Just Another Random Day

I want to like Valentine's Day but I just don't dig it.  At this point in life, it seems I have no reason not to enjoy this day of love. I'm happily married to a guy I'm really pretty nuts about. Yet, there it is-that nagging disdain I feel for this day. I hate the garish decorations that fill every store. I hate the expensive and overly-mushy cards. I hate the dust-collecting stuffed animals, but most of all, I hate the pressure. This overly-hyped holiday takes me back to the 10th grade. Like most highschools, the one I attended hawked 'candygrams' during lunch break during the days leading up to Valentine's Day. I'm sure it was a good idea on paper and I bet it's still a popular fundraiser but, for me, it was an obvious display of popularity. Some dufus from the student council would knock on the door during Biology class and announce that he was there to hand out candygrams to the lucky recipients. You're damn right I got one every year, best $2.50 I ever spent. This day stresses me right out. I know my husband. I know that a mushy card is not gonna knock his socks off. I know that he doesn't really want a heart-shaped box of chocolates. He'd be totally weirded out if I proudly presented him with a bouquet of flowers, and shopping for the techie stuff he likes is really beyond my capabilities. The moment I step foot into Tiger Direct, I'm on the verge of a panic attack. I don't know where to start! Nothing has an actual name, every tiny gadget seems labelled in a series of numbers and letters. What shall I buy for my Valentine? The CV475 or the GW567? (don't bother looking these up, I just invented them to make my point.) Thankfully, Tim shares my sentiments about this day. Yet every year we turn to each other on the 13th and awkwardly confirm that we're not doing anything. No cards, no candy, no nothing. This year, I'm taking myself out for a mani/pedi date with my girlfriends. When I get home tonight, I know that I'll find Owen fed and entertained by his dad. I know that we'll put the boys down for the night and hit the couch. We'll crack open a bag of Cheetos, applaud ourselves for resisting the pressure to pay a sitter and go out for dinner, and we'll turn on an episode of our favourite t.v. show. It'll be a repeat of most nights together. Nights that I count myself lucky to have day in and day out. Maybe it's not about the grand gestures of love. Maybe, for him and I, it's about the sweet traditions I know we both love. Whatever you're doing today, whether you're partnered up or flying solo, I hope you're doing what feels good to you. Whether you're planning big, elaborate gestures of adoration or snuggling into the simple pleasures of life together, enjoy yourselves today.

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