Valentino

After having semi recovered from my earlier meltdown this morning (thanks for the support people) I now feel ready to go into a topic I have been dreading.....Valentines Day.

The only Saint I am an ardent supporter of is Saint Amand (the patron saint of bartending, wine production, etcetera....) So it comes as no surprise that the prospect of living through another Saint Valentines Day alone, miserable and fat leaves me feeling less than warm and fuzzy inside.

People who know me know that I absolutely loathe and detest the festivities surrounding the 14th of February. Lovesick teenagers, candy hearts, confessions of unrequited love, attestations of love so powerful it can move mountains (Seriously - if you can do that you should have made your millions by now el bonehead)....Okay so I am cynical. But it bugs me. It bugs me that there are so many dumb oblivious people who have found what I have spent most of my adult life looking for. I mean, my favourite episode of Greys features Merediths overbearing mother shouting at her for being so ordinary by talking about happiness and love when she was raised to be extraordinary. 'Any idiot can fall in love, but not everyone can pick up a scalpel and save a life'....

Dramatic, I know, I try.

Anyhoo - this year is particularly tough for me - as while I normally abhor the thought of partaking in anything remotely Valentiney, last year my incredible flatmate vandalised my room with red helium balloons from floor to ceiling, confetti, candy, lovebug stuff and a card with words I will treasure forever. And the whole day I was spitting venom at everyone I caught holding hands on the tube. How she managed to do all that without me knowing I still dont know. She did all that to convert me - and for that I am forever grateful. But this year she off on this amazing bike ride from London to Australia, currently somewhere in Malaysia, and I miss her. She came into my life compeltely randomly and its days like that that make you realise how much of a united front your friends - your people - can represent.

Anyway - although its another year alone and another year older, Im also thinking that maybe, just maybe, its another year wiser.