Single Saturday #12 - A Depressing New Development

I opened my email the other day and there was a letter in there from my aunt about a Christmas get-together at her house this weekend. Due to the fact that my generation has all gotten married and has other families to include in their Christmas celebrations (which kept them from coming to ours), we started getting together the week before Christmas so everyone could be there.

Instant depression set in as I looked at the email. It was a list of what food everyone was supposed to bring to the party.  As I scrolled down the list, everyone was listed as a couple...but me. All my aunts and uncles...and all my cousins. Every one of them. My name was the only one that sat by itself. (I do have a 16-year-old cousin that isn't married, but she wasn't on the list.)

To be fair, I've known this for awhile. I think my aunt was the last to get married a few years ago, but seeing it in 22 point font...well, that was just a little depressing.  Now, that doesn't mean I want to go out there and get married just so my name isn't by itself on a list, but still...depressing.

Have any of you had a moment of realization like that?

More Facebook Faux Pas

As an addition to yesterday's post, I thought of something else that really bugs me when it comes to Facebook...

 Couples with one FB account. Example: Jim and Samantha White 

I have been seeing this more and more. First off, I have NO IDEA who is commenting. Is the wife? The husband? How am I supposed to know? Who liked my status? Who commented on the picture I posted. Who thinks what I said was, "so funny I peed my pants. lol"?  And I always notice that their comments are made in the first person. Shouldn't it be, "so funny we peed our pants. lol"?

I find this very obnoxious and irritating. It's as if they have literally become one person instead of two individuals. I realize that during marriage ceremonies there is often a line that has something to do with two becoming one, but this is taking it too far.  I usually blame the wife, and I often wonder if the husband even knows he's "on Facebook".

Does anyone have friends like this? Have you ever heard a legitimate reason for doing this? Please let me know...

Single Saturday #1

At 34-years-old, being single is a little bit different than it would be if I was 10 years younger.  For some, 34 would be more depressing; they would probably be more desperate for a date/mate and would probably be tired of the looks of pity from their married friends. For me, I am content. If God chooses to drop the perfect guy for me right on my doorstep, I'm willing to give it a shot, but I don't go looking for dates or worry about being an old maid. However, even though I might be perfectly happy being single, there are always a few things that being a part of a couple would make easier...

I am currently staying at my best friend's house in NC. I am so glad to be here, but being single does make a few things more difficult. First of all, it was a long trip...even though I managed to make it halfway across the country in record time. I kept myself busy by listening to two audio books. I started out with Nicholas Sparks' The Guardian, and finished up the trip with Kathy Griffin's book, Official Book Club Selection (quite the variety, I know). I am, however, under no disillusionment that the drive would have been more fun if I had someone to ride with me (assuming I got along with that person...we're not talking about just anyone here).

Another minor consideration is that my bestie is still pretty much a newlywed. Since I haven't seen her in a long time, I forget how her and her husband act around each other. There's nothing wrong with it, and it is cute, but it does make me feel like a third wheel sometimes (only when they are being all lovey-dovey though). I am sure the situation would feel more normal if it was two couples hanging out together instead of a couple and a single person.  Even a group dynamic would be quite different.

This has been one of the main issues I have with being single at my age. Almost all of my good friends are married. Most have kids. It may be wrong, but for the most part I just assume they don't want to hang out with me anymore. While that might not be true, I still find that relationships aren't quite the same after someone gets married. 

While I don't like being the third-wheel, I don't think it is a good reason to feel forced into finding "Mr. Right".

So I'm just wondering how other singles feel in similar situations. How do you deal with it? Have you lost friends when they marry?

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