This year, some of your most-loved (or love-to-hate) celebs are giving up their digital life until their fans donate 1 million dollars by “buying life.” But you don’t have to be a celebrity with 5 million Twitter followers to make a difference.

As you sit in your dorm room (or lecture hall – we know you’re reading this in class!), you might be questioning what you can possibly do to make a difference – after all you are only one person. But, if everyone takes action, then collectively we can make some major strides. Even from that teeny, tiny room you call home.

Print out and put a poster on your door
I’m sure a lot of people walk by your room each day and chances are if there’s something different up on your door, they might take a second to stop and think about what the poster means, and maybe even generate a conversation with you about the topic.

Do your research
Read up on World AIDS Day. The best protection is knowledge. Spread what you know by talking to friends, or the random person who stops by your room after seeing your poster.

Test your knowledge
AVERT has lots of games and quizzes for World AIDS Day. Try one out and pass it along to your friends.

Wear a red ribbon
You can pick one up from your local MAC store. If you pick up a Viva Glam product while you are there, every cent of the selling price will go towards the MAC AIDS Fund.

Practice safe sex
If you’re going to have sex, don’t do it until you’ve had a conversation with your partner about safe sex. If you’re unsure about their sexual history, or they don’t want to talk about it, don’t do it. Once you’ve had a talk about HIV and STDs then make sure you use a always use a condom.

Get tested
If you’re having sex, go get tested. If you don’t know where to go, text your zipcode to “KNOWIT” (566948) to find a testing centre near you.

Get connected
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re connected online. Tweet about it using #WAD2010, post a statistic as your status on Facebook, or post a picture on the Facing AIDS flickr page. Use your connection to spread awareness.

Go to an event
I know this time of year is really busy, but if you have time, check out a World AIDS Day event in your area. Grab your friends and get out there. What else is there to do on a Wednesday night anyway?

We live in a social media obsessed world. There’s Facebook, Myspace, (although I wonder if anyone actually still uses it), Twitter, and many blogging platforms such as Tumblr, WordPress, and Blogger. Although we upload our pictures to Flickr and Facebook all the time or write about our weekend experiences in personal blogs, there could be a possible downside to all of this internet exposure: According to the Wall Street Journal, 85% of hiring managers Google a candidate before or after an interview. This fact, which is becoming more and more well-known, brings up the question: To blog or not to blog?

While I’m not saying that anyone who publicly posts pictures of themselves puking into a fraternity bathroom shouldn’t be a cause for concern, I am posing the question of boundaries and what and when a company should base their decision on hiring someone because of what comes up when they use Google. For example, take all the CollegeCandy contributors. Should our future bosses decline an interview with us, even though our resumes may be well qualified, simply because we once wrote an article that mentions sex or highlights the importance of birth control?

Personally, I think keeping a blog of any kind is a worthwhile venture. As a writer, I like to post things I’m interested in, things that drive me crazy, and of course, continuously write about things that matter to me (this includes everything from literary theory criticisms to the correct usage of the Real Housewives of New Jersey’s infamous phrase “prostitution whore”). However, I often worry that if I post liberal-sided articles or a picture of me enjoying a glass of wine that someone may use those things against me and blow them out of proportion one day. Despite more and more social media outlets being introduced to society on a regular basis, it seems like the idea of censorship or hiding oneself (at least the internet brand of oneself) is becoming a constant battle.

But get this – the Wall Street Journal also reports that “Recruiters and employers…routinely do online background searches on their candidates to learn more about them, as well as to filter out candidates with little or negative information about them.” So basically, it seems like our generation is damned if we do, damned if we don’t.

Imagine if you have nothing come up when your future employer Googles you. Instead of them rewarding you for that (something more and more colleges and media-outlets tell us to strive for), they pass on you because you aren’t relevant or important enough. But then, if you have an author’s page or Twitter account, something could be taken out of context or perceived as negative. What about people that disagree with this article? Could my future employer one day decline to hire me because some random commenter disagreed with me – putting me in a negative position?

It sounds crazy, I know, but it’s something that constantly comes up in the world of online writing and social media. While I understand why businesses want to search their job candidates, I think some kind of line in the sand needs to be drawn before too many well-deserving candidates are overlooked simply because they blog about Christian Louboutin’s, OPI nail polish, and Rachel Zoe instead of Wall Street, international trade, and compounding interest.

The issue of ‘to blog or not’ seems to constantly rely on personal judgment. However, personal judgment works both ways. For example, if someone is irresponsible enough to post a picture of themselves humping (see – because I used the word humping in this post, I may possibly never get a real job) a stop sign, they acted in poor judgment. Although they may personally have found it funny and did not make the picture private, their actions overwhelmingly were not in the best of judgment.

But think of it this way – what if your potential employer’s personal judgment doesn’t like your Tweet about his/her favorite restaurant, and decides that you come across as too opinionated because you simply wrote “Will not be eating at Restaurant A again.” Their personal judgment could cost you a good opportunity. The bottom line is that not everyone uses the best personal judgment from time to time (including those in hiring positions), and what one person finds offensive may not be a big deal to someone else. Should our generation have to walk on eggshells so we don’t piss anyone off with our opinions and views on the internet? Is this what it’s coming down to?

Blogger Emily Rose, a recent college graduate wrote a ballsy open post to a potential future employer on her Tumblr, after accidentally sending her blog link in her e-mail signature. Instead of cowering in fear over whether or not her employer would show no interest in her because of her personal interests explored on her blog (such as hung-over day after snap shots and mojito cupcakes), Emily wrote: “You’ll probably learn more about me from this blog than you did from my CV, which is fine. You’ve probably figured out some stuff already: like that I love animals and Africa and my family. But also, you know, sometimes I drink. And I spend a lot of time online….the result of those factors is now what’s on your monitor, and I don’t feel compelled to apologize for any of it.”

While some people may be completely appalled that she would be so open about herself like that, I think Emily is onto something. If we can’t be our true selves or represent things about ourselves in a personal manner, even in a public way such as the internet, then what does that say about society today? In conclusion of her post, Emily hits the nail on the head by writing, “I think I’m a good hire. I think I’m a good person, too. And I don’t think typing bad words or posting a picture of myself with friends at a bar blowing off some steam should affect my chances just because I’m a young person, and the lives of young people are more public and accessible than those of our parents.”

All in all, interviews, resumes, recommendations, and qualifications should remain as the most important factors in getting hired or rejected. But instead of using personal media against this generation, maybe it should be looked at a different way. With our generation riding the first wave of this Google exposure (or shall we call it overexposure?) phenomenon, it will be interesting to see what pans out. Ultimately though, I hope for the sake of our generation – we’re not looked at like this forever. Employers, writers, job applicants, and social media users of all kinds should embrace the more public and accessible use of information today, or at least set some boundaries for the years and technological advancements to come.

How does it work? Flickrista is a daughter site of Flickr, the widely-popular photo-sharing site. Flickr members can submit their fashion photography to the Flickrista group pool, from which Flickrista editors will choose the best pics to feature on the site. The benefit to this process is that stylists, models, and photographers alike can all get their work noticed and Flickrista group members can interact with one another by sharing comments and suggestions.  And new photos are always being posted, which means more opportunities for inspiration- whether your weapon of choice is a camera or a kitten heel.

[photo courtesy Dezdemonchik via Flickrista]

College and extreme amounts of alcohol go together like Walks of Shame and mascara smudges down the side of your face. What else are you gonna do when the weekend comes? Or when that exam kicks your ass? Or when it’s Tuesday?

And while we at CollegeCandy love to hit the bottle, we do think it’s important to promote drinking in moderation. There is no need to get so drunk you vomit in your hand in the middle of a party. Or get escorted home by your roommates while your other friends search frantically for your skirt. Or wake up on the lawn outside of the dorm…that isn’t yours.

But, if you are gonna do it (and we know you are), at least make sure there are no cameras around, lest you end up like one of these poor souls.

These are the people you don’t want to be. These are the situations you don’t want to find yourself in. You may love the idea of taking funny drunk photos at the moment, but you are drunk and being drunk means making poor decisions.

Do not give in to the urge.

Heed our advice. Listen to our warnings. And don’t let us find you on Flickr and make us say, “I told you so.”

“Ok, so wouldn’t it be hilarious if I pretended like I was going down on you!? HAHAHA! Just make sure you make it look like you are enjoying it. HAHAHHAAH. So good! Everyone is gonna love this!”

Guy 1: “Look at us! We are halfway through Edward 40 Hands and we BARELY FEEL IT YET! We are big and strong men. We will TOTALLY DO THIS!!!”

Guy 2: “Uh, I just realized that I sorta gotta pee….”

Guy 3: “That girl I was trying to impress is over there talkin’ to someone else. And I’m duck-taped. F*ck!”

“Ok, so, like, let’s get dressed up in our favorite pink shirts, straighten our hair and get all cute for the party. And THEN let’s shotgun beers to impress the guys! Oh and can you get a pic of this? Thanks…I have to show my friends my (poor) shotgunning skills!”

“Hahahah! Look at me! I’m working out my inner thighs. <Insert funny sex joke here that really isn’t funny unless you are drunk enough to be doing this on the floor in front of a camera.>”

“Dude, I am the man. I am double-fisting these 4 drinks. Get a picture of this. What? There are only two? Naaaah there are so six. Yo, yo…is the room spinning? Why is my head mad heavy? Did you get the picture? It’s gonna be barf!…. I mean I’m gonna be barf….barf…”

“Look at us and our underwear! We are so sexy! But, seriously. We are all about women’s rights and sh*t. Why doesn’t anyone take us seriously!?”

“It’s my birthday so my friends made me wear this giant sombrero! Ha! It’s so great. I look so cute in it. And look at us doing the whole girl on girl thing! This is what college is about! Make sure you document this. NO ONE’S POSED LIKE THIS BEFORE, EVER!!”

No words necessary.

“Dude! I’ve got the best idea for my new Facebook picture!”

“People think I’m drunk, but would a drunk girl pull down her pants first?!”

“Hahah look at this guy. What a waste of some perfectly good Del Taco.”

“What? Where am I? Where are my shoes? Hhahahahah!! I can’t find my shoes…concrete burn! On my facceee!”

Flickr is a crazy little website. Pictures from all over the world, from crappy and boring “here’s me on the lawn, now here’s me laughing on the lawn” photos to beautiful, artist renderings of pristine landscapes — everything is contained, and easy to find, on this user friendly website.

Why, Flickr is so simple and easy even your grandma could do it!

And someone’s grandma certaily has.

I really can’t say how our office stumbled across this set of photos, but I can say that after searching through about 100 of them, I have never wished there was eye sanitizer more than at this exact moment. I mean…what.the.hell.IS.this?!

She calls herself a MILF (but judging by the photos she really could be a GILF), she has single-handedly killed off an entire herd of cows in order to cover her body with piece after piece of uber tight leather, her “provocative” posing looks more like she A) got clubbed in both kneecaps by the mafia, B) is getting arrested by invisible cop ghosts, or C) is just standing around staring at the wall, and she doesn’t show her entire face but certainly shows enough to be recognized (if god is merciful not by her kids).

In today’s society, anyone with a camera and the ability to upload hundreds upon hundreds of pictures can become a star, and “LeatherChrissy” certainly seems to have the panache to rocket her “mature MILF” status to computer screens everywhere.

My brain is currently malfunctioning (too many images I never wanted to view have been viewed), so I can’t quite figure out what the moral to this story is…but I guess if I had to take a guess? Don’t leave gran home with the digital camera.

[PS: someone in our office was certain LeatherChrissy was this lady...I don't think so. Because if it was, the earth would be exploding right now from incomprehensible ridiculousness]

Crosley was a writer living in Manhattan, publishing stories in magazines from Playboy to The New York Times until she decided to start writing essays after getting locked out of two separate apartments, in one day.

The collection of essays make for a great read because they’re almost like “speed dating” (to quote Ms. Crosley herself). Her voice, as well as her stories, are witty, honest, irreverent and entertaining.

Take this for example: in one of her essays Sloane reveals a collection of plastic ponies she had accumulated from boyfriends over the years which she kept “semi-secretly” in a kitchen drawer, imagining what it would be like if she died one day and people found them in her apartment…

Pick up the book, I’m telling you — you’ll totally enjoy it.

OR, Participate in her Pony Project on Flickr.

Have your own drawer full of plastic ponies or other “nostalgic” mementos of love gone awry / other hilarious disappointments and minor humiliations? Share your traumatic trinkets with us.