Relationships: Text Messaging & Other Ways 2 Keep UR Relationship Alive

I won't lie, I enjoyed my summer. Despite working full time (as many of you probably did) I savored coming home and having absolutely nothing to do. No homework, no reading, and especially no twenty page papers dissecting the relationships between fictional people. It was just me, my boyfriend, and pardon the cliché, the world was our oyster. We did whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted because I never had to make that extra time to do my school work. And then September 7th happened - the dreaded first day of school - the day I paid to loose my freedom.

As if relationships aren't hard enough, the combination of internships, extra curricular activities, classes, and homework make it that much more difficult to find bonding time with your beau. Suddenly there is no time for hour conversations, peaceful walks through the city, or anything substantially fun. Everything starts to revolve around school and hanging out suddenly becomes a privilege rather than a norm. But despite busy or conflicting schedules, there is a way to hang on tight to your new (or not so new) significant otherºwithout neglecting your responsibilities.

5 - Phone Calls: The way you use your minutes is probably as important as the way you use your gas ($3.29 a gallon!) so make it count. I quick call to say hello or I love you will let your partner know you're thinking about them, even if you're busy. Hearing your boyfriend's voice may however, make you miss him even more but that's a good thingº and you should tell him.

Yianni Patsalos, 19, says he speaks with his girlfriend everyday. "We know each others schedules so that one doesn't call the other at the wrong time," he says.

4 - Text Messaging: If you're not doing it yet, start! Most phone providers charge only 10 cents a text and even offer promotions for unlimited text and picture messaging. It's cheap and easy and guarantees that you can communicate with your boyfriend or girlfriend at any time of the day. The beauty of text messaging is that a short message can go a long way in making your relationship stronger and it wont waste your precious anytime minutes.

Ilya Seltser, 20, exchanges text messages with his girlfriend about 10-12 times a day. While he sits in one of Paces many windowless classrooms, his girlfriend of 2 ? years is in New Jersey. He says he feels it's a nice reassurance to receive text messages, especially because they are so far away from each other. "I'll be sitting in class and gets a text message saying I miss you. It's perfect," he says.

3 - Common Hour: I don't actually know the purpose of common hour but it's not only a time to hang out with your friends. Using common hour to do homework will initially feel annoying (especially when all of your friends are smoking in the courtyard) but in the long run, it will give you personal time outside of school. By doing homework during breaks and common hours, you will be free to spend time with your boyfriend/girlfriend at night. If you are dating someone you go to school with, do homework together. This way, you'll both be free to see each other laterº to do far more interesting things.

Those who treat their homework as school work enjoy stress free nights and weekends. Take Anastasia Batkhina, a senior, who has been dating her boyfriend for a month. "I take advantage of my breaks and do all of my work in school. I have a lot of free time because of it," she explains.

2- Make Time: To reiterate, we all have things to do. Sometimes there's just not enough time to do everything in one day or week. Things always come up but in order to guarantee a successful relationship, you have to actually work at it. Making time for your partner may mean designating a special hour of the day when you speak or meeting in the halls for a quick hello.

Making time for each other may also limit the amount of fights a couple has. Erin Kodilanen, has been dating her boyfriend for two years. Not only do they speak several times a day, they make sure to see each other often, despite their distance from one another. Erin's boyfriend makes the effort by bring her lunch at work and Erin reciprocates by calling him in between classes and at night. She explains, "I make time for him [because] when we don't see each other, we fight a lot."

1 - Communicate: This by far is the most important element in any relationship. Without communication, there is confusion. Knowing each others schedules is a good start but also knowing that you may not be available at all times may save you the trouble of having a fight. For instance, instead of ignoring your girlfriend because you have a million and one things to do, tell her what it is you're doing and she's sure to understand. By communicating even the bad news, your partner will be secure and know that you are just merely busy and not ignoring them. Letting your partner know your schedule also eliminates stress in your life.

Of course, as much as you love your boyfriend or girlfriend, sometimes things go wrong. Plans break, phones loose battery life, text messages don't arrive on time, and of course you have a test the next day when your girlfriend decides to start a fight with you. But of course, this is merely the natural cycle of relationships so move on, have makeup sex, and start texting each other I love you's all over again.