Love is...

Valentines Day always seems to divide people 3 ways:

You have those who really go for it, with lots of cards, flowers, chocolates and more-expensive-than-it-would-be-on-any-other-day-of-the-year dinners for 2.

They you have those who buy the card only, because the rest is too over the top and, well, it's "just to keep the wife/girlfriend happy"...

And then you have those who think the whole thing is a scam to get you to spend money just to declare love on a specific day because the calendar dictates that you must. Increasingly, as the marital years accrue, Michele and I have moved through these 3 stages in chronological order, reaching stage 3 this year and agreeing in advance not even to bother with a card (our little rebellion against Messrs Hallmark and Clinton). Admittedly, this is because the selection here is so awful.

Were we in the UK, the situation may have been different. But it seems that all cards here are imported from the USA, in boxes which must only ever be labelled "overly sentimental" and "schmaltzy". (And while we're on the point, when will Americans realise that the conventional shortening of the word "Mother" is spelt with a U not an O in the middle?!!).

Anyway, with so much else on our plates at the moment (moving house coming along nicely, leaving job next week and baby growing in size - plus, as of today, Jack having tonsillitis) and with no decent cards to be found anywhere, the whole thing will pass us by. What romantics we are.

And anyway, I thought the whole point of Valentines Day was the sending of anonymous cards. I've never completely understood at what point that principle was expanded so as not to catch the entire card-buying public to the extent that you can now seemingly buy Valentines Cards for husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters (concerning), your kids (embarrassing), your pets (worrying) and even (I have seen them) other people's pets from yours (truly disturbing).

Oh well. Soon it will be "Happy Mom's Day"...