Plus No One

It's that time of year again. Time for holiday office parties.

This week alone, I've gotten three invitations for work-related parties, one of which is from my former job. All invitations came with an extra invitation for my significant other or spouse. Ugh.

Sadly, in my professional life, never have I ever been able to add "plus one" after my name to a holiday party. I had a boyfriend for my first office party, but he was 2,000 miles away, so I went with a co-worker. Luckily, I've never been the only one without a plus one, as librarians tend to be spinsters by nature. This year, however, will be different. I can pretty much guarantee I will be the only single one at my current office party. At my current job, I'm the only one who is not married and does not have children. This doesn't bother me as much as you think it would, mainly because I am also at least a decade younger than everyone else. And I'm the one feeling smug when they ask what I did over the weekend, and some have even told me that I "do such fun things" on my weekends. The holidays are a different story, which begs the question: Should I bother going to our Christmas party?

I know what you're thinking: what about the Dark Horse? Yes, I could ask him, but because of his schedule and the timing of these parties, I know he won't be able to go. Short of hiring a fake boyfriend, I'll be without a plus one yet again. Bah humbug.