Why GNOs Are The Answer

This just in: scented candles are bad for you. I’m not taking the news well. Is there nothing in life that’s enjoyable and still good for you?! Lately, even the guilty pleasures have been ruined. Have you tuned into “E” recently? Were you hoping for a little mindless “Fashion Police” only to see one of those commercials for the Humane Society instead? You know the ones I’m talking about. They are so heartbreaking and terrible that it makes you immediately turn off the t.v. and seek out some other guilty pleasure… like soda or chocolate or scented candles, none of which you can enjoy because they’re all bad for you.

Where’s the comfort in this world?

Girlfriends. Specifically, small groups of female friends. It doesn’t matter if it’s a book club, a wine club or a mom’s group (as long as the moms leave their actual kids at home). It doesn’t matter if you meet at a wine bar, a bistro or the house of the member whose living room is the cleanest.

Girls Night Outs (GNOs) will save you. They will restore your flagging spirits, sense of humor and sense of fashion. Because it’s a cardinal rule that you look cute for a GNO. We women dress for each other, not the men in our lives. My fella wouldn’t know a Tory Burch flat from a Target flat, but my friend Tara would in a hot minute. 

There have been lots of studies done. People with active social networks have longer, healthier, happier lives. So don’t bail on your GNO this month. Move heaven and earth to get there, even if the time and location are inconvenient and you have to pay a babysitter a king’s ransom.

If you don’t have a GNO group? Organize one. Think of 2 or 3 other girls you know who have something to say and something in common. Invite them out for a happy hour drink. It’s a low commitment, and most likely you’ll be so busy talking you’ll end up ordering food and more drinks and probably dessert. The best GNOs have you laughing so hard tears come to your eyes. The most embarrassing involve birthdays and joke photos with blow up dolls. And even the worst -- when everyone’s tired and mad at their husbands -- are better than another night in, spent watching someone else be tired and mad at her husband, a.k.a. “Modern Family”.

Here's to Girls Nights Out. Plan one today!