Valentine’s Day is a good holiday that is all too often overestimated. While it is advertised as a holiday for those who are truly, deeply in love, in reality it is just a holiday for showing everybody that you do, in fact, appreciate them. It is not necessarily just for romantic love. It can be a day to show your family and friends how much you care about them. But after watching everybody receive cheesy singing telegrams/candy, red roses, and adorable little stuffed animals, it seems obvious that many of us do not stop to consider this holiday’s full potential.

First of all, let us look at the not-so-bright side of having a date. After watching your friends scramble to get a date, primp for hours, agonize over finding the perfect gift, and worry about that first kiss, you are left sitting on your couch munching a bag of cheese puffs. And in your pajamas, no less.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “When life throws you a lemon, make lemonade?” So what if you don’t have a date? At least you are comfortable, relaxed, and worry-free. There are no thoughts as to whether your boyfriend thinks the other girls at the restaurant are hotter than you are. You do not have to wonder why your girlfriend is flirting with the oh-so-cute waiter. Instead, you and your stuffed bear can sit around and watch reruns of Seinfeld. And Teddy does not pass judgement, will not pressure you into something you do not want to do, or wrinkle his nose because your breath inexplicably smells of garlic.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with hanging out with your friends on Valentine’s Day. If you are a guy, hang out around the tube and have Surge chugging contests, belch the national anthem and talk about sports, cars, girls, or whatever else you guys talk about when we girls are not around.

If you are a girl, hang out with the pack, go to a movie, sing at the top of your lungs to the car radio, and dish out the latest nasty gossip.

The best thing about your friends is that you do not have to worry about impressing them because they will love you no matter what. And it does not matter if you spill nacho cheese on the front of your white shirt.

Or, if all of your friends hook up and leave you alone in an overly strong cloud of cologne, hang out with your family. Yes, it sounds a little dorky, but you only have a few years left to live with these guys. Your little brother will not always want to play “Candyland” with you. And your baby sister will not always get a kick out of baking cookies with you and generally creating chaos in the kitchen. You may as well take advantage of it. After all, your sister idolizes you and wants to look, act, and talk exactly like you (this gets interesting if she gets into your make-up drawer.)

Finally, for those of you who are an only child with no single friends, just go ahead and do what you want. Spend the day pampering yourself. Rent a movie you really wanted to see, eat a pint of Chunky Monkey Ice Cream, and generally do anything you want to do but never actually do because you feel guilty not fulfilling your “responsibilities.” If that includes twisting an entire family of balloon doggies, choreographing all the songs on the blech *NSUCK CD, (Yes, Fides, that is a personal attack on your Teeny Bopper ways) or finding 27 new uses for duct tape, go right ahead.

If you forget about the self-pity that accompanies not having a date, you might have a lot of fun.