Let the Games Begin

As a striking young girl teeters on high heels through the narrow Florentine streets, several older Italian men perched outside their storefronts light their hungry eyes on her, planning their attack of seduction. The girl is bright-eyed, energetic, unassuming, and naïve-aka, American. To be in her close company would be like taking a swig from the fountain of youth for any older male. After spending just a week in Florence, I knew I wouldn't be spending vanity time trying to impress the guys here. Italian or not, they all warrant the label "creepy." But after spending a few months here, I have noticed a trend: younger girls with canoodling with older guys. Although the age difference can be extreme, and therefore condemned by society, aged men on the prowl aren’t deterred by the inevitable side effect of being labeled as a sexual predator.

There is a common perception that when a younger woman is seen with an older male, she is being taken advantage of. But women who involve themselves with considerably older men are well-aware of their actions. And assuming they have a working pair of legs, they can walk away from any withering catcall that beckons for attention. Young hot rods have a clever agenda in getting their tanks filled free of charge. It is well known that girls don’t have to pay cover fees to get into clubs, nor spend money on drinks. But the alcohol-induced happiness that a free drink from a young guy brings is fleeting. It’s the summer houses, swanky hotel rooms, and elegant dinners with older men that stick (at least in one’s memory). Older men flaunt their power, assets, and money, and because of this, younger guys will always feel the shortcomings of struggling to achieve the goal their predecessors have already attained. Most women don't want to idly stand by their working-class heroes with the promises of the future. They want it now, and with an older man, younger girls will always be treated like, or at least feel like royal princesses. They have the comfort of escaping to a breezy Malibu beach house, lounging by the pool, and dining on fresh lobster, all on someone else’s tab. Barbie, eat your heart out.

Reminded of America’s Puritan beginnings (other than on our favorite food day), some Americans still hold harsh criticisms towards overt sexualization. Moral Americans are quick to judge relationships between couples with a defining age gap. Even with the popular coined phrases like “MILF” (mom I’d like to fuck), and “DILF” (you get it), the public still seems to be adamantly against relations between older and younger men and women. Sixteen-year-old pop star Miley Cyrus, the shiny face of Disney's popular "Hannah Montana," is questioned for being linked to twenty-year old underwear model Justin Gaston. For the mathematically challenged, that’s only a four-year age difference. But because Gaston is a sexual icon, it is an uncomfortable situation. And when the age gap is ten years or more, the road bending over the river and through the woods to grandma’s house becomes significantly more unwieldy.

When the controversial film, The Graduate, first appeared in theaters in 1967, people were shocked. For the time, a movie containing adultery, nudity, and sex, was extremely bold. The film exposes an affair between a college graduate and his parents’ friend, Mrs. Robinson. Being an older, provocative, and intimidating married woman, Robinson successfully seduces a young graduate. Her prowess in her state of affair has mandated "cougar" stardom, the cherry on top of the contentious sundae. As exhibited in the movie, there are precautions and secrecy involved in propelling a relationship between a man and woman of very different ages. Rule number one, when booking a hotel for a secret rendezvous, using a fake name, such as Mr. Gladstone will guarantee anonymity. The stealthy planning of clandestine meetings provoke feelings of a special bond between an older male and younger female. Even if the girl isn’t looking for love, it’s hard to resist a senior James Bond. But these sentiments are sometimes one-sided.

Older men who make the lifestyle choice to surround themselves with “pretty young things,” are nowhere close to monogamy. In lieu of a mid-life crisis, or for the indefinite pursuit of younger women, many men try to score as many dates a week as will fit in their electronic BlackBerry schedules. This outlook coincides with the Hugh Hefner approach. The "Playboy" magazine mogul who is now 83, has been married and divorced two times. Since then, Hefner has been known to juggle no less than three girlfriends at a time. Kept busy with all those bunnies running around, settling down isn’t his strong suit. According to an online entertainment source, Hefner thinks, "...that relationships with young people keep you young. I get older but they stay the same.” In the same way collagen will only temporarily conceal wrinkles, hanging around younger people will only make one feel youthful.

Still, many men hold the desire to be viewed as a stud until death, when the reality of the situation, and the fragile male ego may break at this, is that everyone, at some point in time, will age and become less desirable. The only outlet available to maturing men is to immerse themselves within an entourage of young women, and plenty of them. But for how long? The relationship, however exciting in its mysticism, is a fantasy. And when Disneyworld’s dazzling Magic Kingdom closes its gates at midnight, the enchantment fades.

CoffeeCoffeeBuzzBuzz

I've come to the point where I just ignore health articles about such things like breakfast, chocolate, coffee, and sleep. They're good for you, they're bad for you..it's emotionally draining. I know that I need all of things to function, so reading into them seems unnecessary. Admittedly, I am a coffee junkie. I need to drink 10 cups of the little blend Italian machines whip up just to satisfy my typical intake of 3 (regular) cups a day. Whether it is beneficial or not, there is nothing like a cup of coffee to jump-start your day. But all it takes is an article about the coveted bean to ruin it...

This article details how coffee negatively impacts your health. What was most disconcerting was that it said that coffee is a drug, and that your body enters a phase where when it doesn't receive enough, it goes through withdrawal. And I know that if you start with one cup a day, eventually you'll need to have two just to feel the same effects. What the article failed to mention, aside from the health aspect, is that it promotes socialness.

I think that coffee is a way for friends to sit down and catch up with one another. It also serves as a way for those who don't know each other to do so. Can a social norm (i.e. let's go to coffee), be considered bad for you? Because I believe that there is nothing sweeter than an iced coffee caramel delight complimented by some juicy gossip. But you didn't hear it from me.

A Little Birdie Told Me...

When Paul Revere rode horseback through cobbled streets and screamed, "The British are coming!" people barely had time to spread the word and gear up. Too bad they didn't have Twitter back then. A simple Tweet could have saved poor Revere a long journey, and sore throat.

The invention of the internet has brought about major advances in news media, one of them being that information can be spread with the click of a button. CNN, for example, uses Twitter to report news in Iran regarding unfolding events related to the elections. It serves as a quick and easy way to get the word out.

But news corporations aren't the only ones with the ability to put forth needed information. The term "citizen journalist" was coined when regular people began posting videos and statements about events that affected us as a nation, and were ultimately used by news sources and broadcasted. Just this weekend, Nashville suffered from a severe flood that damaged numerous houses, buildings, and cars. I guess the country is in too much of a deficit to record footage from a chartered helicopter, because this disaster was recorded by Nashville residents. Pictures and videos of the devastating sites can be found on Twitter and Youtube.

With a plethora of information available online and a decrease of print newspapers, it is no doubt that the media is moving into the Cyberspace community. Should the new neighbors be welcomed, or is the line between news media and the general public too thickly drawn to cross? Because online, anyone can be someone, even a journalist. But wouldn't that make journalists no one?

F My Life

There is no better way to form connections with people than bonding over the humiliating stories of others. Enter fmylife.com, a site where users can post embarrassing stories about themselves, and read ones from others. Originating in France, the ‘Vie de Merde’ site was Americanized to ‘Fuck My Life.’ Although the title got lost in translation, the sensation of the website hasn’t. It yields about one million hits a day. I guess about a million people suffering from their own sorry lives cope by injecting themselves with a boost of self-confidence from reading the blunders and misfortunes of others. Lee Greenwood might want to make some changes to his song.

In a sense, people are confessing, telling their stories of misfortune, and at the same time they read other people's stories. There is an understanding that these things can happen to anyone. I don’t have to be Nancy Drew to figure out that the World Wide Web is a community within itself. But is the message of fmylife.com telling it’s community that it’s perfectly fine to feed off of people’s calamities? Indeed it is. The website features a tool where one can read a story and then vote whether the story writer’s life is fucked or if it was deserved. And the writers only have three-hundred characters to tell their condemned tales, the last three characters being FML.

One of the top FML posts is: “Today, I received my passport in the mail. They got my birthdate wrong. Then I picked up my birth certificate that I had sent in with the application. Turns out my parents have been celebrating my birthday on the wrong day for 16 years. FML.” Unlike this story, some aren’t deemed worthy enough to even make it onto the website. There are moderators assessing people’s submissions to make sure they are unfortunate enough. And to fit a particular mood, users have the convenient ‘categories’ tab, where they can choose what kind of stories they are interested in. The site is a black hole of sick humored parasites who jump from story to story, feeding off awkward and mortifying accounts. And I’ve fallen into it. FML.

What Happened Last Night?

''Carbo load every day and drink up every night,'' my friend advised me. Most people think that studying abroad entails inebriated nights only remembered through tagged photos on Facebook. And they could not be more right. With the drinking age only set at 18, it is hard to resist the temptation to buy booze and throw back beers at bars and clubs. After all, studying abroad is a semester of partying. But after a recently daunting event where a boy on the program drunkenly climbed over his balcony fence and fell four stories, my mindset is starting to shift.



Am I acting wreckless? I am nervous that my carefree Italian attitude, and love of alcohol, might get me into more trouble than a regrettable romantic decision. People clearly act stupidly when under the influence and always think that nothing bad will ever happen to them (me included). But when it does happen, the rules change. And I think the laws should too. While studying abroad, students can either further their alcoholism or start it. It wouldn't be terrible to take precautionary measures against students' alcohol conspumption. I don't mean that it should not be allowed, but perhaps there is a happy medium that could be reached without being overbearing. Am I wrong?

What Happened to Getting 'The Skinny?'

       I was at Wendy's when I first learned what a calorie was. My dad took me and a friend for celebratory burgers and fries after losing a soccer match (we were still winners at life). 

''I wonder how many calories are in this,'' said my friend, examining a limp fry. At first I was excited about what a calorie was, thinking it was a really cool term only related to potatoes. I was wrong. 

Now, consuming way more calories than I should (gelato is the culprit), there is a new term on the block: fat. Many people are unfortunately too familiar with it, but don't know what it looks like in its natural form. But if you ride the subway in New York, you're in luck! The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene just released new subway ads that feature human fat being poured out of a soda can. And yes, this is fat not fiction. 

Personally, I do not think it is a secret that processed foods and beverages that are high in sugar are causes of weight gain. Everyone knows. It is a personal choice whether you want to care or not. I don't need to be slammed with disgusting images on my way uptown (there are enough of those in subways already).  Is this campaign necessary or just annoying? Chew on it before spitting out a response... 

The Tech Age

Since I was young, new social media phenomenon have come and gone. Blogger has replaced Live Journal, Facebook has replacedMyspace, and virtual communities have replaced physical ones. Sounds crazy, right? But think about it. How often do you log into Facebook, Twitter, or AIM? Most would say every day. I don't think this is a bad thing, we are just keeping up with the times. We're living in the Jetson-age rather than the Stone Age. And with so much progressive technology that makes our hectic lives so simple and easy to maintain, that's definitely something to YabbaDabbaDoo about.

Normally, a groom will say ''I do,'' and kiss the bride. This newly-wed did things a little unconventionally, updating his facebook status in between steps. But sometimes I fear that being online takes precedence over being present...even at one's own wedding. If I was the other person standing on that alter I'd probably tell him to to re-update it to single. That should be a fun walk of shame down the aisle!

I'd like to say that there are only a select few that are bred with this kind of ''specialness'' (like the cast of Jersey Shore). But according toMark Zuckerberg, such social media stints won't be so unlikely in the future. Zuckerberg sees Facebook as a kind of technological take-over. Let's just hope he uses his powers for good and not evil...even though interviewing with Forbes makes that wish questionable. Feast your eyes on The Facebook Invasion.

I'm wondering if the coined joke is even funny anymore, or just true. Is nothing official unless it's Facebook official? Even our lives? Young tech-savy CEO say what?