by Emily Hall

Created on: January 07, 2009

It's been a funny time of year if you're single. Couples can seem to be everywhere at Christmas. The classic situation if you're single and back at your family home for New Year's Eve is having to sleep in your childhood bedroom with the ghosts of the past lingering everywhere in the old posters and photos of past partners. But somehow it all seems to go downhill for couples after New Year - more break ups occur in these early months than any of the rest of the year. If you're single to begin with, instead of being half of an argument in the supermarket car park, you can be having independent fun with no animosity attached! But the sudden bustle of family life followed by its swift retraction can make you feel lonely. However, loneliness can be combated - and it doesn't necessarily mean drastic measures!

As a single person the world is open to you. You can spend time with your friends, or be the mysterious stranger that everyone wants to get to know! Try just putting in some time in a local pub you like. If you go in three times a week, say, by the end of the first week you'll probably have made some new friends already. If you're good at pool, show off - if you're bad at pool, have a laugh! Participating in a game is a great way to meet new people, and even if it looks like nobody wants to play initially, open up the table and just shoot a few balls on your own. You'll be amazed at how quickly someone will come up and try to 'show you how it's done'!

A good way to beat the post New Year blues is to do something new. If there's a skill you've always wanted to learn, take it up now - don't let it be an 'if only' any longer! If you can't think of anything, have a browse in your local adult education brochure or look for groups in your area that pursue a new interest. I recently took up car mechanics for beginners - perhaps it's not the most obvious choice for a diminutive young woman (judging by the other participants!) but it's been surprisingly good fun so far! I can see myself building friendships with some of the people on the course, and I'm really looking forward to the day when I break down on the motorway and can fix my own car...perhaps oh-so-politely turning down assistance from that burly man who stopped to give the little lady a hand!

Borrowing a dog for the day is simply not done often enough! It's easy to allow your lifestyle to become more sedentary than you might like, and taking on a dog of your own is a big commitment. But taking care of a dog

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