Single on Valentine's Day

A lot of exciting things have been happening recently: the Super Bowl, Super Tuesday, Mardi Gras and the miraculous event of me passing my first astronomy test, just to name a few. But above them all looms one day in particular. It is feared like the plague by some, and anticipated all year by others. I’m talking about none other than Valentine’s Day. \nWe may or may not remember from our history classes that the holiday was at one point intended to celebrate St. Valentine’s heroic and romantic acts, though there is debate as to what he actually did. In my elementary school days, I remember cutting out hearts and sharing Hershey’s Kisses with my friends and thinking that the holiday was second-best to Halloween. At the time, nothing said love like getting a Valentine card from a boy that said “be mine” with Bugs Bunny on it. These were the simple times, the good ol’ days.\nBut now, the single cynic in me believes that Valentine’s Day is nothing but an economic ploy to boost Hershey’s and Hallmark’s sales. All the cute, pink hearts and candies strewn about all over the place is enough to make a single gal or guy sick. And to those in relationships, you’re basically forced to be romantic (also known as spend money) regardless of anything else that may be going on in your life (also known as your budget). \nSo Valentine’s Day puts us all in a bind, even though the idea itself is a good one. But if you are in a relationship, you should do what you have to do and enjoy it. Put your textbooks aside and calm down about the results of Super Tuesday. I suggest going out to dinner with your significant other. If you’re on a budget, you can cook something together. Nothing says good lovin’ like good food. A nice card with a personal note is simple but can also be one of the most heartfelt and touching gifts.\nBut since I’m not in a relationship, I don’t want to give much more advice because I need to focus on myself and single folks like me. What should we do on the day created to force single people indoors into hiding? I plan on buying chocolate and ice cream and watching “Titanic” with my other single girlfriends and complaining about men. Oh sure, it’s the pathetic stereotype, and if I’m still doing this at thirty I’m not going to be proud of it, but we might as well embrace our singleness and hang out with the people who we love — our friends. In our own single way, we can reclaim the day set for romantic love and celebrate all those people we love in our life who we might sometimes take for granted.