You know what they say about a big shofar....

Every single January 1^st, I swear that I’m going to start regularly exercising and watching less TV. But somewhere around January 3^rd, I always find myself back on the couch, eating kettle chips by the handful and staring slack-jawed at yet another Top Model marathon.

Of course, I’m not alone. Research shows that a full third of all New Year’s resolutions are broken during the first week of January. Luckily, I’m going to get another chance to make a fresh start tonight.

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. When the sun goes down, other Members of the Tribe and I will be drinking wine, eating apples and honey, and making a second set of promises about how we intend to act in the year 5770.

Here’s my preliminary list of Jewish New Year’s Resolutions. I’m going to keep them this year. I swear: Read More »

[I like to think of myself as a pretty easy going gal, and try not to sweat the small stuff. But sometimes (ok, maybe slightly more often) the general cluelessness, carelessness and overall stupidity of some things and or/people really gets to me. I find that venting is the most efficient way to rid myself of the stress that idiots, wrong meal orders, lack of cell phone etiquette and cheese flavored products (that don’t even contain any freaking cheese!) induce.

So, in an attempt to avoid an ulcer or an unfortunate road rage incident, I vent to you, dear reader. Please feel free to join in and comment about anything–really, anything–that pissed. you. off. this week. Let it all hang out. I feel you.]

Cell phone companies: Lately, all these upbeat and happy-go-lucky cell phone company commercials (in addition to the fact that my phone has, miraculously, not been stolen for a few years) led me to lower my guard towards the vicious corporate cell conglomerates. Until yesterday.

I practically skipped out of the store getting sticky fingerprints alllll ovah my new Vu. I had barely blinked when I signed away on the $264 transaction and sold my cell-soul for another two years (I like to pretend I’m really rich when I buy expensive things that are necessary purchases…it makes parting with my very small funds a lil bit easier). Then my boyfriend called; he had dutifully been doing some comparison shopping, as he’s well aware of my tendency to impulse buy. He had found the same phone, same deal for $135… before the rebate. Naturally, I went to return my phone and buy take the cheaper deal, only to find that, no, the company could not reverse the contract they JUST processed. And, no, I could not return my phone because apparently they examine it for microscopic scratches and cite a $75 “re-stocking” fee. So it was either keep my phone, or pay to return it. After my contract expires, I’m switching to carrier pigeon. Read More »

You got everything you wanted for Christmas. You nailed the New Year’s Eve kiss. Hell, you even celebrated MLK Jr. day with a bang! But in the not so distant future looms the dark abyss on the next page of your calendar—it starts with a V and ends with an –alentine’s day. While your attached friends concoct wish lists from Tiffany’s or stress about dinner reservations on Feb. 14th, you wonder if maybe, just maybe, you’ll be playing footsie with someone special too. So here is a simple guide to finding a guy before—gulp—Valentine’s Day.

Keep your head straight.

Prioritize your goals. Meeting a new guy, as awesome as it theoretically seems, should definitely not be numero uno on your list. No matter how much time and effort you dedicate to searching for your Prince Charming, it won’t pay off if that’s all your interested in. A) You will absolutely come off like that crazy girl from How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days—and guys just aren’t into that. B) It’s Murphy’s Law that whatever you want will find you exactly when you’re not looking for it. And, most importantly, C) Maintaining your circle of friends, hobbies, talents and already great life in general is what makes you an interesting person in the first place; if you want to meet an interesting guy, don’t you think he’ll have the same expectations of you?

Get Sexy (-er).

Whether you’re already a bona fide bombshell or you’re ready for a complete face/wardrobe/etc., overhaul, getting dressed up to the point where you look HAWT and you know it is an instant guy magnet. Why is this? Well it’s more than your 4- inch stilettos and “ass jeans”—it’s the confidence you radiate knowing that you’re the bomb.com. So whatever you need to do to get yourself in the “You will worship the ground I walk on” frame of mind–be it a blowout, manicure, shopping spree or your favorite perfume—make it a habit before you go anywhere you think you may meet Mr. February 14th…and it could be somewhere you weren’t suspecting. Read More »

Happy New Year, everyone! Whether you love New Year’s Eve or you totally hate it, the coming of a new year is exciting! New beginnings, clean slate, yada yada yada…

The last week of 2008 was quite busy for us. We ended the year with a bang (literally), before we rang in 2009 in style.

Just like the last week of any year, we spent the past 7 days reflecting on 2008. The best fashion, the biggest things that happened, and all the things that we learned. We also started looking forward to 2009: we made resolutions (that we will most likely break in 2 weeks), and considered other options that we just know aren’t going to happen.

Maybe we should have just set some more…er… realistic goals for the year.

Like cozying up on the couch with some warm cocktails and episodes of Bromance and The City on the DVR. Or, of course, a little CC TV.

The new year not only brings Jan 1st hangovers and regret over your choice for the midnight kiss, (who may still be lying next to you as you read this…) but also a plethora of New Year’s Resolutions. However I’ve discovered through extensive research and observation that there are certain resolutions that college students make and then break every. single. year. These are the top three New Years Resolutions that are forgotten by Groundhogs day.

1. Get in Shape

Whether it’s the fact that spring break is weeks away or that people over-indulged on holiday dips and homemade cooking, everyone comes back to school with overly-optimistic gym ambitions. Ellipticals that haven’t been used in months are suddenly turned on and counting calories. Everyone tries out the stairmaster once and a few braver people venture to the other side of the gym to lift weights. It’s always easy to identify the new-years-resolution-workouts; they are the people with the too-well matched gym outfits who do an amazingly intense workout for the first five minuntes and then spend the next 35 minutes walking and talking about being really serious about getting into shape. They chug their water, wipe off their nonexistent sweat and they’re never seen in the gym after January 31st. Read More »

New Year’s Eve is almost here and I can’t wait! Not because I want to get started on those resolutions (drinking responsibly, organizing my life, hitting the gym 3 times a week…blech), but because it’s hands down one of my favorite holidays. This is the one holiday when you can get totally tanked, and it’s totally cool! I mean, think about it: sure we sneak booze at Thanksgiving and Christmas, but for this one we can do it out in the open!

And who doesn’t love getting all dolled up party clothes and going out for a fabulous evening on the town? I love getting together with my girlfriends to celebrate all the fun times we’ve had in the past year, while forgetting all the sh*t times and vowing to start fresh (which doesn’t always happen, but whatever, we try!).

There’s something about starting a new year that gives me goosepimples. You are balancing between the old and the exciting, unknown and totally awesome new; it is exhilerating. Thinking about all the things that happened in the past year (like finally breaking up with that d-bag boyfriend) and looking forward to things that will happen next year (like, “Holy crap I’m graduating college! Now what?”).

Not to mention, I’ve always thought that getting a midnight kiss from your special someone is one of the most romantic things EVER! Or just making out with a random might be fun too. How can anyone not love this night?

I don’t make resolutions for the new year. Not only do I know I will not keep them, but I also know that anything important enough to give up on December 31st should probably be given up on any other day. I tried to give up cake once – what a disaster. Just knowing the 31st was coming and that I would soon be without my beloved buttercream sent me on a downward spiral that resulted with me, a fork and a missing Costco sheet cake.

The only thing I hate more than making New Years resolutions are the people that do. They are annoying, act all “holier than thou,” and make the first few weeks of every new year miserable for me.

The Gym Goers: Seriously, people, get off of my elliptical. I shouldn’t have to wait to get on my machine (that I have been using 5 days a week for the entirety of 2007 and 2008) just because you finally decided you’ve had enough with your muffin top. And, for those of you who don’t know because this is your first time at the gym, you are supposed to be sweating on that thing, not standing on it and texting your friends about the girl standing behind you giving you the stink eye. Read More »

[Like a magpie, you gravitate towards things that are shiny: cell phones, TVs, anything that allows you to play Rock Band. But just because you love ‘em doesn’t mean you know much about ‘em. That’s where we come in. Every week we will be highlighting the best, coolest and shiniest in technology. Consider us your personal Geek Squad.

And let us tell ya; with CC on your side, geek has never looked so chic.]

It’s holiday season. A time of chaos and disorder. Many of us are about to go through finals on top of the mad dash to the holidays. Packing up dorm rooms for break, making holiday travel plans, trying to get those last few extra assignments in so you can pass with a C – all very trying things. Things that can be conquered with organization! So use these easy tools to help you get a jump on your New Years resolution. They won’t help you lose ten pounds, but they will help you stop forgetting birthdays.

Deadlines and Scheduling

If you’re anything like me (and you know you are), you wait until the last minute to get things done. From making travel arrangements to finishing papers, I’m a procrastinator. But nine times out of ten it’s not because I mean to – it’s because I honestly forget!

I found the best way to stay organized was actually right at my fingertips. Gmail (which we all have) has an awesome Google Calendar feature. It’ll keep track of your deadlines and notify you when they’re coming up via your life-line (AKA cell phone).

Another must-have? A flash drive. During the holiday season (with all the visiting and running around) chances are you’ll be on the go. Load up the flash drive with everything you may need and you can bring your work with you wherever you go. Just pop it into whatever computer is available and you are good to go. Read More »

I, like so many others, joined a gym last month. I swear, it had nothing to do with me wanting to hop on the New Years Resolution Band Wagon…it was more about the deals in January targeted toward those people more than anything else.

So now I go to the gym every day. And on Thursdays and Sundays, I belly dance. That’s right. I never saw my self as a belly dancer before, but when I saw these classes were being offered for free at the gym…uh…duh…I had to try it.

I saw a belly dancer once at a party and I thought, “Damn, that looks kinda easy. She shakes her ass and looks mysterious and has a cool outfit.”

I was gravely mistaken. Belly dancing is one of the hardest things I have ever done. Hands down. It’s harder than riding the train hung over, harder than breaking up face to face when you really just wanna send an email, and it’s definitely harder than just shaking your ass and looking mysterious. God, how I wish it were that easy.

The ass and hips, I am learning, have all sorts of muscles. But I’m pretty sure they’ve been set aside for those who belly dance ONLY because I certainly never felt them before. And now I feel them aching…every Friday and Monday. Read More »

Bad habits. Everyone has them (yes, even me!). I pick my cuticles. And I’ll be the first to admit- it’s not appealing. Far from it actually. It can be painful, but mostly it is just gross. Not only to me, but to those around me.

I realized just how gross when I saw a not so charming boy taking part in the same not so charming habit during a lecture and my friends pointed out that:

a) Yes, I look like that too when I pick/bite

b) We are destined to be together because we share the same nasty habit.

Whether it is nail biting, throat clearing, being chronically late, talking too loud on your cell phone etc- we all have that one (or eight) habits we just wish we could break. But sometimes we really can’t help but take part in our bad habits. Kind of like when we couldn’t help but text that guy last Saturday night at 2am, even though we said we were sooo done with that.

Sometimes bad habits are just really hard to break.

So before you make that New Years Resolution to not oversleep or stop cracking your knuckles, here are three steps to actually help you achieve that goal.

3 Easy Steps to Breaking Bad Habits (From WebMD)

1) Make It Conscious. Many times, we do these things without thinking about it. Like when we are bored in class or stressed in the library etc. So figure out when and why you take part in your habit(s) of choice. If you realize when/why you are doing it and can attribute what you are feeling that is driving you to do it, you will have an easier time finding a way to stop. Read More »