Valentine's Day for Singles: How do you celebrate?

[C33]

Every year, I try to not care about Valentine's Day, but I admit I have a cheesy unhealthy wish to get a red teddy bear on my doorsteps!

This year, I will be moving to a different country, and would like to know of any rituals single people might have, to put a positive spin on being single!

Being single beats being paired up and unhappy, anytime of the year, so it s not about being desperate, but it s just about reframing a holiday that underlines being single ,as something empowering and loving to oneself and possibly others!

[John Hill]

When I was a kid I remember saying to my mother and father "there is a Mothers Day and a Fathers Day every year when you give your parents a present but when is Kids Day?" To which my mother replied "every day is kids day" meaning kids get looked after and loved by their parents every day of the year so we don't need a special Kids Day but parents often get taken for granted by their kids so they get a special day for the kids to say thank you.

What I'm getting at here is Valentines Day is really nothing more than a money making extravaganza for retailers who sell overpriced and worthless junk to anyone who sees Valentines Day as important. If your relationship is real you shouldn't need Valentines Day as a reason to buy flowers or chocolates for your partner if you love them. In fact nothing makes my girlfriend happier than when I buy her something small for no other reason at all than because I love her. Valentines Day is nothing more than commercial pressure but I will say it's an ok idea for teenagers who haven't got to the real love stage yet.

I hope I haven't spoiled it for you, that wasn't my intention.

John

[elainevdw]

The funnest Valentine's Day I had was a few weeks after I got dumped for the first time. I decided that I didn't want to make myself miserable, so I made presents (I was into macrame at the time, so necklaces/keychains, etc.) for my friends, and even for my newly-ex boyfriend. It made me feel a lot better.

Also, if you want to get a red teddy bear, you might get almost as much pleasure out of giving red teddy bears to friends. You can also go out for drinks or to the movies or to coffee with your buddies.

[WanderingOak]

As for actually celebrating Valentine's day, I never have, thinking of it as just another 'Hallmark holiday', when jewelry stores and florists rake in bucket loads of money.

My strangest Valentine's day was when I was in college, taking Human Anatomy and Physiology. The instructor also taught agriculture classes and ran the college farm. She coordinated her classes, so the animals that were slaughtered on the farm could be 'recycled' for laboratory dissection. So, on Valentine's day, everybody in class had a fresh pigs heart to dissect...

[gberardi]

A couple of years ago I was single just in time for Valentine's Day. I decided to celebrate Ferris Wheel Day instead.

On that day, I got a bunch of my single friends together, and we watched "manly" movies. Someone brought a date, which was completely NOT in the spirit of the event.

Some of the movies were fun to watch, but I will never again watch porn with other people. You learn too much about each other. B-\

February 14th is also the day that IBM was founded, but you may want to find another thing to celebrate. There is only so much to get excited about with IBM...

[andrew]

Originally Posted by WanderingOak

As for actually celebrating Valentine's day, I never have, thinking of it as just another 'Hallmark holiday', when jewelry stores and florists rake in bucket loads of money.

My strangest Valentine's day was when I was in college, taking Human Anatomy and Physiology. The instructor also taught agriculture classes and ran the college farm. She coordinated her classes, so the animals that were slaughtered on the farm could be 'recycled' for laboratory dissection. So, on Valentine's day, everybody in class had a fresh pigs heart to dissect...

What a charming little story. I'm sure that goes over well on your v-day dinner date with that, oh-so-special someone.

[WanderingOak]

Originally Posted by andrew

What a charming little story. I'm sure that goes over well on your v-day dinner date with that, oh-so-special someone.

I would only do that if she had as warped a sense of humor as my Physiology instructor did. She deliberately timed the dissection for the cardiopulminary system portion of the class to land on v-day.

[Baltar]

Originally Posted by gberardi

February 14th is also the day that IBM was founded, but you may want to find another thing to celebrate. There is only so much to get excited about with IBM...

Are you knocking International Business Machines Corporation day?? That's like my favorite holiday of the year! Traditionally on this day I turn on the stock ticker, and patiently wait for the stock fairy to make IBM's shares go up in value.. but it never happens.

[Brien]

Originally Posted by WanderingOak

I would only do that if she had as warped a sense of humor as my Physiology instructor did. She deliberately timed the dissection for the cardiopulminary system portion of the class to land on v-day.

I think it's a pretty good story. Gives you something interesting to say about St. V-day. Certainly beats some American Greetings approved, socially conditioned sappy nonsense.

[Adrienne]

Originally Posted by WanderingOak

I would only do that if she had as warped a sense of humor as my Physiology instructor did. She deliberately timed the dissection for the cardiopulminary system portion of the class to land on v-day.

hehehe i bet i would have liked her very much. My only issue would have been the whole killing animals thing.. When i was in college, and high school, i point blank refused to do it, saying i wont condone an activity that ending a life...

As to what i do on V day. Well my best friend and i, are each others valentines. If we can, we spend the day and evening together, if we cant we just spend the evening together. We cook pizza (vegan of course), watch action movies, talk, laugh, huddle together under a blanket, retell stories of past love (not heartbreak but love and laughter), and we give each other a V day present. Not jewelry or any thing like that, just something to be a reminder to the other one that we love each other. This usually involves my best friend crying telling me i am never allowed to die. And i tell her i will never die because she cant die and i would never leave her
The evening usually ends with big hugs, and telling each other if we were gay we would totally sleep with the other one, followed by much giggling and i love yous.
She has had a fiancée for 5 years now. And we still usually keep this tradition. We started doing this when we were 13 or so. I moved away a couple years ago, but we still call each other on vday and talk for a while, and i get back for it if i can. If not, we celebrate next time we see each other. And now her fiancée joins us.

I cant wait till she and i live close together again.

Best friend rock. Boys (no offence men) come and go as relationships do, best friend are forever.

[norbert]

Adrienne knows something not many people do

I'm going to spend the afternoon and the evening with two great girls (friends of mine), either in my home or at some special place.

[Shuchetana]

When I was single I didn't do anything out of the ordinary: went to class, etc.

Now that I'm not, I think V-Day is dumb. I have a post about it at my new blog.

If you're single, and you'd like to do something fun, I suggest a shopping spree. (Make sure you need those things tho. Shoes are always good, you always need shoes.)

Ask a best friend to buy you a red teddy.

Do something fun/funny with friends. Or just curl up with a good (non-romantic) book.

O... and I just thought of something else that you could do: with a bunch of friends, dress up and find a bunch of desperate single guys to pick up. Make your own version of Joey's "Valentine's Day Massacre"

[Shaden]

I buy myself a big bag of cookies and enjoy my freedom!

Let's hope this year I won't get another surprise from my ex