I don’t know if I should be embarrassed to say this, but I have a confession to make:

I love Oprah.

Like, love. Idolize, even. I think she is a phenomenal role model for women, has the best topics on her show and wears the absolutely most amazing earrings. And I would give anything (anything!) to spend one day in her shoe closet.

And yesterday, I got to go to her show!

It was like a dream come true. I have been trying to get tickets for years and, finally, my lucky day came. I didn’t know who was going to be on the show and I didn’t care; I just wanted to be in the same room as Queen Oprah. And I was!

Since Oprah tapes in Chicago, my mother and I decided to make a little mother/daughter trip out of it. We flew into Chicago early Monday morning, spent the day shopping (which, by the way, sucked because my mom was all about buying me things and we couldn’t find anything! Could there be a worse situation?), ate a deeelicious dinner and then tucked in early to get our mandatory beauty rest. After all, we would be seeing Oprah herself the next morning, not to mention the 30 million people who might see us. Read More »

In case you’ve been left out of the loop, Going.com is a website dedicated to the sheer pleasure of being young in the city- any city! They cover New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago–even San Fran. For those who feel slightly skeptical of enjoying an unplanned night, this site is gold.

Going.com is the place to find out what’s going on, who’s going, and how it’s gonna go. With an expansive event calendar, private e-vite system, and a substantial list of parties, concerts, and shows, this website will feel just as lifesaving as the first second your lips hit that Cosmo. Read More »

As graduation time for many college seniors is looming in the distance, it’s important to remember the wise words of those that have gone before us. The most entertaining and witty of those was a 1997 column in the Chicago Tribune that was published as the author’s own version of a commencement address. It skips all of the b.s. of typical speeches and details why we should simply enjoy our lives right now! The column became famous and I always read it when I need a little boost. Just a little taste…

“Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You’ll miss them when they’re gone.

Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll have children, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else’s…

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.”

Read the full column here