If I knew then what I know now On drinking: I thought living on the edge and getting plowed was cool. Ha! It didn't make me cool, it made me depressed. Alcohol is a depressant! It's not a pick-me-up! I made an a** out of myself as I slobbered and stumbled around. My head was in the wrong place as I spent "private time" with pukey guys I would never have glanced at if I was in the right mind. Drinking yourself into the village idiot isn't even cool later in life. At college, I've been respected and cheered by over 150 guys in a fraternity house who think I'm the coolest chick for not drinking. They stock chocolate milk and Red Bulls at their parties just for me. I am a sobercab and I make sure my friends get home safe. On dating (sorry guys): If you don't have a boyfriend or haven't ever had one, consider yourself lucky. Do you know that until our late teens and early 20's, guys are 3 years behind us in maturity? Guys at this age don't open doors or love us unconditionally. They fart, burp, kick us to show us they like us, and would rather play XBox than hold our hands at a movie. Sounds wonderful! Yeah, I had boyfriends. I got dumped hard, and I've been the dumper many times, too. But looking back at all the crap and all the schmucks, I'd have been better off saving the money I spent on my new boyfriends' Christmas presents and buying a new wardrobe instead! Hang in there though, when guys mature they look for brains, spunk, confidence, and personality....not big chests and perfect faces. AND....ha! They cook you soup when you're sick, walk you to the front door, and actually listen to you when you cry!

On yourself: You are the most important part of your life. Every single day, you should pick three things that make you happy and just do them no matter what. Take a bath - read a magazine - eat chocolate. And if you are stressed with too much to do, cut something out - period. Don't lose sleep or skip a meal to get everything done. When you don't take care of you, everything goes downhill. So whatever you have to do, do it. Everyone has tough and stressful times, but the people who make it through put a barrier between themselves and the stress - with this excuse: "It's my life and I'll do what I want!"