"Anyone Special In Your Life Right Now?" - And other uncomfortable questions you get asked at family functions and holidays

More and more girls have become embarrassed to admit that they might be... *whispers* Single. (DUN DUN DUUUUUNNN!!) They try to avoid the question and places where the topic may come up. A few years ago, had to waitress at a high school prom and was discussing my own prom; when one of the other waitresses asked if I had gone with anyone. Now, just so you know, my prom was a huge disappointment to say the least. No one asked me to go and no one asked me to dance, so needless to say I was a bit hesitant to answer her question. Without thinking, I blushed and answered no. The waitresses went on to interrogate me with other relationship questions until the big question came up, "Do you have a boyfriend yet?" It was the "yet" that got to me. It was as if there would be something wrong with me if I answered no. Once again I blushed and let out a muffled no. This got me thinking, when did it become embarrassing to be single? I was mortified tho think of all these girls with their dates and boyfriends, (other than the few girls who had come with a large group of girl friends) and I was single in my twenties.

Almost every women I have talked to has had at least two or more steady boyfriends before they even went to college or university. Why did it seem like I was the only twenty-something in history to have never been in a long-term relationship?

So why is it that women are so embarrassed to be single? Whether you are in your early teens or, like me, in your twenties? It seems like a universal female instinct to shy away from the question whether or not you're dating someone.  My feminist side screams out, "why do you care?" "Would having a boyfriend somehow change who I am and your image of who you think I am?"
But my Victorian, Jane Austen, romantic movie-watching self quietly weeps in the corner dreaming of a knight in shining armor riding in on a white horse.
We live in a society that, unfortunately, puts a premium on couples. We have television shows like The Bachelor and the Bachelorette that make light of relationships in general. I was just watching Say Yes To The Dress the other day and no less than 80% of the brides were in their early 20's!

So here is my plan: as the holidays quickly have creeped-up on me, I will face this question without embarrassment. I will enjoy my holidays regardless of my relationship status!

So, here's to all the single girls out there... Have a happy holiday! And even if you don't have someone waiting for you under the mistletoe, in the immortal words of Carrie Bradshaw, "the most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you can find someone to love the you you love, well, that's just fabulous!'