Happy Valentine's Day, Cynics.

It's Valentine's Day!!! Damn straight I'm ready.  Damn straight I'm participating. I have chocolates and gifts for my valentines -- Spousetacular and The Boy.  I found a weather-proof workout jacket for Spousetacular.  He doesn't like to get wet in when he's coaching rugby.  He gets cranky when he gets caught in the rain.  You'd think as an English guy, he'd be used to that.  But no, so I got him a jacket.  A practical gift always appeals to Spousetacular. 

For The Boy, we (Mom and Dad give joint gifts -- this was not what Spousetacular's parents did, but they ended up getting divorced, so, go figure, eh?)  got him a set of docking speakers for his iPod.  He likes to soak in the bath after rugby and listen to music, so there you have it.  A practical gift for him, too.  They're both getting a big red heart full of chocolates from See's (my favorite, so whatever they don't like, I'll eat!).  And of course, mushy cards.

I have to say, this is probably the best Valentine's Day we've had since Spousetacular and I got married.  We've had some rough times.  I almost wrote "not emotionally", but that wouldn't be true.  Every marriage has its ups and downs, ours included.  When I look back at the past 17 years, what I notice is that many of our downs were connected to other stress-inducing events and situations that impacted the emotional connection between Spousetacular and me. Things are good now.  In fact, I think this last move we made has been really good for us.  At first, I was anxious that it wouldn't be, but it's proving to be quite good.  So good, that Valentine's Day is a good opportunity for us to celebrate this particular up cycle.  So, damn straight, we're participating.

A number of my friends have posted messages on "the interweb" as The Boy jokingly calls it.  They're being very cynical about the commercialization of the day, the history and how far the current holiday is from that, and how if your mate is so damn special to you, show it everyday, not just today.  Okay, fine.  I get your point.  It's valid.  We should show that love and commitment daily.  Bur frankly, why not participate in a day devoted to love?  What does hurt to show a little extra effort?  So what if the capitalists have taken hold of the day to make a profit?  How is that different from any other holiday?  Furniture stores have Arbor Day sales for Pete's sake -- how hypocritical is that?  So relax, cynics.  Take a moment, breathe in the love, and smell the chocolate.  It's Valentine's Day.  Happy VD.