Well ladies, another halloween has come and gone. Once again, we have packed up our tutus and neon suspenders and put them away until next year when the fun begins all over again. So now that we have unmasked and put our everyday clothes back on, we begin to prepare for the next holiday. Well, we begin to prepare for THE holiday season. The time from Thanksgiving to New Years offers us new treats to bake for our friends and family, endless holiday discounts at almost every store, and most importantly, time to reflect on the year that is coming to a close. Although it seems like just yesterday we all huddled around television sets to watch the ball drop, 2013 is almost over. But does that mean that we should just sit around and watch it end? Should we continue with our everyday lives knowing that we are about to watch another year wave goodbye and never return?
Although final exams will approach faster than we think, it’s important to remember that our lives don’t revolve around school. Our campus, as well as Ann Arbor, offers hundreds of things to take our minds off of school, and help us relax. So let’s take these opportunities! While final exams don’t happen until december, let November be your chance to indulge in opportunities you passed up the last ten months, and give yourself a chance to erase your regrets. Follow these five tips to make November your month to shine.
1.Stop texting the boy you should have said goodbye to when summer ended.
While most women will wait until the new year to start with a clean slate when it comes to men, why not start now? We all have that one guy we text even though we really aren’t interested. That one person a women will use as her security blanket if other relationships don’t work out. Well, it’s probably time to be fair to him and stop leading him on, but it’s even more important to be fair to yourself. If you know that he’s not the one, end the year your way, and enjoy being single without any strings.
2.Buy that little black dress you have been stalking all fall.
We all do it. We visit an online shopping website once a day, or we walk by a store whenever possible just to admire a dress, a skirt, or a pair of shoes. However, we decide to save our money for more reasonable things such as food and water, and soon, our fantasy of wearing that perfect dress is sadly gone. Instead of using will power to save a few extra bucks, give in for once and treat yourself to something nice. Whether it be a purse you have wanted for forever, or a pair of earrings that you have been admiring since high school, end your year wearing something or using something that will make yourself feel pretty and confident.
3.Treat yourself to a bowl of ice cream. Or two. Or three.
Just do it. Don’t look at the nutrition facts, don’t feel guilty, and don’t buy the low-fat version. As women, we spend enough of our time depriving ourselves of things that taste good in fear that we won’t fit into our skinny jeans the next day. All the while watching our male counterparts devour cheeseburger after cheeseburger. The holidays are here, which means holiday food is here. While it’s important to watch what we eat for health reasons, treat yourself to ice cream, or a huge chocolate chip cookie, or even 2 a.m. feta bread from Pizza House. Whatever it is, eat it, eat a lot of it, and enjoy.
4.Have a movie night with your best girlfriends.
Spend the night quoting Mean Girls, laughing along with Melissa McCarthy in Bridesmaids, or even cuddle up together and cover each others eyes from the scary scenes in a horror movie. Spending a night with your girlfriends gives you the opportunity to laugh about silly moments throughout the year, reflect on those guys that weren’t good enough, and gossip about anything and everything until the sun comes up. To be honest, these are the kinds of nights that will be the most memorable. These are the nights your inside jokes will arise from, and these are the nights that will bring your group of friends even closer. End your year with your friends, and enjoy the fact that you have people in your life that you love and care about.
5.Be thankful.
With November and the holiday season comes Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time for families to sit with each other and tell what they are thankful for. Although it may seem like a no-brainer to be thankful and not take things for granted, a recent study has shown that being grateful can also increase our level of happiness (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHv6vTKD6lg). By showing others gratitude for the things they have done in your life and telling them how much they mean to you is an amazing way to make yourself feel good, and end your year on a happy note. It is also a chance to bring others joy, and help them end their year as amazing as yours.
So while you begin to study for finals and make plan for winter break, remember to take at least a few minutes a day for yourself. 2013 will never be back, so make sure you make it as memorable and useful as possible.