Long Distance Relationship

I've always ruled out long-distance relationships, but in approaching them again as an adult, I don't think they're half bad. Since my partner lives in a different country, I've been thinking a lot about this topic, and I figured I'd share some of my expert findings.


Fix your phone plan
Don't get caught roaming or running out of minutes (I know, I thought they didn't exist anymore either.) Add data to your plan, or just enjoy going phone-less while you travel. If you don't want to deal with international calling and texting, use an app like Facebook chat, Line, or Skype.

Save your money
This is going to get expensive, depending on how often you travel and host your partner. Save your money-- think of it as keeping a rolling vacation fund. Also, don't buy gifts you can't afford to try to "make up" for seeing them less. Unless you're Richard Gere in Pretty Woman, then go for it.

Make it a routine
If you're gonna Skype every night before bed, do your best to stick to it. If it's texting on your lunch break do that. Make your long-distance interactions with your partner daily, or at least routine.

Gameify time apart
In advertising, we call it "gamifying" when you pull a Mary Poppins and make boring things fun. Maybe you send your partner a selfie every morning before work, maybe you recommend a song of the day, maybe you snapchat cute dogs you see on campus. Start a collection (physical or digital) with your partner, and keep it going when you're apart. It's like the love fern from "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," except better.

Make memories
Keep mementos of the time you have together. Take photos and have prints made. Or if you're a Facebook person you can have one of those dumb albums and tag it incessantly but then your friends will hate you. So print your photos. Put them on your fridge.

Forgive forgetting
If she misses your Skype date, don't hate her. People fall asleep, people get too drunk, people have other obligations. Give them a chance to explain and reschedule.

Travel smart
Be on top of border waits and traffic. I was stuck for two hours waiting for a tunnel once. Don't.

Clean your place
Pretend your place is the fanciest hotel. Get flowers and candles. Stock up on snacks. Clean your toilet and wash your towels. I like to get out all of my "HOLY SHIT I MISSED YOU" anxiety this way.

BOOM.