Remember Natalie Dylan, the girl who wanted to auction off her virginity? She had a degree in Women’s Studies and herself a feminist. Kind of contradictory, huh?

Although her case is extreme, I come to find that I also have some contradicting views on feminism. I tend to be pretty adamant about being a strong independent woman, but sometimes I just wanna feel like that innocent damsel in distress. And although it’s comforting to slip into many traditional female roles, I could never abandon the ideals of the 21st century feminist.

Here are some of the contradictions that make me happy to call myself a “semi-femi”:

- I consider myself a feminist, but I don’t hate men and I shave my armpits on the regular.

- I enjoy proving I can do anything without my man’s help, but I do like it when he opens doors for me.

- I plan on taking my husband’s last name when I get married, but I hate it when a couple is labeled Mr. and Mrs. “Husband’s-First-and-Last-Name.” I’m not property!

- I‘m sick of movies and magazines that portray women as nothing more than sex objects, but I could stare at Megan Fox all day long. Read More »

Sometimes you see/read the craziest things on the internet (two girls, one cup…) that can make you laugh hysterically or get really angry (or – in the case of two girls, one cup – make you hurl).  Today I read something that made me do both.  A blogger on thedailybeast.com scribbled a little article about our generation and the increase in narcissism.  Not only did the article indicate that most of us are narcissistic sluts, but it also said that our “I can do and have anything I want” attitude is preventing us from focusing on close, emotional relationships.

Wait, what?

I don’t know about you… wait, yes I do. We’ve all been force-fed the idea our entire lives that we need to focus on ourselves and build a strong character so we can be independent enough to survive. We’ve been taught since birth that if we want something we need to do whatever we can to get it for ourselves.  How is going after what we want and expecting the best lives for ourselves suddenly narcissistic?! Read More »

I try and live by a “don’t knock it till you try it” attitude. I’ve tried the relationship thing, so now I can knock it.

And I find the single life superior.

I know a lot of people that are perfectly content in relationships, and I commend them for that — but that doesn’t mean I want one. I enjoy the single life — heck, I don’t even mind the dating stage, but there are so many reasons why I don’t want a boyfriend.

First off, there’s the logistics of it. I spend 8 months of the year on one side of the country, and 4 on the other. Seeing as I don’t believe in long distance relationships, this makes it near impossible to have a boyfriend. I know, some people would probably say that it wouldn’t be so bad if I meant the right person, but I don’t want to! I have trouble keeping in touch with my friends long distance, and definitely don’t want to worry about a boy.

Secondly, there’s the whole title thing. I hate the word boyfriend. It feels very possessive to me, and seems to complicate things unnecessarily. I’m generally super independent, but when the titles come out, I become this gross clingy person I don’t like. But these are just specific to me. There are lots of other, more general reasons why I don’t want a boyfriend. And while you can call me selfish, I’m sure lots of other single ladies will agree. Read More »

[College kids are notorious for being poor. And why shouldn’t we be? We take out student loans to pay for private universities, can barely balance a part-time job with our full-time courseload, and the only “balance” we’re familiar with refers to the number of points left on our dining hall cards. Oh, did I mention many of us tend to splurge every extra penny on PBR’s at the campus bar?

If you disagree with everything I just said, you probably don’t need this column. But if you’re nodding along because you’re officially an adult and still don’t know how to manage your money, then you might want to pay attention every week, because I’m going to (try to) get you through this, and make you a successful saver and a wise spender.]

Congratulations! You’ve got a job! You can start making money… and the government can start taking money from you!

On your first day at a new job, you’re going to get slapped with a stack of paperwork: company handbook, sexual harrassment awareness statement, and, of course, the W2 form. How many of you have snuck into the bathroom to call your parents and ask them WTF to write in this form? Yeah, me too. Here is everything you need to know:

The W2 determines how much money in taxes will be taken out of your paycheck. Typically, dependents have the most taken out, independents are somewhere in the middle, and people who have dependents have the least. Usually, college students are either “dependents” or sole “independents.” If your parents claim you as their dependent, they are basically telling the gov’t that they support you; therefore, the gov’t sees your wages as extra cash, and will take more money from you. If you are independent with no one to provide you, the tax form says (in layman’s terms) that you are responsible for living expenses (rent, utilities, tuition, etc), but don’t have to spend your money on anything else. Read More »

As I continue to try and wrap my head around Sarah Palin, the GOP’s newest Vice Presidential pick (“a woman making strides toward the white house, good!”, “a woman who thinks the government has the right to tell her what her reproductive rights are, bad!”), a few wayward comments flying around the internet and media have gotten me really confused.  According to sources, Palin is on record stating that global warming is not man made, and that polar bears aren’t endangered

…What?

“A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location.” Palin stated as early as a few weeks ago to a conservative magazine for it’s September issue. “I’m not one though who would attribute it to being man-made.”

As a moderate liberal, I can often support Republicans and Independents, as long as I believe their brain is in the right place. The thing is…denying humans have anything to do with global warming, and working to keep polar bears off the endangered list goes beyond politics and veers into …well…complete and utter wrongness. Read More »

God, it feels good to be single again. I recently broke up with my boyfriend of two years, and I know that this move solidified my future as an old maid. I know I’ll never find a guy more perfect for me than my ex, and that I’ll probably die alone. But, damn, it feels good to be single.

When you’re single, it can be hard to sit back and watch your attached girlfriends in their romantic endeavors. They get flowers from their boyfriends; they always have a date to a party; they have someone to cuddle with in the morning. But they also don’t have the opportunities that you have as an independent woman.

My (ex)boyfriend and I had been doing the long-distance thing for a while. I am currently trying to find my career path, but I had to keep trying to get a job close to him. This eliminated a plethora of job opportunities for me. When you get ready to graduate college, you can move anywhere you want or take any job that’s offered to you.

The girls who are involved have to make their life decisions with their partner. True, they can opt for the long-distance thing, but that still makes moving much harder than it does for you, the single gal with no emotional baggage.

Since reemerging onto the singles scene, I’ve also been feeling less stressed. Personally, I’ve had a lot on my plate lately, and I felt like even the daily “goodnight” phone call was cutting into what little time I have to spend on everything else. It takes effort to make a relationship work. True, it’s great to have a boyfriend to vent to or to seek reassurance from, but when you are trying to balance jobs, school, extracurriculars, and other responsibilities, sometimes it’s nice to be able to focus on you without feeling selfish. Read More »

My name is K, and I was in a sorority.

That is, I’m an alum. I still wear my butt-shorts to sleep at night and my Greek Week t-shirts to the gym. I have sorority jewelry, and my best friends are people I pledged with. I may or may not have my affiliation listed on my resume. And I am not ashamed.

What does irk the hell out of me, though, are the characters who, post-college, find it appropriate to judge me and still make the same assumptions that were made in college. Just a heads up, kids, but just like no one cares if you were cool in high school, no one could care any less whether you were cool in college. And by hating on me for being Greek, you’re definitely no cooler than the next a**hole.

Sure, I partied, but so did a large percentage of the independents (oh that’s right, there’s a label for them, too). Shocker, sorority girls aren’t always the drunk mess you expect them to be.

So let’s clarify a few things, shall we?

#1. No, I did not buy my friends. Surprise! I actually have other friends who aren’t Greek. Who cares where or how you meet people if they’re quality? I lucked out; my house was full of girls I clicked with, many of whom will probably be in my wedding. I could just as easily say you bought all your college friends because you paid tuition to attend a university with thousands of other people, right? You’re electing to join an institution where you will happen into people…. kind of makes you a hypocrite to call me out. I’m not picking people to hang out with based on whether or not they were in a frat or sorority in college, and if you are, you’re living a sad, sad life. Read More »

Being a Literature student and an all around geek when it comes to anything book related, I’ve listened to my fair share of poetry readings; ranging from the well known classics to the new and upcoming talents of today.

The Internet has become my own little bookshop/library, and I often browse pages like fictionpress for creative finds and sometimes even upload my own writing. I love discovering new artists because they give me inspiration to progress with my own creative work.

When it comes to poetry reading and artistic inspiration, Myspace is slowly becoming my new haven. It was only a matter of time before poets joined the ranks of bands everywhere and began recording and uploading their own profiles. I first came across these new artists while browsing Kate Nash’s Myspace music profile (a woman who’s pretty damn cool on her own), and instantly fell in love. Read More »