Bravo’s collection of Real Housewives has contributed many things to pop culture, such as the infamous New Jersey table flip, the term “prostitution whore,” multiple face-lifts and boob jobs (I’m looking at you Orange County!), and who can forget the song “Tardy for the Party”? Through all the drama though, one strong willed woman has truly climbed to the top – The Real Housewives of New York’s Bethenny Frankel.

The fast talking, quick witted, and always opinionated Bethenny first appeared on the Real Housewives as the only single lady looking for love, although skeptical about it from the get-go. More focused on her career and becoming a better version of herself, Bethenny stood out from the beginning as being an independent woman who wouldn’t stop until she got what she wanted. What a change in comparison to the rest of the housewives!

By the third season of the Real Housewives of New York, viewers got to see Bethenny in an entirely different light. She went from lonely career woman to a flourishing force to be reckoned with. While the majority of the Housewife characters spent the season arguing and stirring up drama amongst each other, Bethenny was constantly working her ass off on her multiple book deals, her “SkinnyGirl” brand, and her budding romance with her now husband, Jason Hoppy. She even found out that she was pregnant! Read More »

In this digital age, we are never apart from the ones we love, at least not for too long.  With smart phones, texting, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Skype, and SMS updates, we are just a press of a button away.  We are closer to other people than we have ever been before.  Even long distance relationships don’t seem that long-distance anymore.

But between new couples and old, is all this technology really bringing people together, or is it driving us apart?

While new technology is an awesome time-waster (among all the other fabulous things it does), the fact that it makes everyone so accessible is a little scary, not to mention the lack of mystery, chase, and boundaries between us all. We’re texting/IMing/Gchatting guys before we go out with them. And before that, we already know their favorite books, movies, quotes, hometown and birthday. We know what they’re doing, when they’re doing it… without ever asking them. Read More »

I will admit it, I know nothing about moving, especially to a city. I’ve lived the last 18 years of my life in a small town in Northern Ontario, where my parents took care of my every need.  I was happy, I was comfortable, and best of all, I knew my way around. The only time I had ever moved was when I was 2 years old, when we moved across the street (really), and I’m pretty sure I slept through most of it.

I grew up in the kind of town where you can’t walk down the street without seeing someone you know, and, of course, everyone knows your business. But as great as that all sounds, the time had come for me to spread my hard-partying, college-going, moving-to-the-city wings.

After being accepted to college just outside of Toronto, I thought “why should I wait until September to move?” So I packed up my things and began my life as an adult. I found a gorgeous 2 bedroom apartment right beside my future school to share with a couple friends – the only catch was that the lease started in July, my friends weren’t moving until September, and I would be on my own for two months. I moved in last week, and not only have I learned the joys of being able to walk around naked, I’ve also learned a thing or two about living on your own for the first time.

1. Save yourself the hassle – pack smartly. I got to my new place and decided to unpack dishes and the things I would need for my kitchen first. While this is a great idea, having zero labels on any boxes has left me completely forkless. Spoons? Knives? The cool egg timer I bought for the “once-in-a-blue-moon” occasions I want hard boiled eggs? Yes. But forks? No clue where they went! And it will take me days to dig through every last box in this mess of an apartment to find them. It may be annoying to organize and label your stuff when you pack, but it is not nearly as annoying as attempting to eat spaghetti with a spoon. Read More »

We have a lot of freedom here in the wonderful U.S.A. Freedom that people around the world would die for. Freedom that people around the world do die for. But do we appreciate that freedom? Not as much as we should. In fact, being that we’ve been raised to be independent and fearless females, there are a lot of freedoms we have that we don’t recognize often enough.

Tomorrow we celebrate Independence Day and in honor of that, I’m going to enjoy my freedom from my diet and eat 2 hot dogs I asked the ladies of CollegeCandy what freedom they appreciate most in their lives. Me? I love the chance to share my opinions with the world. And to eat ice cream for breakfast now that my parents aren’t watching me.

What about you? Read More »

You know how some kids daydream about breaking their arm? I was one of them. Honestly, I didn’t want to break anything. I just wanted a neon green cast for a couple weeks to show off while my friends signed things like “get well soon” on my healing wrist. Looking back at my elementary school self, the thought of having a cast almost seemed like fun. The reality of this, though, really is everything but fun. I’m 21 years old now, and my eight year old dream has finally come true.

Little over a week ago, I missed one step down a flight of stairs (the last one, too) on the way to my boyfriend’s university’s annual Fancy Dress formal, which sent my favorite pair of Steve Maddens into an untimely death (my right heel split) as I sprained my ankle and broke my fifth metatarsal on my right foot. Screaming and crying as this occurred, I did what anyone else would have done (not!) – I put my torn heel back on my right foot, stopped my mascara from running, dusted my dress off, picked a few pieces of gravel out of my palms, and grabbed my boyfriend’s hand, letting him know I was still game to dance.

He protested, but I was on a mission to dance and enjoy the night. Nothing could have stopped me. So, we did just dance. We danced for hours, and it hurt like hell, but that was not going to stop me from twisting, turning, dipping, grinding, and all that good stuff. After having one of the best nights from this semester, the two of us called it a night, which is when reality hit in the form of red, black, purple, and blue bruises around my right foot and ankle. Read More »

Despite all of you who are going off to college in the fall, moving thousands of miles away from dear old mom and dad, there are a few of us who choose to remain close to home. So close in fact, that we don’t even have to move. That’s right, I’m talking about living with your parents throughout college. Lucky (or not so lucky) for me and my peers, my hometown has our very own, reputable university. And with my college fund having the capacity to cover my entire undergrad at Lakehead or only ONE year at another school, the choice was pretty simple for me.

I know, I know, many of you are shocked. Isn’t a key part of the college experience the independence you gain living in dorms? You have to learn to cook, clean, do laundry and manage your own time! And what about rules? People always question how I live under my parents thumb at 19. And I do agree, it’s definitely not easy to abide by rules when I could be making my own, under my own roof.

Bar none, the best part about living on your own for school is the freedom. When you move out of your childhood home, curfew and chores go out the window! If you want to come home at 5AM every night (or morning depending on how you look at it), that’s totally possible. But with mom and dad sleeping soundly and working the next morning, even if your curfew is non-existent, you still can’t help but feeling guilty. After all, you’re still bumming off of them. Read More »

• I can think of a few girls who cost a bit more than $2,000 a year. (itn.co.uk)

• Cat starts fire, dog saves the day. (Yahoo!)

• 95 year old woman grows a horn…literally. Click on the link if you don’t mind throwing up a little. (metro.co.uk)

• Don’t drink and drive…or skateboard… (earthtimes.org)

• Vermont wants to get out while they still can! (The Independent)

The other day I had brunch all by myself for the first time ever. One-hundred percent on my own. Without a book or a magazine, no laptop, no iPod, and certainly no friends in sight.

It wasn’t planned, exactly. I’d left the apartment with plans to meet a guy pal at our favorite cafe, until he frantically called me explaining that his dog had swallowed a tube of BenGay.

Of course I understood the dire need to rush his pooch to the nearest vet, but my growling stomach didn’t seem to share that same feeling of empathy. Knowing I’d have to order my usual strawberry pancakes on my own, I wondered if my fake could pull through and reward me with a mimosa or two. After all, look how independent I was being!

Sitting there at my table-for-one, having to stifle my urge to make conversation, (“So I got completely hammered last night and gave the bouncer my phone number…”) and repetitively forgetting there’s no one sitting across from me this cloudy Sunday, I realized how important it is to learn independence at a young age.

Sure, moving out and living life away from home for four (or five!) brilliant college years provide everyone with a fair lesson in self-sufficiency, but how independent are you really? Could you go out by yourself if you had to? I know I personally get antsy even having to meet someone at a party. Walking through a crowded dance floor trying to locate a friend or the keg (whichever one first) launches me into mini-panic attacks. Read More »