A Valentine's Day to Remember

I was just ringing in the New Year (like yesterday) and realized today that I completely missed "Groundhog Day" and the outcome of whether or not there will be a few more weeks of winter.  Before I know it, it'll be Valentine's Day!

Speaking of Valentine's Day, I hope all of you have a wonderful day with your spouse/partner/significant other on February 14th.

As for me, my husband and I no longer partake in the Valentine Day's tradition.  And before all of you crucify me for our decision to boycott this day that is dedicated to love, let me tell you why this is.

It started on Valentine's Day in 1998.  This was the first, official date that my husband and I went on as boyfriend and girlfriend. The destination was a Valentine's Day wedding that he was invited to.  As luck would have it, I was in town for the weekend from a job that kept me away from my home for three of four weeks every month (installing computer systems) and I was able to attend this lavish affair with him.

For a first date, it was very special to have my new beau all dressed up in formal attire and to be taken to a posh restaurant before the wedding.  It was also lovely to get a bouquet of beautiful red roses - which I actually dried and pressed in a book and still have to this very day.

The date started well, but after a few drinks with dinner, we arrived at the church ready to fall asleep in the pew.  To stay awake, my sweetheart and I chatted or more specifically, narrated to each other, the sordid events of this red, white and pink fiasco of a ceremony.

The bride and groom were not in the best of moods and neither were the members of their wedding party.  It was quite obvious to us that the whispered discussions we overheard several times during the hour-long nuptials leaned towards the inevitability of the pair not finishing the ceremony.

So, in our sleepy haste, we decided to leave the event before the end as we felt it was not really the right place to have a great Valentine's Day date.

Everything was going well with our plan as we slipped out of the chapel and scurried, unnoticed to the car - a silver 1986 Porsche 944.  When my sweetheart turned the key in the ignition, the car would not start.  After severals attempts and the starter grinding, the engine finally turned over.  With a huge cloud of gray smoke, we thought we were on our way out of the parking lot - mission accomplished, right?  But this was not how it played out.

Mind you, we were in the parking spot right in front of the main church doors.  When the cloud of smoke cleared, we realized that the doors had swung open and we were front and center of the newly married husband and wife exiting the church.  So much for our stealthy, under-the-radar escape from the wedding from hell.

Having been discovered in the middle of our getaway, we made some lame excuse to the couple that we were not feeling well (that it must have been something we ate) and needed to leave before the reception.  The sad part was, later that evening, we  both succumbed to the ravishes of food poisoning from the "fancy" dinner we had prior to the wedding from hell.  Instant Karma had prevailed.

Many conversations about that fateful day made us come to the realization that Valentine's Day was grossly overrated and that when/if we were to marry, it certainly would not be on Valentine's Day.

We eloped on a crisp, fall morning in October and exchanged our self-written vows at the clerk of the court's office at our local town hall.  A decision we have never once regretted.

Maybe my husband and I are a rare breed.  But, we both see no need to go out to a an expensive dinner, bestow each other with gifts or exchange Hallmark cards on this one day of the year.  Instead, we celebrate our love for each other every day.

Honestly, I think more relationships would last much longer if Valentine's Day was not the only day that couples showed their love for one another.

What's your favorite Valentine's Day to Remember story?

Happy Valentine's Day !