Well, everyone. Spooky season is officially over and it’s time for the holidays. The days are getting shorter, the air is colder and Starbucks is beginning to release its specialty flavors, which only means one thing — cuffing season has begun.
For those above the age of 25, cuffing season refers to our dating habits once it starts to get colder. Single people start looking, almost desperately, for a committed romantic partner during the winter months for reasons ranging from, according to an impromptu survey of my friends, having someone to celebrate the holidays with to having a hot-chocolate-and-movie-watching partner.
Cuffing season sneaks up on you. First, you start to see the matching couples costumes on Halloween. Suddenly, it’s November, and there seems to be a lot more people holding hands walking down Franklin. Your friend who spent the past nine months saying ‘men are trash’ is suddenly bringing her ex home for Thanksgiving dinner. When Christmas comes, your Instagram feed becomes insufferable with the amount of couples on it.
It’s a real thing now. According to the hosts of the ‘Save The Date Show’ podcast, there’s an official game schedule for cuffing season that starts on August 1 with scouting and ends on February 14, the championship game, Valentine's Day. Now that it’s November 1, we’re in the pre-season.
Cuffing season shouldn’t be this ingrained in our society, and to my serial monogamist friends: stop. The reasons why you were single before October (time commitments, your career, emotional stability) do not magically go away because you can start wearing your favorite turtlenecks now.
Strong relationships can provide emotional support, companionship and fun, but you can find all these things this month without settling for whoever messages you first on Tinder. Cuffing season and all the pressures associated with it must end, so here’s some ways you can enjoy the holiday season without a romantic partner.
- Treat yourself: Since everyone is going to be so focused on their new significant others, you can do something even better -- focus on yourself. Buy yourself two hot chocolates from Starbucks; after all, there isn’t anyone else you need to give it to.
- Go on a friends date: Why go to Maple View Farm or the pumpkin patch with one person when you can go with a whole group of your friends? You can go holiday shopping with them too, after all, you’ll have more opinions on your purchases, too.
- Spend time with family and friends: Think about it. Soon, you’ll be home for Thanksgiving and Winter Break, with home-cooked meals, non-lofted beds and your dog. College gets so hectic that we tend to put our families on the back burner, so spending the holidays single is a great way to spend quality time with them.
For all of our sakes, let’s stop the madness that is cuffing season. Please.
