Okay, so you know how when you watch a new reality show, the first few episodes are always crazy because all these people with huge personalities are thrown together and it’s just like a huge firecracker of insanity? Things happen that happen seem totally normal, but looking back you just don’t even understand how any of it was actually possible.

That’s kinda what freshman year feels like right now. I’m meeting a ton of people, but I’m just not sure how they’ll all fit into my lives. Who will be my bff? My Facebook stalkee of choice? My worst enemy?

It reminds me of the Jersey Shore, season 1: Snooki dramas out the first week and everyone hates her, The Situation and Sammie are an item, and Pauly D actually talks – things that are all highly unlikely and strange by now (we could never hate Snookums and you know The Situation would never settle down with just one lady). The guidos and guidettes of the Jersey Shore were just trying to figure out their niche in the house, to settle down and make some friends.

And much as some of you guys will hate to be compared to J-Woww and the crew, figuring out the beat in college happens very much the same way as the Jersey Shore squad approached it. You wander around, looking for potential friends and potential loverboys…and you learn that some are winners, and some not so much.

But unlike the cast of the Jersey Shore, we have to see these people over and over again for the next four years (without getting paid), so it’d probably be better if there wasn’t so much drama that called for big ass apologies.

Some tips for staying on good terms with new people: Read More »

College. Sigh. It’s unlike any other time in your life. It has its own set of rules, its own unique circumstances. And it’s not always easy to navigate. Everyone needs a little guidance now and then (or always) so we’ve pulled together a variety of perspectives (the does-it-all girl, the party girl and Ms. Study Lounge) to weigh in on your life conundrums and give you the best advice we can.

Every week they’ll be tackling your questions about college. From classes to keggers to keggers before classes, they’ll do their best to respond and be your Pez dispenser of collegiate wisdom. Got questions? Unsure of a decision? Need to save some dough? Just wanna chat it up with some really awesome chics?

Hit them up in the comments or shoot them an email with the subject “College Q&A”!

Question:
I’m just about to transfer to a much larger school for the spring semester, after commuting to school for two and a half years (I’m a junior now) and I’m REALLY scared about making friends. I’ve always had some difficulty with making them, since I’m pretty shy and socially awkward. Having friends isn’t impossible, but now that I’m going away to a huge school of 44,000 students, it’s a bit intimidating. Do you have any advice on making new friends mid-year? I’m sorta freaking out. Read More »

There’s nothing like a good old-fashioned American holiday to make you realize how alone you are in this world. Everything’s been going pretty well (according to my new post-college standards of pretty well) and I thought that for the most part I was building up quite the little social network of friends who would make me not feel quite so isolated. We would Gchat at work, grab Pinkberry here and there, perhaps even attend the occasional happy hour.

But apparently that social network of friends was a pure figment of my imagination.

July 4th came out of nowhere and everyone (people I’ve never spoken to) kept asking me what I was planning on doing. On the outside I remained calm and collected and responded with dignity; I’ll figure it out. But on the inside I was panicking like it was Halloween eve and my only available costume was sexy bunny. I would casually bring it up to my “friends” and they all would respond with excitement about boat trips with friends, annual family BBQ’s, and lake houses in states I thought were made-up. Then they would ask me what I was doing and I would mumble something about fireworks and hot dogs and anti-terrorism laws. Read More »

Unless you’re going to college in the South where the lowest temperature hovers somewhere around 50, you’ve been walking around your campus bundled up to your ears in the cold all day, every day. And it sucks.

So as the weeks come closer and closer to spring break, the last thing you want to do is celebrate your spring break in the cold at home. Well, for some of us in today’s economy, there isn’t much of a choice. And maybe it’s not such a bad thing, anyway!

Here are some of my reasons for not doin’ the Spring Break thing this year. Read More »

I have been in college for almost a month, and so far my biggest problem is something I’ve done quite easily — making friends.

During Orientation, people began to cling together because, in truth, all of us were friendless. So my group of friends developed depending on with whom I ate lunch one day, who also got lost trying to return to my dorm after a party, or who was sitting next to me at one of the many assemblies. I am not complaining about my friends — they are all genuinely nice people – but I wonder: if we had gone to school from pre-K to twelfth grade, would they even give me a second glace? Would I give them?

I feel like making these friends so hastily isn’t really making any true connections. Maybe this is because I’ve never moved away, and so have known all my high school friends for years. I know them inside and out, and I am really grateful for them. Now I have plenty more people programmed into my cell phone than I did in last fall. I can call over ten girls to go eat lunch, or procrastinate by watching a movie. I can say hello to at least five friends every time I walk somewhere.

But what kind of claim is that, when I don’t know anything about them other than the generic five questions I have asked and been asked for the last few weeks. 1) What’s your name? 2) What dorm do you live in? 3) What are you interested in studying? 4) Where are you from? 5) Do you want to exchange cell phone numbers?

There is no number 6: What is it about you that would make us good friends? Read More »

Going away to school is intimidating enough. You’re in a place you know nothing about, and if you’re far enough away from home, you probably don’t know anyone who goes there. You’re pretty much dumped in a completely foreign surrounding and told to hit the ground running. If you’re lucky, in some places the ground is made of nice recycled tire mulch. More realistically, though, it’s dirt with a few twigs and stones. And sometimes the ground is cement.

Obscure analogies aside, the only thing more unnerving than being in a place you know nothing about is being assigned to live with a person you know nothing about. Even if your school was nice enough to give you your roommate’s contact info earlier this summer, your conversations haven’t gotten much further than who is bringing the microwave. It can be a scary experience walking into your dorm, laden with boxes, and seeing a room that probably isn’t much larger than your bedroom at home…with another person smiling at you from their bed.

But it doesn’t have to be so scary. Roommates are one of the most awesome parts of going away to college, and I found that having a roommate my first year who was actually a year above me helped a lot. But for all you incomin’ freshmen, that probably isn’t the case. Still, no worries. Here are five awesome ways for you to break the ice with your brand new bud. Read More »

Loneliness doesn’t just suck, it blows. I know this because I have dealt with it first hand. The emotions, the weight gain, the boredom. With a new city, a new job and no new friends to speak of, loneliness and I were pretty tight.

If I told you I had a sure-fire way to beat it, I’d be lying. Because if I had found the magic formula, it wouldn’t have taken me 8 months to realize that graduating from college in four years wasn’t the worst decision of my life.

Fortunately for you, I have a few good tips about what NOT to do. Whether you are kicking it at home for the summer or making your way in a brand new city, these tips are sure to keep you from going as crazy as, well, I did. Read More »

Sooner or later, your boyfriend will turn into your ex.So the question becomes: Can you stay friends with the person who once held you when your goldfish died?

Although there is no one answer to a question that has plagued couples (and their new mates) for centuries, there are a few guidelines that can make a confusing time a little easier to deal with.

Most importantly, the circumstances that contributed to the break-up can offer a clue. For most couples who parted on (relatively) civil terms, maintaining a close friendship afterwards only means that one of you started playing for the other team (read: not very common).

On the other hand, staying friend-ly is only a natural progression of a once-intimate relationship. Read More »

It isn’t always easy to find new friends after college.

Unlike freshman year in the dorms, the real world doesn’t provide you with a place filled with hundreds of people just like you looking for new people to drink (and hook up) with. Well, I guess that might happen if you move to Murray Hill in New York City, but for the rest of us that just isn’t a reality.

It seems that most of us make our new real-life friends at work. Which makes sense; we spend so much time at the office (and, oftentimes, need a few drinks afterwards) that it is only natural to get close with the people alongside us. For the most part this is a good thing; there are many times when the only thing motivating you to get to the office is the opportunity to see your buds.

But what happens when things go a bit too far?

Last week I mentioned a friend of mine who explained to me his love for morning sex. Well, that friend also happens to work with me. Actually, I work for him; he’s my boss. Now, this isn’t as creepy as it sounds; he is only 29 and we do hang out socially. But, as I work here longer we get closer and closer the line between personal and professional continues to blur. Read More »