SAD Musing

Alas, that time of the year has come upon us again; a time when chocolate abounds in every aisle of every store, wrapped in pink and red cellophane with stuffed bears and frogs and orangutans attached, all holding heart-shaped felt signs that read "B Mine." It's the time of year when artistically challenged elementary school children can really feel ostracized because, no matter how many paper doilies or how much pink glitter they glue to the shoebox, their Valentine's mail box just doesn't look as frilly and pretty as the one belonging to the girl whose mom spent three hours making hers. It's a day to highlight loneliness in all its chocolaty, orangutan-adorned self-pity.

Singles Awareness Day is next Wednesday, and boy, am I aware.

I used to crawl away into my apartment, hoping the day would just pass by, cursing the irritatingly twitterpated, convinced that the idea behind the whole day was a conspiracy to remind the rest of us just how pathetically alone we really can be. (I'm still convinced that it is a conspiracy ...)

But Jessi, God love her, wouldn't have it last year. She broke into my apartment (alright, I gave her the key), and booby-trapped it with all sorts of reminders that even though I'm single and don't have a significant other, I am loved. It was one of the best Valentine's Days of my life. Complete with Harry Connick Jr. playing in my CD player, a bottle of wine in my fridge, and candles and bubble bath in my bathroom, I may have felt sorry for myself, but the self-pity was dulled by white wine and soothed a bit by a relaxing, candlelit bubble bath and the crooning of Mr. Connick.

So here's my challenge, folks: If you traditionally wallow on SAD Day, find someone else who also wallows, and determine to help ease their (and your own) wallowing. Break into their apartment (with their permission!!), buy them flowers, take them out to dinner, gorge on ice cream and shmoopy movies with them ... and remind them that they're loved.

******
Today, I am again listening to Ralph Vaughan Williams. Mostly just the "Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis." And "Fantasia on Greensleeves." Must be a "Fantasia" kind of day ...