Valentine's Day!

[Crazedclerkthe2nd]

I dislike this holiday for a number of reasons.

- Firstly, I think it's silly to have a day set aside for romantic love. Real romantic love is a constant, 365 day commitment, not a once a year dinner date.

- EXPENSIVE and over commercialized - Without even getting into expensive jewelry, Valentines is a holiday that will play havoc with your pocket book. Overpriced hotel rooms, restaurants, flowers, chocolates, cards. The list goes on and on but if you want ANY of these on Valentine's, you'd better be prepared to pay through the nose for it.

- People who take it too seriously - I don't think I could be with a woman who would be upset that I didn't lay out $1000 on a diamond bracelet for her for Valentine's. There's nothing wrong with having certain expectations on your partner today, but you just damage the relationship when you take it too far.

[anakhouri]

I don't disagree with the existence of Valentine's Day (my husband and I do love each other 365 days a year, but with a child and his work schedule it's hard to create 'romance', so it's nice to set aside specific days to make us actually do it. On Valentine's Day we're less likely to be like, "We're tired, screw it, let's surf the net and go to bed" because it's VALENTINE'S DAY).

I do agree that it is overhyped and way overcommericialized. Every year I make a nice dinner (a little fancier than Hamburger Helper, LOL) and a decadent dessert and we eat it while watching the goriest, most exploitative movie we can find on Netflix or DVD. But at least we're together, focused on the same thing, and doing something a little special.

We don't do gifts at all. I would be livid if he spent $50 on a dozen roses; there's more important things to do with that money. But today at the grocery I saw the floral department and the candy aisle were wiped out. So I guess most people still fall for the hype.

I don't see overinflated expectations as the fault of Valentine's Day. I see it as a lack of common sense among the general population and the US's culture of "You are the specialist snowflake ever and DESERVE whatever expensive crap you desire." If you have your priorities straight and your head screwed on tightly, you won't be sucked into the hype. It's not the holiday's or the card companies' fault if you're a gulible, easily dazzled dumbass. (general you, not the OP)

[jedimaster91]

I've said for years the only thing I like about Valentine's Day is the candy hearts. You can't get them any other time. I did have one boyfriend who tried his darndest to get me to like the holiday. He went all out. Flowers, candy, and a teddy bear (which I still have--long story). Which was sweet, but unnecessary. Since it was a long-distance relationship, I was just happy to see him.

Mr Jedi is well aware of my loathing for this so-called holiday, so I think he's relieved to be off the hook. He does little romantic gestures for me throughout the year, which is far more important to me. He should get me flowers just because, not because it's February 14th.

[AccountingDrone]

Heh, it is our 22nd anniversary. He jokes he picked Valentines Day so all he has to do is remember to get me something for every advertised holiday and he is good to go. [it is actually the first available day he had liberty after my divorce got finalized.]

he is lucky I detest roses [abusive exfiance used to give me roses as an apology for beating the crap out of me] and am diabetic and there really isn't a decent diabetic chocolate.

We normally pick a close weekend and go out to a nice dinner, this weekend we are hitting the Todd English restaurant over at Mohegan Sun. Or maybe the buffet, depends

[HYHYBT]

One good thing about Valentine's Day: on the 15th, chocolate goes on sale.

[Nyoibo]

Any woman who would expect diamonds on Valentines day I would give the meme that went around a while ago with the caption "Diamonds, she'll pretty much have to..."

[Racket_Man]

Any woman who would expect diamonds on Valentines day I would give the meme that went around a while ago with the caption "Diamonds, she'll pretty much have to..."

and THAT is what all of the jewlry/florist/cand store commercials imply other than "IF you do NOT get her (jewelry, flowers, candy, expensive card, slinky underthings, etc.) you WILL be in the DOG HOUSE for a while (meaning NO sex cause of an over-commmerciallized created Hallmark day). AND she will remember every slight for every annivercery, V-day, B-Day, etc. that you make for the rest of your life.

At this point in my life I really do NOT like V-Day. After the "falseness" of my 20 year marriage I really do not care anymore.

on the other side of the coin, most of you may not realize how much BUSINESS pizza delivery places do on this "special and romantic celebration of love" day.

Yeah right nice dinner out my ass.

[Mr Hero]

This is the first Valentine's Day I have where I have a gf to spend it with. Rather than doing anything costly, we both provided gifts that conveyed our love, but was something in expensive. Shipping cost more than my actual gift. That said, there will be 364 more days where I show her I truely care about her.

[Andara Bledin]

I got a bouquet of unicorns, today.

Honestly, if you don't like VDay (abbreviating 'cause it's late and I'm lazy) because you don't like VDay, that's fine. It's become a bloated mockery of what it really should be. A lot like Christmas, to be honest.

Unfortunately, I see a lot of people these days who don't like VDay because it's popular to not like VDay, which is tiring in it's own way.

I'm a romantic, so I like VDay, myself. I like having another excuse to do sappy couples things, and when I wasn't part of a couple, I used it as an excuse to give out cards and candy to whoever I was associating with.

Thankfully, Nekojin and I both agree on not doing any of the ridiculously expensive because it's February 14th stuff. We can be sappy lovebirds, but we're not pointlessly impractical.

^-.-^

[MadMike]

I call it "Buy me something or sleep on the couch" Day.

[Greenday]

I sent my lady-friend in the great white north some flowers and a teddy bear. She absolutely loved it.

It's a good holiday for young couples but later in life, not so necessary. Just a good excuse to take time off and relax together. Not that easy to schedule.

[Ginger Tea]

I can see the pro's and con's of scheduling a day of 'love' due to work/distance/other, thing is if you use the default day of feb 14, then you run into the fact that everyone else is scheduling something for that day and also iir prices rise greatly for one day.

Without looking, I'm pretty sure there was a thread last year and probably the year before that etc, I don't hate it cos it's cool to hate it, I'm rahter meh about it (mind you I am single and have been for a decade, havn't asked a girl out on a date let alone had one.), but you can't schedule spontinaity.

No one should be expected to shell out on a rock each year or even once, not unless they have a fair bit of dosh lying around, it sound cliche (and that's cos it is) but some times the little things do matter more.
If hypotheically speaking, I had a GF who was a LARPER and I couldn't get into it to join in with her hobby (never tried it leat alone table top D&D) and she made her own costumes, I would be willing to slap down more cash on materials for that than some ring, unless it was something that could really work well within the realms of the game, or buy her something relating to her character/class if she didn't make her own stuff, hell it might cost more, but it says something else than I spent £500 on a piece of carbon.

[HYHYBT]

on the other side of the coin, most of you may not realize how much BUSINESS pizza delivery places do on this "special and romantic celebration of love" day.

Yeah right nice dinner out my ass.

And here I thought it was the velcro bags that kept them warm...

Pizza on VD makes sense to me. A lot of people aren't going to want to make a big fuss over the day, but still would like not to have to cook or go out.

[guywithashovel]

If I were with someone, I would probably enjoy doing something with her on V-Day. And by "doing something," I mean go out to dinner, exchange gifts (though nothing too extravagant---my wallet just won't allow for that), or just spend some general time together.

What I find really annoying is that a bunch of stereotypes get trotted out during this time of year. To look at the media, you'd think every man was a bumbling doofus who can't handle the faintest hint of romance or anything relational, and women are made out to be spoiled, overgrown brats who will sulk if the goods their man produces aren't up to par. Sure, if you look around, you can find some truth to these things. Two years ago on February 15, I witnessed a female coworker having a temper tantrum over the supposedly lackluster gift her hubby came up with on V-Day. But examples like that really are just a vocal minority.

[blas87]

Eh, I guilted the bf into it. I highly doubt he would have even thought of me otherwise, or played the "broke" card.