Valentine's For Singles
It’s that time of year again where restaurants are filled with coupled customers willing to pay inflated prices for a meal, exchanging gifts and Hallmark cards filled with mass-produced expressions of love written by someone else. Not that I’m bitter and twisted, of course. Even when I was in a relationship, I still found the commercial side of this particular holiday ridiculous. (He bought me a card. It didn’t work out.) All that capitalist commercialism aside, I guess that the basic idea behind the 14th February is a nice one and shouldn’t be ignored. However, for those of us sans date this year, why not enjoy Valentine’s Day with friends and bypass the false enthusiasm you’d have to give upon receiving flowers and a Me-to-You bear?
Without further ado, fellow singles, an anti-Valentine’s checklist has been drawn up to get you through and to celebrate the joys of being single!
1) The playlist:
Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings – Better Things
The Beatles – I’ll Cry Instead
Betty Davis – Anti Love Song
Bob Dylan - Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
De La Soul – Me, Myself and I
Belle & Sebastian – I Don’t Love Anyone
Nancy Sinatra – Bang, Bang, My Baby Shot Me Down
Madison Avenue – Don’t Call Me Baby
The White Stripes – You Don’t Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You’re Told)
The Vaselines – Sex Sux (Amen)
Bobby McFerrin – Don’t Worry Be Happy
2) The drink: VODKA AND LOTS OF IT. No, of course not, we do not condone
binge drinking here. Why not treat yourself to an anti-Valentine’s cocktail? Like ‘Woo Woo Fuck You’! You will need:
· 2 parts vodka
· 1 part peach schnapps
· 3 parts cranberry juice
· 1 part orange juice
· Ice (crushed)
· Dash of grenadine
3) The food: no need to worry about waistline/smelly breath… no dates here!
Therefore, I propose a classic carb-fuelled dinner, perhaps spag bol with an unhealthy amount of garlic bread to accompany it. And ice cream. Magic.
4) Dartboard with pictures of your exes (optional).
Et voila! Valentine’s Day survived and conquered.
- Sophie McGraw
