Here’s some news for you single students: we married students aren’t stuffy old fogies who stay home every night.

We can have a little fun too.

I have been married for four years, and I have a 3-year-old little boy. But I can still hit Broad Street on Saturday night, even without my husband.

The typical misunderstanding of married students was brought to my attention by last weeks front-page article “Degrees of Devotion: Students take on classes and marriage.”

Jennifer Johnson reported that married students do not have a social life besides spending time with their spouse, and they need time management skills to handle work, their relationship and school.

I’m sorry, but do single students not have jobs or a significant other?

If I want some quality time with my husband, we may stay home and have dinner and a quiet conversation. But we also feel the need to let loose and have some fun.

We hang out with friends, go to parties and to bars. I’m sure you single students do the same. So why the stereotype for married couples?

Being married has its challenges. You have to work at any relationship to make it work, but when you’re married you have to learn to live together on a daily basis. You have to share your finances, both what you earn and what you owe. You have to make big decisions as a team, like if you want to start a family and when.

As a student some of these issues are more difficult than for typical married couples. For instance, married students nearing graduation are faced with the task of job-hunting – in the same city as their spouse – in this dismal economy.

Married students face all the same costs of other students and most married students can’t count on mom and dad for a bail out anymore.

Instead, they have to rely on themselves and their spouse to cover the costs. Many married students have small incomes and large school expenses. But good luck finding a scholarship just for being married.

These challenges are things that make married students grow up a little sooner than their peers. However, these stresses give married students a greater need for some time to unwind and have fun.

So stop assuming your married friends won’t want to go out dancing.

Call and ask if we want to go.

We may say no so we can stay home to eat dinner and snuggle on the couch with our spouse. Or we may surprise you when we meet you downtown and have more fun than you.

- Sara Williams is a sixth year senior from Eatonton majoring in newspapers and art-photography