Hi All,

Here I am sitting in my living room enjoying the pleasant afterglow that comes from imbibing way too much heart shaped candy and inhaling the fragrance of way to many roses when my pink tinged, Cupid addled brain travels back in time to a Galaxy far, far away.  I am currently drifting back to a time and place that I remember very, very well - The Single Zone.  

I was single for a long time, a very, very looonnng time.  I spent countless years looking forward not to February 14th filled with love, hearts and flowers but to February 15th a day when chocolate is cheap and plentiful. 

I hated Valentines day with a purple passion.  All it ever meant to me was that my poor psyche which was just beginning to heal after spending yet another solitary New Year's Eve by ringing in the holiday clad in flannel jammies, drinking flat ginger ale, watching endless episodes of The Twilight Zone and listening to my cat snore, was about to take another bashing. 

For the better part of a month leading up to this heinous holiday, I was reminded at every turn that I was a vegetarian at the bbq of life.  Then it occured to me that it was about time I did something about this.  I decided that I wasn't willing to accept the status quo. 

No, I wasn't married, I wasn't engaged, heck, I wasn't even dating.  I was single and I was getting gypped, big time.  No candy was being showered upon me, no cards were forthcoming.   Geez, if I wanted flowers I had to either grow them, buy them or steal them from the neighbors.  But no matter, I realized that all I needed to do was start a holiday of my own.  One that celebrated folks like myself who were unencumbered.  Instead of Saint Valentine the Patron Saint of Lovers, I decided that Saint Jude was going to be the guy for my new day.

It would be the day when all those wedding showers we single friends had thrown, all those baby showers we had attended and all those anniversary gifts we had bought for our encoupled friends would be reciprocated.  It would be the opportunity to get back some of our own.  After all, most newly married couples receive more appliances than they know what to do with and most single folks could do with a blender that has a different function for every button and doesn't have the acrid smell of burning wire whenever it goes beyond speed two.

Instead of being supported by the flower, candy and card industry, my new holiday would be sponsored by the makers of TV dinners, soup for one and batteries. 

I had great plans for my new festivity.  I was going to strike a blow for for old maids everywhere!  I was sure I was on the cusp of something that was going to be big, very, very big.  It was only a matter of time. 

I was diligently saving to launch my saturation campaign when I went and ruined it all with a few simple keystrokes.  I went from being the standard bearer for singletons everywhere to becoming the poster child for the happily married. 

So, while I can no longer count myself among them, I can still remember being among them.  And, even though Valentines Day is no longer on a par for me with visiting the dentist or hearing personally from the IRS, I can still empathize.  And, I sincerely hope that someday someone else will get inspired enough to take matters into their own hands and give single folks their own special day. 

Take care all, help lots of people and have a wonderful day!

Tisza