Thirty isn't the new 20 - it's a a million times better

Whether I thought I’d still be single at 30 isn't the point - I am, and I don’t regret it. I’ve had opportunities and experiences being single thus far in life that I wouldn’t trade for all the "I dos" in the world.

Many people I interact with in life have no idea what it’s like to be single and 30, so I just thought I’d share a few notes.

Being single at 30 is entirely different than being single in your 20s - that's early, mid and late 20s. If you haven’t experienced single at 30 for yourself, just know it’s not the same as the experience you had when you were in college and dating - or even 27 and dating. So many people don't seem to realize this simple fact, so keep it in mind.

How is it different? In some ways it’s better and in other ways it’s harder.

It’s better because I’ve grown and matured and am much more capable of processing things and dealing with issues than I used to be, and for that I am very thankful. When I was younger I didn’t trust God (it's just a word people - I'm talking about a higher power, which could very well exist inside yourself) as well and I wasn’t as grounded, so when something went bust it shook me up more than it does now.

I’m so thankful God uses experiences to help us grow and teach us, otherwise we’d never make it. The emotional rollercoaster that a relationship or even desire for a relationship can be has become much more tame, more like the teacups than, say, the scream-a-nator. I’m getting sick just thinking about it. So anyway, I’ll take a spin on the teacups any day! (The line's shorter, anyhow.)

It’s harder for a few reasons: the pool of available/datable guys is shrinking and so is the pool of close friends who are still single. Many (most) of my friends have moved on even from the newly-married stage to the baby-making stage. By no means am I saying they aren't still great friends, but there is something to be said for knowing others that are in the same life stage as you. And trust me, it's almost as hard to find new single friends to hang with as it is single men to date.

And then there's the old biological clock. Admittedly, this doesn't bother me nearly as much as some of the other single gals I know who are also in their 30s, but for them it’s like a constant nagging reminder that the older you get the more risky (generally) pregnancy will be, that you really want to be married for a couple of years before having kids and that maybe you’d better start doing something you’re not already doing so you can have that family you’ve always wanted before it’s too late.

(Side note: It bothers me when my single friends talk about feeling this way. In my opinion, it’s simply a matter of fate. They’re single right now because they’re meant to be (i.e. there is a good reason for it, though it may not be apparent currently) and, if they’re meant to have children, they will. Hence my dislike of the many fertility drugs and methods available to us these days. If you’re not meant to have kids – at any age – you’re not meant to have kids. It’s Mother Nature’s form of population control.)

So those are some of the ways that being single is different at 30. Please feel free to comment on what you might relate to or agree with, and what you might not.

The following is a public service announcement ...

If Martians (male ones, of course) were to land on Earth, they might make the following assumption: women drew the short straw in life, enduring monthly periods, PMS, childbirth and menopause, all the while producing more hormones than they, or anyone within arm’s-length, can handle.

And, if the aliens were to focus in on a single woman in her 30s, they may come to the conclusion that the agony of being female doesn’t end there. At this point in life she’s in a race against time to meet a man, fall in love, get him to fall in love her, move in together, get married, have a baby (the latter two in no particular order as long as they happen) and live happily ever after.

After reveling footloose and fancy-free in her 20s, from the day she hits 30 her carefree attitude screeches to an abrupt halt. Mother Nature is suddenly occupying all her thoughts and her biological clock is ticking faster and faster as each day, month and year passes with no sign of “the one” entering her life anytime soon.

Of course, for the 30-something single men of Earth this isn’t a concern – nature gave them the choice to put fatherhood on hold, worry-free, until their 40s, 50s or even 60s. They’re busily dating and consciously staying single until later in life because they know when the time is right (for them), reproduction won't be a problem.

None of the above observations were made by extraterrestrial beings. It’s a sad fact that our own society portrays 30-something single men and women completely differently. The women are labeled “expired goods” while the men are given accolades and told to enjoy their freedom while they can. Although TV programs like Sex in the City helped to change people’s opinions of single women over 30 in some regard, the fact remains that if we want children the natural way (i.e., no sperm donor), we need a man.

With no sight of Mr. Right on the horizon, she feels pressure from herself and those around her (even if they don’t say so out loud) to get on it and meet the father-to-be of her unborn offspring. Her parents either nag her or shoot worried looks across her head at each other, anxious she’ll be left alone after they’re gone. Her friends offer to fix her up with just about any man who’s single – height, weight and chemistry not being factors in the equation whatsoever. And then there are the snickering colleagues, who rib her and suggest she “switch teams.” (Yes, this has actually happened to some of us.)

What’s a 30-something single girl to do? According to well-meaning friends and family, she may want to lower her standards some, accept that not everyone is perfect and compromise and her list of must-haves for a man. She should put things in perspective and ask herself, does it really matter if his shoes suck? Does that eminent bald spot mean he won’t be a great dad? Is it really a big deal he still lives with his parents?

She also needs to – they say – put herself in check. No talking about babies and marriage in the early stages of dating. Men already know what women in their 30s want – if he smells the slightest whiff of desperation beyond that societal stigma, he’ll take off running for the hills.

And what about looking for love in the wrong places? She’ll never find a man at the bar, her friends say while nursing their babies and staring adoringly at husbands they met at a Sigma Chi fraternity party back in college. Why not meet someone at the office, through friends or go online? (Like she hasn’t thought of any of those options before.)

How come when a woman turns 30, she’s supposed to throw all her standards, all her dreams and all the things she holds important out the window? In your 20s you’re free to find him however you like, hold him to the highest standards and tell him it’s your way or the highway. As soon as you hit the big three-oh, though, you must change yourself to snag a man, any man.

It’s the million-dollar question people, and we want to hear what you have to say about it.