This week on Gossip Girl: Jenny’s fashionable battle for independence rages on, Serena’s dating standards plummet to shocking lows and Blair unwraps the 18th birthday present of a lifetime!

Hmmphh, there must be something tainting the Upper East Side VitaminWater because Gossip Girl has really been throwing me off lately. First things first, Serena is the hottest and most dazzling chick in the eastern seaboard and WHY, I ask you, WHY is she getting mixed up with Grunge-Bob Biker-Pants, Aaron???

He’s a poetic tool who references Cecil the Caterpillar nursery rhymes and texts freakishly coordinated “maps” for Serena to follow and come “find him”. Yet, despite his greasy bangs and foolish clothes that make him look homeless, Serena continues to go running off whenever his psycho scavenger hunt texts come beeping in.

I think Blair better knock some sense into her bff before she starts trading in her parfum for Patchouli oils and Blahniks for Birkenstocks.

In less disappointing news, B. Waldorf turns the big 1-8. Amid her lavish “grown-up” party that’s crashed by none other than Cyndi Lauper herself, B sets her Harry Winston choker hopes aside and accepts a birthday gift of…

wait for it…

a shiny, new…. conscious!!!

Ooh Blair, bravo! I commend the CW for your compassionate character development in just one short episode. Your new found maturity is no doubt a flattering look for you. You’ve graciously conceded to your mother dating a troll and even acknowledged a ripple of happiness for her under your icy, ivory shell.

Again this week the curtain closes on Jenny Humphrey in caked-on eyeliner pondering another dramatic dilemma….

Will she divorce herself from mommy and daddy to win control of her new fashion line?

Wait, isn’t J. Humphrey Designs extinct since Angry Agnes torched it?

Does she still have the coffee filter hat?!!!

Ughh, and where the “h” is Nate and his skinny tie!!????

Dispense your whispers here and check back next week for another recap.

Stay fierce…

Xo xo,

Gossip Girl

In groundbreaking news, President Barack Obama will be joining the blogosphere with his new website, change.gov. When the President of the United States has his own blog, you know that internet blogging is a big deal. Instead of the yearly state-of-the-union address, we can now look forward to more regular updates on his personal website. I don’t know whether he is going to be writing it himself (I’d imagine he is mighty busy) but it is still a huge breakthrough in the way that politics, the government, and media interact.

It’s my own personal belief that the internet is the leading democratic institution out there. Anyone can find an outlet for their opinion and a forum for their interests. It’s very cheap to publish, and inexpensive to use, so it opens the doors wide open for anyone and everyone to take part. As witnessed by Obama’s super-successful grassroots campaign, he is a master at reaching out to the public in a way that they can relate to. Hopefully change.gov will not be the last of its kind.

Welcome to the Blogosphere, President Barack Obama!

CampusCompare is all about looking beyond the brochure. From the inside scoop from the students themselves, to dynamic media content, to the facts and figures, to our assistance tools, CampusCompare offers all the goodies you need without even leaving your home.  We truly are making it possible for cross-country campus visits to be a thing of the past, yet we understand that despite the current economic crisis and higher ticket prices, some of you may really want to do the college tour thing the old fashioned way and probably want to keep it cheap.  In order to find the perfect deal on how you can be leavin’ on a jet plane without breaking the bank, CampusCompare has stumbled across some sites to assist your travels. Even if your budget is ramen noodles, we’ve discovered some stellar sites that will help you find the fare that will make you feel like ordering filet mignon.

YAPTA:
Sure, your dog may have “eaten your homework” a few times when you’ve forgotten to complete an assignment, but when it comes to finding the perfect fare, YAPTA is a student’s best friend.  After entering the dates, times, and other personal preferences, YAPTA (aka Your Amazing Personal Travel Assistant) continuously searches for the lowest prices for your itinerary. The site alerts you when prices drop, but if you book and prices lower again, they’ll fill you in on how to get a ticket refund so that you are ensured the lowest possible price.

KAYAK:
Have you been studying up on your SAT analogy section yet? Well if so, give this one a shot.

CampusCompare: “That Big Fat Guidebook”  as Kayak: Searching Directly from the Airline.

Just like what CampusCompare does for the college search process, Kayak aggregates fares from every airline and other websites and allows you to compare prices side by side. They also offer a variety of search options to narrow down your search to filter your flights to fit your criteria.

PRICELINE:
You can’t BYOB on planes anymore due to more restrictive security measures, but you still can NYOP! Priceline’s NYOP (Name Your Own Price) feature is a bargain-hunter’s dream, but it comes with a catch—after bidding on a flight, you don’t have the option to change your itinerary, and you may have to make an extra stop or leave at an unpopular hour. However, if you are flexible, Priceline is the way to go to get the cheapest fares.

STUDENT UNIVERSE:
Remember back when you could only join Facebook if you had a “.edu” email address and were a current college student? For social networking, those days are gone, but at StudentUniverse those days live on! This site partners with major airlines to offer special deals exclusively for current students and university faculty. The student-status is verified by your email address and, sorry general public, but you can’t join the party.

FLYER TALK:
These days there are social networking communities for everyone—from Vampirefreaks to people who enjoy crochet —so we really weren’t surprised to come across a forum dedicated to the topics that would interest the frequent flyer. The users log on to discussion boards and chatrooms, and offer tips on  everything from how to optimize the use of your mileage points to how to score the best deal to how to earn the most reward points for your next trip.

We hope that helps! One last thing— for those of you looking to head to school in the Northeast, check this out, its a pretty great site that provides a plethora of helpful tools to wane your travel woes. Happy trails!