Valentine Grands to the Rescue

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Another Valentine’s Day came and went,

The only card I received was from my oldest, longest friend, Kit the Wit. Kit knows me well since we have been friends since childhood. Anyway, she knows I married a good kind generous loving man who does not believe in Valentine’s Day.

In our younger life together I put on a brave show of agreeing with Bill.

“It’s a Hallmark Holiday,” said we.

“It’s all commercialized.”

“Yup.”

And so the years went by. When hearing about our strange family custom, some friends sent cards and even candy but those acts of sympathy never lasted long. Only Kit the Wit persisted in remembering that her old friend always spent Valentine’s Day wishing for a surprise.

This Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2021 came and went like all the others.

Until February 15, 2021 – the day after! Actually the night after.

It was already dark and a holiday (President’s Day) so we were not expecting any deliveries, but suddenly Elsa the Dog began frantic barking and the lights of a delivery truck lit up the house. It was a gift from our three grandgirls – a beautiful box of chocolates with fond wishes for our enjoyment.

How wonderful is that?

THANKYOU MY SWEET AND THOUGHTFUL GRANDDAUGHTERS FOR LITERALLY MAKING OUR DAY!

AND HAPPY BELATED VALENTINES TO YOU TOO!

We love you more than you will ever know!

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Hearts, Flowers and Chocolate!

It’s Valentine’s Day!

Again.

Bill told me when we married he did not believe in Valentine’s Day.

Still, after so many years, I wake up hoping.

And on this day, once again, there is no card, no candy and no flowers.

Bill claims it is  a “Hallmark Holiday”, and also a Catholic holiday (Saint Valentine you know).

And he is not Catholic.

Please – no pity – I find other diversions when my friends tell me about their tokens of love on this special day.

I am very good at convincing myself that when Bill builds a warm cozy fire in our wood stove, it is a testament to his love and commitment.

Or when he puts all the dishes away before I can get to them, it is  better than flowers.

Or when he keeps asking how my BigFoot is doing and gently touches to see if it is still swollen, that is sweeter than candy.

And when he invites me out to dinner to a special place – even on this Catholic holiday – it is a finer tribute than a Hallmark card.

We are dining tonight with friends at Virginia’s  Natural Bridge Hotel Dining Room  where there is – guess what –

A Valentine’s Day Special!

I can’t wait to dress up tonight and wear my heart on my sleeve for my non-Catholic boy who doesn’t believe in Valentines Day.  A diamond would be nice though. Hmmmm!  I wonder if he thought of that.

Natural Bridge Hotel Dining Room. Image from tripadvisor.com

A Storied Place. The Natural Bridge Park Historic Hotel

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All About Love

Happy Valentine’s Day from Virginia!

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Promises of Love

My husband (of more years than I can even remember) does not believe in Valentine’s Day. And he always says, “It’s a Hallmark Holiday.”  Hence, the absence of cards, gifts, etc.

At first, as a young bride, I thought he was kidding around.  Since “love is blind” (and especially so in my case) I joined in the fun and laughed right along with him.  “Laughter is the best medicine,”  they say.  I have been laughing for a lot of years.

My brother felt sorry for me this year and sent a red (for Valentine’s Day you know) electronic pepper mill that grinds the peppercorns and lights up while you are pouring!  And my oldest girlfriend, Kit, sent a card from a secret admirer.  I knew it was her though since I recognized the handwriting.   Nothing like pity from family and friends!

But, Bill shows his love in other, more sedate sensible ways.  Like we just had dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant.  And of course we ended the meal with traditional fortune cookies.  I know it’s a week after Valentine’s Day, but dinner out is a substitute for red roses and chocolate.  I tried to make it feel like Valentine’s Day anyway.  He’s a good man really.  He’s the best – really.  I have kept him around for a long long time, laughing all the way.

Anyway, here it is about a week after Valentine’s Day and we were off to the Chinese buffet.  The cookies are shaped a bit like hearts don’t you think?   And I was kind of expecting hoping for a romantic fortune in my cookie to take the place of a real Hallmark card.

My fortune:  “You achieve great peace of mind when you talk with an old friend.” 

Well, yeah!  He’s definitely an OLD friend and I did get a little peace of mind tonight with dinner out (imagining it was for Valentine’s Day).

And his fortune: “You will soon be involved in many gatherings, parties and communications.”

I can’t dispute that.  We just received a round table extender to give us more room for dinner guests. And our  conversation tonight (before our fortunes arrived) was about who to invite!  How romantic can you get?

Now you have to admit there is no romance in either of these fortunes.

The fact is, one of the major makers of fortune cookies is striking romantic fortunes due to parental complaints about them being too racy.  In addition, the cookie maker is concerned about the emotional impact of  promises of love.

I am concerned about that too –  the impact of  promises of love, or the impact of the lack thereof.

And guess what?  Loveless fortune cookies are actually making the news lately!

Check out this February 2013 New York Post article, “Fortune Cookies Lose Their Romance…” on the changes you can expect in your fortune cookies messages. Do you want to join me in sending in complaints from the lovelorn?  Maybe we could convince them to keep romance in and mark certain packages “Censored.”

Me?  I’m for keeping fortunes in my cookies that offer promises of love!

Related articles

• Say Goodbye To Romantic Fortune Cookies (huffingtonpost.com)
• Romance-Related Messages Removed From Fortune Cookies For ‘Suggestive Language’ (wcbsfm.cbslocal.com)

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