St. Valentine's Day Massacre

I heard on the radio that over 80% of couples prefer to stay in on Valentine's Day. That is refreshing. You might say that it's the economy (and I will avoid the obvious stimulus package double-entendre), but I like to think that people are just coming to their senses. Just as people have come to realize that the once-obligatory New Year's Eve drunkfest is expensive, dangerous, and not all that much fun, really, so too have people had it with obligatory romance at inflated prices and are realizing that going out is more trouble than it's worth. While men have obviously hated this least romantic day of the year, even women are becoming disenchanting with the sullen shotgun requirements of the day, I think. Yet Valentine's Day does still serve a critical purpose: the two-fer.

Women may want to move along at this point; nothing to see here. Also, there is some danger that I am violating The Code. But it is important that the young men know. When that day comes that you are contemplating asking that lovely young woman to be your forever after (and let me simplify by using the most common boy asks girl situation; the other permutations probably work too), there are three days that you should consider to pop the question. Those three days are Christmas, her birthday, and Valentine's Day. On each of those days the ring serves double-duty, yielding a superior version of the gift required for the holiday/occasion as well as the requisite engagement symbol: the coveted double supergift. Why would you get engaged on any other day? That would be like breaking up after Christmas instead of before.

Valentine's Day is probably the best of the Big Three gift days for the engagement as it most effectively allows the playing of the romance card. Now if you really want to push it, you can shoot for getting married on Valentine's Day, but that's a long shot. But wouldn't it be great to have the double available for your anniversary (What becomes the fourth of the the Big Four gift days) as well as the built-in mnemonic device to remember the day? If you can pull it off, great, but don't get greedy. Suggest it, but when she wants June or whenever, that's the way it's going to be. Besides, that will get you a few extra months of engagement time, and that's a good thing. The coming summer is too soon, so you have to go the extra year to hit the next summer wedding cycle, and that puts the engagement over a year. She can deal with that, and obviously the longer the better for you. A year and a half is the sweet spot for engagements, and a Valentine's engagement positions you nicely for that. It's unlikely that you can pull off two years or more, as "up or out" is what got you engaged in the first place.