Valentine's Day

Ahhhh Valentine’s Day.

The treats, and sweets, the flowers, and the pink stuff.  All that pink.  Everywhere.

It’s a day you either LOVE (because you are either coupled up and in love, or you are altruistic about the holiday no matter what your circumstances), or HATE (because you are either coupled up and not in love, or you are alone and sick of this thing being shoved in your face every year).  It sounds extreme, I know.  There may be an in-between in there somewhere, but who wants to broach that?  “Oh, I think Valentine’s Day is just FINE.”  If I said that, my post would be finished right here. That might appeal to some of you non-readers, I admit. But what else is there to say after “just FINE?” And besides, how boring would that be? It’s much more interesting to veer toward the extreme.

Welcome to my V-Day post.  In case you are new, it’s also the start of week 3 in my pursuit to get back to my old healthy self and lose a few extra pounds in the process.  It began with the post, “I’m a Thin, Light, Lean Machine Don’tcha Know?”, and then after week 1, I lost 3.5 pounds, and chronicled it in the post, “Junk Food My Arse – Really!” My results for this week are at the end of this post, and they’re good. You won’t want to miss ’em.

The Day of Love

Every time I hear the word Amore – I remember the song (sing it with me here) “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore!”

What I want to know is who thought up those lyrics, and what kind of drugs were they on?  Just think about it.  Did they actually think that the moon hitting your eye like a big pizza pie was at all usual?  They must have, or they wouldn’t have said it like it’s inevitable.  So is being hit in one’s eye (with a big or little or any kind of pizza pie), good, then? Or bad? Is love good or bad? Here’s to true sadomasochism and the thought that love hurts – but we love IT (love – whether it hurts or feels good, that is). There are a couple of other alternatives to a drug induced rhyme.  Here are a few:

1) He/she was in a writing slump.  I hear it happens.
2) He was a very poor lyricist, and just couldn’t think of anything to rhyme with “Eye” – not a single thing besides Pizza Pie.
3) He was an exceptional lyricist, and it just takes an intelligent mind to really “get” the true meaning of the lyrics.
4) He made a bet with friends, colleagues and the record label that no matter what the song said, it would sell.

I’ve got my money on number three or four, if drugs are ruled out.  I am assuming here that “love” or “amore” in this context is suppose to be viewed as a good experience, as most of us know it to be.  Although I also know from experience that love can be painful, treacherous, harsh, and extremely confusing.  I guess being hit with a pizza in the eye could be an extremely confusing or painful experience, as could falling in love.  Well, anyway.

Webster Defines “amore”:
Pronunciation: ə-ˈmȯr-ā
Function: adverb
Etymology: Italian
Date: 1739

Not Any Amore

What I REALLY want to dish on are social “mores” (typically pronounced mohr-ays) and how they apply to me on my quest to stay fit and healthy.  I know – BOH – RING.  But indulge me here.  I am getting really good at this whole “mores” thing. 

If you too are slimming down:  Be courageous!  Get creative when it comes to dining out or socializing.  Have your friends invited you to dine out? Exercise your freedom to eat your dinner early at home – within your control. Then show up for a soda or lemon-water and enjoy the company of your friends while they indulge in every form of decadence known to man. It really won’t kill you. The point is, don’t feel obligated to do anything you haven’t planned or aren’t ready for, and begin to make things happen for yourself – no matter what societal “rules” or “mores” exist. Only you can make it happen.