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 »

One of the joys of maturing into responsible adults is the new, more equal relationship we can establish with our parents. It’s cool to be able to grab a brewski at family barbecues (double-y cool because you didn’t have to pay for it), usually leading to an awesome opportunity to sit around and gab with the fam about your hilarious exploits away at school.

This table time can often result in blackmail-worthy anecdotes about your Mom’s coed days from Uncle Bill. Unfortunately, it can also result in HORRIBLE AWKWARDNESS should you overshare and let slip any of the following (I know, I thought they’d be cool with it too):

1) That time you got so drunk at the club that you passed out in the bathroom.

Also not good to share: the fact that your equally wasted friends did not notice your sudden absence, and were alerted to your condition only when the cleaning staff found you at 6 am. This story, while earning you street cred amongst your fellow college lushes (I think it’s hilarious, obv), will not go over well with Mom for various reasons. 1) Contrary to her own experiences in college, she would like to believe that you–her responsible and intelligent daughter– would never participate in such tomfoolery. 2) She ain’t sending you to school to get drunk.

Best to skip this little tale and save it for a more appropriate time: boasting during “This one time, I was so drunk…” circles. Read More »

Hilary Duff: Stranger

Sometimes you just have to admit that you like something without using the words guilty pleasure, and that’s what Hilary Duff and her song “Stranger” is for us at CC. Check out the video and get it here!