This is the first time in three years that I’m not spending Christmas alone. Look, there are lots of great things about having my entire family reside in California, but the insane cost of airfare during the holidays is not one of them. And while I love my family tremendously, I also enjoy visiting them during less crazy/stressful/expensive times of the year.

I doubt anyone is ever really jazzed to fly solo on Christmas, but it’s not ALL bad. You can avoid the inevitable “Why are you still single?” question (or if you’re married, the “When are you having a baby?” variation). You can sit in your underwear and eat mashed potatoes straight outta the pot. See? Silver lining.

So if you find yourself all alone on Christmas, here’s how to cope:

• Go grocery shopping the day before. Inevitably, you’ll start snacking out of boredom and you don’t want to be greeted by an empty pantry. I made this mistake during my first Christmas alone and wound up at Quik Trip staring at $1 hot dogs. I do not recommend this. Have a well-stocked pantry and maybe even some recipes to whip up. Even the most self-confident person can’t convince themselves that walking out of Walgreens on Christmas day with a bag full of candy, chips and frozen pizza isn’t pathetic. Especially if sweatpants are involved.
• Accept a friend’s invitation to spend Christmas with their family, but establish that it will only be for a few hours. Friends and co-workers will take pity on you and invite you to join their family for the day. Take them up on this and spend some time with other humans. Bring a hostess gift (wine is always a safe bet) and maybe a dish and enjoy yourself.  But be prepared – there comes a point where you’d rather be by yourself than hanging out with someone else’s dysfunctional family. And trust me, every family is dysfunctional. When it reaches that point, leave. Politely.
• Do something nice for yourself. Buy a bunch of trashy tabloids or a book or DVR a marathon of America’s Next Top Model (or if you’re my boyfriend, Ghost Hunters). Buy a new video game. Netflix a bunch of guilty pleasure, non-holiday related movies. Knit. Build a model plane. Whatever. Spend time doing something you enjoy.
• Skype with your family. Wave, laugh, catch up and watch each other open gifts thanks to the beauty that is the internet. It’s not quite the same as being home, but it’s the next best thing.
• Drink. As in booze. Make plans to join your friends (they’ll be ready to escape their families at some point) at your favorite neighborhood pub. Lots of bars stay open on Christmas, likely to soften the blow of a stressful holiday season. Worst case scenario: have your favorite alcoholic beverage on hand at home. In the spirit of giving, give yourself a nice buzz.

Have advice for surviving Christmas alone? Fill us in by leaving a comment.

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