Flip flops might be a necessity, but what about when you take a day trip that requires walking around all day to take in the sights? Pack a comfortable pair of shoes just in case that long night of clubbing wore out your feet. And even if you think you’re going somewhere tropical, it can’t hurt to throw a sweater in your suitcase for when the temperature drops after dark. Read More »

Texting: we all do it. A lot.

It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s especially useful when making a phone call isn’t an option (like at work or in class where you technically shouldn’t be using your phone…or when you want to flirt with a guy without being too committal.).  It’s convenience is part of the reason  it’s become so popular over the last several years.

However, not everyone (Read: crotchety old people) thinks it’s so great – many critics claim that texting is contributing to the deterioration of the English language. Critics worry that the common practice of using abbreviations and shorthand in text messages will cause people begin to speaking in shorthand, too. They also claim that students are turning in papers riddled with text-message slang.

WTF are they talking about? I don’t know where they get that idea from. OK, so maybe I have been known to throw a “BRB,” “LOL,” or “OMG,” into conversation, but whatev. I can still read and write! Read More »

A couple of weeks ago, when my cell phone (endearingly named Dino, since it was probably manufactured during the Jurassic Period) finally went kaput, I sprang for one of those nifty phones with the keyboard – for optimal texting, as the salesperson put it. Since I’d been growing increasingly fond of texting, I figured the keyboard feature would make sending out messages more convenient. But little did I know that I was about to go from casual messenger to a total texting addict.

Yes, I admit it. I really, really like to text. I do it all the time: under the table at restaurants, during the previews of movies. Sometimes I even stop in transit to send out a text (I don’t have the hand-eye coordination to walk and text at the same time. Not yet, at least). While I try not to be rude with my texting, I can’t help but love this new development in communication.

But before you condemn me to the ring of hell reserved for the intellectually degenerating and socially awkward teenage population, hear me out. As an aspiring writer and self-proclaimed grammar Nazi, there are some lines I refuse to cross when it comes to texting. I never use abbreviations, except for the occasional “lol.” With my old phone, that made writing out one text an all-day affair, but with my handy keyboard, it’s a snap. And that annoying, pointless one-word text that makes you want to reach into your phone and punch the person who sent it? I won’t send it. Ever. I get way too many of them as it is; I won’t subject any of my friends to that type of agony.

My reason for texting is restricted to simple convenience. Read More »

Apparently the Teen Choice Awards were on last night, or something? Yeah, we didn’t know either. But here are some people dressed up for it.

This is what $14 Million looks like. (Funny, I thought there would be more gold….)

Is my iPhone really killing me?

Thank God for CollegeCandy, especially now that our favorite magazine is folding.

People say my standards are too high, but would do date this man?

Sleeping in until noon is not bad; it makes you smarter!

Paris Hilton’s mama fights back against John McCain. Looks like the Repubs lost a little financing, eh?

Sexual harrassment is A-OK. In fact, it is necessary for the future of our species. Duh.

Please, Tyra. PLEASE. Don’t ruin this election for the rest of us.

Are you a nailbiter? Smoker? “Like” sayer? Quit that nasty habit overnight!

Don’t mess with Tracy Turnblatt. Fo real.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in college, it’s that half of the contacts in my phone are people I don’t know. I may have known them for the length of a drink or a line outside my favorite bar, but memory fades with last call.

In any case, what makes the randoms in my phone stand out is how they’re entered as a contact… affectionately re-named, if you will.

We all do it, and I really do lament my memory slipping, but as I was going through my contacts list the other day, I couldn’t help but crack up at some of the best names I found in my phone. After which I was reminded of some of the better names and numbers taken down by some of my friends.

With no further ado, the best contacts I completely forgot about, and you likely have in your phone too (please note that actual names have been changed on the off chance any of these people remember exchanging numbers with me or my friends):

1. John Cinco de Mayo

Ah, yes, you remember the Cinco de Mayo story. What a glorious and drunken event. He’s still in my phone, identified by when I met him. This can also occur with cities and venues as well (see below)… Read More »

My phone is ringing. Again. And again. And again. At 4 a.m. my ex calls, just to shoot the breeze. I have to get up for work in three hours! The six missed calls earlier were not one, not two or three, but four different friends calling to find out what I was doing that evening and if I wanted to go out for drinks.

This is not a weekend.

This is a Wednesday night.

It seems the time has come to prune some extraneous leaves on the branches of my social tree. My phonebook now includes some names to which I cannot even match the slightest hint of a face.

I have now reached the stage where I can answer the question, “So what are you up to tonight?” with, “Oh nothing,” and invariably end up somewhere loud at three in the morning stumbling into a dirty bathroom and incessantly repeating the line that never fails to impress: “I have work in the morning! I can’t believe that I am out doing this!” Read More »