Straight Guy,
So, what's the straight take on Valentine's Day? Crass commercial imposition? Guilty pleasure? It seems to me that it's like New Year's: everyone says the occasion doesn't really matter to them, yet it sustains a multi-million dollar industry. If people can take it or leave it, why all those flowers being delivered to work today? (Note to self--track down who received the Vera Wang Flowers arrangement.)
My days as a Valentine's Day player were doubtless in elementary school. A flaming magenta Snoopy card sticks out in my memory, but whether I gave it or received it is long forgotten. Two decades later, a boyfriend made dinner, laid an elegant table, and placed a red rose beside my plate. The next year he didn't bother to mention the day. No surprise where our relationship ended. A few years later, I remember bringing flowers on a date with a PNB (potential new boyfriend). The interest wilted first. Flowers can be terrifiying.
So, do straight men take any pleasure from the day or is it one more chore? At least we can all be spared jewelry commercials until Christmas.
--Gay Guy
1 comment:
Nice writing GG! I could smell the lemon juice in the emotional papercut from here. For most of my life VD was just a reminder that A) I was an outsider (ie not gettin' any) and B) yet again, I wasn't living up to expectations. Now that I'm married (straight), VD is a little bit of chore, just in the sense of another deadline - "don't forget don't forget don't forget." Fortunately I married someone perfect for me - "flowers are nice but they're just going to die. Get me wine and lottery tickets." Other women think I'm a complete bastard every year, but (again, fortunately) I don't have to make them happy.
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