Every college girl – hell, every college student knows that school requires a lot of sacrifices. You give up things that you would have never otherwise dreamed of giving up beforehand. I’m entirely guilty of that (and don’t act like some of you aren’t, either); I’ve been taking my summer vacation for granted for years now, just vegging out, doing a little summer work, and reading.

But since I transferred after my freshman year, I lost a few credits. I still need to graduate in 2009; with the way tuition is, I can’t afford another semester or even another year. So since I was a little underweight in the distribution section, I decided to do what any smart, responsible college student would do; I signed up for summer classes.

Summer classes are no joke. They last just about a month, maybe a little bit longer. You’re learning things that are usually spread out throughout a semester, but crammed together into four weeks. It’s fast-paced, hectic, and time-consuming. It’s even harder if it’s a subject you’re not familiar with.

I’m taking Spanish 101 and 102 at my local community college to get my language requirement out of the way. Mind you, I’m already pretty well versed in Spanish. I took it for about ten years in baby steps. But now that it’s pretty much being crammed down my throat and even I’m having some difficulty. Read More »

I know people who look back at high school and wish they could go back. I know people who want to leave it in the past and never look back. And I know people who could really care less either way. I don’t really know where I fit in that, but I know that my high school – the second one, since I transferred halfway through – and a few of the teachers had enough of an impact in my life that I feel like I at least owed them a visit. So I did.

Now, let me explain something real quick to you guys; teenagers scare the living shit out of me. No, really, they do. After being teased and taunted for years, a group of teenagers giggling and laughing anywhere near me automatically puts me on edge. But I was willing to walk through the halls infested with these loud cockroaches to see my old teachers.

I went to a school with a mild crime problem, so of course there was a security van parked in front. When I passed by, the guy honked at me, and I groaned to myself. I really didn’t feel like dealing with security, but I turned and went over to the car. Turns out it was one of my favorite guards, and he greeted me pretty happily before I went in.

I made the rounds to my favorite teachers. Two of them – two of the most important to me – weren’t there, so the chances that I’ll go back to see them before the year is up are pretty high. I was surprised how everyone remembered me so well. Probably the funniest reoccurring question was, “Are you seriously a senior?” Three years didn’t really seem like a lot, but it was. The auditorium and the music wing were both redone, and all of the kids had LAPTOPS. At the risk of sounding like an old grump, when I went to school, we didn’t get laptops. We had to crowd around one of the four computers in the room and share. Dang nabbit. Read More »

Let’s just cut to it – sixteen people are left in that bed.

Their challenge for the day is a biathlon and with that, I am over the whole Tila’s bi thing and it’s only episode three. Tila looks bored as she announces that it’s boys versus girls. What do pearl necklaces and blue balls have to do with biathlons? Oh.

This challenge makes me wonder why I never had a slip n slide when I was a kid. “I cruised through it until I got to the blue balls; then it all fell apart for me…that was my downfall, the blue balls.” Isn’t that how it always happens, Ryan?

Do they all share a wet suit? Chad is last and he too struggles with blue balls. Why do they call Jersey Lisa/Toni from Paradise Hotel lookalike Rizzo? I like her. I might like-her like her. Oh, and she wins it for the girls. Aw, Chad, I heart you even though you lost.

The girls win a date. Which consists of the girls – going to school. They are dressed in terrible school girl uniforms and Tila’s going to teach them – what? How to make a Myspace page? Read More »

So, like,

Welcome to College Candy’s first advice column, Tuffy Luv Knows All.

And I do mean all.

Got a question about life? Sex? School? Family? Dating? Random Facts? Anything? ANYTHING?!

TUFFY LUV KNOWS THE ANSWER.

Seriously. Tuffy knows all.

So here’s how it’s gonna be. I’m not here to be a jerk at you, but I’m also not going to be fluffy like that outdated Ann Landers crap. I want to give you good, honest, sound advice. Advice you can freaking use, you know? Advice that’s better than the drivel your parents or roommate could offer.

But it’s gonna be, like, fun or whatever. And I promise, promise, PROMISE to answer all of your hardest and craziest questions with sensitivity, integrity, and a whole lot of research.

So post your questions in the comments (anonymously, if you want) so Tuffy can answer them and sh*t.

Right on.

Hearts & Skulls,

Tuffy Luv

I don’t have many regrets from college.

I don’t regret that “B” I got in English my sophomore year because I opted to go to a date party instead of the library. I don’t regret hooking up with a good friend, even if it turned out horribly ugly in the end. I don’t even regret catching a terrible cold that lasted 3 weeks after wrestling in Jell-O in the middle of October…in Michigan.

But if there is one thing I do regret from my years of undergrad it is that I never went abroad.

When my friends first started discussing going abroad for Junior year I was wary. Living in another country sounded interesting, but I was worried about being half way around the world for such a long time. I would miss my family. I would miss my friends. I would definitely miss late night pizza in Ann Arbor.

My friends moved forward, signed up to study in Australia and I opted out in favor of more time in good ole’ Michigan.

And I didn’t regret my decision…then. I had a great time! While it seemed like everyone I knew was going to be abroad, I ended up having tons of friends stick around Michigan with me. We all got a ton closer, I got more active in things around campus, I had an awesome spring break and it was a really fun semester (turning 21 helped, obviously). So what if my friends were off in Australia learning how to surf, camping in the rainforest or travelling through East Asia on their way home? Ann Arbor was just as great.

Then I graduated, got a job and realized that I only get 2 weeks of vacation time a year. Not nearly enough time for me to settle into another country, experience other cultures or see the world.

And the regret sunk in. Read More »

• Bartending in college is perfectly fine, but if you’re going to crush beer cans between your boobs…well, you just might deserve what’s coming to you.

• Are you ready for New Year’s 2008?

• HEY U R COOL <333!! Is this the way we’re dating now? Apparently, the answer is yes and we hate it.

• Zombies are coming!! Be prepared!! (Really!)

• This is the most adorable story involving Boy Scouts and helping and being prepared (zombies!) that I’ve read all week!

• Hey you! Stop being lazy, get off your ass, and clean out your life! Get with it!

• You have a boyfriend and we’re happy for you! But please, please don’t turn into this girl.

• I didn’t even know people still described themselves as “Goth”. Either way, it’s certainly not distracting.

Remember when you were in high school and you began to hunt for a college? As if you weren’t having enough trouble balancing those AP classes and inevitable girl drama and all of a sudden – BAM – here come like 10,000 books/essays/magazines/guides/counselors bombarding you with information on choosing the right college.

• Do you want big or small?

• Liberal arts? Science? Big city? Small campus? Close to home? Great sports teams?

Some books had statistics. Others had tests to place you in the right “type” of school. Still others were filled with advice from the students who went there. But where was the guarantee that any of this research would put us in a school that we loved, that would get us where we wanted to in life, and that would ultimately be our perfect fit?

According to some research over at the New York Times, the guarantee doesn’t exist. And if we do happen to find that perfect place, all that crap we researched does nothing to guide us. Read More »

• Did you know that our makeup is causing us to absorb over 5 pounds of chemicals a year? I’m going to go wash my face… (UK Dailymail)

• Some good news for a Friday afternoon! The trapped miners in South Africa have been rescued. All 3,200 of them, thank God. (Associated Press)

• A remix of sorts when it comes to those daily inappropriate teacher/student stories: Advice for young high school teachers. (valleyjew.blogspot.com)

• Drop that Diet Coke…it’ll give you cancer. For real, this time! (dmiessler.com)

• Most important First Aid myth you really should know about: Peeing on wounds DOESN’T HELP. (ririanproject.com)

Not even a month into my senior year of college and I’ve already skipped two classes, started my homework for all of them the night before or the morning of class, and most impressively, have yet to even open the textbook for one class. It looks like this will be my finest year of procrastination yet.

My procrastination however, is actually quite productive in its own way.

I don’t simply lounge around on the couch and troll Facebook to see what my best friend from elementary school is up to these days. I mean of course I do that too, but you’d be surprised at how effective your time-wasting can actually be, aside from effectively lowering your GPA. Check out these sites next time you’re procrastinating, which will likely be within in the next 24 hours:

Watch TV on alluc.org

This site has years of procrastination in store for you, from anime cartoons to movies to guilty-pleasure TV shows from simpler days. “Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place,” anyone?

Get Life Advice at tomatonation.com

This gal Sara “Sars” Bunting is a humor writer and totally addictive. You’ll find all sorts of essays on her site, but it’s her advice column that has me refreshing her page an alarming number of times a day. Best of all? Her advice archives are separated into categories, so no matter what your current life drama, you’ll find some sound advice or at least some comfort in knowing that you’re not alone in your all-consuming hatred for your roommate’s cat and why won’t it stop peeing on the couch?! Read More »

We’ve all been there. It’s a little past 2am and you’re 3 paragraphs into a paper due in a few hours, on a subject you only vaguely understand, for a class you go to only when it’s on the way to happy hour.You’ve typed every word that relates to your paper topic into Google, and you’ve come up with nary a Wikipedia entry.

So what’s the problem? Well, besides your knack for procrastination and admirable laziness, it could be your research skills.

Before you give up and accept defeat (and an F), pour yourself a hot cup of coffee and check out these research sites that have saved me more than once:

Spark Notes: You may not have used this site since high school, but I assure you, it’s even more useful now. From novel summaries that you’ve been using since 7th grade English class to summary-style subject reviews, you can find help for almost anything here, from Shakespeare to physics. I’ve gotten A’s on papers on books I didn’t read because of this site, and it saved my butt when I was cramming for a psychology final and couldn’t for the life of me, understand a specific topic. Their review for specific subject are great at explaining something simply and thoroughly. Read More »