Viva La Valentine's Day Daily!

Valentine's Day. The morning after. Nope. It doesn't feel like a hangover. Or a chocolate-induced fog clouding my head. I don't have a new sparkler on my finger or a new teddy bear ready to eat some dust. What I do get to witness is a soundly asleep, soft body, breathing synchronously with the raindrops pelting our bedroom window. I get to feel morning breath warming my back. Frankly See's Candies have nothing on this.

I woke up early, as it happens so often these days, between my overstimulated, over-occupied Jewish brain, which, like New York City, never sleeps and my peri-menopausal hormones that believe that 5 hours of sleep is plenty for an aging crustacean like me. This is a blessed time that, I believe, was given to me by the universe, not coincidentally. It is a time for contemplation, for a dialogue with my Divine. A possible connection with you. A time to be with myself, exploring, what is this all about, Alfie?

Leading up to yesterday, I was faced with some challenges and confusion. I already schedule naughty, wily kidnappings of my partner, already make gourmet meals from far and near reaches of the Earth brought into bed; already barter with the best-darn aesthetician for facials for her; I often bring her sprays of roses, buckets of bougainvillea, bouquets of Lavender,rosemary and sage. And those happen just because. On a Wednesday. or a Thursday.

So the pressure and expectation for Valentine's day baffles me. Who is this holiday for? Some schmuck who, once a year, needs a reminder to buy you flowers? or is it for you, yourself, to sit in the waiting tower, weighing your worth or love-ability on whether you get anything from anyone . What a set-up.

What if we did something radical - treat every day as Valentine's day? Write poems or even e-mails telling people we love why we love them on a Tuesday; What if we took all of our Halloween candy, bagged it into individually wrapped morsels and attached a sparkly note that said " Hello, may your day be sweet! From a human who cares!" What if you decided to round up all the stuff you absconded with from various hotels, miniature soaps and conditioners, lotions and, from your sock drawer, all the non-matching ones and make those into love bundles to give to the guys who live under the freeway? There are so many love acts that could be done easily, cheaply, thoughtfully.

What are you waiting for? There is a world out there to love. If you think you can get buzzed from a glass of champagne or high on a sugar rush from a 5 LBS. chocolate heart, wait till you taste the sweetness of expected kindness. It's orgasmic. xox