Post Valentine’s Day is an ambiguous period -- as we reflect on the love all around us, we can’t help to do some introspection. For those of us who have been single for almost all entirety, there are some definite experiences we have all had.
1. Your friends doubt your ability to give dating advice (reasonably so).
Your BFF is sprawled on your couch, therapy-style, while you work to diagnose their relationship problems. You base your advice off something you saw on a TV show once because you honestly have no clue how to help them. The only actual experience you have to reference is that one guy you “talked to” for a week.
2. Everyone is too eager to get you in a relationship.
You mention a casual interaction with someone and your friends are automatically a 10 on a scale of one to Leslie Knope. They have a whole plan mapped out on how you will make that person fall in love with you. Don’t even bother mentioning it to your family either -- whenever you pick up your phone they’ll say, “Who are you texting?” or for months they’ll ask, “How’s *insert generic name*?”
3. Being independent AF.
You don’t need confirmation to do anything and have zero obligations. Seeing your friends heartbroken confirms your unwillingness to subject yourself to that. You don’t need others to treat you, you can “treat yo’ self."
4. Feeling like it’s too late to hop in the game.
Everyone else has already “been there, done that” and went through that relationship phase. You have a lot of making up to do. Despite this, there is a prevalent hook-up culture in college that is rather unappealing. It feels like you missed your chance. You obviously don’t settle if you’ve been single for this long, but something tells you you’re not going to get the exact “Notebook” romance you were looking for.
5. Picky and proud
Your friends try to set you up, but something is just not right with all of them. Even though this narrows your options, you want to get it perfectly right.
We aren’t against love, we just have yet to experience it. Maybe some of us feel like we don’t need it. There shouldn’t be a time stamp on it. Sometimes it feels like your life is planned out for you -- like there’s these precise steps you need to take, when in actuality, that’s not the case. Though single people may have these relatable moments, at least we could all come together on these common occurrences. Despite it all, who knows what the future holds: love or maybe more late-night pizza, at least in my case.
