Three Tips to a Singles' Solidarity Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is marketed as the most romantic day of the year. Department stores, discount stores, even gas stations and convenience stores get in on the action, selling millions of dollars in pink stuffed animals, pink frosted cookies, pink candies and many other assorted heart-shaped baubles.

But for those who don't have anyone to be romantic with, Valentine's Day can be nothing but one more agonizing reminder of their solitude. Here are three tips for escaping the Valentine's Day hub-bub.

Girls'/Guys' Night Out - While a seemingly obvious answer, probably seven out of every ten lonely onlys sit at home, alone, on Valentine's Day (night) and try to forget that it's even happening. Instead, gather up some similarly single friends and go out. Have dinner, see a movie, grab a few drinks at the bar, go bowling. Or rent movies (perhaps a Godfather marathon?), make dinner at home and have a girls'/guys' night in. Either way, you will have more fun than if you were spending the evening alone, watching bad romance movies on cable, crying into your Rocky Road, and it might be so much fun that it becomes habitual.

Give Valentines to your (single) friends - Make a kind of sport of the day. While the couples of the world are spending their hard earned money on sappy Valentine's Day cards, you can save a few bucks and treat several friends instead. Make a list of all of your single friends then buy each of them a box of Necco conversation hearts and adorn it with a card from a box of children's Valentine cards. Or make them homemade CDs filled with "better off without him/her" songs.