Valentines Day: Don't be a Hater

Almost everyone hates Valentines Day. " It's too commercial, why do I have show my love this day when I should show it everyday, the candy isn't even that good", blah, blah, blah. Don't get me wrong, Valentines day can be rough for someone who is perpetually single and has really bad luck with the opposite sex, which, trust me, was pretty much the definition of Holly Ferguson before I met my lover-lover Geoff. Still, I never had this hatred towards Valentines Day.

Though I've always been single minus one cheating, no good boyfriend that took me WAY too long to get over, I STILL liked Valentines Day. It reminds me of third grade, going around, placing my store bought Valentines Day cards in the home made "mail boxes" placed on each student's desk. I loved going through my mail box at the end of the day and reading all the cards from the boys in class whose cards never said a thing besides what was already designed by the card manufacturing company. Still, I thought the, "Have a GRRRREAT Valentines Day!" with a picture of Tony the Tiger meant that little Kevin liked me and thought I was the cutest, because, face it, I WAS!

As I got older, most Valentines nights were spent with friends or at work, pretty much, I was busy, had something to do, had friends that loved me and that was enough. Here I am though, married and able to celebrate February 14th all lovey-dovey with the one I love most and though I DO feel like I show him how much I love him as often as possible and NOT just on Valentines Day, Valentines Day gives me a platform to start from. A platform to help me figure out what to do. What to gift. Where to go.

To understand that reason, I guess you have to have to know a little fact about me.

I SUCK AT PRESENTS! I do! I HATE to give presents! They make me sooo nervous. I squirm at the fact that I might have to give a gift to someone. Birthdays, Christmas, anything, I HATE it! I'm not one to find the most perfect gift. I'm not one to remember those little hints I'm suppose to remember. I don't think too far ahead. Next week seems like an eternity away when in reality, I blink, and next week is here. So, I THINK I have all this time to present shop, the future catches up to me WAY faster than I expect it to, then I'm running to the mall frantically shopping for a present. NOTHING seems to fit the bill, I freak out and either A-Don't buy anything or B- Buy one of the worst gifts in history. I SUCK AT PRESENTS! I don't just suck at presents with friends, I really suck at getting presents for Geoff. Poor guy! He is GREAT at present giving. He knows what I want or need. He is romantic and thoughtful and amazing and always knows what he wants to get me in advance. Meanwhile I'm sweating over what to give him. Literally, sweating.

Let's talk about his Birthday. I knew it was coming up. I brainstormed for a month ahead of time, I thought of things and mentally crossed them off the list for some reason or another. Next thing I know, his birthday is less than a few hours away and I don't even have a card. Not even a card because I'm soo freaked out by what to get him, I just shut down. I actually pretended to be super hungry late that night so I had a reason to leave the house and find some birthday card last minute from Rite Aid. I don't have to say he didn't end up with a gift.

Christmas? We said we weren't going to going to do presents, maybe one small thing and that's it. We head to the store, split up and say we are going to meet back up in an hour. Five minutes later Geoff is done. Completely done. I'm running around looking at EVERYTHING. Does he need a pillowcase? A pair of shoes? Sham-Wow?! Hours go by and I have nothing. I finally ran into some place saw X Box games and thought, oh, he likes that. I grabbed a game and called it a day. By the way, do you know what I hate most in this house? Our damn X Box and THAT is what I gift Geoff. A freakin' X Box game. I HATE PRESENTS!

So here we are. Valentines day is coming up and I'm NOT sweating it. I don't HATE Valentines Day. Why? There is a theme. Love, romance, and all that stuff. My platform for gift giving (Though I still don't know what to get him! A hug?). My platform for planning a night. (It's my year to plan Valentines Day events.) Yes, it's very commercialized, very Hallmark, and VERY helpful when you are as lame as me and can't give a gift to save your life.

Moral: Don't let all the commercialism stop you from having a GRRRREAT Valentines Day, that is, unless you expect a present from me.