Jennifer Castoro

Love in the Age of Skype

Written on January 11, 2010 at 2:22 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

So by now, you’re probably familiar with eHarmony, Match and JDate, and maybe even know a successful couple (congrats, Bill and Sue!) who’ve met online. But how about lovebirds who’ve courted online, too? I came across the sweet, modern love story of Air Force Captain Matt Howard and his new bride, Lanessa Lawrence, who’d never met in person before marrying on New Year’s Eve via an online ceremony performed on Skype. The couple conducted their entire dating process on the online videoconferencing service, after initally meeting on Match.com, and married while Lanessa was at home in Texas and the groom was at Bagram Air Base, in Afghanistan.

And now that winter is assuredly upon us, who wants to bundle up and attempt to meet Mr. Right at a bar or a party while looking like a red-faced, runny-nosed abominable snowlady? (Uggs do not stilettos make.) Online dating sites are reporting a huge surge in membership in frigid Europe, where housebound Brits are not allowing icy temps to chill their dating lives.

What’s your online love story? Have you ever tried a dating site, or know anyone who’s met a match online?

Photo courtesy of Bohman.

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Dogs vs. Cats: Which Is The Best Pet?

Written on December 15, 2009 at 12:22 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

Before you send me mountains (megabytes?) of hate e-mail for even posing this question, let me explain. The magazine New Scientist tested the question in an appropriately scientific manner, billing it the Great Pet Showdown. (National Dog Show be damned!) They compared the two furry companions in 11 different categories, including brain capacity (cats won that one, despite their teeny noggins), popularity (cats again victorious), bonding (dogs were found to be enraptured with their owners, but cats couldn’t be bothered with the testing, thus skewing the results), and utility (dogs can pull things and sniff things out, cats can scratch and poop).

And the winner of this paw-to-paw battle? Dogs! (Commence angry commenting.)

But, in fairness to both sides, the article concludes that any pet that gives you love, affection and an occasional snuggle is the best pet for you, and will boost your health (dog walking is great exercise!) and lower your stress levels. In that vein, even bunnies, ferrets, mini pigs and  other pettable critters are fabulous companions.

I happen to be a dog person – I love smashed-face pups like pugs and bulldogs. Seriously, the chubbier and smushier, the better. Leg rolls and snorty breathing? Sign me up! However, I have shared a small apartment with two very lovable cats who kept me beyond entertained with their constant power struggles (my favorite battles were when they’d paw at each other and run away) and their wacky habits of rubbing my legs while I was cooking and hopping in the bathtub for a quick rinse if the shower dared run unattended for more than 10 seconds. They were a ridiculously hilarious tag team of fur, and definitely made my opinion of felines a much more positive one (though maybe that was largely because one of them was seriously…large, and we know my feelings on corpulent animals). Also, the chubby one sat in my lap while I sobbed at Grey’s Anatomy and gave me empathetic kitty eyes, which was cute. So for me, it’s a draw.

What do you think? Who rules – dogs or cats? Can we ever really resolve this heated debate?

Photo courtesy of TrishHamme

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On Marriage and Money

Written on December 7, 2009 at 5:55 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

As the Great Recession (Depression? Obsession? Sick-of-hearing-about-it-ession?) of 2009 nears its (hopeful) end, it’s only natural to take stock of what went down, pardon the pun, this past year and where we stand now. And according to the State of Our Unions report from the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia (phew!), we’re standing a bit closer to our spouses than we were before the poo flew. Their findings showed that tough times encourage family solidarity and, subsequently, a decrease in divorce. Not too shocking. The report also notes that disagreements over money are a big predictor of a split. (Read our piece on how to talk about money with your husband so you don’t squabble over it, too!) And, not surprisingly, the report found that “thrifty” couples are the happiest. Apparently, a large credit-card balance = wedded doom.

So, has the Great Belt-Tightening of 2009 brought you closer to your hubby? Or are you finding yourselves stressed to the max?

(As always, you can check out our Can This Marriage Be Saved? column for advice that’s helped other couples stay together, or search for a therapist to help you talk it out.)

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Expert Advice: How to Fix Your Marriage

Written on November 30, 2009 at 12:10 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

In case you haven’t already heard, we at LHJ deliver fun, interesting, useful newsletters to lots of inboxes each week, with beauty tips, dinner ideas, weight-loss strategies and tons more info for your everyday life. This week’s hot topic is a timely one for the stress-filled holiday season: how to handle the most common issues you have with your hubby. (Probably something to think about before that massive Christmas credit card bill arrives.) And, on a lighter note, this week’s issue also has cute holiday crafts and delish cupcake recipes. Yummmm. Sign on up!

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How to Attract a Man

Written on November 17, 2009 at 6:29 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

In my single days, I put far too much thought into my clothing options before heading out in search of potential dates. Shirt too tight? Skirt too short? Too much boobage? Or not short enough? After which I’d settle on whatever I felt comfortable in, which was much more modest than what lots of other chippies I’d see on the dance floor were wearing. The bigger question: How much skin is too much when you want to attract an upstanding suitor, not a pervy one?

Researchers at the University of Leeds, in the U.K., sent volunteers to observe male-female interactions at a nightclub. They found that women who exposed about 40 percent of their skin – hands and feet not included – were approached by twice as many men as those who were more moderately attired. Any more flesh than that and the signal changed from cute-yet-available to desperate-potential-adulterer. And if there was less on display, ladies were more likely to go home solo.

No word on whether the interested guys were cute.

Photo courtesy of stockingvixen.

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Older Man + Younger Woman = Happiness?

Written on November 3, 2009 at 3:45 pm, by Jennifer Castoro

With all the talk of May-December romances, “cougars” and older men with much (much, much) younger women in the news of late, age in relationships is a hot topic. Researchers at University of Bath, in England, say that the traditional older man-younger woman pairing is best for long-term marriage success, but with a twist. Their study followed 1,000 couples and found that those with the greatest chance at lasting happiness involved men who were five or more years older than their wives, and those wives were also more educated than their husbands. Those who’ve never been married also fared better.

While I’m not too shocked at the divorce aspect, I am surprised about the age thing. An older man and younger woman, totally understandable when women didn’t have careers and needed an established hubby to support them, now seems a little…dated. And I always thought that educated women would seek a similarly educated man, and that those intellectual-equal couples would fare better than mismatched ones.

What do you think? Does it make sense that a younger wife-older man pairing equals a life of bliss?
Photo courtesy of The 5th Ape.

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A Jersey Girl Goes West

Written on October 23, 2009 at 11:59 am, by Jennifer Castoro

I am from New Jersey. (No, I do not have teased hair, a mob connection or a cousin named Vinny.) As a native Jerseyan, I’m much more city chick than country girl. And the only contact I’ve ever had with a horse was during birthday parties circa grammar school, when all the girly girls would have pony rides in their backyards. So I was super excited to be able to visit Tanque Verde Ranch, in Tucson, Arizona, this past weekend to experience a taste of life as a cowgirl.

As I hopped up on my horse, Katmandu (that’s him in the picture), my first thought was, good Lord, I’m high off the ground! That quickly gave way to oh crap, he’s moving, followed by please don’t turn your giant head and bite me. But I was pleasantly surprised; not only was he (and the other two horses I rode during the weekend) calm and docile, but I quickly got used to the feeling of maneuvering him along the trails at the ranch and getting him to slow down with a little woah and a gentle tug on the reins. He did stop about every 10 feet to scoop some unsuspecting foliage off the ground and chomp on it, but otherwise he was perfectly agreeable.

I also got the chance to do some hiking in the Saguaro National Park (a snapshot is to the left), a breathtaking expanse of giant saguaro cacti, little prickly pear bushes, sweeping mountain views and lots of plants with needles on them. And at night, my fellow travelers and I sat around a roaring campfire, listening to classic western tunes and chomping juicy mesquite barbecue. Delish!

I’m normally a beach-vacation kind of girl, with a little European traveling thrown in for good measure, but I was surprised how much I enjoyed the wild west experience. Perhaps I’m a little bit county…

What’s your favorite place to vacation? Have you ever traveled anywhere totally out of your comfort zone?

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