What’s that? There’s a holiday today?

I kid, of course. And for someone who has never, ever, ever been dating/seeing/partnered with someone on Valentine’s Day (it’s a gift!), I actually kind of like the holiday.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s hideously over-marketed by all sorts of companies using it for personal gain and there’s far too much pressure on people for it to be an absolutely fantastic, overly extravagant day. I know all that, and just like every single holiday there are negatives to go with the positives.

But here’s what I do like about Valentine’s Day. I like the idea of a holiday where the stated purpose has become over the years to tell someone else how much you love them. You know, that sounds like a great reason to have a holiday. Hell, we should have Valentine’s Day every month. (Yes, I know that’s missing the point.) It’s sort of like Christmas where a lot of people I know talk about the over-commercialization of it, and I agree. But there are other aspects of the holiday for me (getting together with my family) that make me happy.

Anyway, as someone who is single every year when mid-February hits, I wasn’t celebrating it with a boyfriend (although I suppose now that I think about it I did have it with a loved one of a different sort). I continued last year’s tradition of cooking a good dinner. This time my friend Dave K. came over and I made white chili, plus cinnamon bread pudding with vanilla ice cream on top. Dave was super-sweet and brought over flowers and a box of chocolates. He says he never did that for anyone ever before. I dunno, I think he’s a pro at that sort of thing. He’s one of the friends that more and more I’m realizing how fortunate I am to have in my life.

It was a really nice evening; just hanging out with a good and important friend, talking about all sorts of things, and relaxing. And tomorrow I fly off to Los Angeles and don’t come back until next Tuesday to boot. (Warm weather, you better be waiting for me.)

So, that was Valentine’s Day for me. I hope everyone feels loved today by someone.