Last November, just before Thanksgiving, USC junior Indya Talbot sent a mass e-mail to her sorority sisters of Kappa Kappa Gamma. "Dear fellow Kappas," it began, "with the holiday season upon us, I thought it was important to illustrate the effects that those extra slices of pie can bring." To lend force to prescriptions such as "dont [sic] eat donuts, just dont [sic] do it," Talbot attached unflattering photos of several supposed dessert-victims, all members of rival sisterhood Delta Gamma. "I always knew we were better than the DGs," she exulted. In a flash, the ill-advised e-mail quickly made the rounds of the greater Greek system, and then the world, inspiring knowing tongue-clucks and dyspeptic blog rants. The backlash prompted a sheepish address by Kappa's president, Julie Barmeyer, to the entire Greek community on December 6. "The content [of Talbot's e-mail] was extremely inappropriate and does not in any way reflect the feelings of the entire house," she wrote. "We apologize for any embarrassment or harm you may have experienced."

Asked about the flap, Talbot offered what might be called the Mean Girls defense: I was only pretending to be a fat-circling shallow bitch! "That e-mail was actually written as a lighthearted parody on sorority life," she says. "It was actually, like, pretty sarcastic, though obviously it sounds bad, coming from a sorority girl."

Now Radar hears Talbot has mended her ways and, between tirades against Krispy Kreme, is holding weekly summits called "Heal" helping girls deal with eating disorders.

[After the jump, the emails that started it all!]

The Call to Action

Dear fellow Kappas,

With the holiday season upon us, i thought it was important to illustrate the effects that those extra slices of pie can bring. As the fabulous, good looking Kappas that we are, we run a share of this row because of our pretty faces and taught stomaches. some of us are on top of our consumption, some never have been, and some eat according to their boredom and/or the number of guys we are making out with (after all, who wants to make out with a belly full of Thursday Kappa cookies.) either way, whether you are an unstable dieter or not, thanksgiving can really take its toll on your abdomen and here a a few tips to keep off those extra 10 holiday pounds.

- dont eat donuts, just dont do it. i know grandma and auntie maureen always come over in the morning to help with the turkey and bring donut holes for the kids, but really, you'll be eating twice your weight in food come lunch time. just dont touch the donuts.

- go for a run. seriously, its summer in the middle of winter this year. put on your shoes, wear your KKG bum shorts and go get a tan, listen to good music, and run around your hometown (which i GUARANTEE looks far prettier than this ghetto ... and has a lot less mystery fluid on the sidewalk)

- create for yourself a "holiday slideshow." the pictures attached should help you get back that Kappa pride so that we all don't look like cows before rush next year (i always knew we were better than the DGs). Please note the DG logo and its association to Applebees, along with our friend who is literally mid-hot-dog-bite. please please please don't let me come back to Kappa Kappa Krispy Kreme bid day shirts.

To be honest, living in Kappa at least, im planning on LOSING the 10 pounds this holiday break. Without the constant supply of cereal and bagels (and now the daily basket of packaged goodies with everything from oreos to biscotti...someone's trying to fatten me up nice and good for xmas) hopefully our stomaches will actually shrink for a change. as for those of you who live out, just be thankful that your dinner choices can vary from pasta roma and bistango....what a concept.

so be smart this holiday season. go home, get your bank accounts filled up, eat lots of turkey and salad, try your luck at resisting your third slice of pie, and we should all be golden. if your dieting problems are subconscious and you catch yourself waking up at 3am and blindly eating the shortbread cookies... speak to miss bickford. She seems to have developed steps to take control of this bizarre sleep-eating situation.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

The Mea Culpa

December 6, 2006

To the USC Greek Community-

I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely apologize for any detrimental effects that a member of our chapter may have caused the USC Greek Community. As you may be aware, prior to the Thanksgiving Break an e-mail was sent to our chapter by one of our active members that gave suggestions on how to stay fit over the holidays. The content was extremely inappropriate and does not in any way reflect the feelings of the entire house. It is unfortunate that a member of our organization made such a poor decision and she is extremely apologetic for her actions, as is our chapter.

We have the utmost respect for Delta Gamma and all Greek houses on our campus and hope that this incident will not upset our relationship with any chapters. We are very grateful to share the row with such a wonderful community.

We apologize for any embarrassment or harm you may have experienced from the e-mail composed by this member of our chapter. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me via e-mail. Also, if you know anyone else that was affected or concerned by this e-mail, please forward this letter to them. We wish you a happy holiday season and a safe winter break.

Sincerely,

Julie Barmeyer, President

Kappa Kappa Gamma Fraternity, University of Southern California