T'was the day before...
The day before Valentine's Day a few years ago, my husband Terry asked me what I thought of having our friends the Lapslys and Geocks over for dinner and to play cards on Valentine’s Day. “It’d sorta be a spur of the moment affair,” he said.
Since I love spur of the moment events and I have a passion for cooking, entertaining and playing cards, I jumped at the thought.
My husband is so considerate -
Terry emailed the two guys (no formal invites) and both of them got right back to him. I got busy planning the evening. I pulled out all my Valentine decorations and set a table with red candles in see- through red goblets with different length stems.
We really had a great time! I served a rack of pork and my recipe for Almost Carbohydrate Free Almond Bread and a Caesar Salad. After dinner I went into the kitchen and overheard one of the guys say to Terry, “Thanks for saving my ___. I’d entirely forgotten about Valentine’s Day!“ “Yeah, I forgot until two days ago when I invited you guys,” I heard Terry reply.
- and sneaky!Wait a minute! Did I get snookered? Did I save those three guys from planning a special night out for their ladies? I think I did. I know Terry and I would have gone to a nice restaurant had I not been intercepted with his idea. And we don’t get each other a Valentine anymore, because we have two we saved from years ago and we just bring them out and re-give them. What's irksome is our Valentine’s Celebration came out of my grocery budget.
I can’t send a bill to the two men whose you-know-whats were saved, but I emailed Terry a bill for the evening (he’s in charge of our entertainment budget).
To: Terry Richard
From: Save Your You Know What Catering Service
Valentine’s Day dinner for six $75 per couple = $225.00
Please add 18% gratuity. Thank you for your business.
He paid the bill and I gave him $37.50 for my half for the two of us.
Reading over this essay, it occurred to me we don’t come across as a very romantic couple. And I know the planning of a romantic evening shouldn’t fall on the male of the species, so you need to know that I booked a room for us at Skamania Lodge on the Columbia River.
This year we're going to see Johnny Mathis, the most romantic singer in the world and responsible for the conception of my three children.
Happy Valentines day!
PS The Happiness File was written to help you to put more of you into each month with the intent of enjoying the joy in every month. I have a few first edition hardback books I'm going to sell as long as they last. Just email me at pam@pamyoung.org if you want to order one. I'm selling them for $55 which includes postage and handling. If you'd like the audio version or the ebook, just click on the tab below.
