Gifts We GIRLS Want…

The Classic Gift: A Coach Purse, A Tiffany Ring, (something you can keep forever and always remember it was your Xmas 2006 gift)

The Out of the Ordinary Gift: A Plane Ticket (Fly wherever you want for FREE!)

The Sporty Gift: Workout Shoes and Clothes. (These are things I hate buying for myself, so it’d be a great gift!)

The Electronic Gift: Digital Cameras (They seemed like the gift to give last year, but a lot of gals still don’t have one.)

The Activity Gift: Cooking Classes, Dance Classes, Horseriding Lessons, (whatever your passions are, nows the time to ask for them!)

The Guilty Pleasure Gift: Subscription to US Weekly or People.

The No-Thought Involved, but Still Love It Gift: Giftcards to I-Tunes, Nordstroms, Steve Madden, Sephora, etc.

The Culture Inspired Gift: A year’s membership to the Local Museum, Tourist Attraction, or Theatre

The Drink Inspired Gift: A Beginner’s Guide to Wine and some bottles to taste as you learn.

The “My First Apartment” Gift: You can never have too many utensils, pots, pans. If you need the essentials ask for a coffee pot, blender, crock pot, etc. (Hint, Grandma’s love giving these gifts!)

The Gift That Keeps on Giving: I’ve always thought it’d be cool, if someone bought me a share/some shares of Stock. It would let me learn about the stock market, and watch as my stocks rise and fall.

Best of ‘06

Some of the best songs of ‘06

Justin Timberlake – SexyBack
Panic! at the Disco – I Write Sins Not Tragedies
Diddy (featuring Christina Aguilera) – Tell Me
The Fray – How to Save a Life
Rihanna – Unfaithful
Justin Timberlake – My Love
Fergie – Fergilicious
Pussycat Dolls- Buttons
Christina Aguilera – Hurt & Ain’t No Other Man
“Weird Al” – White & Dirty
Snow Patrol – Chasing Cars
Shakira (featuring Wyclef Jean)- Hips Don’t Lie
Evanescence- Call Me When You’re Sober
Gnarls Barkley – Crazy
Lady Sovereign- Love Me or Hate Me
Nelly Furtado – Promiscuous
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Dani California
Danity Kane – Show Stopper
Scissor Sisters – I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’
My Chemical Romance – Welcome to the Black
Fergie – London Bridge
The Fray – Over My Head

hollywood hook-up

so this is not intended to be a blog about celebrities & the life of the rich and famous but as a self-confessed magazine junkie (especially of gossip magazines) I couldn’t help but feed my weekly cravings of US Weekly, In Touch, and People while at the grocery store today. Turning the pages of InTouch, I couldn’t help but stop and stare at the newest Hollywood Couple. A most unlikely pair. Granted, I’d already read about this inseparable pair but seeing these pictures made me question who’s PR team created this upheaval. Britney Spears & Paris Hilton… seriously wtf? Generally, I don’t have an opinion about the gossip I read; however, this is nails on a chalkboard…. whoever’s the brainchild of this relationship should certainly be given a substantial pay increase because of all the media attention.

anyway, this article got me thinking about how miserable I’d be if all of my friendships were part of a PR stunt… I’d be so lost without my friends. Each of them so amazing, unique and irreplaceable. I’ve learned that with friends, it’s quality over quantity that give us true fulfillment. My few best friends mean the world to me & are absolutely PRICELESS!!!!! xo

big in ‘06

went to the VH1 big in ‘06 awards last night…. and got me thinking, “what will this year be remembered by?” started brainstorming the list & will post as soon as it’s done.

until then a TOAST to ‘06 ~ a delicious mix of fun, fear, change & challenges.

facebook…

well girlsguideto.com is finally on the infamous facebook…. i created a profile and then the GirlsGuideTo.com group. wow! did i feel like i was completely technologically incompetent… my younger brother was about ready to change his name b/c i kept asking him for help. I definitely was an anti-networker a year ago but soon found myself alarmingly obsessed with myspace. No more than 20 seconds would pass before my cursor moved north towards the refresh button…. and no, not once… twice… three times…. rather, over & over & over again…. just to see if i got a new friend, new message, comment or even page view…. It was becoming a serious problem… and a problem that sooner than later was going to be another wonderful one of my OCDs. So, to quiet the chaos before it erupted I would give myself a time limit on the site & make up self-imposed MS rules. Now, I’m definitely over my addiction but I find now with facebook my curiousity is yet aroused again. Though the funny thing is most of my friends are not facebook users b/c facebook took off the year after we graduated college & unless one of us had a “alum” email address we were SOL… so we resorted to myspace. However on facebook I’m not necessarily there to network personally but to spread the word about GGTo & create dialogue (just like we do on myspace) with our users. So what is it that I find so addicting about facebook? Nothing in particular… I mean it’s not like I have a bunch ex-boyfriends on there to secretly stalk or old friends to scope out… I found out about all of that on myspace Facebook is so new… I feel like a virgin on there ~ wall postings, poking people, specified networks… so many security settings, profile views, etc. It’s like coke verses pepsi, coffee bean verses starbucks, heather locklear verses denise richards (okay maybe i’m pushing it) but they co-exist for the same reasons… to allow users to interact but their differences are very apparent. And the loyalty of the users ~ if you’re addicted to facebook you’re probably not on myspace & vice versa. Of course there’s always the in-betweeners. It’s crazy though to see so many pictures of people who were in junior high when i was in high school all grown up, drinking their jack D’s (legally), starting new jobs, even tying the knot. And some of these younger girls, my friends and i despised for obvious reasons of being jealous or insecure in high school … and it makes me laugh… why? Because now age doesn’t matter… I’ve got friends who are 20 to 40… it’s not a numbers game anymore it’s who we are as people…. let’s face it when it comes down to it ~ just about every single one of us girls in our 20s deal with the same shit over and over again… and the girls in high school? Well, they’ll deal with much of what we did when we were their age. So should we desperately cling onto the past or graciously let go even if it means we swallow our pride?

I’m for the latter of course : )

the site…

so some massive changes have been made to the site…. granted, the massive changes are all relative but a major improvement… still a bit too girly (and pre-pubescent) but getting closer to the vision we’re aiming for….

Self-Injury…

A few weeks ago pictures of Lindsay Lohan were blasted around the internet (not too big of a surprise…) showing her wrists all cut up. Anyone who’s into the Hollywood gossip would’ve seen Lindsay sporting a bandage on her wrist for quite some time; however, the marks that these new pics showed alluded to something more serious than just a few cuts. From the looks of it… it appeared she’d been cutting herself. While this could be completely another false accusation about her ~ cutting is serious & very prevalent among girls like us.

So what is cutting? It sounds pretty self-explanatory but it has deep psychological roots. THe most simple definition is “self-injury”. Cutting is the most common practice of self-mutilation, and individuals who cut are often referred to as “cutters.” Other forms of self-injurious behavior include: burning, head-banging, carving, biting, scratching, bruising, branding, hitting, marking, and picking/pulling skin and hair. Self-injury which often occurs in secret is an expression of deep pain & self-mutilation. Studies have suggested that when people who self-injure get emotionally overwhelmed, an act of self-harm brings their levels of psychological and physiological tension and arousal back to a bearable level almost immediately (www.focusas.com). This is due to the body releasing endorphins to help mask the feelings of pain. As the release of endorphins produces such a pleasurable effect, self-harm can become physically and mentally addictive.

Not trying to get all “text book” on anyone but this is a condition that is much deeper than what meets the eye…

thanksgiving weekend

still in a food coma… tired from all the family time… exhausted from the mall madness… hungover from partying with old friends… loving the long weekend… dreading going back to the “real world”… it’s definitely a week to be thankful for all that we have & keep pushing to get what we want.

Starving 2 be Skinny…???

With so much in the news these days about thin being in … it’s only appropriate to delve into this a little more. Just last week an up and coming model, 20 years-old lost her life to anorexia… And the media went into a frenzy trying to decide who to blame in the fashion industry… the agents, designers, models themselves, etc? Quite honestly, everyone… Being skin and bones and starving yourself to fulfill the pressure that is placed upon you is something I know too well. Having had an eating disorder that started my freshman year in college was only the beginning of a continual struggle… Sure I’m healthy but there are days where my body image is warped… there are days that I waiver back and forth on the thought of “can I make myself sick?”… And no. I can’t… ever ever again. Any type of eating disorder is a disease and it’s awful… It was a constant battle against myself, the mirror, and trying to control my life. It was a dark dark place that felt darker as each day passed. Living in LA and loving fashion, celeb gossip, and some of the trendy LA hotspots I’d be lying if I didn’t notice the way the “model-esque” girls get in the door first, never wait in lines, and appear to have the world at their finger-tips. But being thin naturally and starving yourself are two entirely separate things. All the gossip & criticism of Nicole Richie, Lindsay Lohan, Mary- Kate, even Teri Hatcher… fails to allude to one thing. If they do have an eating disorder than they are sick… the reasons for getting sick are a few and far between the facts… starving to be thin is a slow suicide unless measures are taken to get better. As women we must learn to (and i know it’s so cliche) love ourselves and realize we are more than our bodies – we are a combination of our body, mind, and soul… We must love who we are & stop wasting time trying to be something else… the time we waste we can’t get back… opportunities come and go, relationships get strained, and the quality of life disintegrates. take it from me — I spent 2 years trying to get my life on track… and it’s not an easy road to travel.

Intro – the Richard Chronicles…

The Column of Dick…Richard to be more politically correct

We all originate from dick. Our very sex is determined by it. While some women love the dick, others are scared of it, and many make a lifelong commitment to dating him. After several horrendous dates with Dick, I decided I couldn’t be alone…at least I prayed I wasn’t! I didn’t have to look very far to discover that women everywhere cannot escape him. So that’s what this column is all about. The horror and yet humorous stories women have encountered with my friend Dick, or “Richard” as he is called for politeness in the literary world.

More Fabulous Words of Wisdom…

We can’t deny that we miss Sex & the City… And we know we’re not alone. So just to refresh your memory in case you don’t have the reruns on nightly, each season’s DVDs, or these embedded forever in your mind. Here’s ten of our faves… ENJOY!

~Carrie: While women are certainly no strangers to faking it – we’ve faked our hair color, cup size, hell, we’ve even faked fur. I couldn’t help but wonder, has fear of being alone suddenly raised the bar on faking? Are we faking more then orgasms? Are we faking entire relationships? Is it better to fake it then be alone?

~Carrie: I admit it’s tempting to wish for the perfect boss – the perfect parent – or the perfect outfit. But maybe the best any of us can do is not quit, play the hand we’ve been dealt, and accessorize what we’ve got. 


~Carrie: Men who have had a lot of sexual partners are not called sluts. They’re called very good kissers, a few are even called romantics

~Carrie: Maybe some women aren’t meant to be tamed. Maybe they’re supposed to run wild until they find someone — just as wild — to run with.

~Samantha: Sex with an ex can be depressing. If it’s good, you don’t have it anymore. If it’s bad, you just had sex with an ex.

~Carrie: Later that night I got to thinking about the x-factor. In mathmatics, we learn that x stands for the unknown, a+b=x, but what’s really unknown is what plus what equals friendship with an x. Is this an unsolvable equation? Or is it possible to transform a once passionate love into something that fits nice and easily onto the friendship shelf? I couldnt help but wonder… can you be friends with an x?

~Samantha: There isn’t enough wall space in New York City to hang all of my exes. Let me tell you – a lot of them were hung

~Carrie: Later that day I got to thinking about relationships. There are those that open you up to something new and exotic, those that are old and familiar, those that bring up lots of questions, those that bring you somewhere unexpected, those that bring you far from where you started, and those that bring you back. But the most exciting, 
challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you find someone to love the you you love, well, that’s just fabulous.

~Carrie: Maybe our mistakes are what make our fate. Without them, what would shape our lives? Perhaps if we never veered off course, we wouldn’t fall in love, or have babies, or be who we are. After all, seasons change. So do cities. People come into your life and people go. But it’s comforting to know the ones you love are always in your heart. And if you’re very lucky, a plane ride away.

~Carrie: I’m looking for love. Real love. Ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can’t-live-without-each-other love. And I don’t think that love is here in this expensive suite in this lovely hotel in Paris

the competitive corner…

someone once said, ”every good idea has competition”…

in today’s online craze websites, blogs, online mags, etc are a dime a dozen…. no matter who your audience is. so it’s all a matter of determination, dedication, and delivery. i was sitting at Coffee Bean this week trying to figure out how to obtain a credit report when i received an email that informed me about a new site that launched very similar to ours and the similarities are a bit frightening. however, there were other sites like GGTo before we started as well, in that they targeted the same audience. as soon as i found out this overwhelming sense of anxiety came across me because we’re still trying to work out the kinks of the site & it’s still not up to par with our vision. granted, i was PMSing that day i probably was a bit more emotional than normal but my thoughts were a whirlwind… from a bit of anger, to shedding a few frustrated tears, to going into victim mode, to being frustrated that things haven’t been perfect.

So as i sipped my melted ice blended while anxiously trying to bite my acrylic nails, I couldn’t help but try to convince myself to quit. Just give up on GGTo… this childhood dream that has at times proven to be a headache and the potential pre-cursor to an ulcer. Then I got another email from a girl who said she loved the site and that the advice about college has helped her a lot. So what am I thinking? how can I quit when there are girls who need, want, and like us? How can I let them down when the reasons for starting it were feelings of abandonment, lonliness, confusion, and feeling lost? Life’s not easy so what am I going to do quit when the shit gets tough & my hormones are out of whack? I can’t do that. No way. So what if it’s not all perfect… if it’s not all that we hoped it would be just yet… You can’t just quit on life. You have to move forward… step up your game… and start kicking a*s. that’s when the part of me that’s ultra Type A personality kicks in & isn’t going to let anything bring us down. besides as they say … competition is a form of flattery & i have to agree. ~ Brette

check us out…

Be sure to check us out @
GirlsGuideTo.com & of course, join our friends on MySpace

xo GGTo team

~ candid commercials ~

Check out our new promos/commercials for GirlsGuideTo.com — guess which our favorite is…

music maven in the making…

Check out Shari Short @ www.ShariShort.com ~ Her music speaks to the girl in all of us… Most recently, she wrote a song for the ” Hannah Montana” soundtrack which not only debuted as The number #1 album selling 282,000 copies the first week. But HER song “This is the Life” came in as #89 on the Billboard top 100 chart and she’s only 21…

Fabulous Words of Wisdom…

~A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.

~ Just because someone doesn’t love you the way you want them to, doesn’t mean they don’t love you with all they have

~It’s when we fear we’ll lose it; we often realize we love it

~ Never make someone a priority when all you are is an option

~ In life, every ending is a new beginning

~ Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle, love is a war; love is a growing up.
~It’s easy to take for granted the person who wants to give us it all and focus on the person who isn’t giving us anything. But it’s a losing battle because you don’t end up with either. The one is tired of making the effort and the other will never change.

~There will always be something better but if you don’t truly appreciate what you have you won’t recognize when you actually find something more.

~Know what you want, how to get it, and what the challenges are to achieve it.

TV Show

Girls’ Guide To… Healthy Living to air on Healthy Living Channel. A one-time special covering new, healthy, organic, & of course, easy-to-use health products/tips. Airs Tuesday October 24, 2006 @7:30 EST.

AND

We’re covering LA Fashion week for Spring ‘07 to air on Beauty & Fashion Channel!

Finally…

There is a whole batch of new content. We’ve got some great new articles ranging from money/finance, job interviews, workout myths to mind-blowing sex. We’re still working on a way to change the website so that it’s more interactive for our audience but for now we’ve got content and if what we’ve heard is true — content is queen.

Just a FYI…

In case you haven’t read the “about us” here’s a basic rundown of what we’re about.

GirlsGuideTo… is what a girl wants, when she wants it! As a start-up business, there is always so much to do, too many unknown ?s, and work that never ends. Yet, we created GirlsGuideTo.com for young women to have a place for all their needs. We are these women so we know what we want & we want to give it to them. We want to ask our questions freely, we want the latest trends, the best tips for our everyday life… We want the real, uncensored, organic answers & advice. Not something with a corporate umbrella, lots of politics, and from someone who doesn’t understand what we’re going through. So GirlsGuideTo is for girls by girls… It’s our life in our words… And it’s what we want ~ when we want it!

The Purpose…?

In the midst of everything else going on I’d love to promise to write everyday. So keeping it realistic, I’ll write every week. And why…? To share the good, bad, and ugly of turning one’s dream into a reality and the Dos & Don’ts of starting GirlsGuideTo.com… There have been some serious mishaps, hysterical moments, and amazing achievements. It has been nothing short of a roller coaster; however, the adrenaline never runs out.

It is a lot like finding Mr. Right… We must weed out all of the Mr. Wrongs and as we all know the process is not fast, simple or painless.