all my single (chinese) ladies

next sunday can't get any worse for any single chinese ladies out there.

why is it so? because it's the first day of lunar new year. lunar new year may be a time of festive fun, delectable pastries, angpao collecting (or giving, depending on your marital status =p), rejuvenation of familial relations, mahjong, shopping and holidaying! but isn't going to be all roses. everyone has their own set of worries with the festive season. for the married couples, they have to fork out hundreds of dollars to give to their single relatives. for the single adults, they have to prepare themselves for the dreadful interrogations from nosy relatives.

and this brings me to my main point. with valentine's day falling on the first day of the lunar new year, there can't be a better time to torment your single relatives and friends about their marital status. trust me, during chinese new year, your relationship status gets even more public than broadcasting it on facebook. it becomes a common knowledge, as relatives come together in an attempt to improve your love life. they will offer to introduce their colleagues or friends, they will encourage you to join a dating agency, they will nag at your faults (like "you're too picky", or "you need to doll up a bit", or even worse - "maybe you should lose some weight"). some of them may be genuinely concerned for your future, but some may just be taking the chance to get back at you for stepping on their toes last year.

very unfortunately, yours truly happen to be single. not only that, i happen to hit mid-twenties this year, and mid-twenties is the age when people actually start getting married. *gasp* this year is going to be such a horror! especially if i have no boyfriend, nowhere to go and no hot dates to attend on the 14th of february!

what shall i do? i have seven more days to go. should i find myself a fake date to appease my relatives? or excuse myself for the visits (and sacrifice my share of angpao money)? or just brush off the awkward questions and laugh it off as i always do?

aunt agony, uncle unhappiness, mother melancholy, father frustration, brother blues, sister sorrow - whoever you are - please lend me your wisdom!