Angela Philipps, Contributor

Are you forlorn when you go to sleep? Do you long to have someone to curl up with in your bed? Living on one's own can be terribly lonesome at times. You might not notice it when you're at work, but when you open that front door, it's just you and the 'four walls' to contend with. "Honey, I'm home! Oh wait, the furniture can't answer me."

It's hardly worth the effort to cook dinner for one person every night. If you've seen Must Love Dogs, you might remember the butcher giving the lady a hard time when she only wanted one chicken breast. If my local shop treated me that way, I wouldn't bother with the fresh stuff and I'd eat cereal every night. In fact, many an evening I do tuck into a bowl of bran flakes!

What about when you're watching television, don't you feel stupid laughing out loud when there's no one else there? My neighbours must think I'm crazy as I cackle away while watching reruns of Friends, Seinfeld and Three's Company.

And what if you fancy some wine? Either you let one bottle last you a few days, in which case it'll most likely taste like vinegar by the last glass. Or you guzzle down the entire thing in a single sitting and feel like 'pants' the next morning. One can hardly do this forever. It'd be nice to have someone with whom you can share it with.

One of the hardest things for me is the lack of 'pillow' talk. I used to love having sleepovers when I was a little thing. I clearly remember my mother's voice creeping under the doors along with the passage light, "Girls, time to sleep now. Stop all the chatting." And then when I was a teenager, our group would all stay at one set of parents after a party. We'd go through the evening's events, giggling about which boys we liked and who we'd danced with.

We're much older now. Some are married, the rest of us are, for the most part, enjoying single life. However, there are times when we sacrifice our integrity for a couple of cuddles with the wrong guy! Don't lie to me ladies, I'm sure there are those of you who have boyfriends because you don't like being alone.

THINK AGAIN!

My parents have always had dogs, and when I was growing up I used to love it when the puppies were born. I'd spend many happy hours in the yard playing with them, but it was always quite upsetting when they reached eight weeks old and it was time to hand them over to their new owners. I got over it pretty quickly because I had my siblings to distract me and there was always someone around to keep me company. However, things changed when I moved out. No people, no animals … luckily, I'm a bit of a social butterfly so I partied instead! Of course, boys came and went. They filled a void in my life for a short period but then I realised that it was stupid and false to depend on them.

Then one bright day I came across a lady who was giving away her puppy. It was love at first sight! On weekends we are inseparable. When I get home in the evenings she is delighted to see me, greeting me with licks and loving! She follows me everywhere in the house. There is no chance of strangers intruding because she goes mental with barking if there is the slightest hint of someone outside.

She sits with me when I watch television, she lays at my feet when I am eating, she stands guard by the bathroom door when I am taking a shower, and most important, she sleeps at the end of my bed looking out for trouble. I'm not saying that one can't find a man as loyal as this, all I am suggesting is, don't be too hasty to settle with a partner simply for company. If you really must cuddle something at night, ladies, get a puppy!

angelaphilippsja@hotmail.com