She's a freak, though, and is convinced I'm either an actress or a lawyer

Huh, I thought you were an actress that plays a lawyer.

Can't have flowers in the house due to cats and Allergy Boy. I miss them--there is nothing like them for the life and pretty and pampered feelings they bring.

I don't mean to give the impression that I think there's something lame about taking a date or SO out for a romantic dinner/entertainment on the Day - I've done that myself. It's the societal pressure to do so and people's "you aren't? What's wrong with you?" reactions that makes me see red in a shade the marketers hadn't intended.

reactions that makes me see red in a shade the marketers hadn't intended.

You mean #FE0202?

"Lisa's Substitute" is definitely the most heartfelt Simpsons episode. I think the greatest though, is "Last Exit To Springfield."

From the NY Times, in case you were wondering what happened to the people who created the legal architecture and executive decisions justifying torture:

Mr. Rumsfeld revealed last week that he twice offered to resign over the Abu Ghraib scandal and was twice turned down by President Bush. Mr. Bybee, who defined torture as pain equivalent to "organ failure," was nominated by Mr. Bush to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and took his seat there in 2003. Michael Chertoff, who in his capacity as head of the Justice Department's criminal division advised the C.I.A. on the legality of coercive interrogation methods, was selected by President Bush to be the new secretary of homeland security. William J. Haynes II, the Department of Defense's chief legal officer, who helped oversee Pentagon studies on the interrogation of detainees, was twice nominated by President Bush to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. And Mr. Gonzales, who used the words "obsolete" and "quaint" in reference to the Geneva Conventions, was confirmed last week as attorney general, the nation's top legal post.

Re: leaky places. We had a leaky downstairs condo bathroom. We did a) and the nice lady upstairs had her entire bathroom recaulked and checked for plumbing leaks. Didn't help. Finally we noticed that it wasn't leaking when she took a shower or bath, but 30 minutes or so after each time we ran the dryer. Turned out the crazies who built the place ran the dryer vent from the dryer into the wall, then UP to the ceiling. From there it went over the bathroom ceiling, and then across a bedroom ceiling to vent on the back side of the condo. The vent tube in the bathroom ceiling developed a crack, and the condensed water would pour down into our bathroom.

Huh.

(We're staying in and cooking this year. Last year, we went to Canada the day after having a very nice five course French meal. Needless to say, we've scaled down, and that's my V-Day commentary in a nutshell.)

We just had some wacky weather. A half hour ago, there was thunder, a lot of loud noises, and when I looked outside finally, it was to notice that we have about a half-inch of hail on the ground.

Now, of course, it's let up totally, and everything's quiet and dry with a hint of blue between the clouds.

I buy myself flowers all the time, and I have a husband. I just like having flowers around the house.

If the Minister is around, I need a hit taken out on the customer service people at Time Warner Cable, as well as the previous tennants of my apartment for not paying their last bill and making me jump through all these hoops just to get my fucking cable up and running.

We spent all weekend going out for nummy food and socializing with friends, but that had less to do with V-Day and more to do with Pete finally being done with the Deadline That Was Eating His Braaaaiiiiiiin.

I deliberately wore all black today (no pink, red, or white accessories or trim), because I'm hoping to head off the "So, how do goths celebrate Valentine's Day?" questions from my amazingly clueless, annoying, yet well-meaning cow-orker.

If the Minister is around, I need a hit taken out on the customer service people at Time Warner Cable, as well as the previous tennants of my apartment for not paying their last bill and making me jump through all these hoops just to get my fucking cable up and running.

Right. Kill Time Warner Cable people....

I've never had a girlfriend on V-day, and have mostly pretty much ignored it.

That is, until today. I seem to have a girlfriend now. However, we both plan on ignoring the day.