Valentine’s Day is hard for many of us. The ideal of two people being together, locking in each other’s gaze while dining at a fabulous restaurant is the exception, not the rule. So what is a person to do on this holiday, when that mold doesn’t fit?

For Singles

Many singles turn Valentine’s Day into a boycott of love, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Take this time to capitalize on all the wonderful things that are forgotten this day, like pizza. Order a pizza and take the time to enjoy all those old CDs that lost their place when you made the iPod switch. Spoil yourself; this is a day about love so treat yourself to a great bath or an indulgent desert. Go to bed happy that you had this time to pamper yourself.

For Parted Lovers

When you have multiple miles between you and your sweetie, it can feel like you’re losing what you once had. Do away with that and take time to remind your sweetie everyday that you love them

• Love Box: Procure a jar or box or some container large enough to hold multiple pieces of paper. Place inside multiple slips of paper, on each write something about your partner that you cherish. You can fill the box with as many slips as you want, and then instruct your partner to take one or two a day. Reading these sentiments everyday will keep you up front in their mind and make you feel more included in their daily lives.

• Covert Present: Make your present a real surprise by enlisting the help of a friend in the same city as your significant other. Have your friend hide the present away from your honey’s immediate view, then when it’s time to unveil the present, leave them in wonder when of how it got there. Or if you prefer, leave the present in plain sight, so when you partner comes home it is mysteriously waiting for them.

• Trail of Notes: Before you leave for a trip to see your honey, prepare a batch of short love notes and bring some tape. As the trip ends, tape and hide the notes in unexpected places (between folded clothes, the back of a closet door, etc) and wait for their surprise when they find them.

For Students

Valentine’s Day can quickly become an expensive ordeal if you’re not careful. Now your sweetie will most likely understand that you cannot bring down the moon for Valentine’s, but that doesn’t mean that it cannot be a special day.

• Recreate Your First Date: Something brought the two of you together; recreating your first date can bring back the old feelings of apprehension and excitement. Try to replicate things as closely as possible, and surprise your partner with how much that first date meant to you.

• Cook Dinner: As a student, you are probably not accustomed to having great meals every night. Make up for it by making a great meal for you and your honey. Follow up this meal with a sunset walk or an ice cream treat to make the night extremely sweet and memorable.

• Give Your Attention: How much time do you actually spend with your partner? An hour a day? Two or three? How much of that time do they actually have your full attention? Give your partner the gift of your attention, listen to them fully and really get what is going on with them. What makes them as great as they are? Find out and both of you will appreciate it.

Good luck to all of you this Valentine’s Day. Hopefully these ideas will help you this Valentine’s.