“Laugh as much as you choose, but you will not laugh me out of my opinion.”
-Pride and Prejudice

Being single is not for the faint of heart.

Please don’t get offended if you are married . . . yeah, yeah I know that being married and having children has its own difficulties and challenges, but (and call it a fat joke if you like because it is a huge BUT) you have someone to take some of the pressures off, to help make decisions and to lean on when needed. Not to mention that every married couple that I know when they say they are jealous of everything that I am able to do and have, when asked always state that they would never go back to having to play the dating game or give up what they have and love.

The grass does, metaphorically, seem to be greener when it comes to this issue.

Mel and I used to commiserate and decided that most girls were able to get married young because they weren’t strong enough to endure being single for very long. At least it made us feel better for a minute.

Daily I have a monstrous list of tasks that need to be accomplished. Daily I fail to get everything done that needs to be completed, but no worries if it doesn’t get done it is still waiting for me the next day. I have learned to become very organized and prioritize, prioritize, prioritize. This, of course, even fails me because I have no qualms about dropping the entire list when a social activity comes up. Bad habit, but a girl has got to enjoy life.

December takes an extra dose of “suck it up and deal with it” attitude when single. Yes, it is even worse than February. Why? February only contains a one day reminder. Where from the end of November until the first of January there are continual reminders of being alone.

I have already attended three Christmas parties. I have another one tonight and one tomorrow night (this doesn’t include any family parties yet). There is always the very uncomfortable seating issue because it makes for an uneven number at the table and leaves a chair very conspicuously empty. It almost makes you feel like there is a flashing neon sign in the empty seat next to you point out the fact that you are by yourself. Also, when everyone is whispering to their spouses, you just have to pretend that the veggies are excellent company and you just can’t seem to stuff enough of them in your mouth to make it look like you are choosing not to be talking to anyone.

Now most of this is probably just in my head, but it nevertheless makes for much discomfort. I have always been an incredibly social individual and don’t typically have issues with being in any situation, but a formal gathering alone is always on a totally different plane of social interaction. Most of these affairs are specifically designed for either couples or families and it is felt when you are single.

After Christmas comes the New Year’s Eve festivities. Need I say more?

Now this is not new to me. I have spent every Christmas and New Year’s Eve without a significant other and have gotten accustomed to what I need to do in order to enjoy them. I seem to only have a boyfriend during random months that don’t include any holidays. I was dating someone two years ago during the holiday season, but he spent the month of December and the first week of January at home in Denver with his family (yes that should have told me something). That New Year’s Eve was spent on the phone all night sad that we weren’t together (that actually might have been worse than being by myself).

All this is not to make anyone think that I sit around and sulk (see above paragraphs . . . I don’t have time) or that I need pity, I don’t. This is just a friendly reminder to be a bit more sensitive when someone comes to these things by themselves. Believe me, it was not an easy decision and one they probably had to talk themselves into.