There are no rainbow pooping Unicorns here. Move along, please.

It’s true I’ve been keeping a few things under my hat until I knew for certain that they were going to come to fruition.

This last week I’ve been thinking a great deal about why I have not been sharing all my little successes. In the back of my mind I suppose I still consider myself an impoverished nobody from The-Middle-of-Nowhere, Mississippi with homemade clothes cut from bed sheets, thick glasses and frizzy hair to match. The truth is that will always be a little true. But on the flip side coming from absolute anonymity allows me to write from a different place than most other writers. My life has been beautifully colored with every day working people just trying to scratch out a living for their family and extravagant eccentrics who inspire others to dream just as big as them.

My news:

I have gone back to USM for another year as a photojournalist major. I do have a B.S. from the College of Education and Psychology from USM but I need a little time to prep for graduate school and so I thought I would be more formally trained as a photographer and writer. I am writing the Pillow Talk Column, again.

Over the summer, I participated in a College Sex Roundtable hosted by the editors of Playboy. I have been told that excerpts and interviews from that roundtable will be in the October issue of Playboy. I don’t know exactly everything that’s going to be in it but Rocky said he would mail me a few copies as soon as the magazine prints. Yeah!

Rocky also asked me about participating in revival of the roundtable on Playboy Radio (on the Sirius Network). As I know more details, I’ll pass them on.

I’ve been going through an audition process as a correspondent with MTVu for an upcoming show with Dr. Ruth. Dr. Ruth!!! I respect that woman so much. My mother told that after she survived the Holocaust she moved to Jerusalem and worked for a time as a sniper. Wikipedia on Dr. Ruth

I’m still writing and posting on the Ask E. Jean Top Campus Sex Columnists website. Things are going well but I sure could use some more comments on my articles and the other columnists’ articles, too. *hint, hint*

Of course, I would love for all these things to work out so I welcome any and all prayers for these opportunities to become successful.

Love,
Glory

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Playboy launches sexy social network

By Ashley M. Heher, Associated Press
CHICAGO — Playboy is heading back to school to boost the bottom line. Riding a wave of renewed popularity among consumers around the globe, Hugh Hefner’s Playboy empire is set to launch a sexy social networking site dedicated solely to college students, its latest online venture as it tries to reinvigorate its stagnant finances.
The launch of Playboy U, which has similar features to those found on Facebook, comes as Playboy’s 54-year-old magazine continues to lose money and readers.

To compensate, Chicago-based Playboy Enterprises is embarking on a one of its biggest expansion efforts in years.

“This is one brand that is relevant to 18 through 81-year-olds,” said Scott Stephen, executive vice president of operations for Playboy’s entertainment division. “We’re looking at this as a way to introduce and escort someone through their adult life.”

Playboy has cozied up to collegians before, featuring parties, promotional events and pictorials of student bodies from across the country. Now, executives hope Playboy U will help build brand loyalty among young consumers.

Read more…

Playboy U
What do you think? Do you know anyone who is using this website? Is it just an excuse to see a lot of cleavage and pictures of drunken frat boys?

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I just deleted about 16 user accounts from spammers and about as many spammer comments.

If you are a legitimate user and you were deleted it was entirely by accident. Please send me an email or even comment on this post to let me know you’re a regular person and I will happily add you back.

I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused anyone. I’m just trying to keep this site free of junk spam.

Thanks,
Glory

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DOS and DON’TS for the New School Year
By Glory Fink

O ye makers of the 21st century future, welcome. Remember the decisions you make here and now, not only determine your future, but how the rest of the century will go. Ponder this, O freshmen and upperclassmen.

Didn’t think you were that influential, did you? Well, you are. And while you’re thinking about that, let’s go over some of the other things that you need to know to insure the best college experience possible at USM.

Get Out and DO Things

DO attend school activities. The University Activities Council hosts many opportunities to meet new, fun people. Yes, you shy wallflower sulking in your dorm room. Sweetie, sitting in front of your computer 12 hours a day chatting online or playing War Craft is not what college is about. Go to an activity and meet people in the flesh. Introduce yourself to at least five people. Worst possible scenario, you’ll have met five new people.

DO devise a method to combine your schoolwork with a growing social life.

DON’T skip classes for two weeks to conduct experiments in how much alcohol your liver can process before you hit the E.R. You’ll fail and so will your liver. You really have to attend classes to get decent grades. USM professors have heard every single excuse (there are no new ones), plus tears and threats do not move them.

DO accept help from that nice senior who offers to show you the secrets/ shortcuts to get through classes.

DON’T think you are obligated to date or sleep with said “nice senior,” freshman, or anybody else. You are your own person. This is the 21st century, baby!

DO date often and even people you wouldn’t consider back in high school. You’re expanding your horizons. You’re growing up.

DON’T settle for the first pretty face that says yes. There are some fabulous people here in college. However, you won’t get to know any of these bright, charming individuals if you bet all your money on the first horse you meet at the racetrack.

DO end a relationship when it is over.

DON’T think that stalking is the way to get back your love. DON’T tolerate stalkers, even “polite” stalkers. Report them to campus police.

Condoms, condoms, condoms and birth control, too

DO get checked for STDs at the USM Clinic, (601) 266-5390 every year even if you are monogamous.

DON’T assume you are immune or will magically know when you get an STD. Remember the CDC estimates 80% of all 20 year olds will get HPV in their lifetime. Yikes! (Do you know what HPV is? Want to learn what it is the hard way?)

DO stay safe and use condoms and birth control or practice abstinence, the foolproof way to avoid pregnancy and STDs.

DON’T mix alcohol/drugs with sex. Mixing alcohol and/or drugs with sex increases your risks of assault, rape, robbery, STDs and regretful lifetime experiences.

DO be yourself

Remember the ugly duckling who tried to fit in. Poor little ducky wanders into a bevy of swans and discovers he has found his own kind. He was an awkward duckling but he is now an adored swan. Go forth my beautiful swans! Make new friends, date new people, get involved, be happy (and do your homework!)

Yes, I’m really back. I know I wrote that I was leaving. I did, but sometimes our paths aren’t as straight as we think, sometimes there’s a curve or two. I graduated but I couldn’t stay away from the best university with the best faculty, staff and students.

Comments and suggestions are always appreciated. Send your emails to printz@usm.edu or glory@askglory.com with “Attention: Glory” in the subject line.

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Comment about this article on Ask E. Jean’s Website

STD Prevention: Keep your Panties On
By Glory Fink

I keep hearing about three infamous bad girls on The Soup so I did a little research about their STD risks.

But first, I have something to confess. All I know about celebrities I learned from The Soup or reading OK! Magazine when I go to my hairdresser, Lindsay, who really is a star. I don’t even have a subscription to People Magazine.

While I’m confessing, here is another, I’m not a statistician. While I am sure that there are many statisticians who would enjoy analyzing the STD risks of the rich and famous I’m not acquainted with any of them (please feel free to email me at glory at askglory.com). Therefore, my statistics are generalized approximations from information I researched at the Centers for Disease Control website.

Before I begin with 21st century celebrities, let me tell you a few historical secrets. Do you remember Henry VIII with all those wives he married and beheaded? Well, it turns out he had syphilis. His daughter, Queen Elizabeth I, was born with congenital (secondary) syphilis and among other things made her infertile (did you really think she stayed a virgin?)

The Subjects
For the sake of science and some objectivity, let’s assume we have three anonymous female subjects who are believed to engage in high risk behavior associated with drugs, alcohol and sexual activity: “Ms. L” is white, age 21, never married and has no children. She’s been in multiple car accidents with narcotics found in her vehicle, and attended multiple rehab sessions. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, we can say, she’s trying to straighten out through rehab. She just hasn’t found a program that works for her.

The next subject, “Ms. P” is white, age 26, never married, no children. She, too, has several driving violations including more than one DUI. She is so well loved that at least one restraining order has been issued against her and she’s served time in jail.

The last subject, “Ms. B” is white, age 25, divorced with two children under the age of two years old. She has completed one rehab program and since then has reported to a magazine photo shoot disoriented, incoherent and exhibiting erratic behavior.

The STDs

Due to Ms. L’s age, she has roughly a 10% chance of having chlamydia, the most common and curable STD in the US. If Ms. P and Ms. B haven’t already contracted chlamydia then they now have a 5% chance because they are about 5 years older.

There is definitely a racial gap in STD infection rates in America. Misses L, P, and B will be pleased to learn that their chances of getting HIV are tiny. Only 2 out of every 100,000 white women ages 15-44 were diagnosed with HIV in 2005. But if any of our subjects were African American, her odds would go up to about 46 out of every 100,000.

Because all three of our subjects are white women, they are unlikely to have gonorrhea or syphilis but just the same, they should all still be tested after engaging in unprotected sex because gonorrhea in women often has no symptoms. When syphilis is left untreated, it can cause cardiovascular conditions, neurological disease, blindness, insanity, and gross disfigurement.

Another little history lesson, a few famous people who allegedly had the old reliables are: John F. Kennedy, Adolf Hitler, Frederich Nietzsche and Al Capone.

I highly recommend that all three women get the new HPV vaccine since it is estimated that 15% of American ages 15-49 are currently infected with HPV, which is known to cause genital warts and cervical cancer. If that isn’t enough motivation then they will be surprised to learn that an estimated 75% of Americans have been infected by an HPV strain through sexual activity.

Genital herpes is an incurable STD but it usually won’t kill you (as some of the others do) but it will give you really painful ulcers in your favorite pleasure zone- for the rest of your life! Herpes is more common in women. Every sexually active woman has a one in four chance of getting herpes.

In a Nutshell
Okay, to review: 5%-10% of American women in their early to mid 20’s have or will get chlamydia, while an estimated 75% have had an HPV strain and 25% will get a lifelong STD like genital herpes. “Excuse me, I’m going to need the biggest box of condoms you sell.”

My advice to Misses L, P, and B if they want to be STD free is:
• Avoid one night stands and anonymous sex.
• Always use a condom (you might be faithful, but 60% of men and 40% of women cheat in or out of marriage).
• Stay away from drugs and alcohol especially intravenous drugs.
• ALWAYS use protection if you are having sex with a man who might have had sex with other men even if he says he’s “straight”.
• Wear panties when you go out. Hookers don’t wear panties when they are working. You’re not hooking, are you?

Be safe.
Be happy.
Keep condoms handy-cause ya never know.
And wear (pretty) panties when you go out. It will remind you to be careful.

Love,
Your Big Sis Glory

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