All you need

“All you need is love. John Lennon, smart man, shot in the back. Very sad.” – Independence Day

Love-mail for all of my far-flung Valentines.

I’m fond of Valentine’s Day in the same way that I’m fond of sailboats.

I like that they exist– whimsical pleasure crafts that merit their own type of footwear–though I’ve rarely been a sailor myself.

After all, sailboats are expensive and probably a little dangerous. But they’re pretty fun to watch and you don’t really have to get on-board to enjoy them.

V. Day celebrations of years past have equated grade school class parties and the heart-shaped meatloaf and pink mashed potatoes my mom used to concoct. I think I had strep once, too.

Last year was an exception, though leaving my credit card in a bowling alley and ending up listening to a husky-voiced lesbian sing old favorites in a New Orleans-themed karaoke bar isn’t exactly my romantic ideal…

I do love schmaltz, though, almost as much as I love big pink cupcakes. Plus it’s fun to watch frazzled boys run around with bouquets of flowers and to have a reason to mail little love-notes to my friends. (I found some really good ones this year, which I won’t ruin by showing.)

As for love songs, I know a few, though most of them are too sullen or too earnest for a cornball holiday like St. Valentine’s.

There is one, however, with enough cheek and verve and twangy harmonica solo to lift my spirits, even when I’m feeling a bit down on love. I hope it turns you on…

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 13th, 2010 at 9:00 pm and is filed under wisdom. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.