With the recession guilting me into sacrificing unnecessary luxuries (oh, multiple, daily Starbucks runs, how I miss you!), I’m wondering how others are handling their own sacrifices. Our daily indulgences have now become something to shake a finger at, but many industries are still thriving by playing into our addictions.

As humans, we have inner demons that can only be quieted by indulging in our uncontrollable desires. Take the concept of the Seven Deadly Sins. Depending on your beliefs or interpretations, you may agree that we have a natural inclination towards these temptations. For example, I totally lust after my boyfriend’s six pack, I greedily horde my money, I’m a glutton for any sort of frozen yogurt, and I envy Megan Fox’s…everything.

Being the crafty marketing team they are, America’s consumer industries are exploiting our desires to indulge in these Seven Deadly Sins (and are getting filthy rich because of it!). Hey, maybe if we all sinned a bit more, we could nix this recession like Cain did Abel! Ready to be a bad girl? Hit up these industries to silence your inner, money spending demon:

Lust – While the recession has taken away many things, at least it’s bringing sexy back! Erotic industries, such as sex toy company Babeland, have seen a 25% increase in sales. Makes sense: The less hours you’re given at your job, the more quality time you have to spend with your brand new Mini Pink Leopard Vibe! The best part? Babeland is always having sales to keep you “cumming” back for more. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) Read More »

Sometimes, it’s not enough to make your own fab entrance at a Halloween Party; you and your whole crew need to be noticed. On the other hand, sometimes your crazy costume idea is so unique that nobody will get it… unless your faves are by your side to complete the picture. Want to make the biggest splash this Halloween (and have some killer bonding time with your buds as you shop, create, and play dress up)? Here are just a few ideas for some great group costumes. And most of them can be done on a budget!

Read More »

Mondays are always bad, especially after a weekend of heavy drinking (as if there are any others), but today is even worse. It’s bad. Very bad. Very, very bad.

Citigroup just announced that it will be buying Wachovia bank to save it from collapsing. Just like AIG. And WaMu. And every other FREAKING BANK IN THIS COUNTRY.

Seriously, are there any banks even left anymore?

I know that everyone is telling us not to freak out, that this is just a dip and that we will come back from it, but I am about ready to pull my money from the bank and invest it somewhere safe.

Like in denim. Or shoes. Or lots of new winter coats. Those greedy bastards on Wall Street won’t be able to take it from me there!

(In the second installment of our Expert Series Understanding The Economic Situation, we continue with the Q and A with a VP of an Investment Banking Firm. He knows his stuff and he’s gonna break it down for us in ways we can finally understand. Pay attention; he offers great advice for us college ladies for saving, spending, and not getting depressed. In case you missed the first part, read it HERE]

Do these recent economic waves mean college students and recent grads should stay away from investing in the stock market right now?

No – they should DEF participate and now is the time to do it. Recent and current grads should look to NON-financial stocks. Everything is down right now and there are so many bargains. Look to other tech and retail stocks. Buy stock and just let it sit. Don’t start trading regularly like I did when I was in college. I didn’t really make anything off of it, and if I had held onto the Google stock that I bought at $15, I would NOT be answering this email right now – I would be on a beach drinking fruity drinks with umbrellas.

How does one actually start to make smart investments?

Smart investments are ones that are based off of information, not emotion. An emotional investment is, “OMG, everyone is selling off finance stocks – I should sell mine too!” An informed one is made by reading 10K reports, poking around the internet for info, maybe even emailing or calling an investor relations representative of a company (they HAVE to talk to you and actually like doing so). Then you say, “Oh, Lehman is f*cked but JP Morgan is still in a strong position.” Read More »

We’ve sorta been freaking out lately about this whole economy thing. What the hell is going on? How bad is it? Should we start stocking up on non-perishables?

Depending on what channel we are watching, or what paper we are reading, we are hearing very different things. Most of which we do not understand.

So, we at CollegeCandy decided to bring in an expert: a VP of an Investment Banking Firm. He knows his stuff and he’s gonna break it down for us in ways we can finally understand. Pay attention; he offers great advice for us college ladies for saving, spending, and not getting depressed.

(Note: We had so many questions that it was just way too much info for a single post, so we will be breaking this one down into two. Come back tomorrow at the same time to find out the rest!)

CC: We keep hearing the words “Recession” and “Depression” – What’s the difference between them and which one are we REALLY dealing with now?

VP:The market, especially now that it has been globalized, is very cyclical. It goes through growth periods and reduction periods. A recession, in its most simple terms is an extended and significant contraction of the market that is evident in several indicators that are generally accepted as representative of the market. The REASONS for contraction are endless; everything from housing to taxes to the results of Rose Bowl affect the market, but it is important to note that a recession refers to SIGNIFICANT losses across the country for over 1 quarter (3 months), but – this part is important – it should be visible in the GDP. A depression is simply a sustained recession. Read More »

“This writer’s strike is getting annoying,” I heard someone say on the corner of 2nd avenue yesterday. “What the hell is their problem? And why does it have to be my problem?”

Because of what I do and where I go to school, I’m in a position to hear about the Writer’s Strike all the time. But I can understand the frustration of those who don’t know all the details—from far away, it can look like a bunch of people walking around and complaining.

But it’s more than that.

UnitedHollywood, a new blog that’s blossomed in the wake of the strike, explains exactly why hundreds of television and film writers are marching, and does it in a funny, entertaining way. A few of TV’s bigger shows have made YouTube videos for the site, and after watching of few of them, two things become blindingly clear: 1) without these people, TV is gonna blow, and 2) big businesses are greedy. Read More »

That oh-so-reliable British rag mag The Sun is reporting LaLohan is broke.

Apparently, Linds spent so much money in such a short time that she can no longer afford her own place and is currently “lodging at a friend’s mansion”.

How can someone go through millions in only a few years? By pushing common sense away and replacing it with massive amounts of greed and idiocy.

According to The Sun, some of Lindsay’s pre-third rehab stint activities included “blowing a million dollars on just one hotel bill, thousands on cocaine and booze, $137,000 in rehab costs and thousands on legal fees after numerous drink-driving convictions.”

Back when she was famous for something other than ridiculous behavior, Lohan was the queen of the Chateau Marmont hotel, “spending $450,000 on a $1,200 a night suite, as well as another $500,000 having chauffeurs on 24-hour standby.”

She also loved her champagne, spending “$550 a pop” on “endless” bottles of Cristal.

Now, I’m all for having a good time, but if Miss Hasn’t-Made-A-Good-Movie-Since-2004 truly is broke, she completely deserves it. Read More »

I’m totally for love conquering all and knowing no bounds and all that fluffy good stuff, but honestly, does anyone really believe this story??

An 82-year-old Argentinean woman married a 24-year-old man last week, making those of us who aren’t naive idiots shake our heads. Apparently, the two had been “engaged for several years” and found love after the guy’s mother died and left him with his elderly caretaker/new wife at the age of 15.

When reporters asked the woman if the marriage would be more “than just spiritual” (he should have just straight up asked if they were going to bone) she replied that it would be, making most of the media laugh on the outside and most definitely retch on the inside. Read More »