Gossipable!

Wow. Really??? I'd like to think that society has changed enough that a woman who explores her s#xuality is just as likely to have a good marriage as someone who is a virgin at the time of her marriage. Unfortunately, recent research neither supports nor denies this theory, and ends up asking more questions than it answers. This confusing study called "Counterintuitive Trends in the Link between Premarital s#x and Marital Stability" from the University of Utah, and published on the Institute for Family Studies Blog, questioned whether premarital s#x affects a married couple's likelihood of divorce. What was the answer? Premarital s#x can influence divorce sometimes, but it depends on other factors. The study's author, Nicholas H. Wolfinger, a professor in the University of Utah's Department of Family and Consumer studies and an adjunct professor in the Department of Sociology, discovered some interesting trends: Divorce rates have fallen for the shrinking perc...

1. Chocolate is only a temporary fix. 2. A properly-fitting bra is not a luxury. It is a necessity. 3. Your happiness is your happiness and yours alone. 4. How to apply red lipstick. 5. How to wear the crap out of red lipstick. 6. A boyfriend does not validate your existence. 7. Eat the extra slice of pizza. 8. Wear what makes you feel gracefully at ease. 9. Love the world unconditionally. 10. Seek beauty in all things. 11. Buy your friends dinner when you can. 12. Wear sunscreen like it’s your second job. 13. Try with all your might to keep in contact with far-away friends. 14. Make the world feel at ease around you. 15. Walk with your head up. 16. Order a cheeseburger on the first date if you want to. 17. Never, ever bite your nails. 18. Swipe on some lipstick, put on your leather jacket, and sneak into a bar somewhere. 19. Learn from your mistakes that night. 20. Dental hygiene is not multiple choice. 21. Your GPA is not a confession of your character. 22. There is strength in break...

1. I don’t expect you to stay the same forever. I’ve never understood the complaint of “you’ve changed!” Isn’t that the point? Aren’t we constantly evolving? If not, we’re just stagnant. And that doesn’t sound like much of a life. We’re going to be different than who we were when we met. Maybe our goals will shift. Maybe our world views will expand. I never want you to feel stifled. I never want you to think I expect you to remain exactly the man I fell in love with. I want to grow with you. I want to fall in love with you again and again, including all the new parts of you. 2. I will be your biggest cheerleader and your most honest critic. Yeah, just a warning, I’m going to be the one obnoxiously cheering and clapping for you in the front row. But I’m ALSO going to be the one giving you real feedback. I will always be your number one fan, but that means I’ll tell you the truth too. Because I respect you too much not to. 3. We’re always going to have dogs. Like, always. This is how it ...

Love can be expensive. The average cost of a wedding in the United States is $26,444. Yikes! My fiancé and I aren’t cheap people (well, OK, we are a little cheap), but we are semi-recent college grads, and we are trying to purchase a house this summer and we do have like seven rescued animals living with us. When you think about all the things your budget needs to go to, celebrating your love isn’t necessarily one of them. But this is the day you’ve dreamed of since you were a kid, and you finally found THAT person, the one who understands you, takes care of you and who wants to be your saucy love mate forever. If that’s not worth celebrating, I don’t know what is. So let’s save some big bucks on your wedding with these five strategies: Book Early Planning is your friend. Organization just makes life easier. This is never truer than it is during that wedding planning period in your life. When you book vendors like photographers and florists early, you save money, get locked-in rates an...

Everyone loves a woman with high standards. Whether you call her a lady, a diamond or a classy broad, there's something to be said for a self-contained woman who walks into a room with grace and elegance. These are the women who value the power of precision when it comes to speaking their minds and understand that manners go far beyond saying "please" and "thank you" (though those are both nice). If you're looking to up your love and dating game, it's time to consider dating those with higher standards. Here are 10 reasons to date a woman who knows her worth. 1. She has manners. This isn't a woman who is going to show up late, talk only about herself or act entitled when you do something nice for her. Instead, she will show appreciation, ask about your interests and opinions, and may even ask you what you'd like her to order for you if she arrives before you. 2. She can take a shot without getting sloppy. Maybe she likes whiskey, cocktails, wine ...

When you’re a first-time bride, both the excitement and planning are overwhelming. What’s also overwhelming are the opinions from everyone around you. Your mom wants you to wear a cathedral veil. His mom wants you to get married outdoors. Your sister hates her bridesmaid dress. His brother wants to have the bachelor party at a strip club — and nothing else. Your wedding plans can become overshadowed by what everyone else thinks the day should be, as opposed to what you and your sweetheart are planning. That is the biggest difference between first-time and second-time brides. Well, for me anyway. When I got married for the first time, I had wanted a mermaid cut gown. I walked down the aisle in a Cinderella-style dress that made me look like a cream puff. It was a beautiful dress, but not what I envisioned. Same goes for the flowers, the location and having a DJ rather than a band. Weddings are a lot like compromising with your groom, but when you’re getting married for the first time, e...

Although planning a wedding should be a fun and memorable time, brides have a ton of stress leading up to the big day. From decor and divine desserts, to bridesmaids’ dresses, accessories and picking an exquisite wedding gown, you’ve got a lot on your plate, girlfriend. You’re most likely surrounded by family and an awesome bridesmaid squad that will be at your beck and call. But as far as a go-to wedding day scent is concerned, I have some tips that will put every bride at ease. Your wedding day perfume is a critical part of the day, and should certainly not be a last-minute decision. You want to make an incredible impact, right? Your scent will surely follow you down the aisle, so choose wisely. Thanks to this beautiful infographic from Scentbird, your perfect scent is based on the location or theme of your wedding. infographic that shows different perfumes the bride should wear on her wedding day based on her venue or theme Scentbird 1. Beach/Destination Wedding: Choose a musk for a...

These findings are a bit surprising. According to a study published on the Institute for Family Studies blog, women with two premarital s#x partners have a much higher chance of getting divorced down the line than women who have three to nine s#x partners before marriage do. University of Utah’s Professor Nicholas H. Wolfinger suggests these numbers are what they are because s#x before marriage is much more accepted now than ever before in American history. He says, “In short, if you’re going to have comparisons to your [future] husband, it’s best to have more than one.” Women are having way more s#x these days. Wolfinger found that in the 1970s, women were four times more likely to marry as virgins. The amount of women marrying with just one s#x partner under their belt has declined a great deal. Let’s do the math. The average American woman gets married at 27, while the average American man ties the knot at 29. But by age 21, 85 percent of men have had s#x and 81 percent of women hav...

Being cheated on by your boyfriend or girlfriend is one thing. But being cheated on by your spouse? The mother of your children? Well, that is just a giant kick in the balls. But cheating still happens all of the time, right? Husbands cheat on wives; wives cheat on husbands. The same people they tearfully vowed to spend the rest of their lives with suddenly become overshadowed by some young, hot slam pieces. Or even worse, by someone they’ve fallen in love with. Well, the worst case scenario happened to this guy a while back when his wife cheated on him. By his own admission, they were going through a bit of a marital rough patch. But he didn’t think it was anything out of the ordinary. No, he just assumed it was normal married people stuff. He noticed she had been texting her “girlfriends” a little more than usual, but, again, didn’t think much of it. That is until he accidentally happened upon the Facebook messages she had exchanged with another man. He continued to track the message...

I never really got into the show “The L Word” until it was well past its glory day. For those of you poor, deprived creatures who haven’t been exposed to the beauty of this show, I’m delicately going to tell you to WATCH IT ASAP. It’s a show about a group of impossibly s#xy Los Angeles lesbians (get it, “L word” LA, l3sbian, freaking genius) attempting to navigate the dark and stormy waters of life and love in the sparkling City of vixen-like Angels. Click to continue reading

I’m really scared of fire. Not just the physical danger of being in a burning building, but of the potential destruction of my life, as told in possessions. That might sound shallow, but I can back it up. I’m a bit of a prepper. If I can prepare for disastrous, albeit rare eventualities, I will. I have a mental plan prepared for what happens if my building catches fire while I’m in it. There’s a large bag waiting and two things will get tossed in it on my way to the fire escape: The cat and the letters. I was always going to talk about my grandparents’ love letters. It’s a pretty personal topic to write down, but they’ve played such a role in my single life that they deserve some stage time. In some ways, they’re the biggest difference between the modern dating world as it is and as I’d like it to be. As we put emphasis on shorter, faster, instant, I worry that we’re also eliminating words you can’t, in my opinion, build a relationship without — thought and effort. When I was 14, I fou...

1. I took my daughter to the father-daughter dance and I cried like a little baby. She’s 11 years old, so seeing her get dressed up and pretty made me cry. —Kevin Hart 2. To a father growing old, nothing is dearer than a daughter. —Euripides 3. Old as she was, she still missed her daddy sometimes. —Gloria Naylor 4. The reason why daughters love their Dad the most is…that there is at least one man in the world who will never hurt her. —Anonymous 5. I am a princess not because I have a prince, but because my father is a king. —Anonymous 6. A girl’s first true love is her father. —Marisol Santiago 7. My Daddy was my hero. He was always there for me when I needed him. He listened to me and taught me so many things. But most of all he was fun. —Bindi Irwin 8. The happiest moment of my life was probably when my daughter was born. —David Duchovny 9. It is admirable for a man to take his son fishing, but there is a special place in heaven for the father who takes his daughter shopping. —John S...

Infidelity is the worst. Find out who you're dealing with. I'm going to be perfectly honest: what I know about the other woman is almost exclusively from hip-hop music (not always especially respectful to women). I've not spent time interviewing folks on Ashley Madison and I've never slipped my non-existent wedding ring in my pocket to do a little "hustling." (I'm not a married man and I'm not sure if I'll wear a ring if I do become one.) But I listen to a lot of rap and have seen the show The Affair in its to-date entirety so thus, I believe I'm an expert. (Sarcasm.) As far as I can tell, there are three main categories of other women: Mistresses, Side Chicks and Jumpoffs. Let's discuss. 1. The Mistress You're familiar with the concept of a mistress. She's a woman who has a loving relationship with a man (or woman) in a complementary capacity to the man's marriage. Both parties know that the man is being unfaithful (in our trad...

1. My mom was a dominatrix and our house was the dungeon. My mother was a dominatrix professionally for many years. s#x therapist by day and domina by night. So maybe this is something similar? I did most of the chores in the house except laundry. I was not allowed in the basement for any reason. Of course that means I snuck down… Our basement was a dungeon. Poles, straps, things to stradle, walls of toys and tools…and the smell of incense and something else I didn’t know at the time. Sometimes my mother had clients when I would normally be home (she usually didn’t). We had a code. I would check the mail box. If there was an envelope with my name on it, it meant that it contained money and a time for me to return. I would take the money and go down the street to a bookshop where I would order a wrap and do my homework in their cafe. At the time I didn’t mind, but as I got older I realized it wasn’t really the best thing for me and that it wasn’t a safe solution. A few times she forgot ...

When I was 17 I lost my dad unexpectedly. It’s been seven years and the pain is still very real. Over the course of those years I have come to realize many things that I feel need to be shared with others. I know there are many other young women who are in my shoes. To our friends, these are the things we want you to know. 1. We’re sorry. We are sorry for being quiet every time you talk about your dad to us. We don’t mean to sound uninterested or make you feel that your happiness is unimportant to us. It’s just that when you talk about moments with your dad, it takes us back to moments with ours. Moments we wish we could relive and share with you, too. We don’t get quiet on purpose; it kind of just happens. It’s our mind’s way of protecting us from bursting out in tears. 2. Ask about our dad. We want to share him with the world and when you ask about him, it fills our heart with so much joy to know that someone is actually interested in knowing him like we did. You’ll just have to excu...

1. What’s the difference between a wife and a job? After 10 years, a job still sucks. 2. What do wives and hurricanes have in common? On arrival, they’re wet and wild. When they leave, they take the house and car with them. 3. What’s the secret to a happy marriage? Find a woman who can cook and clean. A woman who’s an animal in bed. A woman with lots of money. Make sure these three women never meet. 4. What’s the difference between a prostitute and a wife? A wife accepts credit cards. 5. What’s the best way to love thy neighbor? When her husband’s away on business. 6. How is a wife like bacon? They both look, smell, and taste amazing. They also both slowly kill you. 7. What’s the difference between “incomplete” and “finished”? A man without a wife feels incomplete. Once married, he’s finished. 8 Dude: My wife left me for my best friend. Dude’s buddy: I thought I was your best friend. Dude: Now he is, obviously. 9. What’s the difference between men and women? Women can fake orgasms, but...

We all want our children to do well – to become something great and lead happy and healthy lives. Intelligence in a child has its advantages but having a truly smart kid isn’t all about getting good grades at school. It’s becoming more and more clear that intelligence is no longer black and white. Using IQ tests to find out how intelligent someone is has been long thought of as a measure to how smart someone is academically and a score of over 100 is worn with a sense of pride. But many studies are fast showing that cognitive and emotional intelligence are just as varied and important – a brain surgeon and an artist can therefore ideally be looked at as being on the same level. The way parents interact with their child has a huge influence on how a child develops and how smart they become. Allowing your children to be “life smart” and preparing them for their path into the independent world is one of the greatest achievements you can make as a parent. The overall key as a parent is to ...

1. You learn the value of independence. You don’t need a man to save you or anyone to take care of you, you learn by example that you are capable of living a full and happy life without having to share it with someone else. You learn that you can build a home, raise kids, cook, and do the dishes all while having a thriving career. You pretty much learn how to be super woman. 2. You learn the meaning of unconditional love. You saw your mom sacrifice her time, health and youth for you and your siblings, yet she never complained or gloated about how much she is suffering or how much she is doing. She always had a smile on her face and was happily giving more and more of herself. She taught you what selfless and unconditional love looks like, and you know you won’t be able to find that love anywhere else. 3. You learn how to love yourself. You learn how to walk away from the things that are not meant for you, you learn how to keep going even when the whole world is against you, and you lea...