The reign of social media lives on as the New Oxford dictionary (“The world’s most trusted dictionary) named ‘unfriend’ the word of the year. Yes, as in: “Some whack-job keeps invited me to play Farmville so I unfriended his lame ass.” Another point for Facebook, and another hit to society’s overall intelligence. To ‘unfriend’ someone may be the ultimate diss on the interwebs, but in reality, Oxford is just verbing a noun.

To make matters worse, other finalists for the word of the year included: sexting, intexticated, tramp stamp and deleb. For those not as in the loop as the New Oxford word of the year panel, deleb is defined as a dead celebrity. I, for one, have never heard the word ‘deleb’ used in everyday conversation, but what do I know? I’m still over here thinking the correct term was to ‘defriend.’ Embarrassing.

While these words are culturally clever and all, I can guarantee word-enthusiasts all over the world are groaning right now. I’m just wondering how long it takes before ‘WTF,’ ‘LOL’ and ‘UR2GR82B4GOT10’ get their moment of glory. Also wondering how long it will take my spell check to realize ‘unfriend’ is legit now. Seriously, what is this proto-language and where do we come up with it?

Every week I make a list. Not a grocery list or a to-do list…or that list, because I don’t really do groceries (there is a reason why they deliver pizza) and to-do lists are totally not my scene (if such a scene even exists) and, unfortunately, I haven’t added to that list in quite awhile.

No, this list is a top ten-style countdown about the hard-hitting issues, like which mash-ups are the best ever or which apps rock my world.

This week I’m focusing on the “click click flash” that consumes your weekend. You go out, someone inevitably breaks out the camera (every 4 minutes) and you start posing like you’re ready for the cover of Nylon. Great idea, but these pictures are going to end up on Facebook for the world to see the next day when you’re sober. Oof. And with today’s technology, you might be even caught in real time.

Who’s guilty?
Actually, who isn’t?

10. Self indulgent “Take one of just meeeee!”

You always think this one is a great idea. I’ll tell you something your friends (especially the one taking this photo) never will: it’s not a good idea. I promise you, it never is.

9. Drinking game picture

Congrats bro, you won a binge drinking game. Super rad!

8. Drunken girl-on-girl makeout

Your boyfriend? Not gonna be thrilled. Ok, so maybe he will, but did you forget that your great Aunt Frances is your FB friend?

7. Mirror Myspace look

Looking good with a giant flash obscuring you. Classic.

6. Obscene gesture… or action.

That’ll help you land your dream job.
Oh, and not looking at the camera does not make this photo look more natural or classy.

5. Passed out with Sharpie in your face

If you have one of these, your friends are jerks. If you have more than one of these, you seriously need help.

4. Drunken Photobooth?

Just, why? Was there really nothing better to do while you were buzzin’?

3. Nonfunctional drunkenness

Another big, fat “why?” How is this attractive? And who was the jerk who took this picture? And freaking sent it to all your friends? But, seriously, why did you decide to lay right there?

2. Pregaming

Since when is drinking in a tiny dorm room scrapbook material?

1. Pouty face, Peace sign

Overplayed.
ENOUGH SAID.

Though we hate it when guys call us crazy/psycho, every girl out there has had their moment. For me, it was when I drafted an email to a non-existent person and “accidentally” sent it to my crush, forcing him to write back. Or the time I called a different crush’s work and used a fake name to see if he was indeed working late or just lying to me to hook up with some other girl. Or when I used to walk by yet another crush’s dorm to see if his light was on and if he was home.

Ok, so I’ve had my fair share of crazy-time, but it’s not my fault. I’m not a crazy person – boys just make me that way. And I know you ladies can relate.

After leaving a long, drunken voicemail for my newest conquest last weekend (“I don’t understand why you’re not calling me. I like you. Do you like me? Oh god I sound crazy. I’m not cra-” This is where my friend grabbed the phone and threw it across the room…), I sobered up, wiped up my dignity and deleted his number from my phone.

Then, as I sat indulging in some pretzels dipped in frosting, I started wondering what other girls were taking a ride on the crazy train. While no one wanted to admit it, I forced the CollegeCandy writers to fess up to their lowest moments.

Zahra – Northwestern University: When one guy I was with decided to just disappear, I wasn’t having it. I called him tons of times and wrote him texts that went on for pages…ugh. Seriously, I shudder when I think of how psycho I was acting.

Kim – Stanford: I went a little crazy when I sent a text message from HIS phone to this girl that always hit on him that he thought she was ugly and really didn’t like her personality and to stop texting him.  Yeah, the girl never hit on him again after that.

Maddie – Tufts: Probably the time that I went on my ex-boyfriends Facebook and read his messages. Oops.

Anna – Northeastern University: My roommate was obsessed with this guy that she hadn’t met, but seen at his place of work. She found him on Twitter and made a fake Facebook account to stalk him. Then one night when she was really drunk and couldn’t find our other friends at a party she went next door to where he worked (a bar) and started ordering drinks. Basically the night ended with her following him out when his shift ended, grabbing his head, and making out with him.

Lauren – University of Michigan: After meeting a really hot guy at a bar and totally hitting it off, I had to leave to take care of a friend. I never got his number so I went back the next weekend and grilled the bartender to see if he remembered who he was and if he might have a credit card receipt for him. What? It works on Law and Order…

Katie – Michigan State University: A couple years ago, my boyfriend went back home to Korea for the summer and begged me to do a long distance relationship with him.  Funny thing was, he dropped all communication a week after he got there.  So, naturally, I stalked one of his friends on MSN, struck up a phony friendship, asked for my boyfriend’s Korean phone number and proceeded to call him 17 times in one night.  Not only did he never answer my calls/e-mails, I also got stuck with a ginormous phone bill.

Leah – Ryerson University: I took the car keys of a guy I was interested in so that 1) he couldn’t drive home (2 hours away) that night and 2) so he would have to see me again.  To my defence it was less craziness, and more 4 glasses of wine and 4 shots.

Brithny- Duke: Nothing really crazy, but I do sometimes “accidentally” run into him on our way to class. Even though our classes on on the opposite ends of the campus. Thank you, FB schedules.

Thu – USC: This is probably more weird and embarrassing than crazy, but I remember back in middle school, my friends dared me to just say hi to my crush, who had no idea who I was. Not having the guts to do it face to face, I once yelled out hi to him from the passenger seat as my dad drove by. Needless to say, it didn’t accomplish anything.

Ness – Sheridan: Once every few weeks, I Facebook search a guy I used to be involved with. His profile is set to private, and I’m too much of a puss to send him a friend request, so I check out his profile pic every once in a while. Wow, that sounds so much worse when it’s written down…

Ricki-University of Michigan: I once stalked all of his photos just to figure out who his ex-girlfriend was…and then when I had to meet her, I pretended like I didn’t know who she was.

Alex K – Lakehead University: My craziest moment is probably stalking. I happen to be very good at finding boys on Facebook…. I have done drivebys before too….

You know you’ve pulled out the crazy before. Let it all out in the comments section – we won’t judge.

In case you’ve been locked in a soundproof, internet, cell phone, and calendar-free room for the past week, let me be the first to remind you that there’s a holiday happening this Saturday. A wonderful holiday full of tricks, sweets, and more grown-up treats. A holiday that lets every girl unleash her inner sex kitten, vixen, or Beyonce—provided she’s old enough. A holiday that makes it okay to wear anything, even glow in the dark pants. (Um… unless you’re a dude who wants to wear leggings. That’s never okay.)

But Halloween’s not all candy and luminescent trousers. You’ve got to be careful that you know how to get rid of full-face makeup before you make a move on that chubby but hilarious cutie in the SuperJew costume. You’ve also got to remember to watch the volume after taking him home. And try to manage your expectations about the encounter—this isn’t a movie, after all.

It’s also important to make sure you don’t accidentally raise the dead. Of course, if you do have any encounters with a zombie, it’ll be easy enough to find another final resting place for him—just stop into your local Walmart .

Either way, you’ll definitely have a ton of sweet pictures to add to your Facebook on November 1. And if your overindulgence on Saturday gives you a little bit of extra cushion for the pushin’, you can always call your friendly neighborhood plastic surgeon and get that flab turned into something fabulous.

Transformations: they’re not just for Halloween anymore.

As you all know good and well, last week we teamed up with our BFFAEAE’s over at Chickdowntown to give two lucky readers the chance to win the ultimate New Moon gift basket. What could you win?

Here’s a breakdown of the fabulosity:

1. 2 Jules Smith Vampire Bracelets
2. The Twilight Bella jacket (which we totally want despite the fact that we don’t know who Bella is…)
3. A Twilight 2-disc DVD
4. The Twilight New Moon Illustrated Movie Companion
5. 20% off your order at ChickDowntown. Which you’ll want once you see all the adorable stuff they have to offer.

We took the contest to Twitter and Facebook, asking readers to profess their love for us (come on – who doesn’t like to hear it now and then??) in order to win. We gave you all a week to show us some lovin’ and we’ve finally chosen our two winners.

And they are.

Drum roll, please.

From Facebook: Sarah Elizabeth from Loyola!
From Twitter: @Ashleydepp

We’ll be reaching out to you lucky ladies ASAP, so get ready for your New Moon Gift Basket (Robert Pattinson not included). And if you wanna buy us anything at Chickdowntown with that 20% off – you know, to thank us – that would be totally cool. And we want this. Thanks!

While most people’s gym routines differ – I, for one, have always been an elliptical girl and hate the stationary bike – it’s safe to assume that almost everyone incorporates a “cool down” into their cardio program. After running for 30 minutes at 7 miles per hour, you’ll knock your speed down to 3 and spend five minutes jogging or walking before you hop off the machine. Many pieces of gym equipment even include a 5-minute cool down automatically, tacking it on to the end of your desired workout. All of this is supposed to prevent soreness or muscle damage and relieve strain on the heart.

According to University of Texas physiologist Hirofumi Tanaka, however, there’s no proof that a cool down has any positive benefits on the body. “Everyone thinks it’s an established fact, so they don’t study it,” he said in a recent New York Times article. The article notes the ambiguity of the concept as a whole, noting that it’s not even clear what a cool down is supposed to be or how long it should last.

Apparently, the cool down became standard gym practice after it was reported that muscles become sore after exercising due to the accumulation of lactic acid. This theory has been reported false, leading people to believe that reducing the intensity at the end of a workout (which was supposed to let the lactic acid dissipate slowly) is unnecessary. The article does note, however, that blood can build up in your legs and feet if you stop running (or biking or ellipti-cizing) shortly, making dizziness or even fainting a possibility.

The article adds that because lactic acid has been discovered to be beneficial, it might be better not to cool down. A study of a group of cyclists showed that cooling down wasted the lactic acid; when they just stopped without reducing their speed gradually, the lactic acid was turned into glycogen, a muscle fuel.

So what does this mean? It means that you don’t have to waste that extra ten minutes at the gym cooling down. In fact, for better results, it means that you shouldn’t. Finish your desired workout, grab your things and head home. Then use that extra time for something more productive, like studying, making a healthy snack… or stalking your crush on Facebook.

Ha! I got you, bitch!

Poor Mike! He should have known better than to leave his Facebook profile open on someone else’s computer. Usually, I’m pretty unimpressed with jokes that hinge on dudes acting like there’s something inherently hilarious about homosexuality—unless they’re Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd—but this prank is pretty genius. (Side note: How on earth are there that many groups about loving cock??)

Changing around someone’s Facebook profile is the ultimate prank. We all spend way too much time worrying about presenting ourselves in the best light possible on Facebook: listing the right favorite movies and music, displaying a flattering profile pic, writing something funny and pithy in our “About Me” sections. When someone messes with your profile, then, they’re poking fun at your image-consciousness in an extremely public way—and they’re also making sure that an audience of hundreds can immediately see that you just got played.

So, since witnessing a Facebook prank at its finest, I’ve been thinking about other ways to subtly mess with my friends’ Facebook profiles, given the chance. And considering they stored their passwords and leave their bedroom doors unlocked, that chance is most definitely given.

Here’s what I’ve come up with so far:

-       Change her language setting to Icelandic.
-       Re-tag all of the heinous pictures from last week that she immediately un-tagged the second they were posted.
-       Better yet, make one of them her new profile picture.
-       Change her listed AIM screenname to whatever embarrassing SN she had in middle school: MrsJTT, anyone?
-       Reply affirmatively to every single request that’s accumulated on her page since she last denied all of them. That weird kid from down the hall wants to challenge her to a ZombieNinjaPirate duel? It’s on.
-       Change her major to “Arts and Crafts,” or maybe “Gym.”
-       Become a fan of Heidi Montag and express her love in her status message.
-       Have her “like” every depressing, melodramatic status message on her newsfeed.
-       Change her relationship status from “In a Relationship” to “Single.”
-       Create an event for her “First Annual Swingers” party and invite all of her friends. Including her parents.
-       If her parents aren’t already her friends, submit the request. Then invite them to said party above.
-       If she’s a hipster, change her favorite music to the Dave Matthews Band and her favorite books to Twilight and “anything by Dan Brown.” Oh, and I can’t forget to make her quotation lyrics from a Toby Keith song.

Got any other ideas?
Re-thinking leaving that password saved?

Having just “celebrated” banned books week in America, I started thinking about the importance of reading, the beauty of stories and how much books enrich all of our lives. And most of my thoughts came back to one single theme:

W.T.Eff?

Banning books? Seriously? First Obama gets attacked from those crazy moms who think he’s out to brainwash children by giving them talks on the importance of education and now reading is bad for children, too?

The whole thing is just absurd. Have people even read the books they’re trying to ban? How can a story about a pooh named Winnie who likes to eat honey and play in the woods with his other anthropomorphic friends possibly be bad? It seems like a book that is deemed “good” and “appropriate” these days is a book that will not inform your child of the existence of sex, racism, violence, homosexuality, the devil, bad language, and any other concept that will cause children to ask you awkward questions. The whole banned books thing will probably cause my AP Literature class to be renamed AP Literature That Will Morally Damage Your Soul.

Does this mean we should ban Pokemon as well, since the little animals “evolve,” which therefore enforces the idea of evolution and is therefore anti-Christian and therefore is Satanic? Winnie the Pooh may be the poster child for the obesity epidemic, his friend Eeyore for depression, and Kanga for single moms everywhere, but that doesn’t mean our younger siblings can’t read about them. I happen to like Tigger, even if he does have ADHD. And although Harry Potter may have “witchcraft and wizardry” and whatnot, it’s still one of the most significant contributions to literature in our lives, and as such, should be available to anyone who wants to read it.

So let’s take the attention and money away from banning books and focus on some more important things that should be eradicated from this planet. Because in 2009 there are so many things worse than kids in capes flying around on broomsticks or finding a lion in your closet.

1) Twilight movies

We can send a man into space but Hollywood can’t make a decent vampire movie. The actors all have a deer-in-the-headlights look on screen and attempt to fly around like people in improperly rigged harnesses. There’s something oddly wrong with that. The only thing that could have made it worse was if they cast Megan Fox, and that’s only because she makes every movie ten times worse than it could’ve been, due to her acting skills, or lack thereof.

2) Crocs

Plastic rubber clogs with holes in them, with the loudest, most obnoxious colors imaginable. Need we say more?

3) Bad Alliteration

Amusing to a certain extent, but gets repetitive after every English major tries to sound like James Ellroy and just ends up sounding like an awful author addicted to annoying alliterations. Again.

4) Livestrong bracelet knockoffs

One yellow cancer bracelet is enough. Do we really need people sprouting an armful of colored rubber with every imagined cause stamped across them? Be a little more original, please. Oh, and true story from a friend:

“Weight Watchers sent me a bracelet after I signed up for a meeting. It was white, with some rainbow stripes on the side. But why would I wear a Weight Watchers bracelet? Is it not obvious enough that I need to lose weight? Do I also need to tag myself with a FAT GUY BRACELET?”

5) Gaming language

Otherwise known as nerdspeak. Common terms include noob, newb, noobsicle, ftw, gg, gg no re, 1337, QQ, lawlz, nub, pwned, pwnage, or even harpwnage (the act of being pwned really hard) should not, under any circumstance, be said in ordinary life.

6) Creepy Facebook ads

Someone please tell me how Facebook has managed to eerily know everything about us and assume what we want. “Discount airfare to China!” What? Just because I’m Asian?

7) A few select man trends

Including: rattails, ponytails, monster trucks, hairy backs, man-purses, chains, a gazillion tattoos, mandals, mandiators, and transparent shirts.

Starving Hollywood celebrities

Rachel Zoe, Renee Zellweger, Tori Spelling, Victoria Beckham, Amy Winehouse, and Ashlee Simpson all need to eat a few burgers before they’re fit for the public. Young people these days have enough to worry about besides trying to look like a skeleton. Save that look for Halloween, please.

9) Fat people falling Youtube videos

Guilty pleasure number one, but really should be banned to relieve my soul from residing too much in an immoral state of being. I really shouldn’t watch Scarlet taking a tumble a million times and laugh hysterically every time I see it; it’s bad for me as a conscientious human being, I’m pretty certain.

10) Special athletes that promote the stereotype

As a current student at Duke and avid sports player and fan, I know for fact that you can be incredibly smart and be amazing at your sport. So it worries me when people like this one fail at representing athletes in a more flattering light. Like, um, really.

Anything else you think we should ban?

This is real. We're Facebook-Official.

Okay, so as if the world of flirting/dating/hooking up in dark corners wasn’t already confusing enough, we now have Facebook thrown in the mix. You can poke the cutie from Calculus, send some racy “private messages,” and maybe even send a condom or two his way.

But when you actually really like the guy, and have even gone on a couple dates (aka met for lunch in the caf or taken a stroll through the plaza) the whole Facebook situation gets ten times more complicated.

And that brings us to the “relationship status.”  It sits in the corner of our profiles taunting us. “You’re still single??” it screams (accompanied by Facebook ads luring you to Match.com). But when you are seeing someone it’s even worse, nagging you day after day. “Are you official yet?! It’s been a month! Come on already!”

I don’t know how I feel about this little option. I won’t deny that it’s exciting to finally make the official switch to “in a relationship,” but the extra pressure it adds to my love life is a major negative.

Obviously, I’m torn.

Love It:

The fact that making a relationship Facebook official clears up a significant amount of issues surrounding a new relationship. First of all, there is none of that sitting up late at night with your roommate, dissecting his text messages and the way he hugged you goodbye. Does he want a commitment? Is he not sure? Of course he’s sure! He just changed his relationship status!  It sort of brings us back to those Pleasantville days when a guy simply pinned his girl and that was that; when you have been “Facebook officialed” you’re a couple. Done.

Ah, dating has become so black and white.

And when it finally does happen you can inform all of your 1,345 friends instantly. No need to pick up the phone and tell everyone you’ve finally met a great guy when his entire life history, complete with photos, is only a friend request away.

And I have to admit, it is freakin’ exciting. Being able to finally tell that little relationship box, and the rest of the online community, that you are officially “in a relationship”! You will be bombarded with little red number notifications, since everyone “likes” this new change. And it will feel great.

Loathe It:

How official is official anyway?! Is it enough that we text during class and make out every Friday night? And what if you think it’s official, but you have yet to receive the relationship confirmation request. What can you really say to clear up the confusion? “Uh…hey, I was wondering, can we be Facebook official yet?” If this isn’t pitiful, I don’t know what is.

Then there’s the rejection; what if you just want to have fun, and the guy totally jumps the gun and makes it official? (Or vice-versa – we can’t deny that we tend to fall a tad too quickly).  You don’t want to hurt his feelings (because you totally want to have him available for a booty call at all times of the night) but if you accept, everyone else will think you are a couple, which would severely hinder your chances of meeting other cute guys on campus.

Finally: the break up. As if they aren’t awkward already. Now you have to have 1,345 people feeling sorry for you and sending their condolences. Not to mention all your girlfriends “liking” it and leaving comments like “you deserve better anyway,” and “were going to get WASTED tonight!!” Some of these breakups are actually really painful for both parties, and making it unofficial on Facebook totally trivializes it. Not to mention that both of you have to deal with reading the others friends’ plans to take your ex-significant-other out to get wasted and hook up.

And when is it appropriate to make it un-official anyway? Is the next morning too insensitive? Does waiting a week make you seem desperate and clingy? It seems like there isn’t a right answer. Breakups take time, and Facebook doesn’t have “in the process of moving on” as a relationship option.

What does everyone else think? Do you love being able to solidify your relationship via Facebook or does it make the dating even more stressful (if that’s even possible)?

Monday is Yom Kippur. For all you non-Jews out there who will be spending your Sunday night watching Entourage (instead of standing and praying for 3 hours) and your Monday enjoying the limitless salad bar in the caf (instead of standing and praying all day…without any food or water), Yom Kippur is one of the holiest days for us Jews. It is a 24-hour prayer festwhere we apologize and repent for all of our sins for the past 364 days and get back in God’s good graces.

And then we get to eat bagels and lox and cake. Yum.

I didn’t think it was fair that only Jews atone for their sins on a yearly basis. I mean, I know we all have a few things we’re sorry about (or should be sorry about!). So I opened up my big Jewish arms (probably all that kugel) to all of the CollegeCandy writers to join me on this holiday and repent for their sins. They all turned me down on the whole fasting thing, but here are their apologies for their biggest sins of 5769…er…2009.

Kayla – California State University, Sacramento: Dear, Boyfriend. Please forgive me for always using up the squirt bottle of fake butter.

Kari – Florida State: Dear Boyfriend, Please forgive me for thinking dirty, dirty thoughts about Alexander Skarsgard at a somewhat unhealthy frequency.

Maddie – Tufts: Dear boss: Please forgive me for spending so many hours on Facebook this summer while I was at work. If you hire me again, I promise not to log in once.

Kim – Stanford: Dear 7/11 gas station, I’m sorry that my friend pissed in your cooler and stole a pack of gum while I looked on and laughed and you called the police and they pulled us over after about 5 blocks. Our bad.

Melanie – Northeastern University: Dear Liver, Please forgive me for my 21st birthday this upcoming Monday.

Nina – Michigan State University: Dear Ex, please forgive me for Googling your current girlfriend. I didn’t find anything good anyway.

Lauren – University of Michigan: Dear Random Guy Whose House Party I Crashed: Sorry I stole those Bagel Bites and cooked them in your microwave. And also sorry for busting in on you having sex when I was trying to sneak said Bagel Bites out the back door…which was actually your room.

Samantha – UC Santa Barbara: Dear Papa. Please forgive me for having sex in the back of your brand new Mercedes. Also, please forgive me for driving it far too recklessly as a getaway car (same night), wearing only an orange Victoria’s Secret push-up.

Thu – USC: Dearest friend. Please forgive me for posting and tagging all of those embarrassing videos of you even after you told me not to. They were simply too hilarious.

Elizabeth – University of Missouri: Dear high-school math teacher, please forgive me for throwing up under your desk at winter formal senior year… Lesson learned: Brandy and Bacardi don’t mix, especially on an empty stomach.

Cristina – Michigan State: Dear “forgot to ask your name but I know you’re a sophomore, too”: Please forgive me for making out with you and in the sweaty graffiti party basement and then running away to never catch your name.  A true Cinderella story.

Elise – Stanford: Dear Mother, please forgive me for interpreting the word “Emergency” during the use of my credit card to include the immediate need of frozen yogurt.

Zahra – Northwestern University: Dear Various Weird Men that Hit on Me on the Street. Please forgive me for rolling my eyes when you pay me compliments. I shouldn’t insult your creativity like that since you always seem pretty delighted with your pick-up lines.

Elizabeth – UC Berkeley: Dear liver.  Please forgive me for my alcoholic tendencies.

Carly – Grinnell: Dear downstairs neighbors, please forgive me for working out at 8 a.m. most mornings in big thumpy shoes on the thin wood floor.

Ricki – University of Michigan: Dear Steph – Please forgive me for yelling at you at 2am last night.  Trust me, no one was thinking clearly at that point.

Kiki – University of Missouri: Dear Dad. Please forgive me for shutting the garage door on your  brand spankin’ new SUV. This is why I drive the ‘94 Dodge pick up truck.

Sarabeth – University of Texas: Dear guy who sits behind me in Bio; please forgive me for reading gossip rags during class…I know it’s distracting. My B.

Ness – Sheridan: Dear Dad, please forgive me for spending oodles of your money to move away and attend college. Hopefully you’ll get your money’s worth some day when I’m a famous writer. Love you!

Want to clean your slate? What do you need to apologize for?