I’m so happy to be single this Valentine’s Day. Most people think I am being sarcastic, but I truly am looking forward to being single this year.
Lately, my Twitter feed has been filled with girls saying things like “looks like it will be another Valentine’s Day single” or “#foreveralone,” commentary on their uneventful love life described in 140 characters or less.
Well, for girls who have never had a significant other during Valentine’s Day, don’t worry; being in a relationship during Valentine’s Day is not as great as it seems.
Guys get it easy: pick up some chocolates or a teddy bear from Walgreens for $5 and they’re done. The whole process strikes me as thoughtless. Most guys don’t put any thought into what their girlfriend actually likes, they just buy what is expected and then gripe about how expensive having a girlfriend is. Romantic, huh?
I would much rather have a guy skip all that cliché stuff (the teddy bears, flowers, chocolates and balloons) and take me out for dinner instead. It’s much more important to spend money on something couples can do together than on flowers that will just die, candy that will quickly be eaten, balloons that will deflate or a teddy bear I will probably just lose (or donate to Goodwill when we break up).
For the past two Valentine’s Days, I had a boyfriend. I told him upfront to skip all of those overused, pointless gifts. Instead he made me a collage of pictures of the two of us our first Valentine’s Day together. Knowing he took the time to make me the gift instead of just running by the closest dollar store and picking me up a teddy bear made in China that a million other girls are getting made me feel special, which is exactly how Valentine’s Day should make a girl feel. The next year he just took me out for dinner at Babbo’s Spaghetteria and we had a great time. That memory has lasted much longer than a box of chocolates would have.
Even though those Valentine’s Days were enjoyable, I still am happy to not have to go through all the stress surrounding Valentine’s Day this year. Like I said, it’s easy for guys, but it’s much harder to think of a gift for your boyfriend. It is extremely difficult and takes time and planning.
It’s not like a girl can just get some obnoxiously large teddy bear and call it a day. Girls are expected to come up with a gift that their boyfriend will like but isn’t too cheesy or overly sentimental. That’s a tall order to fill with all the added stresses of senior year!
In years past, I would make my boyfriend at the time tons of baked treats, which he really appreciated. I would have to take a few days to dedicate to baking and preparing everything which was time consuming.
The reason Valentine’s Day bothers me so much is it is all about a day to show your significant other how much they mean to you, basically through gifts. Everyday people should be showing their significant others how much they mean to them. The fact that people judge how much I care by how much I get my significant other is completely ridiculous.
Even if people don’t say it, they are judging the gifts others give someone for Valentine’s Day. It’s never just perfect; it’s either not enough or too much or too showy or too plain. The point is to tell the Valentine how much they mean, not show everyone else how much they mean by the price tag on the gift.
This year, Valentine’s Day is just a typical day. I will go to class, rehearsal and dance class just like any other Thursday. It’s like any other day of being single, just like for a couple it should be like any other day in a relationship.
