Be Mine

The Beatles said it best. All you need is love. All you need is love. All you need is love, love. Love is all you need.


Okay. So if love is, in fact, all you need, why is there such push for romance and gifts on that notorious holiday that falls on February 14th? Nowhere does it say that little conversation hearts are necessary... right?


So Valentine's Day. I guess I understand the fact that we're celebrating love and all things mushy, but why just on one day? And when did this celebration get so incredibly over the top? It could be such a great idea for a holiday, and yet, every year I find myself a bit repulsed by it.


Maybe it's because I worked in a flower shop and all those red roses conjure an image of a less than agreeable customer who waited until the last minute and now...



he/she is angry because he/she needed those roses because he/she really messed up by forgetting his/her anniversary and if he/she doesn't bring flowers home on Valentine's Day boy will they be in some serious sh... trouble!


It's not even that I'm not the romantic type. I am! But somehow those goofy teddy bears and giant cards and boxes of chocolates always seem to come off as a shallow knock-off of the emotion we're really trying to express.


In honor of a less syrupy version of Valentine's Day, here are a few ideas that come from outside the proverbial chocolate box. Because let's face it. Love is all you need, but I wouldn't mind a gift or two as an added bonus!