For most of my life, I never had a Valentine. That never seemed much of a problem, since I thought, as many people do, that Valentine's Day was a manufactured holiday which caused more misery than happiness. Read this:
Ten reasons why Valentine's Day is overrated.
Yep, pretty sure I felt that way. Furthermore, I don't think I've ever bought roses for a Valentine.
The closest I came was in desperate heartbreak, more than two decades ago, when I would write to the woman who broke my heart, letters trying to tell her I was doing well but obviously desperate & lonesome & sad, in which I would put flowers I surreptitiously stole from nearby gardens. I lived at the time in a nice area of Austin called Hyde Park & as I stumbled to & from work at the University - I chose to walk because I couldn't sit still, my misery was continual, a bus ride was intolerable - & it was during a lovely spring - I would lean over wooden fences to pick flowers & hurry away, all to be put in envelopes, to wither & dry in the trucks of the postal service, to fall out of the envelope as this former lover wearily read another of my useless scribbles to her.
Now that I am married, one might think that Valentine's Day is a chance to have a special night with my beloved, but I chose a woman who is not in the least romantic, who would hate for me to spend money on things like flowers for which she has no use, & who has no problem with me doing a radio show on the night of that holiday.
& you know what? While I don't tend to look down upon or condemn anyone who celebrates the day with the traditional offerings of chocolate, dinner, & roses, I don't think I was ever made for that life. Though of course in my own dumb way I celebrate it, right? I do a radio show about the day every year!
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