Why You Should Be Your Own Date - Do Things Solo
I made the choice a year and a half ago to move back to Pittsburgh. I don’t regret it one bit. Okay, maybe I regret slightly how much I pay for rent but that’s okay. I love the city and I like being out on my own. However, being away from family means that I only have friends to rely on for coffee, restaurant and movie dates. Or, I have myself. I have NO issues going to eat by myself or shopping or anything else and I wish more people would feel empowered to do the same. Here are my reasons why it is great to be your own date!
No Awkward Conversation
When you are your own date, you don’t have to trudge your way through painful conversations. When I am with good friends I don’t have that issue but there are occasions where people meet up with acquaintances and the conversation is forced or nonexistent. That doesn’t happen when you are solo and that is a lovely thing!
You’re Gonna Be on Your Phone Anyway
It is 2017. Nearly 2018. I think the vast majority of people under 30 are going to have their phones out at dinner or lunch or coffee breaks. Older people will have their phones out, too, but probably to a lesser degree. Even when I am with friends, we all tend to have our phones out on the table or within arm’s reach. Since you are going to check your phone while eating or having coffee anyway, there is no need to bring someone along if you aren’t going to pay them attention.
Catch Up on News
Going along with the phone fact, you can use your solo time to read some news article or do your daily social media scroll. I was at The Cheesecake Factory last week and I could tell the waitress was either impressed that I was eating solo or pitying me. I was at the location near Ross Park Mall (the big mall in Pittsburgh) and when the waitress first came to the table she was clearly surprised when my answer to, “anyone else joining you?” was, “nope, just me!” She gave a little smile and was very kind. She never let my water get empty and she brewed me a fresh pot of coffee (because most people had switched to beer and cocktails at 11:30am but I hadn’t for some odd reason). I was sat near the bar so I faced the TV and scrolled through different news applications on my phone. I enjoyed it immensely.
Eat Where You Want and When You Want
Burger? Thai food? Pizza? Cookies? If you are your own date, you can eat what you want whenever you want. No bickering back and forth with the “I don’t know” answer. You do know what you want and you can get it!
Immerse Yourself in a Movie
I recently went to see Disney-Pixar’s Coco and I had a great time! I could have used someone to split my popcorn with but otherwise, I didn’t need a companion. You aren’t talking when at the cinema so you don’t really need anyone with you. After the movie ended, I had plenty of people (many of my friends from interning at Disney World) to text about Coco so I didn’t feel lonely that I couldn’t verbally recap my feelings.
Self Love
I think that being your own date is a way of practicing self love. You get to tune in to your emotions and thoughts. You can be pensive and "selfish." You get to do whatever you want!
