One Woman's Hilarious Instagram Proves How Awesome It Can Be to Date Yourself

OK, so she's not actually dating herself. Technically, she's dating her JanSport backpack. 

Genevieve Blau and her classic pink JanSport have been courting for over a month now, and Blau has been documenting every step of the blossoming relationship on Instagram.

Since their first date in April, Blau and her backpack have been out on the town, enjoying New York City in the springtime and taking advantage of the endless dating possibilities (many of which are, unsurprisingly, booze-related).

"It started as a stupid, fun way to entertain myself while I dined alone (which I love to do, by the way)," Blau told Mic. "But I found that I was definitely using it to take the edge off the unavoidable sheepishness that goes along with being out by myself."

Going out and spending time by yourself can come with a stigma, one that's even more acute in our Instagram-happy era. "It's impossible to not feel a little self-conscious," Blau said. "I feel that as a woman, especially in the age of constant social media over sharing, we are told that it's not OK to be by yourself, that it's somehow sad to be on your own."

But there's something uniquely valuable about spending time alone — even if we start out a little insecure about it. In a study recently highlighted by New York magazine's Science of Us, "there was no statistically significant difference in how solo people and group members rated the experience afterward — everyone had the same amount of fun."

That goes for solo walks or museum visits, or even seeing a movie by yourself. Going out to do an activity alone is totally worth it, to the extent that some have given it a name: "masturdating."

"Color me guilty," Blau responded when asked if she was familiar with the term. "I guess I'm a masturdater."

She makes us want to be one, too.

h/t Daily Dot