It’s that time when Cupid flies around with that stupid grin and points his sharp little arrow at each of our pockets. If he’s not shooting the blessed half of us who get to torture ourselves through the over-exalted process of meeting the status-quo on the production of love on this day, he’s blowing raspberries at those weepy-eyed about being alone.

My point is that there is no winning over Cupid. He’s a chubby little bastard who flies around uninvited in our lives with a weapon. He’s apparently adorable for this. Now, I’m not cynical about Valentine’s Day theoretically. In fact, in my world Valentine’s Day started Sunday and is referred to as Valentine’s Week. My birthday also comes with a month-long season.

I don’t mind devoting one day to love in its purest form, but the modern, capitalist Cupid has reformed Valentine’s Day into an impossible, impure, important holiday, which usually pushes an amount of suffering under the smiles.

For us college students, Feb. 14 is an even bigger predicament than it is for general society. Half of us are single, which can get quite depressing when half the campus is walking around carrying average, over-priced red roses with chocolate all over their faces.

For the half that gets to play the Valentine’s Day game, it’s quite costly because every source of retailed romance knows that there are no options when it comes to buying gifts, cards and other cutesy accessories and unfortunately we’ll pay any price for it, just to make our expectant sweetie-pies content.

On Valentine’s Day we’re expected to do something out of the ordinary, which usually means the whole world ends up doing the same thing…at the same time…at the same place. Campus is not the place to spend Valentine’s Day unless you have a wonderful and forgiving companion. So then it’s a real fun time trying to find dinner reservations, hotels (c’mon we’re adults) and other accommodations to get away from campus to celebrate in private. On any other day, there is no such forum called privacy.

So why is it that if we say ‘no’ to Cupid’s to-do list, we get called ‘lazy, cheap and insensitive’ alternated by weeps from our companion? Originality should be the best gift of all, and it shouldn’t take hundreds of dollars and a wink from Hallmark’s love-child, Cupid. Time should replace money. Compliments should replace roses. Kisses are better for you than Russell Stover’s chocolates. Let’s not be Cupid’s droning slaves this year. Let’s let ourselves be in love all day without sweating the details of the status quo. Smiles, not frets.

For those that are single and stress-free on Feb. 14-enjoy it! You’re credit card will thank you.