BY Me’Lyea Burton
LifeAtStart.com Reporter

This generation has destroyed chivalry and romance. Nobody gets to know each other. They just text, waste each other’s time, then stop communicating. Loyalty is based on how fast you text back, interest is based on how much you post pictures of your partner, and even worse, nobody trusts anybody enough to be committed. One moment everybody wants a relationship, and the other they just want Netflix and chill.

The popularity of #RelationshipGoals on social media is ridiculous. Couples take pictures of themselves at dinner or doing adventurous things, like cliff jumping, and post them online, only to be seen as relationship goals. Girls demand to be pampered . The boys have to buy their girlfriend gifts or it seems they don’t care for her. They most definitely have to show each other off, or their relationship isn’t real. It’s at the point where there’d be a post of a couple simply hugging, and the caption would be GOALS!!! with a dozen heart-eye emojis. Your goal is to get a hug? Really?

What happened to the boy and girl being friends first, getting to know each other, and meeting each other’s families? What happened to people actually dating and not using each other to gain the approval of social media? It makes me wonder if people even remember how to introduce themselves or spark up a nice, intellectual conversation. At this rate, when, and if, we have grandchildren, we’d talk about marriage as if it was a T-Rex. Extinct.

BY Kaylah Kislan
LifeAtStart.com Reporter

Although summer is long gone, and winter appears to loom overhead like a comic book speech bubble, smoothies are one chilly treat that never go out of season. There are plenty of smoothie recipes out there, but my favorite for the season is the Orange Julius, loaded with vitamin C to keep those seasonal sniffles away. What’s even better, this smoothie isn’t expensive and can be made with five ingredients in a matter of minutes. Perfect if you’re the typical high school student on the go.

For this recipe, you will need 3-4 freshly peeled oranges. You can also add a clementine or two for dimensional taste. The next ingredient is what will make this smoothie so delightfully smooth. Milk. Although skim is optional, I find the smoothie to taste better when using a thicker variety of milk. Next, add 1-2 tablespoons of honey, and 1-2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Lastly, add the ice and blend until you reach the desired consistency. Serve immediately and enjoy.

This smoothie is a great way to start off your morning, whether you’re off to school or work, or spending the day inside. Give it a try, and let me know what you think.

BY Rayne Wilcox
LifeAtStart.com Reporter

With the holidays coming up times can be hard. With the most asked question being
“What do you want me to bring to the party?” You don’t want to bring anything, but being the nice person you are, you do.

If you are one of those people who agree to bring something, but don’t have anything to make. I am here to help you out. This is for the seniors who live on their own, or for anyone who wants to try something new.

Here is a quick and easy recipe for Chicken Ranch Pasta Salad.

First off, you need the ingredients, which are important, without them you can’t do much.The things you will need, are:

1 box of Hidden Valley Original Pasta Salad.

1 cup broccoli florets, blanched or raw

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 cup cooked chicken, diced

1/2 cup carrots, sliced.

last, but not least you will need

1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced and rinsed.

The directions to make this delicious dish, are

You need to cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. In a large bowl, combine mayonnaise, milk, Parmesan cheese and seasoning packet. The last thing you will need to do to finish this dish, is to add the drained pasta, broccoli, chicken, carrots and red onions. Toss and serve.
You can serve this dish immediately,or you can refrigerate it.

If you make this dish, tell me what you think of it.

Have a safe and good holiday season.