Galentine’s Day: Celebrating a different kind of love

Ahhh Valentine’s Day… famously known as a day when girls and boys alike desperately seek out a significant other in time for the romantic festivities. Usually resulting in universal disappointment among the single population, this weekend of Valentine’s day holds a new, more positive tradition in our hearts for the year of 2016.

Time to throw away all of those “I Hate Valentine’s Day” decorations and start planning your Galentine’s Day party… celebrating friends, family, or even those seven digits that you collected at The Boot and Palms last night. It’s a new year and you’re still single… but this doesn’t have to turn into a sob fest.

It’s time to stop drowning your sorrows in Valentine’s Day candies and hours of unrealistic romantic movies dreaming of what could have been. Let us instead consume an inordinate amount of chocolate and be happy about it, replace The Notebook with Magic Mike XXL, and crush some hearts as we make 2016 the year of the bachelors and bachelorettes.

And here’s what we’re celebrating…

YOU

For starters…. there’s no need to DTR (Define the Relationship, duh) when you don’t have a lover to begin with. Instead of figuring out your relationship status with your new boo you barely know and just started hooking up with, celebrate your relationship with yourself! Me-time becomes more and more limited as you grow older, so it’s important to embrace it whenever you have the chance. That means doing what you love most whether it be breakfast in bed, a deep soak in the bath, “bedflix” and chill, or a nice dinner out solo. Just because you don’t have someone else giving you presents for Vday doesn’t mean you don’t deserve any. This year, we suggest that you take a chapter out of Tom and Donna’s Parks and Rec book and “Treat Yo Self.

FRIENDS

Whoever equated single on Valentine’s Day with lonely was just plain wrong. Yeah, most people are struck with the sudden reality that they’re “alone” as February 14th approaches, but in most cases, people are not alone! In fact, most college students are without someone special on this day of love. On Galentine’s Day, you get to spend time with those who are really important: your gals. A spark will burn out, but friends are forever (cheesy but ever so true). This is especially true in college as a large hookup scene has grown to be quite prevalent as of late. Let’s take advantage of this new trend! This year, we shall welcome the idea of letting loose, popping them bras off, and enjoying a potluck dinner at a friend’s home rather than at an expensive restaurant. This allows everyone to save tons of money and engorge on an array of homemade meals — not to mention the loads of leftovers that will be ready to be consumed for weeks to come.

HOOK UPS

People may assume that because your status is “single,” that you may be unsuccessful in acquiring a significant other. In reality though you probably have many suitors, just none that can be deemed boyfriend material. That’s right, just ‘cus you’re single doesn’t mean you can’t mingle. Enjoy this Galentine’s Day drinking game if you’re over 21, go bar hopping, and cop all the digits you can! Hit up your old single booty calls if you feel like it. Find a stranger. This is a day of no judgement and just doing you. Get all your single friends together and go out and enjoy the singles scene!

So let’s rejoice in the glory that is being single through new Galentine’s day traditions.