Press "Enter" to skip to content

The Year of the Woman hoax

Labeling 2017 as the Year of the Woman is a big statement. The label “Year of the Woman” was first popularly used in 1992 after many female senators were elected. It has since been used, especially in 2017, to recognize the rise and importance of women in politics and society…

If you’re not mature enough to use birth control, don’t have sex

If you’re not mature enough to use birth control consistently, you aren’t mature enough to be having sex. I’m infuriated when I hear stories about Carleton students having unprotected sex regularly. I’m alarmed by how many of these stories I’ve heard. I understand that everybody makes mistakes and we all…

Confessions of a hopeless romanticizer

I don’t think I’d ever consider myself a hopeless romantic, but I do drastically romanticize and overestimate people. It’s one of my major flaws. I have exceptionally high expectations for everything I do academically and professionally: grades, internships, and aspirations, to name a few. And the same rings true for…

The lost art of reading for fun

As part of most applications, you’re supposed to answer a question about your hobbies. In the past I’ve always written down that I genuinely love reading for pleasure. Growing up, a majority of my summers were spent curled up on the corner of a couch or on my trampoline reading…

The “look better than you feel” hypothesis

I think most students on campus would take pride in saying that clothing isn’t all that important to them. Carls care a whole lot about academics, but not so much about their appearance. Most people are completely fine showing up to class in sweatpants and a sweatshirt, completed only by…

All quiet on the communications front

Professors and administrators only know as much as we tell them. I always assumed that professors, especially the ones that I was close to, knew what was going on in the social lives of students. I was led to believe this after a brief stint as an office assistant where…

Why does it matter?

I lied to myself about my virginity. I pretended that “losing it” was a decision I made all on my own, completely separate from social pressures and the opinions of others. I lied that the other person didn’t matter, and that he could be anyone so long as I had…

Navigating unfamiliar instiutions in a South African airport

I am a chronic overpacker. I pack my entire wardrobe into one faithful, awkwardly large purple suitcase, “Giant,” that takes a great deal of effort to carry up and down the stairs of my house. Whether I’m traveling back to school in Minnesota or to some hostel in Tanzania, I…