Hope you all had a happy Valentine's day!
I know, it's such a corrupt way of celebrating eros. Why the hearts, flowers and fluffiness, you say? I refuse to be part of this cookie-cutter routine that is to send the girl a nice bouquet and buy her dinner!
Well firstly, I honestly don't understand what is so wrong about taking the road more travelled - if you're such an anti-conformist, why did you decide to go to university instead of travel the world playing the ukulele (no offense to any ukulele-playing travelers with no tertiary education) - the point of gift-giving is to get the recipient something she enjoys, and yes, all girls universally like flowers. Don't believe it when we tell you otherwise, because regardless of what we said earlier, we will secretly hope that bouquet at the receptionist's desk was for us, so that we can take pictures of it, post them onto facebook and show them off to all our girlfriends. And if you still don't believe this tried and true formula to a girl's heart, there's nothing but a couple hundred dollars to lose with trying it once as an experiment. Or not, if you're too much of a cheapskate, because it will become an (extremely well-received) annual ritual once you begin. I'll leave you to decide whether or not your girl is worth it - I mean, she's only the love of your life.
But I digress. Yes, society has indeed blown February 14th up into a heart-encrusted profit-making campaign, but that's only because there is market for this stuff - as I've mentioned before, our XX chromosomes and hormones dictate that we like cupcakes and chocolates and jewellery. Besides, if you are so fixated on avoiding the over-commercialised crap, there are plenty of other ways to show your affection - stay at home, make dinner, watch a film and cuddle - it's not like anyone from Hallmark is holding you at gunpoint forcing you to buy a soft toy from them.
And finally, to all the grinches out there arguing that we are setting eros on a pedestal and forgetting about storge, phileo and agape, may I just kindly remind we do, in fact, celebrating days glorifying the other loves. They're called Mother's day, Father's day, and Christmas.
broccoli for girls all the way shurlz
ReplyDeletestorge is brotherly love. phileo is friendship love. agape is unconditional love. when did we start having bromance day lol? jo gave ME something for a change. not everyone's love language is gifts, dear.
ReplyDeleteyou're right, the only love that's not celebrated officially is friendship day (actually hallmark invented one a hundred years ago, but since that was for marketing purposes even I don't acknowledge that) - I was almost going to put down 'birthdays' haha. also my narrow non-Christian interpretation of storge here is clearly for familial love, though of course you may nitpick at my laymanness
Deleteanyway this post is not to berate people for not giving gifts (I did say 'stay at home, make dinner' etc. did I not?) - it's directed to those who disapprove of said practice on this day and also to inform you boys that as girls we really do like flowers, and if it helps make me appear any less materialistic, I gave someone something too this valentine's without receiving anything back (boohoo).
i didn't get anything too flashy for my one and only valentine's day last year. he bought me assorted godiva chocolates and lindt truffles. a week before, he casually asked whether i like dark chocolate. when I said that i prefer milk chocolates, he secret said to himself, "damn it!" and went to buy a bar of milk chocolate, explaining this funny little story when i opened the bag. he also wrote me a two-page long letter about why he is so grateful to have me and all the reasons i'm such a great girlfriend. it was written in cheap pen on copy paper folded over and over, but it was so sweet and heartfelt, i would prefer that over anything.
ReplyDeletesorry this became a rant because this year reminds me that i didn't celebrate.