It’s Valentine’s Day. Cue the drugstore chocolates, the overcrowded restaurants, and the long lines at Victoria’s Secret.
Flowers will be bought, dates will be made, and everyone will be disgusted by gross amounts of PDA.
But before exes are called in drunken, lonely stupors, there is something to be said about V-day.
In this period of tumult and hate, it is more important than ever to realize that love has a much wider definition than romance.
Here’s the guide to feeling love today and everyday. First tip: go to CVS tomorrow for half off all the V-Day chocolate. Scoooooore!
1. Love NYC
NYC is the greatest city in the world, Sinatra and Jay-Z even sang about it. Yeah, the MTA sucks, but the city also boasts bagels, museums, and a thousand and one free things to do everyday. Be a tourist in your own city (just don’t walk slow).
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2. Love the environment
NYC is a concrete jungle, but our parks are just as important (if not more) as the skyscrapers. Show some love for the green...err, well, greyish brown during the winter... by getting out and enjoying the fresh air. Today, there’s even a special compost project at Queens Botanical Garden, centered around the earth worm, which has 5 hearts! And people say New Yorkers are heartless.
3. Love ya girlz
While Galentine’s Day, the holiday popularized by Leslie Knope, was officially February 13th, every day is a great day to love your friends. Get some wine, get your girls, and get weird, which obviously means go watch Fifty Shades Darker. Guys, you can also have your bromances.
4. Love thy neighbor
In the face of all the hate, we can’t forget that we’re all people first and foremost. It won’t kill you to hold a door open or smile at a fellow New Yorker. If you want to take it even further, go volunteer with NYC Cares. You can also protest to work towards love for everyone with your fellow empowered New Yorkers.
5. Love some puppies
Friends are great, but eventually they all get partners and fall off the face of the Earth. You know what will always love you? Puppies. As pages like dogspotting prove, they’re beings too pure for this world. While your landlord might not let you get a pupper of your own, there are tons of dogs deserving of your love in NYC’s animal shelters. Volunteer for a few hours at places like Bideawee and try not to cry from cuteness.
6. Love yourself
We are all born alone, we all die alone. Not to get morbid, but the point is this: you need to know how to ‘treat yo’ self’. Whether that’s a trip to the gym, a trip to Babeland, or a trip to the liquor store, you do you. But the best way to do it? Download the Shake Shack app and get a free burger!
[Feature Image Courtesy TimeOut NY]