When you are single and the Day of Love (feel free to insert floating hearts or eye roll here) comes around, your first impulse may be to hide under the covers while cupid is out frolicking with your paired-off friends. This year, the 14th falls on a Wednesday; it would be pretty easy to hit the snooze on this one, but not so fast.
While you might not want to go out for dinner and sit next to couples feeding each other or snapping kissy-face selfies, there are still lots of ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day and make yourself—and others—feel the love.
Here are 10 ways to kick up your heels in the spirit of the day:
Give. Spend your V-Day giving love. Use the budget you would have expended on your mate—according to Wallet Hub, the average V-Day expenditure is $143.56!— and buy balloons, chocolate or some other treat to brighten the day of patients at a hospital or residents at an assisted-living facility. Or play cupid to a child in foster care by granting a wish of any amount at Trenton-based One Simple Wish
Get pampered. What better time to treat yourself to a spa treatment?
How about a special roll in the hay? There is something delicious about having the bed to yourself—and with the fab organic sheets from Jersey’s own Boll and Branch, it’s even sweeter. Read all about the burgeoning brand, which now has a store at the Mall at Short Hills. We first wrote about them when they were an online start up based in Chatham.
Take control. Of the remote. Pick up your dinner, put on your PJs and cue up a binge session of your favorite shows. Check out our fun foodie finds for yummy takeout spots.
Then there is dessert. Go ahead, indulge. Bang Cookies in Jersey City is introducing a new stuffed cookie in honor of Valentine’s Day. You will not have to share. If you live in J.C. or Hoboken, you can even have them delivered!
Spoil yourself. Who needs another dozen roses? Make your love last. Slip into these divine new cashmere slippers—from Minnie Rose, a luxury cashmere company from a native Jerseyan. Your feet will feel loved for days to come.
Slip away. There is no better way to escape than to dive into a good book (sorry TV junkies, it’s true). Grab a copy of Tayari Jones’s new novel An American Marriage; it’s a love story with a twist. Jones is a Rutgers University professor and her latest book was just chosen for Oprah’s book Club. Dig in! (P.S. Oprah has optioned a film version, too!)
For poetry lovers, Princeton author Dina S. Paulson McEwen’s new book, Parts of Love, may hit the spot.
Get your laugh on. Don’t be afraid to go solo to a show, especially a comedy. After a night of yucking it up beside strangers, you might have a whole row of new friends. Check out the upcoming show at NJPAC.
Ohm at home—or join a group. It may not exactly be romantic, but managing your stress is one of the most loving things you can do for yourself. Hop on the mindfulness bandwagon with meditation, yoga or another relaxation method.
Up your endorphins—move. Attend an exercise class. Classes foster a great sense of community, play and are great fun, plus cardio raises your endorphins—like love!
