HOW TO BREAK UP WITH HIM/HER (AND THE FRENCH ELECTION)

There comes a time when the initial honeymoon stage of the relationship ends (*sigh* it was nice while it lasted). Before you know it, the days of romantic dates, going out to restaurants with names you can't pronounce, getting bouquets of roses and chocolates and being treated like a Queen/King fade into a distant memory. That's when you know it may be time to let go. Easier said than done! The one thing harder than starting a relationship is ending one. Don't you worry, Life By Asha Singh is here to make your life easier.

Here are my top 3 tips for saying "Bye Felicia" to your bae.

3. DO IT IN PERSON, NOT OVER WHATSAPP/FACEBOOK/INSTAGRAM/TWITTER/SNAPCHAT/EMAIL

Especially not over snapchat - if a 10 second video is not the coldest way to end things I don't know what is. This really shouldn't be debatable, even with all the social media ways you can end a relationship. Bae deserves at least a face-to-face confrontation. All you have to do is arrange a date with bae at Starbucks (or KFC?), get yourself your signature pumpkin spice latte and let bae know what's up. Then you can always take a pic of your Starbucks cup for insta to remember the day. Score!

2. DON'T BE SAVAGE

This is pretty much in line with the last tip. Ladies (and Gentlemen) don't be mean! It's so easy to just be like "Nah fam, I don't date girls that don't shave their legs everyday". Don't do that. Be considerate of the other persons feelings. Maybe she doesn't shave her legs anymore because she's allergic to razors - crazier things have happened. Firstly, prepare them for the conversation by telling them "I need to talk to you about something" or "Can we talk, there's something important I need to tell you". Make sure they know it's a serious question and don't be like "13 Reasons Why is my new favourite series too! Oh by the way it's over". Don't just openly criticize them ("You've gotten so much fatter and ugler lately, I can't deal!"), rather protect their self esteem ("I don't think we want the same things out of life anymore")

1. SAY IT IN FRENCH!

Because everything sounds better in French. If you've been keeping up with the French Election lately you would know where I'm coming from - even Le Pen's most Islamophobic and anti-EU comments sound so beautiful in French. Wait, what French Election? The one that happened last Sunday the 23rd, let me give you the lowdown!

 France's presidential election occurs in two rounds. In the first round 11 candidates participate. If one candidate receives over 50% of the vote that person would be elected president; however in the event that none of the candidates obtain 50% of the vote, there's a second round of the election where just the top 2 candidates of the first round are contenders in. 11 Candidates competed in the first round on Sunday, April 23 where Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron won the most votes and go head to head in the second round on 7 May. 

Marine Le Pen (the woman) is the former leader (N.B she temporarily stepped down as leader on Monday the 24th of April) of French far-right party, National Front (Btw, far-right refers to those super conservatives that are always saying to hell with abortion and LGBT rights). Islam, the EU and immigration were the main issues during her campaigning. In terms of her views on Islam, Al Jazeera has this to say:- "We do not want to live under the rule or threat of Islamic fundamentalism," she told supporters, further condemning the hijab, prayer rooms in workplaces, the construction of mosques and pork-free options in school lunches. It's no question that Le Pen is strongly anti-EU and in support of a Frexit - France's own "Brexit". Le Pen is also strongly anti-immigration. Yeah, she's pretty brutal. But what's the alternative? 

Emmanuel Macron is a centric candidate (neither left-wing or right-wing) who tends to lean towards the progressive trend of the US and Britian (i.e being concerned with freedom, opportunity, responsibility and cooperation). Macron is pro-immigration, and strongly pro-EU. In terms of Islam, according to Reuters, "Former economy minister Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that France had sometimes made mistakes in unfairly targeting Muslims, suggesting the country could be less stringent in applying its rules on secularism." 

With the world leaning towards a radical reordering of the global elite, with the Brexit and election of President Trump, it begs the question whether Macron's centric stance is enough to win him votes and be more than simply an alternative to Le Pen. Speaking of US president Donald Trump, he had this to say with regards to Le Pen: "She's the strongest on borders, and she's the strongest on what's been going on in France. . . . Whoever is the toughest on radical Islamic terrorism, and whoever is the toughest at the borders, will do well in the election." In terms of what the future holds for France, I guess we will only find out on 7 May. This is why I love politics - so much drama!

If you follow my advice you're pretty much certain to have a successful, smooth break-up. Oh yeah, speaking of dating, did you know that Emmanuel Macron is married to his high school teacher. No seriously! His wife, Brigitte, is 24 years 8 months older than him. She is #CougarGoals.

Are you team Le Pen or team Macron? Are you even keeping up with the French election? If not, did this post spark your interest maybe just a teeny bit? Let me know in the comments.