09 Feb
Valentines day. An internationally known date in which everyone with a partner is conned into buying ridiculously over priced gifts and affectionate items.
This is another example, in my eyes, of a date over taken by businesses and money making schemers in the hope of commercialising it as much as possible.
Example:
A flower company i know of are offering a bouquet of flowers delivered with a hand written personal message for £100.
The same bouquet is available at any time of the year for £50.
I personally take the approach of - If i want to show my affection to someone, i will show it when i want to, not on a predefined date when everyone seems to be out to make as much money as possible.
Or you would show affection every day of the year and not just on said date.
This is mostly a commercialized holiday. Like… say, Halloween or St. Patricks Day. Or those religious holidays that have deep meaning behind them but the ideas are lost behind all the fun and pageantry, like Christmas and Easter.
I find it annoying that prices are made higher as it makes the whole holiday just glaringly a ploy to make more moola.
But, myself, I like holidays. I’m a bit silly, like that. I just find them to be regular days that are nicely dressed up. Like… if you don’t have a reason to smile.. here is presented something false for you to put on that might make you feel just a tiny bit better from every other day.
Some good chocolate is to be found on these occasions, at least. :)
But valentines day day does have an added bonus that most holidays don’t haveit excludes a load of people, ie. those not in relationships. At least christmas and easter don’t rub salt in the wound and imply a large number of people are sad losers. Hooray for Prozac!
I have it on good authority (Bill Bryson’s) that there is only one holiday left that has not been raped and pillaged by commercialism, and sadly, it is one that we in England do not get to enjoy: Thanksgiving. I’m going to start a campaign to get England more national holidays.
Felix.. your bit about “sad losers” made me chuckle when I read your response, earlier.
I understand how you feel! But don’t worry… you aren’t alone! And trust me… i’m more of a sad loser, than you could ever be.
But don’t let the holiday make you sad. I’m sure that there is someone out there who loves you. (Even if it’s just your mother! Ha, just joking. :) ) Though… I do love mine and she always buys me something nice for Valentine’s Day. Which might sound “sad loserish” but at least I am loved by someone… which isn’t all too bad.
As for Thanksgiving… well, i’m sure that if there was a consumer market for items such as Pilgrim hats or cornucopias… they would be massed produced. But I don’t think the lovely hues or brown, red, or orange will really ever catch on here, when decorating for the Holidays. :)
We should have an anti-commercialised holiday in which all the large corporations buy their customers gifts for loyalty to the funding of these large organisations, as a mean of saying thanks. I doubt it would catch on as people equal greed but it’s a nice thought while it lasts in my mind.
Saint Valentine was a Roman Priest who married people during times of war: however, doing so had been declared illegal by Emperor Claudius, and Valentine was executed, becoming some sort of martyr of love.
I think, by way of compensation, there ought to be a St Claudius’ Day, where pathetically irritating romantics are executed as punishment for buying ridiculously over priced gifts and ‘affectionate’ items.
Jono: only one problem with your plan, when the corporations “buy their customers gifts” they have to buy them from somewhere, namely other corporations, which merely exacerbates the commercialism of the holiday. Instead, share-holders in major corporations that benefit from holidays (such as Hallmark) should distribute home-made gifts on the streets. They could give out cakes, or cards decorated with macaroni and spray paint. Although they’d have to buy the spray paint from somewhere….. Maybe they should just go around hugging people or distributing mud-sculptures. Now that sounds like a basis for a holiday if ever I heard one.
Jenn: I look forward to taking thanksgiving and making it a traditional English holiday. This holiday I will be mostly wearing a Pilgrim Hat.
I woke up this morning to “breaking news” on the television…
Prince Charles is to marry Camilla Parker Bowles…
Gives all you Brits new found joy for this Monday :)
Um, we had that news about two days ago ;)
I’m not sure whether it will bring new found joy to the masses in all honesty!
It’s no biggy for me really.
Haha… gee I was being a bit sarcastic. :) I should have put a “winking” smilie next to what I said.
Camilla and Prince Charles… they do seem to be odd characters (I won’t say anything about them being physically unattractive… or did I just do that?), individually. So their finally coming together after so long… I guess… makes good sense. And I guess their story is one of a real romance.. So, in a way it is sweet…
It’s nothing as glamorous as with Wallis Simpson and King Edward, though!
I get to have this years valentines day off, woo! Dunno if that makes be a sad loser for enjoying the year off or for not having someone to spend money on.
I was travelling this weekend and on the train I seen a boy of about 8 or 9 with a valentines day card that was in a sack. Yes a sack as the card was nearly as tall as he was. He was also struggling to carry some flowers too.
How I laughed.
*note to self: don’t laugh out loud while on a train*
P.S.
I hate the fact that easter eggs appear in supermarkets at least 3 weeks after christmas. It’s so annoying.
Awwww I think that sounds really sweet about the little boy. I wonder if he was bringing those gifts to his mommy.
Same here about the Easter goods. But that makes me happy. Even more chocolate to choose from!