Let It RING FREE...

Today, when I tore off yesterday’s calendar page to reveal this picture, I knew I had to write the following blog entry in reference to the news reports I had heard on television last night. As for this picture: I cracked up and thought yep! As for the news story, I’ll let you state come to your own thoughts…

If you live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and watched the late night news last night, there is a 50% chance you heard the findings of the study I’m about to share. This is because I couldn’t help but notice that both WFAA channel 8 news, as well as KDFW channel 4 news, were promoting the story in their commercials during the evening hours to advertise for their 10 o’clock news broadcast. It was not the typical type of advertising commercial that shouted the top stories of “Winter Blizzard” or “Murder Suspect caught locally.” No, it was shouting DON’T FRET ABOUT THE “RELATIONSHIP STATUS” QUESTION! It was shouting how SUCCESS DOESN’T ONLY COME WITH “I DO.” But even more, it was shouting EVEN THOUGH YOU MAY BE ALONE, YOU ARE NOT ALONE!

The story, as covered by channel 8, was entitled Being Single and Female Becomes the Norm. The essence of the story came from some recently released data which found that more than half of the women in the United States were “living without a spouse” in 2005. It was saying how not only are women more frequently living the single life, but they are also living it in a state of happiness and with successes.

Here is the news article taken from the WFAA site:

Today, it's a root canal performed by the steady hands of Dr. Jones.

Dr Angela Jones.

Dentist, solo practitioner, 36 and single.

"I just think that the generations and times are changing. You know, we have more opportunities, women, and we're just taking advantage of it," Jones said.

She finished dental school in 2001.

She bought a car, a house and then bought this practice. All on her own.

"A lot of my friends are single, female, that have their own homes and businesses and so I think it's a positive change," she added.

And statistics show, she's becoming the norm among women, even the majority.

In 2005, 51 percent of U.S. women were living without a spouse, up from 49 percent in 2000 and 35 percent in 1950.

The trend is most common among African-American women, 70 percent of whom live without a significant other. Some 51 percent of Hispanic women live on their own while 45 percent of non-Hispanic white women and 40 percent of Asian women live the single life.

Jones isn't in a hurry to walk down the aisle or get a stone on that ring finger.

"School and job, they've always been my main focus. One day I hope to find a husband and have children, but right now, if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen," she says.

So there you have it. Even in a time in my life when it seems like EVERYONE is getting engaged, I can resort back to one of my true loves: statistics….HA!

So don’t be afraid to let it ring free that you’re single and proud of it! You don’t have to have a ring to be happy and successful in life; and from what we’re hearing now ladies, even to be “normal!”

And take this advice from me (and my calendar), single ladies: keep attending those “bring-a-date” functions and when asked where your date is, you can start answering that question as I now plan too…






[The above pictures were taken from the 2007 Year-in-A-Box calendar made by Co-edikit. Someone told me they can be found at Wal-Mart, but they are also sold online at the Co-edikit website.]