The Best Date Ever

(Natalie usually blogs at the chronically adorable Pony and Pink. She's an art student, polyvore genius and champion dress-wearer. I think she's the girlfriend you call when you want to scour that vintage boutique, and then eat finger sandwiches and catch the Beirut show - Sarah Von)

I don't take myself out any more. Not on dates. I forget to buy myself pink carnations. I convince myself I'm too busy to go the movies alone.

I think this happens a lot. We make excuses. We work hard all day until all we want to do of an afternoon is drink a beer and fall onto the couch. And we rely on coupledom to propel us out into the world and rescue us from this behavioural rut. Rely on the people we date to, well, take us out on dates. Provide the romance. And I think there's something wrong with this picture.

I am, as of now, going to take myself out for dates more often. And - naturally - dress up for the occasion.

So, in case you're in need of a little romance, here are some ideas for solitary dates ... and, because I am a self-confessed style fiend, some Polyvore outfits I'd love to wear during these fabulous solo expeditions.

Ride a carousel (or maybe a ferris wheel?) while eating a tub of Turtle Mountain Peanut Butter Zig Zag with a glittery plastic spoon. Wear the kind of dress that flutters when you walk - but maybe wear a petticoat underneath, unless it is your most heartfelt desire to re-enact The Seven Year Itch. Insist on drinking everything through a pink straw, and call strangers "dollface". If sugar floats your boat, eat a stick of fairy floss (candy floss, cotton candy ... you know the drill) and take photographs of yourself with a half-eaten cloud of spun sugar and some very, very sticky lips.

Drive yourself to a lookout point in your city just as it's getting dark. Watch all of the streetlights illuminate the landscape. Wear heart-shaped glasses and buy yourself fragrant flowers before you go, so the scent wafts through the car. Think about ten things that have made you happy today, and turn up the stereo. I hope it's playing Iggy Pop or Bow Wow Wow. Your mileage may vary.

(Though, please, sweeties, lock your car doors. Just in case.)

Ride a gleaming bicycle to your nearest, geekiest museum - say, the Butterfly and Insect Museum in Honduras. Put streamers in your bicycle handlebars before you go and whistle as you ride! Take an audio tour of the museum - and don't forget to buy a postcard in the gift shop. Send it to someone who shares your entomological passions!

What dates do you take yourself on?