BECCA AND WILLIAM’S FOOD REVIEW: CARDI B/OFFSET

McDonald’s, the multinational fast food chain, released its most recent celebrity collaboration marketing endeavor last month with the “Cardi B & Offset Meal”. The promotional Valentine’s Day meal consists of a cheeseburger, a quarter pounder with cheese, large fries, two large drinks, an apple pie and a side of barbeque sauce.

The company has collaborated with celebrities to help drive digital business and company earnings. Past stars have included BTS, Saweetie, Travis Scott and J Balvin.

“We’re focused on putting McDonald’s at the center of culture,” said Tariq Hassan, McDonald’s chief marketing executive, according to TMZ.

According to McDonald’s executives, the company wants to continue collaborating with celebrities to build its consumer base and popularity with the youth and young adults.

The latest collaboration with Cardi B and Offset has stirred up controversy with the issues of the couple’s image reflecting poorly on McDonald’s family-friendly values and they have been accused of breaking their Golden Arches code because of their lyrics and lifestyle.

“The company’s Golden Arches Code for marketing states that promotions and branding shouldn’t include ‘musical partnerships associated with content that includes offensive language in the lyrics’,” said the Wall Street Journal in a recent article.

Ethics and company policies aside, “The Colonnade” editorial board decided to taste-test the meal to see for themselves if it was worth the hype.

Head News Editor Re- becca Meghani and Assistant Arts & Life Editor

William Van de Planque accepted and underwent the mission last Monday. Their professional food reviews are as follows.

Rebecca Meghani:

While the collaboration has created a buzz among the youth and young adults, it is not a special meal by any means. With their drinks being Coca-Cola and Hi-C Orange Lavaburst, respectively, the meal consists of food that already exists on the menu of Cardi B’s and Offset’s regular orders. It feels lazy and uninspired. If collaborating with a huge and well-known company, I would want to create something special for the consumers, especially knowing that my fanbase would flock to the fast food restaurant.

Going into the meal, the only excitement I had was being prepared to bash on this meal because of the lack of uniqueness that it had. Also, I hate barbeque sauce. It has the raunchiest smell I have ever smelled and no one sane enjoys it. That being said, I am a recent convert as the McDonald’s french fries dipped in their barbecue sauce was a religious experience for me and changed the trajectory of my life.

Their french fries are never failing, as long as you eat them within the five minutes you got them in. Otherwise, the crispiness and crunch of the fry can never be revived and the experience is not the same. Their fries top the charts as number one in comparison to the rest of fast food fries and I really believe any other argument is obsolete.

We each had our own individual burgers with me having their quarter pounder. As usual, nothing special. I really think you could place any fast food burger in my hand and I would not be able to tell the difference. It was simple and enjoyable but it is not a personal choice I would ever choose to order myself. Dip it in some barbecue sauce and maybe we’ll have a different story.

Now, the apple pie. I have never ordered it before because I do not trust a $1.50 apple pie. Again, I did not expect to be proven wrong by a fast food place, yet again. It was warm and it felt like a hug. It is definitely on its way to becoming my new food hyperfixation for the next week and it deserves a special place in everyone’s hearts. If there is any reason to take a quick trip to the golden arches, let it be this apple pie.

Lastly, Coca-Cola.

Never failing. A GA pride and staple. Maybe it did not have the same pizzazz and punch as the coveted McDonald’s Sprite, but you will never be disappointed with this classic.

William Van de Planque:

I don’t eat fast food often. Most of the time, my first choice is Chickfil-a for a quick meal and good service. When Becca brought the meal to our production meeting for us to taste-test, I was excited for a new, different, and themed meal from the widely popular chain; something I had never tried before.

The Cardi B & Offset Meal was surprisingly disappointing and did not nearly meet my expectations. Sure, I think it’s safe to say most people don’t order Hi-C at McDonald’s, but other than that, the meal was more or less bland. The burger and the quarter-pounder had the same old plastic taste like almost every other item on the chain’s menu. The meal does come with a fun themed to-go bag, with the logo of the collaboration featured on the side.

I had never dipped a burger in BBQ sauce, which was something new for me. However, it was just BBQ sauce. It was just a burger. These are everyday things. Encountering them, especially in the fast-food industry, is not new for anyone. Perhaps that was the point of the meal and of the collab in general. Cardi B and Offset, big influencers in American culture, while they lead lavish lifestyles, they are able to interact with everyday life and those living it. They have taken something so simple as a fast food meal and made it into a “date night tradition”, as the celebrity couple has repeatedly advertised. Of course, there is the possibility that they have only done this solely for the money, making the meal less romantic. Either way, setting any controversies aside, the celebrity couple shows that sometimes simplicity and frugality can make the most intimate date nights and even start long-lasting traditions.

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Speaking of drug abuse, what about the addiction to coffee or nicotine? It seems to me like many students will go an entire day running on a singular iced coffee and a couple hits from their vape. The interesting fact is, if you were to ask any student about their weekly party schedule and the substance abuse that follows suit, students would not know how to respond or would be perplexed at why you thought it was abnormal. Many college students get to Saturday, normally nursing a hangover from nights prior, and still continue to drink because, well, it is a Saturday in “Milly Vegas.” Many college students see the weekends or their regular party schedules to alleviate stress, which in turn leads to using some sort of substance.

Some students use substances to alleviate anxieties or outside pressures, while some students see using substances as a norm in our twisted college culture that suggests you are an outsider if you do not join in. For others, the practice of using alcohol or other drugs has become a habitual act of bonding with their peers. Because college years are so developmental, many of the habits formed during students’ time at university stick with them for life. The days of week-long benders do not age well when beginning a 9-5 as adult life sinks in. The overwhelming weight of “real world” stressors seem, in the opinions of some, to be numbed with the use weight of an uncertain future bearable. Will we continue to ignore the blatant truths that college kids are, and have been for decades, looking for an escape, or will we sit back and allow substance abuse to continue skyrocketing? Ac- ble drug use within students will continue to affect not only student’s academic performances, but also encourage risky and harmful behavior for their foreseeable futures. Students enrolled for longer periods could be looking at health decline, and move available. As young adults, many of us are still navigating our paths to adulthood, making the habitual use of substances resemble a tightrope walk. How do we begin setting boundaries for resetting after a tough academ- of substances. The act of mixing these stimulates and depressors make college seem like a rollercoaster with a “work hard, play hard” mantra playing in the background. Substance abuse is increasing. Many students live under the impression that using substances can make the cording to Ashley Addiction Treatment, roughly 80% of U.S. college students abuse alcohol, and 4.9% use marijuana daily, whereas only 2.8% used daily 20 years earlier. As for other drugs, including benzodiazepines (e.g. Xanax), the proportions for student use have increased 450%. Incredi-

Abigayle Allen Opinion Editor

A couple of weeks ago, my senior-seminar professor plainly asked my peers and I “what makes you hungry?” This question has lingered in the back of my mind since that class period. To be such a simple question, I think the answer may be complex. My class went around in a circle explaining the reasons why they wanted to write and what continued to fuel this passion through the white noise.

(Disclaimer: I am a creative writing major, so the question was asked in that aspect.) Many of my peers recounted the diary they kept since they were younger, the English teacher in high school that gave them hope or the simple answer that they just knew that is what they wanted to do with their lives. For a long time, I prided myself that I wanted to choose a career that would make my parents’ sacrifices worth it. While that statement remains true, I started diving into the unanswered questions I had about the unprecedented future I was about to face. Our generation has been driven by social media since we were kids. Many of the choices made have been done so under the advice from influencers or the examples set by those we may have idolized on social media. So many lifestyles that seem to be popular have to do with “fitting in” or what may be trending on TikTok. I guess the bigger question I started to ask myself was, what decisions am I making that truly make me happy or fuel my fire? It is no debate that each person is born with a unique set of values, opinions or mindsets that set us apart from each other. However, it is in my opinion that many of us suppress our true selves to instead exude the parts of ourselves that may look pretty on paper. I think the rise of social media has cursed us with this learned trait.

I think it is time we start discovering the things that make our own worlds turn rather than worrying about what other people may think. These are some things that have helped me begin to find out who I am and what I want my purpose to be.

1)Find your community. To begin, it is important that you start to surround yourself with like-minded people who practice looking out for your best intentions daily. I know many of us have already formed our friend groups, but this can even be attributed to the content you expose yourself to daily. Take note of what videos you are scrolling through on TikTok, what influencers you follow online, the books you are reading and the music you are listening to. All of these things are a culmination of the community you are actively forming. In finding an atmosphere that is positive and that incorporates the things that make you truly happy, you can begin to find yourself being genuinely happy.

2)Learn how to sit still with yourself.I think it is so normal to have the feeling of being completely alone while being addiction and abuse, and relationship issues. College culture as represented in movies and taught to us by upperclassmen has always involved the inevitable experimenting with different substances. However, the harsh reality of these experiments sinks in as substances become more ic week or having fun with our friends and trying to numb or remove ourselves from outside stressors by using substances? Young adults, or, more specifically, college students, are facing many stressors as we near the end of our college days. As for me, I am trying to navigate finding a job in a post-pandemic economy, navigate how our climate may survive the nearing future and decide how I am going to find a career that will help pay off the student loans I have racked up over the past four years. However, I know that there are ways of dealing with these stressors that are not going to risk my future and harm myself along the way. I am by no means implying that having a casual drink with your friends or going downtown is unacceptable However there are boundaries that need to be drawn in the sand when partaking in substance use. Sometimes, you have to take care of yourself, even if that means sitting out a party or being the designated driver for the night. College kids, including myself, are all trying to forge our own paths and decide what choices will help us become the best versions of ourselves. Maybe in learning yourself and learning your body, the three-day benders that have become your norm will seem less important. I think, as a society, it is time to take a step back and decide what it is that makes the idea of numbing reality so common. I think, in doing so, maybe we can save ourselves from self-destruction and combat this substance-abuse crisis. surrounded by so many people. This can be attributed to spending too much time with friends and not enough time with yourself. Sometimes in getting to know yourself, you are able to be more intentional with the people in your life. Take yourself on a date. Go to the gym all alone. Go buy groceries alone, or pump your gas alone. I am not saying to isolate yourself or ostracize yourself from your friend group, but it is important that you can be comfortable sitting still all on your own to truly be comfortable with your journey into adulthood. Trust me, self-confidence and self-contentment go a long way.

3)Journey outside of your “norm.”I think, as college students, it is easy to get lost in the mundane routines of everyday life. These habitual acts can, and will eventually, burn you out. How are you supposed to know yourself and know what you want for your future without doing a little experimenting along the way? Apply for that internship, even if it looks a little different than the plan you have set for yourself. Maybe join a club or do something as simple as explore a form of media that you have never looked into before. I am not saying that having established routines is bad. I myself stick to a pretty strict routine. However, in trying new things, you may learn more about yourself than what meets the eye. I by no means want to pretend that I have the ultimate guide to navigating your life, but these are some things that have helped and challenged me this past semester, and I decided it would be selfish of me to not share. Maybe give them a try, or maybe just begin meditating on the things that fuel your fire. Regardless, you are not alone on the road to self-discovery. Stay hungry.