In-Lightened with Mel

In-Lightened with Mel

Uncuffed and Unbothered (Mostly)

Melanie Thompson's avatar
Melanie Thompson
Nov 12, 2025
∙ Paid

Hot Girl Halloween has ended,

and I find myself in a predicament — woefully unprepared for the months ahead. The harbinger of daylight savings has come and gone, and much like the sun, so has my motivation to have a prosperous cuffing season.

Cuffing season?

What is this meta phenomenon of which you and Instagram speak?
I had to look it up to realize I wasn’t participating.

Cuffing season (noun): a magical stretch of time when supposedly emotionally independent adults temporarily, and mostly metaphorically, handcuff themselves to a warm body to endure the winter months — complete with cuddles, Netflix, and plus-one activities.

I am currently uncuffed. And I believe the window for such cuffing has closed.
And I am unbothered — mostly.

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