College and University Blog
7 Sensational Valentine鈥檚 Day Ideas for Single Students
Valentine鈥檚 Day. The holiday makes some people swoon with happiness and others scowl in dismay. February 14 has become incredibly commercialized, with heart-shaped boxes of chocolate, bouquets of roses, and teddy bears making their way onto store shelves before the New Year鈥檚 Eve merchandise hits the clearance rack.
The estimates that 145 million valentines will be purchased this year, and that figure doesn鈥檛 even include the boxes of small cards children distribute at school!
Celebrate Valentine’s Day
If you feel like the only student in town without a significant other, surviving Valentine鈥檚 Day can seem next to impossible. Try not to get discouraged, though. It鈥檚 totally possible to make it through the day鈥攁nd even enjoy yourself鈥攚ithout a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Here are seven ways to 鈥渃elebrate鈥� on your own:
1. Give out non-romantic cards. Hand or mail cards to your parents, siblings, other relatives, friends, professors, bosses, roommates, classmates, hall mates and anyone else that you interact with on a regular basis. To save money, purchase children鈥檚 valentines. Who wouldn鈥檛 love a cute little message that includes a picture of Barbie, Dora, the Angry Birds or Sponge Bob? You鈥檒l have fun distributing them, and that tiny gesture will make the recipient smile.
2. Bake (or buy) some goodies. If you have access to an oven, bake heart-shaped cookies or decorate cupcakes with pink or red icing or sprinkles. Not a whiz in the kitchen? Hit the bakery at a local supermarket for a package of cookies, cupcakes, brownies, or the like. Just be sure to share鈥攚allowing in self-pity while overindulging on sweets will make you feel worse than being single.
3. Plan a singles night with a group of friends. Plan a night on the town with a group of unattached friends. Go to a movie or grab a bite to eat. Fancy restaurants could be crowded due to V-Day, but your favorite dive bar or local pizza shop will suffice.
4. Love yourself. No, not that way鈥� Write a list of things you like about yourself as well as things you鈥檇 like to improve. Encourage your friends to do the same. A healthy self-image goes a long way.
5. Host an Anti-Valentine鈥檚 party. If you鈥檙e feeling particularly spiteful, turn singles night into an Anti-Valentine鈥檚 Day event. Encourage everyone to wear black rather than pink and red, eat everything but chocolates, and watch horror flicks or movies about love gone wrong. You鈥檒l have fun, even if it鈥檚 simply because you all start cracking up at the reason behind your get-together. Just make sure you don鈥檛 drink and wind up making any phone calls to exes that you鈥檒l regret in the morning.
6. Go on a date with a friend. There鈥檚 no hard and fast rule that says only seriously committed couples can go out on dates together. Ask a single friend if he or she would like to join you for a non-romantic outing. Dress up just as you would for any normal date; only realize that it鈥檚 a 鈥渏ust friends鈥� thing.
7. Ignore the Big Day completely. Treating February 14 like any other day of the year is another way to survive Valentine鈥檚 Day. Sure, you鈥檒l run into decorations and people carrying roses or presents, but there鈥檚 no need to act snippy or spiteful. Just go about your business as usual, and tomorrow will be here before you know it.
One final word of wisdom鈥攊f you wind up 鈥渞omantically involved鈥� with someone you don鈥檛 know very well, as college students are known to do, use protection. In fact, be safe even if you do know the person, or you could wind up with much bigger problems than being single on Valentine鈥檚 Day.
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Melissa Rhone earned her Bachelor of Music in Education from the University of Tampa. She resides in the Tampa Bay area and enjoys writing about college, pop culture, and epilepsy awareness.