"Did you guys know this beer can make your hair stronger, too!?"

Labor Day may be an awesome third day to a typically-too-short weekend, but sadly, it’s also pretty much the last day of summer. But just because those summer days are drifting away, does that mean the fun is o-v-e-r?

Not for CollegeCandy readers! Psh, we can have fun no matter where we are and September is just brimming with some awesome stuff to take part in. Here are some fantastic things to do after Labor Day that don’t involve any heavy labor… or white shoes.

1) Enjoy (useful?) beer at tailgate.
Beer has better uses than just giving you the guts to talk to that cutie you’ve been eying at the party. You can use it to clean your hair and unclog pores, make your own facial mask concoction, and draw a uniquely-colored bubble bath.

2) Do the Downward Dog.
You can get a full week of free yoga at a studio near you during the first ever National Yoga Month. And since yoga is supposed to improve your sex life, why not try it? Your boyfriend can thank me later.

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[Got a question?! Get an answer!! To be featured in Tuffy Luv’s weekly column, just shoot her a lil ol email at TuffyLuv@collegecandy.com and shiz.]

Dear Tuffy Luv,

Summer date ideas? Thanks, Tuffy!

Olivia

P.S. Cheap ones would be good because I’m still in college! Thanks!

Dear Olivia,

Do I have some ideas for you? Answer: Yes. Yes, I do.

(1) Go Swimming

Find out where the neighborhood pool is. (Even better if you can find a neighborhood beach!!) Slather each other with sunblock and head over for a guilt-free indulgence. Yeah, you’ll have to put up with all the neighborhood kids, but it’s so much cuter that way, anyway. At the end of the day, when you’re done splashing and sunbathing, take a cool nighttime walk home.

(2) Paint Each Other

Pick up some cheap supplies (don’t worry about quality here–this is just for fun) and paint pictures of each other. Laugh hysterically at what you each come up with–and compliment each other for seeing things other people would never have seen. Got a little messy? Shower’s this way…

(3) Have a Neighborhood Date

Do all the stuff you’d do if you were visiting your town. Do the local tourist attractions (no matter how lame). Look in the paper and find events. Spend the whole day like you were on vacation in your own town. Eat at the neighborhood favorite. And then go home and finish the vacation with dessert! (Winkyface.)

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Move over, David Beckham, there’s a new soccer hottie in town.

5 potential boyfriends that you already know!

Ali Lohan is too cool for smiles.

Britney’s dad is taking over…permanently.

Add a little flare to your wardrobe.

The new Guitar Hero World Tour commercial rocks our world.

Should you get the flu vaccine?

A living, breathing Barbie Doll.

Got some extra time on your hands? Volunteer!

Remember when she was in Mean Girls? Looks like Amanda Seyfried is movin’ up.

Is Dina Lohan gonna be on Dancing With the Stars?!

Do you volunteer your time for your favorite cause? Volunteer to work on the presidential campaign? Pass out pamphlets for women’s rights? Throw paint on people sporting fur coats?

I know I do some of those things. I am a huge supporter of animals’ rights, but even I think that PETA is a bit extreme when it comes to getting their point across. And it appears that some of their members are taking that extremism even further.

PETA intern, Jennifer Thornburg, Cutout Dissection.com convinced federal courts to change her name to support Cut Out Dissection Month in October.

Now, I don’t know if it’s fame, pure insanity, or a real dedication to the cause, but this girl is making a bold statement. This is originality and creativity at its finest. All in the “name” of community service!

So why did this 19 year old intern do this? She wanted to raise awareness about the six million animals that are killed for dissection each year. The animals suffer painful deaths. She hopes to raise awareness amongst students and teachers to say no to dissection, and yes to alternative ways of anatomy.

Around PETA and to her fellow interns, she is known as simply Cut Out, but her parents still call her Jenny. She loves introducing herself as Cutout Dissection.com because it engages people in conversation about dissection efforts, thus leading to ways they can get involved and help the cause.

Although, I can’t help but wonder what strangers think when she introduces herself at the bar:

“Hey, pretty lady. I’m Jon.”

“Hi Jon. I’m Cutout Dissection.com.”

“What?”

Tell me what do you think: is this amazing dedication or just plain crazy?

[In conjunction with National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, College Candy is taking time to address breast health for women in their 20s. Although breast cancer in college women is rare, hundreds of thousands of women are affected by the issues surrounding the disease every year.]

Yesterday we talked about how to best protect yourself against breast cancer before the age of 40. Today we’ll tackle how to join the fight against the disease. From government policies to medical research, life and death decisions about cancer are made every day. No one can control this disease, but there are plenty of opportunities to fight it. Here’s how to get involved.

Run, Relay, Race

No matter where you live, noncompetitive running, walking and relay events are regularly available for participation. Designed to raise funds and awareness, these events are a great way to support the cause with friends, sneak in some exercise and celebrate survivorship.

In 2006, more than 450,000 walkers across the country took part in Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, raising over $40 million to help the American Cancer Society fight this disease.

Another amazing event to take part in is Relay For Life. Held in more than 4,800 communities across the country, teams of eight to 15 people camp out overnight and take turns walking around a track or path for 12 to 24 hours. The event usually begins with a survivor lap in which cancer survivors take a victory lap around the track. Afterwards, candles are lit to remember those lost to the disease. Read More »

So you’ve finished your first year of college! You’re relieved, excited, and filled with pride (hopefully) at your academic accomplishment. You say goodbye to your friends at school, and make the journey home.

For me, that journey home was pretty long: 1330.45 miles, if we’re being exact. And after two weeks at home, and that initial joyful reunion with my friends from high school, I am suffering from a major case of reverse homesickness.

During my first semester of school, all I wanted to do was go back to Florida, transfer to a school where academics are often neglected for tanning and water sports, despite the fact that I had come to Boston to get away from such a scenario. Nonetheless, I was ready to throw in the towel and head back home.

Second semester, however, I really began to find my footing at school, and I had a wonderful time. I did well in all my classes, fell into a groove that enabled me to balance my academic goals with some semblance of a social life, and participated in our school’s spring musical. My last night in Boston was the night of our cast party, which was not short on the debauchery or tearful goodbyes.

Suffice it to say, when I arrived home, I was feeling a little morose. I wasn’t going to see anyone from Boston until September! And now, as a couple weeks have passed and it’s getting stiflingly hot here, I miss Boston and my school friends like nobody’s business. I’ve even come to miss the simplicity of my tiny freshman double, the greasy food at our dining hall, even the drunken frat boys screaming outside my window at 3 in the morning on a Thursday night…I could go on, but I’ll spare you.

So, partly for my sanity, and partly for yours, I’m come up with a few ways to avoid, or at least diminish, that reverse homesickness. Read More »

Last October I was idly browsing the BBC news online when a bizarre headline caught my eye: “French held over Chad ‘adoptions’”. Clicking on the link I soon found myself reading a very sordid tale indeed.

Nine French citizens were arrested in Chad for attempting to kidnap 103 children from the country. They were part of an organization called Arch de Zoe (Zoe’s Ark)—a group of French 4×4 enthusiasts (yes apparently they do exist) who banned together following the Asian tsunami of December 2004.

In April 2007 the group announced it would try to evacuate 10,000 orphans from Darfur to France.

The BBC found out that approximately 300 European families hoped to adopt one of these children—perhaps paying up to $1.4million dollars to charities.

Zoe’s Ark responded by stating that they were not an adoption agency. They “just wanted to rescue [the orphans] from death”—the children were supposedly from Darfur.

It turned out, however, that nearly all of the children were from Chad with at least one living relative.

Oops. Read More »

So I know I’m not the only person who feels incredibly guilty after reading stories about abject poverty in other countries. Subsequently, I feel even worse when I put it out of my mind and get back to own, comparatively ridiculously affluent life.

So I’ve compiled a list of really great and easy ways to contribute to some incredibly worthy causes. Bonus: they’re all things you can do easily on your laptop at any time!

Free Rice: This handy little tool not only helps feed the hungry by donating rice to the United Nations World Food Program, it can also improve your vocabulary! Just answer as many vocabulary questions as you wish, and for each one you answer correctly, the advertisers on the page donate 20 grains of rice to the WFP. The questions increase in difficulty for each correct answer, and so does the amount of rice donated. It’s a win-win!

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It is now nearing the middle of October. If midterms aren’t bringing you down just yet, something probably is. Whether it be guy problems, money problems, annoying roommate issues or simply a general feeling of crappiness, you want nothing more than to vent, drink, and wallow in your world of misery.

Naturally.

I’ve been there. We’ve all been there. And everyone needs a little time to bitch.

But after watching an episode of Oprah all about giving back, I was inspired by a young girl who was battling a life threatening disease. Despite her condition, she found the time and energy to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for children suffering from AIDS in Africa. Makes our problems see quite trivial, eh? Read More »