College is a time when many of us fly the coop and, oftentimes, settle in a totally different city, away from parents and long-time friends.

Even for the biggest social butterflies, there is always going to be some slight apprehension when faced with the prospect of making a completely new set of buddies, leaving the comfort zone of the high school social circle.

Typically, the transition for most students is from a smaller high school to an often much larger college. This leaves an opportunity to meet people, but don’t rely solely on “mass-friending” people in your incoming class on Facebook to start connecting with others (that leaves for the always slightly awkward meeting which is guided by a mutual search for the person who matches the default profile picture). Also, don’t rely solely on meeting new people on your floor of the dorm where you are living, either. Just because you live in the same general area, there is definitely no guarantee that you’ll share common interests or have agreeing personalities.

Here are a few ideas to get connected with other students on campus, and hopefully make some new friends: Read More »

The shoes! The hair! The clothes! (and did I mention the shoes?)

Obviously the fashion/hair/bags of the Sex and The City movie were more than noteworthy (I am still drooling over those royal blue Manolo’s). But more blogworthy?

The fashion (or lack thereof) of SATC moviegoers all weekend long.

From the metallic pumps to the teased out hair (yes apparently, some girls still do that) Girls, and a few boys, armed with their favorite girls and favorite bag were decked out in their Carrie Bradshaw best. Girls waited in line for four hours, in four inch stilletto’s (my feet hurt just thinking about it) for the long awaited glimpse of their favorite HBO gal pals.

Now don’t get me wrong, I too wish my closet was outfitted with Carrie’s Louboutins or Charlotte’s Chanel collection– but on a hot, humid Saturday afternoon- answer me this: Why are you wearing a black minidress, red lipstick and clip-in hair extensions to sit in a cold dark theater? Read More »

Remember when you used to come home from high school, exhausted and starving? Lunch had been at like 10:30 that morning, and so by the time the afternoon bell rang, your stomach was growling so loudly you had to sit hunched over to dull the gurgles.

Home meant snacks. It might refueling yourself for sports or theater club or smoking stolen cigarettes under a tree while sneering at all organized things. Afternoon snack was an event I looked forward to from kindergarten to twelfth grade.

Hell, I still look forward to it!

Sadly, today’s teenage girls aren’t allowing themselves the joy of snack time – or any meal – at all. A report from the UK’s Independent Online showed that over “a third of 13 to 18-year-old girls” polled for a study indicated they had been on a diet or were currently dieting, and “45 per cent [ate] less than 1,200 calories per day”, which is below the healthy amount for growing women.

About a quarter of the boys in the survey admitted to eating less calories than the daily recommended amount, but girls were the ones worrying researchers most of all. Read More »