Friends.
Family.
Happiness and health and blah blah blah.

Those are all great things to be thankful for, important things, yes.  But what about the not so important things, the little things that we all take for granted? Here’s what I’m thankful for this holiday season…

10. Trashy Tabloids. Reading about the problems of the rich and famous makes everything in my life seem so much less problematic. Sure, maybe I’m having boy problems, but at least my guy didn’t leave me for Angelina Jolie. And maybe I’m worried about wearing a bikini to the beach, but at least there’s no one zooming in on my butt cheeks. (At least not that I know of.) Celebrity scandal really helps me see the big picture.

9. Steve Madden’s Fall Boot Collection. Whenever I’m having a bad day, I just head over to Steve Madden’s website and stare at some shoes. Laugh if you want, but it totally works. They’re like works of art, I swear. And even though I’ve put myself on a boot buying ban until after the holidays, I still enjoy purusing the styles. And you will too.

8. Chocolate. I’m sorry; do you really need an explanation for this one? I didn’t think so.

7. Iced Caramel Macchiatos. Yes, I know they are overpriced and if ordered correctly can contain more calories than a Big Mac. But I love them and their ability to combine the perfect amount of sweetness and bitterness, to retain the taste of coffee while still allowing me to enjoy the caramel flavor. They feed my caffeine addiction, and for that I am eternally grateful. And the cute guys that work at the local Starbucks don’t hurt either.

6. Thirsty Thursday. An excuse to start the weekend a day early? I’ll take it. Drink specials? Yes please.  A reason not to feel like a couch potato when by Saturday night I’m in sweats watching reality TV and writing The Weekly Ten?  Perfection.

5. Reality TV. By now I think it’s been pretty well established that if women and a television genre could wed, CollegeCandy and reality TV would be on their honeymoon already. But I still had to take a moment and give thanks for the likes of Kim Kardashian and Pauly D. My life would be a whole lot less interesting without them.

4. Wikipedia. Professors always talk about the unreliability of Wikipedia, and maybe that’s true on some accounts.  But whether I can’t remember the name of that actress who played opposite Freddy Prince Jr. in She’s All That (Rachel Leigh Cook) or want a quick plot synopsis on one of Shakespeare’s greatest works, Wikipedia is always there for me. Take that professor!

3. Facebook. The ultimate method of procrastination. The perfect tool for stalking. The place where you can go to find out exactly what happened the night before. A great way to stay in touch. The social networking site that got me off MySpace!  Without Mark Zuckerberg and co., I’d be friendless.

2. Class Cancellations. Last week, my class was unexpectedly canceled. I’d been working on a big paper all weekend, and was less than prepared for my classes that day. And also not entirely sure I’d be able to make it through them without falling asleep halfway through the presentation I was supposed to be giving. Minutes before my alarm went off, my Blackberry beeped. Class was canceled. I hit the snooze button and caught up on my sleep. And it was beautiful.

1. CollegeCandy. The ultimate source for all things college. I stumbled upon this site way before I started writing here and I haven’t been able to keep away since. Why would I? Whether I need guy advice (God, how great is The Dude?!) or a silly distraction or an awesome playlist, CollegyCandy has me covered. And for that I am thankful.

What about you girls? What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?

[Check out Jenn's other musings-in-the-form-of-a-list here.]

Just get creative (and a permit from public safety)!

Here are a few ideas on how to have some extraordinary (in a good way) fun on Friday and Saturday night, based on things my friends and I have done or aspire to do at some point this year. Although it’s always nice to have a plan in mind, I’ve found that the most spontaneous things end up being the most enjoyable, so don’t be afraid to just go with the flow when the sun goes down!

Screen a musical outside and have a massive sing-along

A couple of weeks ago, a program house on campus screened Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and the musical episode of Buffy on the porch. If you’re a techie (or have friends who are), you can gather up all the theater geeks and have your own musical screening on the side of your dorm! Just be sure you have the necessary permits to do so.

Set up a bowling lane on your hall

This one’s really easy. All you need are assorted shampoo bottles/hairspray canisters and something that rolls, and there you have it – a bowling alley! If you want to raise the stakes, have a tournament for prizes, or simply for bragging rights. Not that knocking down a few bottles of shampoo with a grapefruit is that impressive, but it’s still something, I guess.

Have an old-school slumber party

Remember those elementary school pastimes of making prank calls to guys and stuffing your face with candy at a friend’s sleepover? Since college is technically one giant sleep-over, why not have a night of nostalgia and junk food (minus the confining sleeping bag/pretending to be snoring when someone’s mom comes down to check on you)? Play “Never Have I Ever” and “Truth or Dare,” and if you’re really bold, play a prank on your next-door neighbor. It’ll be even easier if they’re falling-over-themselves drunk, so you’ll get twice the hilarity out of less effort!

BAKE!

Even if you’re really bad at baking (like me), take advantage of the empty common kitchen and bake some cookies, or brownies, or both! The ends will definitely justify the means, no matter how frustrating the actual process is. Plus, who can resist sampling (read: wolfing down) fresh cookie dough? It certainly can’t be worse for your health than what’s cooking at the dining hall.

Host a marathon of a TV show

Yes, I know, watching DVDs gets old after a while. But when you’re trying to squeeze an entire season into an evening, things get interesting very quickly, usually by the eighth straight hour of viewing. If you’re really ambitious, screen a season of 24 in one sitting. I’ll personally shake your hand if you accomplish in one day.

Play the Wikipedia Game, extreme edition

I mostly use it as a procrastination tool, but I imagine it can get competitive with enough spirited people involved. You also might learn a thing or two from it, and isn’t learning what college is all about? Am I right? …hello? Bueller?

We’re on team Rogen. What about you?

Madonna’s got a new song. And it sucks.

Well, that’s a scary statistic.

Honestly, what doesn’t Vera Wang design these days?

The iPhone can rate your sex life.

Do we still need fashion week?

[Every week, CC and John bring you some of the weirdest, funniest, saddest things he hears on his college campus. Join the Overheard revolution!Leave your own overheard convos in the comments or send ‘em over!]

(Girl and guy, across dining hall.)

Girl: You’re beautiful! What’s your name?

Guy: Oh, thanks. You’re not very pretty at all.

(Guy, in the dining hall.)

Guy: I love space monkeys. But, you know, not in a t-shirt way.

(Girls leaving a class building.)

Girl 1: Oh, my God, that was complete bullsh*t.

Girl 2: Double bullsh*t.

Girl 3: Yeah. Fart fart fart.

(A professor, during an exam.)

Professor: Everyone, stop, take a break. This is a very challenging exam. I want you all to stop and think about puppies.

(A group of girls at the dining hall.)

Girl 1: I… I don’t know how much you guys talk about the Simpsons. It makes me uncomfortable.

Girl 2: We don’t even talk about the Simpsons that much!

Girl 1: No. You do. You don’t know what it’s like. You haven’t lived like me.

(Guys and girls clustered around a computer.)

Guy: Yeah, he’s pretty thirsty. And he walks really well for such an old guy!

(Two girls, arguing in line at a coffee shop.)

Girl: No, no, it’s like… the gay male equivalent of vagina dentata.

(Girl and guys, sitting on the grass outside.)

Guy: This whole week has been, like, hell.

Girl:  If you needed a study break, you could have come and watched me projectile vomit this morning.

(Girl, on the phone.)

Girl: … No! That’s your job! Your fat ass started all this sh*t, and your fat ass is gonna fix it!

(Guy, coming out of the bathroom.)

Guy: You know, you guys are slow. Like, if I didn’t tell you all, none of you would know I peed on the seat.

(Girl, at a computer.)

Girl: Guys, what’s “galactorrhea”? Is that where you sh*t entire solar systems?

(Guy, nervously walking up to a bar.)

Guy: Can I have… um, a Sex on the Beach? With… extra sex?

(Guy, yelling into a phone.)

Guy: No! Speak American! You’ve got a … a frickin’ Prime Minister! The only prime thing we have is prime rib! … And prime numbers!

(Girl and guy, talking in a hallway.)

Guy: How was studying?

Girl: Awesome. I got from Moses to “Space Jam” in only five Wikipedia pages.

Avoid the holiday weight gain this year.

2009 is all about the bun.

Kate and Leo reunited at last.

DIY gifts for guys. So cool.

Need a cocktail ring for New Year’s? These are fabulous.

The Real Housewives of Atlanta are comin’ back. Thank you, Santa!

Dartmouth professor discovers the dangers of Facebook.

Gossip is good for ya!

In case you care, Joe Biden got a new puppy.

Need a vacation read? Try one of these great pop culture books.

Paris Hilton hates how guys use her for sex!

Everyone’s preparing for election day.

Heidi Klum is scary.

Dead people are voting in Ohio!

The funniest Wikipedia page ever.

Are you an informed citizen?

You can be a Guitar Hero…for real!

In case you need a little push to get out and vote.

The election is gonna require some heavy drinking.

It’s always Halloween at Michael Jackson’s house.

Cheating could kill you. Really.

False eyelashes are fabulous (and not as difficult as you think!).

Gwen Stefani and baby Zuma. So. cute.

The Humane Society should have something to say about this, right?

Linda Hogan is creepy.

How to use Wikipedia intelligently.

Learn what you are really craving.

Croc bags that even you can afford.

Budget friendly (dorm) decorating!

Bill Clinton supports Barack Obama.

Ms. Hudson is about to become Mrs. Jennifer Hudson Otunga! (She’s engaged, for everyone who missed that.)

There is nothing quite like being in love, so we are so happy for our pal, Jennifer. Her husband-to-be, David Otunga is hot, smart (a Harvard Law School grad) and has some fine taste in engagement rings. His previous taste in women is a tad questionable (I Love New York? Really?!), but he has clearly learned from his mistakes and traded up to the beautiful, talented Jennifer Hudson.

This woman proves that you can really have it all: looks, talent, a successful career and a worthwhile relationship (even if guy happened to be on one of the worst reality shows…ever).

You go girl.

Cut to eight hours later: I’ve clocked about four hours of Internet browsing time and haven’t gotten any of my post for College Candy done. This is because I am an expert on using the web to waste copious amounts of time.

Here’s how I do it.

My top 5 websites for wasting time:

1. Wikipedia

I spent the summer after my junior year at Emerson working as a receptionist at a post-production office in Los Angeles. We rarely had guests and the phone only rang a few times a day, so aside from picking up people’s lunches I didn’t have much to do. Instead of doing what I should have done (using the time to write a novel or a screenplay or whatever) I decided to learn all human knowledge on Wikipedia.org. I would spend hours clicking on “Random article” again and again. I am now a master at Trivial Pursuit.

2. Facebook

This one is pretty obvious but I feel it deserves to be at the top of my list since I waste so much time on it everyday. I obsessively check Facebook. I’m not exactly sure why. I get just a handful of notices every day about new friends or events, and I don’t actually spend that much time reading other people’s profiles, but it’s the News Feed that sucks me in. I’m not sure what I’m waiting to read, but I find myself checking it again and again, just in case some crazy shit in the life of a friend went down.

3. I-Am-Bored.com

This is another website that got me through months of being a very bored intern. I-Am-Bored.com has funny videos, photos, some news, but what gets me are the quizzes. Hundred and hundreds of quizzes. There’s everything from a state capitol quiz to quizzes based on real psychological profiles to see if and what mental disorder you have (I am mildly OCD with just a dash of schizophrenic).

4. The Sartorialist, Face Hunter, etc.

It’s amazing how many hours can go by while you’re scanning through pictures of drunk people or chic French people or chic drunk French people. Websites like lastnightsparty.com have buckets of new photos everyday of hipsters partying in New York and LA, and websites like facehunter.blogspot.com and thesartorialist.blogspot.com are loaded with photos of fashionable folk (both famous and non-famous) from all across the land (mainly Europe) to make you wish you could pull off a parka paired with knee socks or party with Agyness Deyn.

5. MyHeritage.com

Upload a photo of your face and some nifty face recognition software at myheritage.com will spit out what celebrities you look like. I am quite similar to Amanda Peet, Rachel Bilson, and Stanislav Lanevski, some Hungarian actor from “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” Do it for yourself, then do it to all your ex-boyfriends (thank god for all those photo albums on Facebook!).

Got any other procrastination recommendations?

It’s Thursday again and that means it’s time for another round of Weekly Obsessions!

This week has been a mix of the last days of warm weather and the gray dreary days of Fall, so I’ve been trying my best to counteract any kind of gloominess with tons of color and fun!

First things first:

Fashion Obsession: Colorful Hair!

On Monday, I woke up feeling like I needed a change–any change. Simply, I was bored. And what do I do when I’m bored? I change my hair color! I’ve had all sorts of wacky colors and cuts through the years but I wanted something drastic.

I made my way down to SoHo to the Arrojo Studios where I asked my awesome colorist to make me as blonde as possible. She took one look at my dark brown hair and I could already tell it would be impossible. Going from dark brown to platinum would be a painful, all-day process.

Such a bummer. (Sidenote: If Japanese girls can go blonde, why can’t I?)

She salvaged the situation by putting some (subtle) blue and pink bits all throughout the front of my hair which I completely love. Maybe after a little more planning I’ll be able to go lighter, but for now, I’m loving the new streaks.

For those of you not quite ready to take the plunge? Get a wig! Halloween is coming up so there’s no better excuse to try out something completely ridiculous (and hilarious!).

Leisure Obsession: Zines!

To me, Zines scream “1999!”, but for some reason, this week I’ve been totally infatuated.

For those of you who are in the dark right now, according to Wikipedia, Zines are a small circulation, non-commercial publication of original or appropriated texts and images. More broadly, the term encompasses any self-published work of minority interest.

You can usually find zines within any kind of underground movement, or in a lot of our cases, on college campuses. They cover all kinds of topics. I’ve seen some fantastically creative ones that cover anything from vegetarianism to punk rock.

Lucky for us, there are lots of places to find interesting zines online. And for you ambitious folks out there, you can read up on how to self-publish here.

Tech Obsession: Completely Useless (But Fun!) Gadgets We May Use…But Probably Won’t!

Maybe I’m nuts, but when I read about new inventions or concepts that are pretty much useless it doesn’t matter–as long as they look cool, I’m so down.

So, it makes sens that I freaked out when I saw this. Amazing!! It looks like Lite-Brite which, anyone who knows me personally can tell you, I adore.

Apparently, they do this kind of stuff in Vegas but I’ve never been there so I’m going to just have to swoon over these pictures until I can get my butt out to Nevada to gamble my savings away.

And check this out! I know people, I know. We can all just wipe our mirrors off with a towel or something, but this is just hilarious. They should sell these babies with a guarantee that you’ll have a good giggle every morning after your shower…that should move a few off the shelves, right?

Food Obsession: Shabu-Shabu Restaurants!

Have you guys seen these? If we’re talking fun this week, these Japanese restaurants are it. It’s basically like beef fondue, if you want to put it simply.

What happens is, when you sit down you get raw beef (or pork, lobster, crab, chicken, or duck) which you submerge in a pot of boiling water to cook. Then you get an array of dipping sauces to spice up your poached meat.

To me, it’s like a welcome variation to sushi (thank God) that everyone can enjoy together…and that’s the most fun!