In interviews, celebrities often talk about how "normal" they are, and how their fame and success still hasn't really hit them. All this talk of normalcy can seem kind of hard to believe considering that it's coming from a gorgeous, talented, wealthy, loved-the-world-over person who makes regular appearances on our TV screen; that is until we take a look at some of their first jobs.Whether it was working retail, waiting tables or washing dishes, the following celebrities had first jobs that make us believe they're serious when they say "I can't believe I made it."Now: At age 24, Lady Gaga is one of the most popular recording artists in the world, having sold more than 15 million albums as of October 2010.Then: In high school, when the Lady was still known as Stefani Germanotta, the aspiring pop-icon bussed tables at a diner near her childhood home on Manhattan's Upper West Side. [Read the full article]

When it comes to job applications, the best strategy in this tough economy is to do as many of them as quickly as possible and hope for the best, right?If the recipient's name is the only thing you are changing each time you send out a cover letter, you might be giving potential employers the impression that you are simply interested in finding a job -- any job -- and don't really care about their specific company. You also may be passing up a golden opportunity to make a strong first impression that will entice employers to want to know you better."I had the opportunity to ask a group of employers this very question just a couple of months ago," states Janet Daley, director of internship programs at Stevenson University in Stevenson, Maryland. [Read the full article]

Are you an extreme parent? How do you know? Watch our special report "Extreme Parenting" on CNN Newsroom Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET.(CNN) -- Like many other American teens, 14-year-old Nick Heras wants to be a professional quarterback someday.Unlike most teens, he has left home and moved across the country to attend an elite athletic training program. His family foots a hefty bill for Nick's dreams: More than $50,000 a year."I knew I had to leave and do this program if I wanted to be serious about football," he says.In this increasingly competitive generation, some parents enroll toddlers in expensive Mandarin classes and fight to get into them into the best preschools. That pressure is perhaps as extreme as in sports.For parents like Nick Heras Sr. and his wife, supporting their child's desire to become a sports phenom takes more than financial sacrifice. [Read the full article]

For more than a year, Ellen O'Donnell slept on the streets, where she was the target of theft, violence and cruelty. Her situation left her neglecting chronic health problems that threatened her survival."It was so difficult to access [medical] services. I was totally alienated and I just couldn't relate," O'Donnell said. "I would get things stolen from me. And ... two young women tried to set me on fire. Life was just this movie and I wasn't going to bother participating anymore."Then O'Donnell stumbled upon someone she could relate to: Dr. Roseanna Means. Since 1999, Means and her team have set up clinics inside Boston shelters to offer direct, free medical care to thousands of homeless women and children."The women come into the shelters to get warm, to eat, to feel safe. And we're already there," said Means, 58. There's no registration or charge for the care. [Read the full article]