Single Life Has Its Benefits

Posted by James Lane for BounceBack.com

In honor of National Singles Week, we at Bounceback.com took a poll to find the answer to the question: is it better to be single or in a relationship?

When I checked the results this morning, I have to admit, I was very surprised that 90% of the answers was to be single. I was stunned because I honestly thought it was going to be a unanimous vote of "in a relationship".

In my mind, influenced by everyone I know, being in a relationship is the way to go. Hell, half of my high school graduating class is already married (and some with kids) while I am living in New York City, unattached and childless…well, that I know of.

I always felt like the odd man out, not wanting to be in a relationship at all. I enjoy my freedom, my friendships, and yes, even my selfishness. The fact that I can wake up on a Saturday morning whenever I want and do my own thing is priceless to me.

Related: The Benefits of Being Single

The

By Author Eleanore Wells for GalTime.com

Marriage isn't for everyone...

In light of National Singles Week, I want to share a story with you. At a dinner party with some "friends" a few years ago, there was a longer than necessary conversation about "what's wrong with Eleanore" (me) because I'm not married and I have no kids. I'm a spinster. A pretty amazing one, but a spinster nonetheless. An active participant in the conversation was a woman who had just gone through her third divorce. Apparently, I was the only one in the room who thought the conversation should really have been about "what's wrong with Sharon?" I'm thinking to myself, "Why does this woman keep getting married?"

I am fascinated by this notion that marriage is still thought of as a must-do in modern-day society. It's not. At least it shouldn't be. Same thing with children. There's no reason why every adult should procreate and I know that we can all think of an example or two as to why this is true.

Here's the real truth: marriage

Joan Rivers1. "Women have all the power because women have all the vaginas." -Dave Attell

2. "Whoever named it necking was a poor judge of anatomy." -Groucho Marx

3. "My dick is too aware that your pussy is a chamber of financial ruin!" -Louis CK

4. "A man can sleep around, no questions asked, but if a woman makes nineteen or twenty mistakes she's a tramp." ―Joan Rivers

5. "There are only three things women need in life: food, water, and compliments."-Chris Rock

6. "Never marry a man you wouldn't want to be divorced from." -Nora Ephron

Plus: You Will Not Be Able To Stop Reading These Gchat Conversations From The Most Persistent Dater Ever

7. "Bisexuality immediately doubles your chances for a date on Saturday night." -Woody Allen

8. "Sex and pizza, they say, are similar. When it's good, it's good. When it's bad, you get it on your shirt." -Mike Birbiglia

9. "Some people ask the secret of our long marriage. We take time to go to a restaurant two times a week. A little candlelight, dinner,

By Author Marina Spriggs for GalTime.com

Introducing your boyfriend to your kids can be a challenge...

You thought dating was hard the first time? Here you are, single again, but this time with children. You finally meet someone you really, really like and want to introduce him to your kids. How do you go about it? What if your youngsters don't like him? What if he doesn't like them? What if it doesn't work out?

Before you even think about introducing your children to your new boyfriend, you need to have been dating for at least six months. No, I'm not crazy and neither are you. Didn't your last relationship end in divorce? You don't want that to happen again and you certainly don't want your children to go through that again. It takes at least six months to begin to really know a person. You don't want to introduce someone and one month later have to explain to your children why they don't see "Mike" anymore.

I would also advise that you let your ex-husband know you are introducing someone to your children. I find it's

Most of us at one time or another have come dangerously close to losing ourselves in love. Whether we unconsciously changed to become more appealing to our partner or simply lost sight of ourselves somewhere along the way, we know love has tremendous power to change us. If the healthiest relationships celebrate the authenticity of its characters, finding someone to love us for who we are seems like a good place to start. Check out these 8 tips for loving with your whole heart without losing yourself!

Related: 10 signs you're in desperate need of a girl's night out

1. Love yourself:
A vital part of learning to love yourself is valuing your worth. Flock to the things that lift you higher and flee from that which brings you down, especially in love.

2. Be Honest:
We aren't doing ourselves a favor by pretending to be someone we're not in a relationship. Remain honest with your partner regarding your views on everything from politics to musical preferences to religion. You're filled with

romantic coupleIf you have been in a relationship for awhile, you know that keeping the spark lit definitely takes work. Everyone assumes a night of passion requires lacy, barely-there lingerie, chocolate covered strawberries, and an oil-soaked massage. Sure, those time-tested tricks work most of the time, but there are so many other things that can do to get your man in the mood. Get his motor humming with these five surprisingly sexy, cool moves.

More from The Stir: 7 Kinds of Sex to Avoid at All Costs

Tool Time

Unleash your inner handy-woman. Forget the banana or any other phallic fruit. There is something much more sexy about seeing you hammer, screw or drill ANYTHING.

Super Fan

Knowing sports stats is hot. I'm not talking about merely repeating what the guy just said on ESPN. Get to know the game and everything about his favorite teams. It will drive him up the wall - in a good way.

Hot Chicks

So having hot girlfriends my seem counter intuitive but it's not. For

For many women, one of the downsides of being single is the desire to travel but having no one to go with. Traveling without some or at least one of your favorite people can be daunting, but it can also be freeing and fun (see Lori's Cuba).

It's past the evening news, and you are just about to turn into bed when a commercial comes on that catches your interest. You plop back down onto the couch and become mesmerized by the aquamarine-colored ocean that engulfs a frolicking couple, as they chase one another down the beach. The advertisement continues, showing the same couple exploring the island's numerous activities, while wrapped in the lavish beauty of Barbados or some other island paradise. You sigh to yourself and click off the remote, knowing that you could never go on a trip like that by yourself - or could you?

Single travelers, particularly women, tend to have a misconception that unless they are traveling with a significant other or a friend, they will be

By SMF Marcus Osborne for GalTime.com

Chick flicks guys cannot stand!

Comedian Dave Chappelle once summed up the male-female dynamic perfectly with one line: "Men like nice cars because women like men with nice cars."

Absolutely, positively true. Virtually everything a guy does is somehow directly or indirectly meant to appeal to women. If one day it was proven that women were most attracted to men with one arm, I'd expect there to be a shocking rise in emergency room visits by guys who've "accidently" lost the ability to play patty-cake.

Guys are constantly trying to impress women. One of the subtle ways we attempt to influence women's opinions of us is though pop culture habits like movie choices, particularly during the initial courtship stage. It's not necessarily a red flag if a guy says that he loves "The Notebook," but that confession should make you turn your head and think, "Hmmm…this guy might just be trying to get in my pants." Here are some of the film titles that should make you say