I don’t mind Valentine’s Day, but I can’t stand Singles Awareness Day.

Have you heard of this? You probably have if you’ve been on the Internet within the last decade. I haven’t been able to log-on to Facebook or scroll through Twitter in the past few years without somebody posting, “Happy Singles Awareness Day!” every February 14th. This exclamation is typically followed by the single person’s plans for the day or thinly veiled pleas for pity, and sometimes it’s a standalone statement. It isn’t so much the presentation that bothers me—it’s that people feel the need to bash Valentine’s Day in the first place.

Valentine’s Day is the only holiday that seems to suffer this wrath. You don’t see posts on Christmas that read, “Happy Jesus-Was-Actually-Born-In-July-If-We’re-Gonna-Get-Technical-About-Things Day!” Or on Thanksgiving, nobody posts, “Happy Vegetarians’ Awareness Day!” People don’t publicly fight the traditions of Easter or St. Patrick’s Day, either, at least not with the same level of hatred as St. Valentine receives. So why did anybody feel the need to create this kind of anti-holiday?

Probably because there are few other areas of our lives that are as publicly noticeable as our relationship status, and it seems to be the world’s business on this one day in particular. And that’s kind of annoying, but some people aren’t helping themselves by making everything so much more public than necessary.

In an effort to reclaim Valentine’s Day as a general celebration of love as opposed to a couples-exclusive party, let’s examine some of the possible reasons behind these Singles Awareness Day posts.

Reason: To defend your status as a single person on a day seemingly tailor-made for couples. Why should they get all of the attention on February 14th?
Sample Status/Tweet: Happy Singles Awareness Day! Treating myself to a flowers and a nice dinner out. Who says a single girl can’t have fun today?????
Argument: Are you trying to fight the couples by stating your party-of-one status? Like, “I’m single and I don’t need anyone to be able to celebrate Valentine’s Day! I’m making this my own thing!” Hey, it’s cool that you’re single. Nobody’s looking down on you for that.

Reason: To seek pity. It’s not fair that you’re alone today—and everybody needs to know that.
Sample Status/Tweet: Valentine’s Day? Ugh. More like Singles Awareness Day. Guess I’ll go watch TV by myself
Argument: Real talk: Every once in a while, I appreciate a good wallowing session. Sometimes when things are crappy and nobody is around to listen to your problems, you’re allowed to feel bad and self-pitying for a few mopey minutes. But being single on Valentine’s Day is no reason to seek an ego stroke via the posting of a sad Singles Awareness Day status. C’mon friend, you’re better than that. If you’re really feeling down, might I suggest listening to “Me Party” from The Muppets soundtrack? It’ll lift your spirits in an instant.

Reason: To psyche yourself up. YOU know that you’re fine with being single this Valentine’s Day, but you want to make sure everybody else knows that, too.
Sample Status/Tweet: Livin’ it up on Singles Awareness Day! I DON’T NEED ANYBODY!!
Argument: You’re single and you’re happy that way. That’s awesome! You’ve got a great attitude, so what does it matter that today is Valentine’s Day? You don’t have to alter the spirit of the celebration just to fit your situation. Take that enthusiasm and celebrate love in all its forms.

Reason: Just being funny.
Sample Status/Tweet: Hey, it’s Singles Awareness Day. S.A.D., get it??! Hahahahaha lol.
Argument: I get that Singles Awareness Day probably started as a harmless, humorous alternative to Valentine’s Day. I just don’t happen to think it’s funny. It’s a super-weak joke. That’s all I really have to say about that.

Some holidays are more difficult to spend alone, and it just so happens that Valentine’s Day has morphed into this celebration that seems to have couples exclusively in mind. But instead of striking back with a singles crusade, it’s healthier and more fun to celebrate the general idea of love. So consider abandoning your Singles Awareness Day “celebrations” in favor of accepting Valentine’s Day for what it really is: an opportunity to eat an embarrassing amount of chocolate from a heart-shaped box.
Thanks gypsyjoker for the image!