Celebrate an Anti-Valentine's Day

Every year during the middle of February, both couples and singles start to go crazy over the upcoming holiday of hearts: Valentine's Day. The couples rush to make date reservations, purchase perfect flowers and brightly wrapped candy, possibly get the flashy "bling" your mate wants so badly, and set up a romantic mood for a candle lit night. Singles, on the other hand, tend to triumphantly reject the holiday, glare at any decorative display, and settle down into their depression cocoon, feeling even more alone than they did during Christmas and New Years. No one quite knows why we get ourselves all frenzied for this holiday, but we all react to it in some form.

However, whether you are single or in a relationship or even in between, Valentine's Day brings about a variety of negative feelings: depression, stress, guilt, phoniness, anxiety, loneliness, et cetera. If you feel that Valentine's Day is overdone and unnecessary, then try something different this year! Here are 5 ideas on how to celebrate an Anti-Valentine's Day:

1. Wear only black, all day. You will stick out amongst the bright pinks and reds.
2. Avoid buying any Valentine's Day merchandise. Make a statement that if we are going to celebrate love, then it should not be based on the amount of money we spend.
3. Rent a "bad" movie, not a romance, comedy, or a "chick flick", but something out of the ordinary: action/thriller/adventure movies might work for the Anti-Valentine's Day kind of spirit.
4. Stay at home for a "me day". Be self indulgent. Avoid going out in crowds among other couples. Show yourself a bit of love.
5. Commit to showing love to the people you care about throughout the year, as opposed to electing to show it merely one day a year.

From personal experience, I can say that Valentine's Day has always been an obligatory holiday - where we feel like we have to do something or have to be with someone. But the best times I have had is making the holiday more meaningful for myself by creating my own traditions, molding the holiday into what I want it to be and what I want it to mean to me. And whether I was single or taken at the time, I made Valentine's Day special for myself without having to fit the stereotypical aspects of what to do on February 14^th. So this year, try having your own special Anti-Valentine's Day.