21 Things Taylor Swift Should Do Now That She’s 21

So, as you may hear a few thousand times in the next 24 hours, country music's reigning princess, Taylor Swift, turns 21 today, Dec. 13. A lot of new rights, responsibilities and temptations open up to young men and women when they reach this important milestone, so we thought we'd come up with 21 things for Swift to do now that the big day's arrived. Keep Taste of Country open on your browser all day today, because we'll be rolling out a Taylor Swift takeover of 13 features in honor of the birthday girl.

21. Throw away those fake IDs. Sure she didn't have one.

20. Be glad she wasn't born in the middle ages, when the average lifespan was 35 years.

19. Vegas, baby! 21 is old enough to legally hit the casino floors. Always double down on 11.

18. Travel to Mississippi, the last state in the union where she's reached the "age of majority," the milestone when a person has all the rights and responsibilities of a full citizen.

17. Rent a hotel room in her own name.  Actually, even though she can do this for the first time today, she may want to stick with a fake name.

16. Become a leading lady. Now that Swift's conquered the music biz, maybe it's time to leave those supporting film roles behind and start seeing her name on the marquee.

15. Visit the eight wonders of the world. Yes, there used to be seven, but recently Dollywood was elected to this elite fraternity alongside the Great Wall of China and all the rest.

14. Endure an early morning "walk of shame" -- which is going to look especially nice in those 'au couture' clothes.

13. Max out her credit cards. While she's at it, she should consider defaulting on a student loan, too. Many creative people consider this an important rite of passage.

12. Listen to 'Led Zeppelin III.' It's their country-ish record. Or go see Robert Plant on his current tour. The worst that can happen is that her music gets a little weirder and a lot louder.

11. Mark her calendar for Dec. 13, 2014, the day she can finally rent a car all by herself.

10. Any bunny or kitten stickers on her phone or laptop? They have to come off right now.

09. Purchase a handgun. Of course, you can buy rifles at age 18, but those don't fit into those Louis Vuitton handbags very well, do they?

08. Check out these photos of Keith Richards in 1963 and 2010. See these? Now, we hope to never see Swift smoking cigarettes.

07. Date someone her own mental age. We know, it's tough, what with women maturing faster then men and all. Maybe look for a little gray around the temples next time.

06. Get her own car insurance policy. Provided she's been a good driver so far, she can get some reasonable rates and really save some money.  We know money's tight for young musicians.

05. Interrupt Kanye West at a very important moment in his life. Preferably on live TV.

04. Hit the bars -- and we don't mean wine bars or even the local pub.  21-year-olds can visit strip clubs, too.  She can bring her dollar bills and make those boys and/or girls earn their money.

03. Write a song called '21.' After all, 'Fifteen' is just so ... 2005.

02. Try and do something with her life. She's gotta plan for the future. She can't just fritter away her days selling millions of albums and concert tickets all across the globe.

01. "Hold on to 16 as long as you can." If you think about how much of this list deals with either the burdens of adult responsibility or temptations that can easily turn to vices, maybe it's best to keep thinking young. To finish the John Mellencamp quote from 'Jack and Diane': "Changes come around real soon, make us women and men."

Celebrate Taylor Swift's 21st Birthday With Photos, Features + More