advice Tag

So, you graduated and said goodbye to your home- and your family- of four years. No longer can you so easily drag your roommates out of bed at midnight to meet the gang at the local bar down the block or make impromptu late-night diner trips. The truth is, maintaining those ties is going to get a lot harder as everyone starts moving in different directions. Some friendships may start to fizzle and fade, and you’re all going to have to start putting in some extra effort. Here are theRead More

My first semester of college, I worked at a chain coffee and bagel café. I have always affirmed that every person needs to work in food service at least once in their lifetime. It is difficult to express how exceptionally vital it is that people understand the toil behind where their services come from, and the crucial nature of treating workers with respect. I have also always held the belief that every person needs to work at least one “crappy job” in their life to fully understand the value ofRead More

Food is honestly one of my closest companions. It is there for me in the day and in the night, and when I call, it always answers. I love food more than I love people. I like to think that others think the same. Here are a few phrases that I put together that hold true when it comes to comparing food and guys: 1.”I still feel so satisfied…” (3 hours later) 2.”Chocolate will always understand.” 3. “Cheese is never late.” 4. “Fried chicken never argues.” 5. “Pizza answers whenRead More

Embarrassment, by textbook definition, is a feeling of self-consciousness, shame or awkwardness. It is a feeling we all have experienced more than once in our lives. We are ashamed of an action, a fault, a flaw, etc. We all get pimples. We all trip and fall. Most of the time, we as humans are embarrassed by the same things. But, that should be a reason why we should never be embarrassed. Let’s take this scenario: it’s picture day in 8th grade and you wake up with a huge pimple onRead More

A Self-Help Essay By Dotty Getting robbed is a scary thing and your first reaction is to comply with everything your assailant is demanding. I believe all of us who have been a victim of robbery in a foreign country can relate. In the moments afterward you feel helpless, victimized, and are discouraged by thoughts of having to continue. I vowed from that day forward, if I was ever robbed again, I would be in-control of the situation. Therefore, after months of research, I came up with a method thatRead More

Guilt, shame, sadness, anger, resentment, loneliness, heartbreak, confusion.. The list of uncomfortable feelings unforuntately goes on and on. Let’s face it – nobody likes feeling any of those feelings, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that these feelings are bad and that you shouldn’t be feeling them.  In order to grow from painful experiences, we need to experience the sadness and other uncomfortable feelings that come with it. If we feel sadness or loss, we need to let ourselves cry instead of holding it in and putting on a fake smile. If weRead More

Lately, I’ve come in contact with people of my past, with pictures of my past, and with random Facebook pokes from people of my past. Just like any other individual, I am drawn to the magnet that my past holds and it’s hard to break away. I remind myself that the past is there for a reason. So here’s a letter to the thing that keeps tapping me on the shoulder:   Dear Past, Let’s get things straight. I have started a whole new life since you and I haveRead More

Last time we met, I opened up this dialogue about never being in a relationship, how it’s a stigma, and why I am in this particular position. Today, I’d like to discuss a relationship phenomenon that is HUGE in our generation, and the bane of “unicorns” (late teens or twenty-something’s who have never been a relationship) everywhere: the friend zone.   I’ve been there. You’ve been there. We’ve all been there. And it sucks. If you don’t know what I’m referring to, you should check your back for loose wiring,Read More

We spend most of our young adult life in search of our soulmates; that one person who will complete you like no one else will. Disney movies, Nicholas Sparks and the rest of the pop culture that surrounds us have made us believe that one fine day we will find them and our life will finally be whole. But, have you ever stopped to think that your soulmate might already be in your life? What if our soulmates are not that person who we have been forever dreaming about andRead More

Today is my 24th birthday. What better way is there to celebrate than to make a listicle of all the important things I’ve learned in my 24 years on this planet? Without further ado, here are some of the key lessons I’ve learned thus far in life:   1. Not everyone finds offensive jokes funny. Some people find them offensive. 2. Never buy drinks at sporting events or concerts. Pocket shots and flasks are your wallet’s best friends. 3. Your parents actually have good advice, at least most of theRead More

By now we’ve seen the headlines.  We’ve scrambled to make sense of a horrific act of violence that brought a quiet college town to its knees.  We’ve cursed, we’ve mourned and in the case of us Gauchos, we’ve stood together – wounded but unified – in the wake of unspeakable tragedy. Last Friday, a gunman drove through the UCSB beachside town of Isla Vista slaughtering six and wounding thirteen more before turning the gun on himself.  Hours before the event, he uploaded a video explaining the reasons for his attack. Read More

Recently, I was going through some less-than-Beyonce-fabulous feels. I felt jealousy towards certain individuals, low self-confidence, contempt for my outward appearance, and had a desire to disappear. In that moment, I felt poignantly alone. Naturally, I wanted to articulate these sentiments by singing some passionate musical theatre song alone in my bedroom (I promise I have friends, guys.) As I was scrolling through my 370-track-long Broadway playlist on Spotify (again, I SWEAR ON MY MOTHER’S GRAVE that I have friends), I realized that there were zero songs about simply feelingRead More

No one really told us what adulthood would be like when it came time to face the music. If they did, maybe I envisioned it differently, or I just wasn’t paying attention because I was too busy dreaming about my Carrie Bradshaw closet. My friends will be the first to tell you that I believe aging is a gift and I love getting older, but at the same time, being an adult can be really annoying and lame too. But, in order to get where you want to be inRead More

There is nothing wrong with being in your twenties and having absolutely no idea what you want to do with your life. It is not a race, and there is no time limit to decide on what you are going to do. This is the point in your life where you can experiment, chase your dreams, and try new things. You are young enough to try something, hate it, and start all over again. Sometimes the only way to know what it is that you like, is to determine whatRead More

I’m getting to the point of my life where I slowly think I have everything figured out. Every day I learn something new about my past or my present and I create mental lists of what to keep note of, what to never do again, or what to make sure I do next time. Since I am a hopeless romantic and a deep-thinker when it comes to life, here are 50 things I have learned:   1. Everybody turns out to be who they said they wouldn’t be 2. HighRead More