BY ERICA LEE, Read This! writer 

So you’ll be single this Valentine’s Day. Feel like buying a dartboard and throwing darts at pictures of happy couples? Thinking of moping all day? Fear not. Here are some fun, and mostly happy, ways to celebrate the big day of love.

Watch a movie

If you can’t be in love, at least pretend you are.  Modern chick-flicks, with their familiar girl-meets-guy formulas, are dependable for making anyone feel like they’re in love — for 90 minutes, at least.

Some favorites to try:

• “Never Been Kissed”
• “Bridget Jones’s Diary”
• “10 Things I Hate About You”

Find a date

If you do have your eye on someone, Valentine’s Day would be a perfect time to come out and express your feelings. Write a note and slip it into their locker, or prepare some grandiose exclamation of love. Have fun, be creative and hopefully you’ll end up with a date.

Buy chocolate

Treat yourself to a Toblerone bar. Better yet, head up to San Francisco as an excuse to indulge in some Ghirardelli’s. Chocolate is comforting, and because it’s Valentine’s Day, no one will suspect that you will eat it all yourself.

Throw a single’s party

Having or attending a party is a good way to get your mind off your misery and turn it into revelry of singleness. So, invite only single friends, bake heart-shaped cookies, give presents in a Secret-Santa-turned-Valentine style, or sit and hang out.

Shed some tears

Letting yourself feel lonely isn’t unhealthy, as long as it only lasts for, in this instance, one day. Afterward, make a late resolution to meet new people by joining clubs or volunteering. The perfect someone may not be too far away.

Go out in a group

Plan to go out with a group of friends and have oh-so-much-more-fun than those awkward couples who can no longer speak to each other. Show off your singleton glory and pretend to be rich and glamorous at Santana Row. Then head over for a big family-style Italian dinner at Maggiano’s.

Play video games

Nothing makes a day fly by like losing yourself in a game. Play “The Sims” for hours, creating numerous people and, if it floats your boat, wreaking havoc on their lives. Make them aspire in romance, then ruin or grant it, according to how you feel.

Erica Lee is a senior at Monta Vista High in Cupertino.