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Monday, 14 Feb 2005

Valentine's

It's Valentine's Day today!

Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? If you look around you will find that the history of Valentine's Day -- and its patron saint -- is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition.

One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men -- his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

According to legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailor's daughter -- who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial -- which probably occurred around 270 A.D -- others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

Anyway, enough about Valentine. Did you know that the combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut roses in 2003 was $52 million? Among all types of cut flowers, roses were second in receipts to lilies ($70 million.) And 24.6 pounds of candy per capita was consumed by Americans in 2003; it is believed a large portion is consumed around Valentine’s Day.

Sunday, 13 Feb 2005

Sunday Night

It's Sunday night already, the weekend is over

Saturday, 12 Feb 2005

Saturday evening

Got back from running some errands and tried to watch Kill Bill 2 after dinner. I almost fell asleep. I wasn't quite in the mood. I think I am going to get ready to go out for a while. Probably Gaslight. May meet some friends there.

Saturday

It's the weekend! Got up late today. I am getting ready to go watch the Barcelona vs. Zaragona soccer match. This bar, Nevada Smiths, on the West Village plays all the European soccer games live.

I am leaving for Daytona Tuesday. It's work, but should still be kind of fun. Got the demo Tablet on Wednesday. It looks and works great.

Monday, 7 Feb 2005

Monday evening

Monday is over! Getting close to delivery date for the NASCAR program. I fly down to Daytona next week, should be pretty cool. Can't wait to see how the Tablet PCs perform. I get a demo unit tomorrow.

The weather has been incredibly nice lately, it's been in the mid 40's and even 50 since Friday. Very nice. It's 74 degrees in my apartment right now, and I have the windows open

Got a txt message from my friend Jen this morning, she is in New Orleans with some friends partying. Good for them.

Not much else new today.

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