When I graduated from college, I told myself that I was never going to behave the way I had for the past four years. Especially since I was no longer going to be attending Thirsty Thursdays, Wasted Wednesdays and Tipsy Tuesdays, and there weren’t horny boys lurking around every corner. Essentially, ‘hooking up,’ in all of its glory, was taking a gracious bow out of my life.  And I accepted it. I was ready to burst into the world of dating, cute little kisses at my doorstep, waking up at 8 am alone and never again embarrassing myself when I walked home wearing a tutu and a Run DMC shirt.

My new mature self truly believed hooking up was for immature people who peaked in college. But not me. I was now an adult and completely grown out of my college meet-a-guy-in-the-corner-and-hump-him-against-a-wall self. Now I’d meet men in grocery stores and in passing on the sidewalk near the cigar shop. (What am I, 50?! Whatever, I saw it.) I had a little fantasy land in my mind where I would meet my knight in shining armor, he would work with numbers, wear a suit and have a passion for life so thick and deep, I would not be able to see the end of it.

I had no time for immature boys who wanted to spoon with me on a futon after we took red headed slut shots together at the bar and talked about Jurassic Park because it was “oh my gaw, so totally our favorite movie in grade school!”  I had no time for the silly guilt I’d feel the next morning until I smoothed it over with my girlfriends. And I had absolutely no tolerance for deciding mid-makeout sesh that I’d rather be eating a tortilla with cheese in my own bed. Read More »

Balance is really a simple science: if you have a scale and you put a brick on one side and a feather on the other, the brick is hitting the floor. I learned that lesson long ago and try to apply it in my everyday life, even when I’m making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich; if I don’t spread my peanut butter evenly enough on my piece of bread, and lay it on too thick on one end, I can barely get through it without gagging or being completely repulsed by its sticky and overwhelming existence.

But let’s talk about balance in my real life, yes? I mean, I could talk about peanut butter and jelly for days but in this case, the peanut butter is me and I’m just trying to spread myself evenly against the Wonderbread of life. Whoa, did I just go there? Yup, I did. I compared my life to PB&J. And I’m totally OK with that.

Lately, I’ll be honest, I’ve been finding it excruciatingly difficult to balance my personal life and spread myself evenly across everything I feel I need to do. I understand I can’t be good at everything (I learned that when I auditioned for choir….), but when it comes to balancing what’s important in my post-grad life, do I have to have to pick only one of the five things I want to excel in? Read More »

The word of life the day is: mistake.

I come face to face with mistakes more than I’d like to admit.  In fact, they stalk my life worse than anything DJ Pauly D has ever encountered on The Shore. Today, I made the mistake of eating five chocolate dipped macaroons before going on an impromptu run outside. Let’s just say I haven’t felt a stomach cramp like that since, well, ever. And the other day,  I drank coffee after 3 P.M., unaware that I have the same internal workings as an 80-year-old woman.  I couldn’t fall asleep for days.  Not to mention, I had terrible heartburn.

But my mistakes don’t only involve internal bodily harm. The truth is, lately I’ve been behaving in weird, mysterious and dumb ways. I’ve partied on the occasional weekday. I went running back to a guy that didn’t deserve even the time it takes to bat an eyelash in his direction. I stopped working out because I thought eating less would make me happier.

Mistake, mistake, big (literally) mistake.

And while these self-inflicted issues continue to frolic my way, I always have that small glitter of reassurance. Reassurance in knowing that (even though I’ve learned the hard way), I’ll never do it again.  Hands on experiences and mistakes are always the best, right?  Once I learn the hard way, I learn. I learn to never make the same mistake twice. Right?

Wait, why is no one answering me?
Hello?
Bueller?
Am I right?!

I’m wrong. Read More »

I knew things were going to be different after graduation.  I graduated high school and shiz did not go down in college like it did in high school funky town.  Like any transition in life,  things change.  And with change, I am suddenly given the chance to look back in my life rear view mirror, appreciate what’s been left in my past and look forward to the brand new things that are coming in my future.

Like any college girl, the only thing I could think about upon graduating was how I wouldn’t be able to wear sweatpants to buy Arizona Green Tea at the gas station at 2 P.M. on a Tuesday afternoon.  I knew I was going to miss spending entire days sprawled out on my futon, watching Grey’s Anatomy re-runs and ordering Jimmy Johns for my mid-afternoon snack. My college siesta hour(s) – every day from 2-4 – would no longer be there for me to utilize. And that is something I’ve missed.

I’ve also missed going to the caf with all of my girlfriends on Sunday morning to discuss the weekend’s events over soggy toast and cheesy eggs.  I’ve missed when spring finally came and all of the boys on campus would showcase their forearms, and that bubbly feeling inside me that came from knowing that in just a few more degrees, they would be drinking Coors in their backyard. Shirtless. Read More »

You got this, girl.

Alright post-grads, future post-grads, and people who think they are post-grads but are really just thirty-years-old and clinging on to their blissful youth.  For some reason as a post-grad myself, I’ve found it easiest to write about things that depress me.  I guess I just like an excuse to indulge in brownie sundaes nightly. But the truth is, the post-grad life isn’t depressing!  In reality, it’s a beautiful time for all of us to open doors after some have been slammed in our faces.  Think about the power you obtain in that single movement!

But I digress.

When we leave college, we immediately assume we’ve lost so much. And by so much, I mean everything. I’ll be straight up honest with you: when I was in college, I was an annoying, cocky, lady-child (in the best way possible). I think it had something to do with the fact that while I was living the dream, napping intensely during the week, drinking until 3AM, getting in everywhere for free as long as I flashed someone my boobs student ID – basically living like a homeless celebrity – I felt as if nothing could get past me.

College was my own protective placenta of awesomeness; a slice of time when I could bask in everything that was working out for me (i.e. free food, a semi-careless attitude, eating whatever sat in front of me, not worrying about what anyone thought).  I know I’m completely sounding like a cocky a**hole, but college made me feel weirdly confident.  I felt like I could do anything, dream anything and, most importantly, see everything clearly.  Perhaps it was some evolved pair of college beer goggles, but I saw everything without any glitches, scratches or worries.  I knew that by the end of the semester I would have survived somehow and I could look forward to a fresh slate in January. Read More »

When I was a little girl and thought of growing up, I closed my eyes and saw a life full of prosperity. I saw a world where I could do what I loved most, play Barbies in my spare time, and make a lot of money being a veterinarian, curing boxes of adorable puppies on a daily basis.  Then when I turned thirteen and reality was a little clearer, Celine Dion proved to me I had the pipes to belt out ‘My Heart Will Go On’ until my heart (and those around me) would not go on any longer.  I knew that someday I would date Justin Timberlake because we were at the same place in our musical careers and we could understand each other.

When I graduated high school and Justin Timberlake started dating Cameron Diaz, I knew I had to pick an alternative life.  It took some time (and a few people cringing at the sound of my voice), but I soon realized I could not be the next pop artist. Instead, I would go to college and dig into its grab bag of opportunity.

I wanted to find out who and what I wanted to be.  And I had a four-year time crunch. Read More »

The following post is written by Josh Olson from UNC, one of our many friends at Uloop, a student powered marketplace. Read more great posts in their blog.

Straight from the dorm onto the street. This might seem to be the fate threatening college students graduating in our current economic doldrums. But there may be hope. There are methods for making yourself more appealing to potential employers. There are ways to manicure your resume; and there’s always the internship option. But you already knew that.

Here are some somewhat less conventional ways to avoid those unemployment lines after graduation. Read More »

I don’t know who I want to succeed more, me or Justin Beiber.  The fact J-Beebs sold out Madison Square Garden at the ripe age of sixteen puts me in a really difficult position with my personal standards.  And the fact I’m comparing my life to a pre-pubescent child puts me in a really difficult position with my personal reputation.

All throughout my college life, I felt like I was being shoved into a giant, human cannon.  I was constantly finding ways to shove myself, my tasty thighs, my college-ego, my giant boobs, my reputation, my GPA, into a compact space.  That’s a lot of bullsh*t to squeeze inside something that is eventually going to catapult me into the real world unprepared.  Thanks a million, life cannon.

After being shot into the real world, I picked up a dirty habit. While being thrown into something I was totally unprepared for (ehem, hey real world!  It’s a pleasure!) it became nearly impossible to find any satisfaction in my life.  I was so overwhelmed with emotions and goals, I became an angry, judgmental girl. And who saw the brunt of all that negativity?

Me.

Lately, I have become increasingly hard on myself.  I never acquired this nasty habit while I was in college – I was completely self-involved with surviving day by day, enjoying every moment, and not giving a shitake mushroom about what people thought of my sexy time hair while I walked past church service on Sunday morning.  Did I just give a shitake mushroom shout-out in this post? Read More »

[Life after college is different for every single grad. While some might be going to grad school, others enter the real world in attempts to make their dreams come true pay off their student loans. We've been following Charlsie on her post-grad journey since September, but now it's time to check see what someone else's post-grad life brings.  (But don't worry - Charlsie will still be writing!) So ladies, allow me to introduce you to Brittany and her tumultuous life after college.]

I have a strong belief that this column is about being extremely honest – even if my reputation as a stable human being is on the line. So, you wanna hear a depressing story? (Note: I think the following confession may have something to do with having to listen to Fergie squak for a ten-minute halftime show on Sunday.)

I woke up this morning at a ripe 6AM to put on my face and go to work. I felt like someone had poked me in between the eyes with a two-by-four and sat on my face the entire night.  I really need to stop assuming I’ll have the energy of a type A spider monkey after going to bed at 12AM.

Anyways, I slowly slithered into the shower, let the beads of hot water run down my face and….cried. I started crying in the shower. Good. Lord. (And no, that’s not me in the pic. I didn’t invite someone in to take pictures of this most lowest of lows.)

Contrary to popular belief, I’m not depressed. Although it may seem that way since I was crying in the shower on a Monday morning, it’s nothing like that. I’m very happy with my life. I’m a very lucky person and to top it off, I’m young and have great hair. Read More »

[Life after college is different for every single grad. While some might be going to grad school, others enter the real world in attempts to make their dreams come true pay off their student loans. We've been following Charlsie on her post-grad journey since September, but now it's time to check see what someone else's post-grad life brings. (But don't worry - Charlsie will still be writing!) So ladies, allow me to introduce you to Brittany and her tumultuous life after college.]

I’m having a pre-mid-life crisis.

And I can’t even buy a red Corvette and put the top down and drive to my Beverly Hills condo in complete dismay.  I can’t go to a nice cocktail bar and cheat on my fat, hairy husband.  I can’t even obtain a sugar daddy to buy me a bangin’ new set of tits. All I can do is attack my Netflix, fall back on an old high school flame, and stare at my empty PayPal account.

Twenty-somethings are not supposed to feel the way I do. Read More »