A single life

Published in GALWAYnow and LIMERICKnow Magazines February 08

Nights on the town too numerous to count, weekends away with the girls, endless phone conversations about boys. Jo Lavelle ponders the joys of being single.

Finding yourself single when all around you are falling in love, getting engaged, getting married, having children, can be pretty daunting. When it seems like everyone around you is moving onto the ‘next’ step, you feel stationary, like you’re moving nowhere. But there’s something about being single that causes you to become more determined to have fun, to prove wrong all the loved-up couples who believe that life is nothing if there’s not two of you to experience it together. And it’s this adrenaline, or pig headedness if you like, that, if channelled in the right way, can result in you having the best time of your life.

A good social life is of paramount importance in a single girl’s life. Throw in a good party girlfriend, a great wardrobe, loads of energy and a willingness to let go a little - and you’re in for one hell of a fun time. You’ll probably need at least one partner in crime - someone who’s more likely to be whiling away weekend mornings huddled under the duvet, only to rise in time to stick on a wash, go for a blow dry and head out on the town again.

There’s something deliciously exciting about being single; it’s that not knowing what’s around the corner. Not knowing who you might bump into and what that might lead to. Options are endless, and the world’s your oyster. Then there are the dates, the dizzying excitement of meeting new people. When you’re single you accept invitations that you would never have considered otherwise, have no problem spending half a day getting ready, squeezing into that little black number. You party till 5am, flirt outrageously (and are rarely admonished for it).

The single girl has a licence to live life to the max - to party hard, have fun, be a bit wild. She has a licence to blow all her wages on a pair of D&Gs if she so wishes, or spend her entire food budget for the week on Prosecco and olives.

A great wardrobe is also one of the by-products of a single life. So much time to focus on yourself - those hours trying on dozens of jeans looking for one that gives you the perfect ass; the self-indulgent splurging on the prettiest dresses, the must-have shoes…all because you deserve it.

Then there’s that absolute independence, the feeling that you could pack up and leave for some exotic destination in the morning, even if you never have any intention of carrying through all the threats.

And while being single may not always be a walk in the park; there’s always going to be times when you’d give anything for a cuddle from a pair of big loving arms, chances are you won’t always be single. So embrace it, enjoy your time on your own. Chances are you’ll look back in 20 years on these days as the best time of your life. Enjoy!