By Christopher Null, Editor

Love is in the air, so put on your gas mask and dive into the trenches. There is no need to absorb all those consumerist ideas of buying something for your special someone to make sure they know that they are in fact, your special someone. What is one to do if they don’t have a special someone to treat, praise, and enjoy this Valentine’s Day with? To avoid all the overthinking of why no one wants to sacrifice their time spent around you, think of all the times you have dealt with you and award that!

A thing typically overlooked around this time of year is one’s respect and love for themselves. If you have no one to make you feel like you are worth it, dwelling on the fact you are alone and getting depressed can probably be linked to why you are single in the first place. So make the change to better yourself and praise yourself for the love in which you’ll get back from yourself. Consider this a stronger New Year’s Resolution since it has a personal emotion to go along with it. Another thing to think about are all the beneficial sides of being alone on this holiday.

The first thing to take into account is all the money you have saved when it has not been shared or ‘borrowed’ with someone else. You have worked hard; you deserve everything you have worked for. The next positive aspect to stay focused on is having the whole day to do whatever you wish to do; no one is forcing you to take part in activities you wish to take no part of. After all that, if you still are feeling left-out, take stock of those who are also taking notes of these points because odds are they are in a similar lonely boat filled with self-loathing and miserable feelings that you sail in. Of course you are not in the same boat because who wants to share the helm of a vessel with someone like that?

In all seriousness, Valentine’s Day is a nice time to appreciate the love and appreciation someone has given you. If you don’t have someone to call your own, there is no need to feel depressed about it. Loving yourself should come first on your list of important things even if you share an intimate relationship with someone. It may seem obvious, but a bit of negligence could really let this small idea snowball.

See the day of being alone as a free day to risk. Take the day to try something you have always dreamed of embarking on or take the day off and do nothing. Helping someone out is a sure way to make the day seem a bit brighter. Too many people take this day as a day to lower themselves. The purpose of this day like holiday is to feel good and make happy memories. So break traditions and do what you can to make you happy if no one else can. Having the ability to be comfortable with ordering pizza for one just enforces the love you owe yourself and Papa Johns.