How To: Survive V Day

So, you’re flying solo this year. There are two generally accepted approaches to dealing with this all-too-common predicament: You can run a lavender-scented bath and wallow in self-indulgent pity, or you can pretend that the miserable excuse for a holiday does not exist. There is a third — something we like to call Content and Single this Holiday. Or simply, C.A.S.H. According to the National Retail Federation, the average consumer spends $120 on Valentine’s Day cards, flowers, candy and juvenile stuffed animals. Toss in a satisfactory meal at a sit-down restaurant and that figure easily climbs above $200. We don’t know about you, but in our opinion, an extra $200 in the pocket is hardly something to bemoan. Here are some suggestions on how to spend that extra green:

Rescue a puppy and have it spayed. (You’ll always have each other.)
Round up a pack of single buddies, tie one on and stay out as late as you darn well please.
Purchase the complete first season of “Desperate Housewives” on DVD and see how badly the other half lives.
Get a tattoo. May we suggest “C.A.S.H.”?
Consult a psychic so you can begin planning for next year’s Valentine’s Day.
Join an online dating site such as eHarmony to find your soul mate.

Hah! We are totally kidding on that last one.

It’s Overrated
1 out of 10 men in our survey prefers a back rub to sex.
3.5 out of 10 women in our survey prefer a back rub to sex.