Articles I Wish I Put Together

13 Male Habits the World Could Live Without

-PS I don't agree with all of #5. I love boys in cutoff shorts. =]

Can You Believe They Dated? Photo Album

-I was shocked by many of these... I'll give you one...Zach Braff and Drew Barrymore. Yeah...I know.

Hot Zac Efron

-I doubt you need proof, but just in case I'll allow you to investigate yourself.

Breaking Up to Save Your Sanity

So I was watching the season finale of Keeping Up with the Kardashians the other night. Kourtney was trying to decide if she should break up with her longtime boyfriend, Scott, because his shady actions in the past always made her feel like she couldn't trust him. Khloe also found out that her boyfriend, Rashaad, had been cheating on her. While Khloe kicked that man to the curb immediately, Kourtney struggled over whether she was ready to end her relationship or not.

I don't know about you guys, but I know how Kourtney feels to be conflicted in her situation. Sometimes you love somebody so much that you either become blind to all of their weaknesses or it overcomes you so much that you can't imagine living without them despite the way they can sometimes hurt you. 

I'm a believer in love over pride. I feel like I can learn to get over minor differences or mistakes if I really love somebody as long as they're willing to acknowledge it and try their best to work with me. But how do you know when all those little things are too much? Say if you were with somebody that just irritated you constantly with their little mannerisms and habits, but when they weren't irritating you made you the happiest you've ever been? Do you bear all the times when you feel like knocking them to the moon if it feels so right the rest of the time? How many chances should somebody get until you just give up on it altogether? Is there a limit to how many things about a person bother you to be able to stay in a lasting relationship with them? What if they have significant faults? I have no idea. I am so bad at drawing the line in relationships because I'm always trying to give them a chance and make it work.

Anybody have a good rule for this?

Maxim Hot 100 Got It Wrong Again...

In my opinion, the drooling guys at Maxim always get this list wrong. Now maybe women just have differing opinions and perspectives on what "hot" is; in fact, it is very likely because there are some girls that I think are some of God's finest work that guys don't feel the same about. Anyway I won't make a complete new list, but I'll tell you which girls I think should have been higher and some that I think should have been nowhere near as high as they were on the list.

My "How do you not see what I see????"/Should Have Been Higher on the List

-Camilla Bell (placed at #72) - Epitome of natural beauty

-Heidi Klum (placed at #62) - Great personality, talent, successful and looks that good after having like 4 kids. yeah she's hot.

-Miranda Kerr (#58) - she's just so frickin cute! 

-Freida Pinto (#49) - Exudes natural beauty. great skin. and representative of a beautiful culture.

-Milla Jovovish (#63) - Killer body.

-Rachel Bilson (#54) - Best style everrrr. Too bad somebody stole all her clothes. (Why didn't I think of that?) Natural beauty.

-Eva Mendes (#24) - I actually wanted to buy that Calvin Klein perfume after I saw that ad. Curvy in all the right places and great style.

-Angelina Jolie (#26) - Duhhh.

-Kate Beckinsale (#22) - Great actress. Always looks good in whatever she wears. Classy. Effortless. Killer body. 

-Vanessa Hudgens (#27) - Great style. Let's face it. She's got Zac. She wins. We lose. She's got to have something that we don't have.

-Jessica Alba (#13) - One of my all-time favorites. I'd trade bodies with her any day. She's perfect.

-Jessica Biel (#11) - Great body. Comfortable in her own skin. Pretty much the same deal as Vanessa - hello she's got Justin. She wins. We lose.

-Rihanna (#8) - Beautiful. Natural. Creative and original. Not afraid to be herself. Amazing presence (so I hear). 

-Adriana Lima (#7) - She should be at the top of every list. Absolutely perfect body and face. Curvy yet fit. And her skin looks soft! And she was a virgin until she got married. I kinda want to be her, not gonna lie.

"What were they thinking??"/Shouldn't Have Been as High on the List

-Carrie Underwood (#60) - Talented and pretty, but I wouldn't exactly call her sexy.

-Ariella Kebbel (#48) - She's just pretty boring looking to me. Not particularly hot.

-Fergie (#45) - I like her music, and she's got a pretty nice body, but I just don't think Fergie'sas pretty as some others that were lower on the list.

-Scarlett Johansson (#34) - I'm just not a fan. I never really like the roles she plays, and I feel like she often wears close that don't flatter her proportions.

-Lindsay Lohan (#23) - I think she needs to go back to when she had a little meat on her bones like she did back in the day. I just don't really like her personality. I couldn't imagine being attracted to her if I was a guy because she seems like the kind of person that needs a lot of attention and does anything to get it.

-Katy Perry (#15) - She's ok. Definitely not #15 material.

-Leighton Meester (#12) - I like Leighton. I think she has great style. She's confident and not afraid to be herself. She also has an interesting looking face. Plus, I love her on Gossip Girl. However, I'm not a fan of her with blonde hair because it washes her out too much, and she just shouldn't be above freakin Jessica Alba and Angelina Jolie. 

-Jennifer Love Hewitt (#10) - Maybe she was #10 material back in the '90s, but not as high on the list anymore.

-Eliza Dushku (#6) - Nobody should be higher than Adriana Lima, so she got on my bad list just because I had to take my anger out on somebody for Adriana's loss and Eliza was the first picture I saw.

-Mila Kunis (#5) - Definitely cute and funny, but not #5 material. I mean, come on, you really think she's hotter than Jessica Biel? They should at least trade her and Miranda Kerr who is the cuter of the cute ones. 

-Malin Akerman (#4) - I just don't really get how everybody think she's so pretty. She's not bad, but #4? I guess her body is nice, but seriously....ADRIANA LIMA.

-Megan Fox (#2) - I know everybody thinks that Megan Fox is the hottest thing ever, but she just looks like the pretty girl in high school, not the second hottest girl in the whole world!

-Olivia Wilde (#1) - Huh? She looks like she needs to stop smoking. She's pretty, but not beautiful to me. Sorry. Adriana Lima rocks my world.

-Rebecca Mader (#98) - Just plain boring.

-Heidi Montag (#81) - Maybe if the hot parts of her were actually real, but they're not. Nobody that has to try that hard is that attractive to me.

-Danica Patrick (#78) - Too plain.  

On another note... WHERE THE HECK IS GISELE BUNDCHEN???? AND EVA LONGORIA????

1st Black Disney Princess

Finally the day many of us never thought would come, the day that Disney finally gives little black girls a princess to look up to. I know I wasn't the only one who grew up always slightly frustrated that there were no Disney princesses that looked like me. If I wanted to be a Disney character, the only ethnic ones to choose from were Princess Jasmine, Mulan, Pocahontas, or Nala, and guess what, I'm not Arabian, Chinese, Native-American, or a lioness. If I'm really trying to stretch things there was also Princess Tiger Lily from Peter Pan who was Native American, and I think Mogli had a girlfriend of some sort. Oh and then there was Miriam in The Prince of Egypt, but she's technically Hebrew. Still, it was never as easy to be like oh yeah I'm a redhead so automatically I'm the Little Mermaid (shout out to Sam). Yet now, I'm sure after many many hate letters written to the Disney people accusing them of being discriminatory, a story is finally told through the perspective of a black girl in The Princess and the Frog. To make it even better, it's set in the beautiful city of New Orleans that just simply does not get enough attention.* Click here for trailer and website.

Now all they need is a multiracial one, and I will be content with life.

*New Orleans still needs help rebuilding after the damages of Hurricane Katrina!! visit lowernine.org to find out how you can help!

Where the heck is Mischa Barton?

Something has seriously been bothering me lately.... If any of you remember Josh Schwartz's first hit show, The OC, which played a vital role in my adolescent development, then you were once very familiar with Mischa Barton who played one of the main characters, Marissa Cooper. Then toward the end of Season 3, Mischa decided she wanted to leave the show in hopes of starting her booming career in film, leaving Marissa and The OC dead in Ben McKenzie's bulging arms. Now I've forgiven Cam Gigandet for killing Marissa as smokin' hot Volchok on the show, but I will never forgive Mischa for costing me the loss of my favorite show.

Ever since Season 3 ended in May 2006, Miss Barton has been gracing us with many appearances on the red carpet and on the pages of gossip magazines. The thing is... I don't even think been in any movies that merit her presence among other young Hollywood stars, which only makes me more upset because that means she left The OC FOR NO REASON. So I decided to imdb her and see what she's been up to. Here's her filmography since The OC:

• Closing the Ring (2007) .... Young Ethel Ann (Apparently it was released overseas but never in the US.
  
• St. Trinian's (2007) .... JJ French (Also released overseas.)
  
• Virgin Territory (2007) .... Pampinea  (Straight to DVD)
• You and I (2008) .... Lana Starkova (She played a Russian lesbian, and refused to do any promotion for the movie because she thought it sucked.)
• Assassination of a High School President (2008) .... Francesca Fachini

This is what she has coming up: 

• Upstate (2010) (pre-production) (rumored)
  
• The Science of Cool (2009) (pre-production) .... Jane
• "A Beautiful Life" (2009) TV series (pre-production) .... Sonja
• Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain (2008) (post-production) .... Eva
• Homecoming (2009) (completed) .... Shelby 
• Don't Fade Away (2009) .... Kat
• Walled In (2009) .... Sam Walczak

Shampooing for CURLY HAIR

Maintaining curly hair is an art. The best way to use shampoo is SPARINGLY. One of the biggest hair trends in Hollywood right now is going a couple days without washing your hair so as not to strip your hair of all its natural oils. THIS SHOULD ALWAYS APPLY TO YOU IF YOU HAVE CURLY HAIR. It gets dry very easily making it more susceptible to being frizzy, coarse, and tangled. I shampoo my hair every 4 days and condition in between. When I do shampoo I wash my hair twice. If you haven't tried this already, try it and see how much shinier, softer, tighter, and more manageable your curls will be.




Here are products that I would recommend for use on CURLY HAIR. (WOOOOOO GO CURLY HAIR!)

Shampoo:

-Mixed Chicks: shampoo (currently using/highly recommend)*

~Label: Gently cleanse your defiant hair with a combination of borage seed and avocado oils that work harmoniously in a blend as unique as you are. Botanical extracts are infused for

 their healing properties. Silk amino acids, soy protein, and panthenol penetrate the follicle and add luster. Removes build-up. Shampooing purifiant.

-Redken: Clear Moisture shampoo (currently using/highly recommend)

~Label: Gently cleanses and provides lightweight moisture to normal to dry hair. Redken's exclusive Interbond Conditioning System delivers moisturizing apricot oil that combines with glucosamine and glycerin to form a unique Micro-Moisture Complex. This ultra-light blend helps restore, rebalance and retain the optimum level without over moisturizing. Hair is soft, shiny and airy.

-Redken: Fresh Curls shampoo 

~Label: Fresh Curls addresses the specific needs of different types of curly hair with new technologies and products specifically formulated for each type of curl. Now you can awaken and boost fine, lazy curls or discipline and redefine coarse, unruly locks. Gently cleanses, nourishes and fights frizz on curly hair.

-Curls: Curlicious Curls cleansing cream (currently using)

~Label: This creamy, sulfate-free gentle cleanser hydrates, cleanses and conditions your hair all in one step! Will remove unnecessary debris, oil, and pollutants without stripping the hair's natural oil or luster. Perfect cleanser for chemically altered/color treated hair. Great for active women on the go!

-Herbal Essences: Totally Twisted curls & waves shampoo

~Label: I'm essential to a curl's life with a cleaning that's totally springy. My formula fused with french lavender and jade extracts makes curls and waves smooth, lush and defined. For manageability crucial to curls, turn to my conditioner.

~Comment: Cheaper route, but my mom claims that Herbal Essences has too many chemicals that damage your hair in the long run. If you can, choose another shampoo. It does work though.

*Mixed Chicks is a product line made specially for the kind of hair that belongs to those of us who are multi-racial. We typically have curly, wavy, or kinky hair that is just simply not understand by most hair products. I highly recommend anything by this brand because it works. I could live off of these products alone...if it weren't for the fact that I get bored and like to experiment. Halle Berry, Ciara, and Tracee Ellis Ross are celebrities who use this product. visit the website for more information. This product is available at my mom's hair salon if you want to know how to get it.

Friends w/ Benefits vs. Officially More Than Friends

Ok so I've been there, you may have been there, and my friend Dani is there as we speak. She's been with this guy on and off, and now, in the midst of being off, this guy decides that he's not ready to be technically "on" again. He doesn't understand why they can't just be friends and still maintain the physical part of their relationship, which is arguably the same as what you'd be doing in an official relationship. So the question is, should Dani be satisfied by this ambiguous relationship or should she demand a title?

If I look at this situation objectively I might assume that this guy of Dani's is awfully suspicious for not wanting to go public with their relationship, like maybe he's hiding something...or hiding her. However, knowing the guy I verify that this is definitely not the case. He clearly loves her, and she loves him, so what could the problem really be? He claims he's unsure of what he wants, but what's the difference between wanting to be Dani's boyfriend and wanting to be together on the down low? He's obviously confused, but maybe Dani should just tell him that he needs to figure things out before she puts herself in this situation. If she cooperates with his plan then she's risking being vulnerable by being physical with him, and meanwhile there's no guarantee that he is even committing to her enough to be there for her in other ways.

However, the bottom line is that these two are in love. Isn't that all that really matters? Shouldn't she be able to be there for him while he's figuring out what he wants? He claims to be afraid of growing up, which could potentially correlate that he's afraid of committing to a serious relationship. Keep in mind that Dani was the one that ended things the last time they turned "off" in the heat of anger over an issue that her boy didn't even know existed, and before that they had been perfectly happy. Maybe he just needs time to trust her again and make sure that she really wants to be with him, so he's testing out the waters before he risks getting hurt again.

What do you think?

How to Deal with CURLY HAIR

OK as many of you know, or don't idk, I have curly hair, AND I am not the only one. Many of you have curly hair as well, and I recognize the dilemma that many of us have. We want to look cute and keep up with trends, but many new hairstyles don't cater to those of us with unruly hair. If we want to look like most celebrities (with teams of stylists) that can pull off cute styles and cuts, we have to put in like ten times the effort, get up at least an hour earlier than regular people, and invest in extra products and equipment. Even then, we often have to alter our hair as God gave it to us. So for ages and ages, we have to make this decision: fit in and straighten the heck out of our hair to make it look like everyone else's or go natural and look a hot mess. I refuse to believe that these are our only options, and I have committed to trying to figure out a way to make my hair look as cute as anyone else's by taking advantage of its natural ability, AND YOU CAN DO IT TOO.

Although we face the same problems, I do have an advantage, and I am determined to use my power for good by helping you. My mom styles hair and owns her own hair salon, which allows me to have a mass of products with which to experiment. I know that hair products can be expensive, and not many people can afford to play around trying to see which ones work for them, especially if you're trying to look presentable in the process. So I will share with you products I've used that I would recommend to you so you don't waste your money on something that won't work. I will also update a "Curly Hairstyle of the Week" on the right side of my blog to give you continuous ideas of how to make your hair work for you. I hope that this will help you, and please never hesitate to ask me about a certain product or to try it out! Godspeed my curly-headed friends!

Kristin Cavallari = Ruiner of The Hills

For those of you who watch The Hills or ever watched Laguna Beach, I'm sure you'll be just as horrified as I was when I found out that Kristin Cavallari will be replacing Lauren Conrad on the next season of The Hills. Now, I can understand why, after five seasons, Lauren would want to live the rest of her life without being followed by cameras a couple times a week, but MTV has no excuse for stooping so low as to replace our beloved LC with Kristin. In case some of you don't remember, Kristin was Lauren's arch rival in high school over the affection of Stephen Colletti. On Laguna Beach Kristin proved to be the skanky biatch every high school girl dreads and Lauren won us over as the down-to-earth, authentic person that viewers not only rooted for, but wanted to be friends with. The Hills only made us love her more as we watched her start off on her career, manage relationships (and nasty rumors), and be there for all of her friends with class, sincerity, and faithfulness. Although the show was based on reality, she became its protagonist amidst the shameless drama and vice of her other co-stars including the couple American loves to hate, Spencer and Heidi. Maybe some people watch solely for this reason, but for those of us who are loyal to Lauren, we may have to reconsider watching the show after MTV replaces her with Kristin. Kristin has even made statements claiming that she will bring the show much more drama, making it increasingly UN-realistic as opposed to the complete authenticity of Lauren. for more info