Jene Thomas – General Assignment Reporter
Everyone’s heard it before. ‘It’s the thought that counts.’ Yes, it sounds cliché but in this case, it could not be any truer. It’s still January but in just a couple of weeks, the most romantic day of the year, at least that’s what Hallmark says, will be here.
Don’t think it is too early to start thinking about Valentine’s Day plans. For many people, a lot of preparation and time goes into planning the perfect day or evening.
If Valentine’s Day means going out to eat at a nice restaurant, reservations need to be made in advance. Everyone and their mother will be out that night and waiting in long lines that stretch outside the door in the frigid cold is not how anyone wishes to spend their night.
Gifts for the special someone should not wait until the last minute. No one wants to see the sweat on your forehead after racing to the store for an average box of chocolates and some carnations that some guy was selling on the street.
Take the time to figure out who the intended person is. What kind of chocolate do they like? Do they even like chocolate? Would they prefer the little sweethearts with the sayings on them? Perhaps they want personalized sweethearts to separate them from the rest. Those may not be done overnight.
On customcandyhearts.com, they figure it would take around one to two weeks for bulk hearts and two to five weeks for personalized hearts to arrive. If that’s the plan, better get a move on.
Maybe this day isn’t necessarily about gifts or novelties. Perhaps it’s just about spending some quality time with someone. Just reveling in their company for an entire day. Though it may not seem to take much effort, it actually does.
Perhaps someone is scheduled to work on Valentine’s Day and they need to request it off. Most jobs require notice for days off. Then you’ll have to make sure the other person can request the day off too, or at least a few hours. It’s highly unlikely that a boss is going to let their employee call out the day before Valentine’s Day.
It all takes some planning ahead.
To put some common misconceptions to rest, people do not necessarily need to be in a relationship to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Anyone, from a mother to a friend can be a valentine. This includes you. No one should feel the need to be with a significant other. If it happens, it happens.
The day is about love and despite what anyone says, the first person you should love is yourself. If you don’t have love for yourself, how can you have love for others? Show yourself a nice time. Maybe hit the spa, or the gym if you’re too masculine for a facial. Pick out a nice outfit, take yourself out for dinner and eat something extravagant.
Everyone has stressful days so combat the stress, a little R&R is needed. Just plan for it. Lucky for the Southern community, the 5-day long President’s Weekend is celebrated from Feb. 13 to the 17 so school won’t be a factor.
Feb. 14 is one day out of the year designated for celebrating love but at the end of the day, there are 364 more days to do the same thing. One day is not enough time to show someone how much they are loved. Any day can be a Valentine’s Day. Any day can be special.
All it takes is a little preparation and thinking ahead.
So when is it appropriate to plan for Valentine’s Day?
The limit does not exist.
Photo Credits: photosteve101, ^@^ina (Irina Patrascu Gheo
