I saw this on my friend’s blog and decided to do it on my blog too (esp since I’m trying to blog at least every other day this week!).
Basically, a Glamour magazine dating blogger (Erin Meanley) wrote an article detailing key experiences every singleton should savor before they couple up and my friend got the idea to go through the list and point out everything she has done (or has no desire to do).
[The formatting is all messed up because WordPress hates me today.]
36 Things Every Single Girl Must Do Before She Settles DowN
I’m back on the market. But I don’t really feel like being on the market. So what can I do, in between relationships, to “up” my resale value, or just do for myself? I made a list of some must-have experiences for women who are single and have a little time on their hands. Here goes:
To Build Your Confidence…
1. Go to a movie alone. – Done this tons of times!
2. Lift weights. – I can press the bar (which is 45lbs, I think!!)
3. Try surfing, water-skiing, or some activity you don’t already know how to do. – Water skiing would be cool! I want to try rock climbing.
4. Take out the trash, set a mousetrap, do your taxes, build a bookcase. – I take out my own trash all the time; I will die if I see a mouse; my taxes were complicated last year but I plan to do my own this year; I’ve built a bookcase already and recently I built a wardrobe closet from IKEA
5. Live alone, or at least move apartments in NYC without the help of family. – I lived in my own apartment and I moved to NYC for a summer by myself 🙂
6. Train for (and finish) a huge physical test like a half-marathon. – I really want to run a marathon in 2011!
7. Go to a scary doctor’s appointment by yourself. – Hopefully this will never be necessary single or no single, lol.
8. Quit your job. It feels so good to take a job and shove it (and not be affecting anyone else’s livelihood). – I’ve had about 16 jobs. At this point I’m trying to learn how NOT to quit a job.
9. Fly to a foreign country by yourself. No thanks. I travel alone domestically all the time, but unless I’m meeting someone in said foreign country then I have no desire to be there alone.
10. Learn to stand up for yourself. – I need to learn to stand down. I am my own attack dog LOL.
To Be Able to Look Back and Say “I Had Fun”…
11. Witness something once-in-a-lifetime, like Jokulsarlon, a lake next to a melting glacier in Iceland. – I once saw a car on the side of the road catch on fire, does that count?
12. Revel in being able to watch all the reality TV you want. – I am not a big fan of reality TV but I can watch FRIENDS on DVD for houuuuuurs.
13. Get drunk during the day, just because you can. Attend Santacon, the convention for Santas, or something similar. – No thanks.
14. Go on a date with someone who actually makes you nervous. – Makes me nervous like for my LIFE? No thanks. LOL. But nervous because I like him and I hope he likes me back? I’ve done that.
15. Go out with an older man who takes you somewhere nice and makes you feel like a million bucks. – I think I’ve done this, but define “older”. Does older mean “rich”? And does dates with my dad count? He was always taking me somewhere nice. Haha.
16. Go out with a guy who makes you laugh ‘til it hurts. – Heck yes I’ve done this.
To Get Perspective…
17. Be a good wingwoman. It’s not always about you. – I love hooking my friends up!
18. Chill with your widowed and single grandma. She knows “alone”! – My stepgrandmother is a widow and she is the bomb! I like being around her.
19. Volunteer. – This is all I do.
To Make You Appreciate the Next Guy…
20. Do at least one Valentine’s Day alone. – Done this!
21. Attend a wedding (or 15) alone. – No thanks
22. Date the creeps. You’ll really value the nice guys afterward. – I’ve dated the Who’s Who List of Jerks in Columbus and Atlanta. I’ve dated enough creeps for several single gals.
To Make You Feel Sexy and Attractive…
23. Buy yourself some flowers. – I prefer to light scented candles and buy myself the (really good kind of) chocolate candy
24. Invest in a LBD (little black dress) and some sexy stilettos. – I have too many black dresses. I’m working on my shoe game but I def have some cant-nobody-tell-me-nothing stilettos.
25. Sit at a bar by yourself and drink a martini. Cool. -I’ve sat alone at a bar, but I don’t like alcohol so I ate chicken quesadillas and watched the game.
26. Buy something frivolous and expensive that you LOVE wearing. – My COACH tote that I carry my laptop in was frivolous and expensive.
To Make the Most of Your Free Time…
27. Finish all your schooling if you can. – I’m still considering grad school. But I don’t need the degree and I don’t want the debt, so we’ll see.
28. Throw yourself into something time-consuming, like learning a foreign language. You may not have time to do this again until you retire and the kids are off to college. – theFreshXpress.com. I don’t think I’ve ever gone headfirst into something like I have with this. And I’m starting to work on my freelance magazine writing, so that will be time-consuming as well.
To Make Yourself a Better Partner in the Future…
29. Make a list of all your faults. – I don’t know about this one. I prefer to focus on the positives.
30. Learn to cook well. -I’m still working on this.
31. Get some hobbies. Something’s gotta keep you occupied—plus it’ll make you seem interesting. – Writing, reading, and shopping. Those are my hobbies.
32. Let your married friends edit your online dating profile. – What online dating profile?
33. Get your finances in order. –If there is anything I have in order it is my finances. Thank.God.
To Appreciate Being Single…
34. Babysit someone’s baby for an hour. – I have five nieces and nephews. I’ve spent way more than an hour babysitting babies.
35. Help a friend through her divorce or a bad break-up. – I’ve helped many a friend through a breakup. I hope to never have to help one through divorce.
36. Host a girls-only night. -I’ve done this plenty of times and I’m doing another one soon!
Well, if this list is any indication, I’m done with the single girl thing :-). Seriously, this was a cool little exercise. I don’t really have a list of things I want to get done before a certain time because I don’t believe life works like that. I’m going to be getting things accomplished and having a great time in life whether I am married or single. But I get what the author was saying. Next I’m going to find one of those “things to do before you’re 30” list and check that one off!
Alissa Henry 
You’ll be single the rest of your life if you attempt to complete this long ass list. 🙂
4…set a mousetrap…
Well, If you lived in NYC (5) you’ve probably set a mouse and roach trap.
23. Buy yourself some flowers.
Is that like giving yourself a hug while kissing your shoulder?
16. Go out with a guy who makes you laugh ‘til it hurts. – Heck yes I’ve done this.
Hopefully, it was because of what he said and not something else 🙂
29. Make a list of all your faults.
I kinda like this one. Of course, you want to focus on positives, but it’s also good to be aware of the areas you need to improve in.
21. Attend a wedding (or 15) alone. – No thanks
What’s wrong with that?
30. Learn to cook well. -I’m still working on this.
That’s right! Some Cap’n Crunch in a crock pot (because there’s no clean dishes) isn’t going to cut it 🙂
36. Host a girls-only night.
Unless you’re talking about a Passion party, what’s the point of this ?? 🙂
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#DEAD at this: 23. Buy yourself some flowers.
Is that like giving yourself a hug while kissing your shoulder?
Noooooo! It’s like buying yourself something cause you like it and not waiting for someone to buy it for you.
And this: 36. Host a girls-only night.
Unless you’re talking about a Passion party, what’s the point of this ??
Hahahaha. A Passion party?! No thanks. A girls night means getting together and hanging out whether we watch a movie or go out to eat or just chill. It’s fun. I’m not a big fan of girls nights all the time, but sometimes it needs to be just us.
Oh and I don’t do weddings by myself. That’s wack and calls for too much self-reflection (even for me haha).
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