Valentine’s Day: Some of us love it, some of us can’t stand it and some of us just eat chocolate.

But personal opinions aside, there’s one thing that’s certain. Whether you’re in fourth grade and wondering who’s going to get the most Bieber-themed valentines at your class party (SO to all my nine-year-old readers!) or a middle-aged man wondering which tacky Italian restaurant you and the wife will go to this year, you’ll still have love on the brain, in some form, come Feb.14.

Just a note: I really don’t want to go into the whole, “Why do single girls hate Valentine’s Day”? thing, mostly because a) I don’t care and b) I’d probably come off sounding preachy and insensitive, but after hearing people complain about our nation’s favorite greeting-card holiday for weeks, I started to think about how I’ve celebrated it during college.

This time last year I was in a serious relationship, and while I’ve never been one for showy displays of affection, Valentine’s Day was just something I had to think about. I had to make dinner plans, I had to buy a present, and I had to schedule the rest of my to-do list around all the above. But this year, my single self barely noticed Feb. 14 was approaching until I realized it corresponded with next week’s episode of 90210.

And in the mother of all Carrie Bradshaw clich?s, that’s when I thought to myself, “Do our relationships revolve around Valentine’s Day, or does Valentine’s Day revolve around our relationships”?

I’m only kind of kidding, but for the sake of this column making sense I’ll translate that into English: Our relationship statuses have an undeniable impact on how we celebrate Valentine’s Day, but do our personalities and attitudes about love equally determine how we feel about it, regardless of who we’re sharing the day with?

Here’s my take, broken-down as per usual.

The Point: How you celebrate Valentine’s Day depends on your personality, regardless of your relationship status. Couples who roll around in candle-lit rooms atop a bed of roses don’t do so simply because they’re in a relationship; they do it because at least one of them defines romance as something they saw in a Christian Slater movie circa 1995. On the flip-side, people who spend Feb. 14 depressed and tweeting with the hashtag #screwvalentinesday don’t always act that way because they don’t have anyone to share it with – sometimes it’s just who they are.

The Counterpoint: On the other hand, your relationship status can definitely impact your attitude, and by the same token, how you celebrate. I actually think the people with the most extreme attitudes are probably more likely to flip the switch. Going from single to attached can turn a complete hater into the biggest V-Day freak around, or vise-versa. Likewise, these status-based shifts are probably more subtle for people indifferent to all the Valentine’s hype.

The Wild-Card: If you’re involved in something that qualifies as “What are we”? territory, chances are you’re a little weirded out by imminent Valentine’s festivities. People who are “just hooking up,” “friends with benefits” or in any sort of non-relationship often have a difficult time deciding how (or even if) they should celebrate the big day. For some pseudo-couples, this decision can signify a first “real” date, which can definitely be a lot of pressure; for others, it can be the determining factor in a purely physical relationship. In short, it’s not necessarily a “make it or break it” factor, but it can be a helpful predictor for how something’s going to progress.

The Take-Away

Whether you’re dreading Valentine’s Day or can’t wait, and whether you’re in a relationship or completely unattached, all that really matters is staying true to yourself. Valentine’s Day can be overwhelming no matter your relationship status or attitude, and as always, self-awareness will get you farther than anything else. As for me, I’ll be content watching the CW while eating a jumbo-sized Edible Arrangement sent to me by my parents (thanks in advance, you guys rule!).

Rachel Dickens is a senior majoring in journalism and communication arts. Questions? Comments? E-mail [email protected].