Because I’m in a loving mood now, let me share this tip with all the guys out there: girls do not actually like to receive flowers. They don’t last, they become ugly after two weeks but you feel obliged to keep them around because afterall, the guy you liked gave them to you, so they remained in your room, attracting insects and making you sneeze if you get too near them.
But, BUT, flowers are of utmost importance on Valentines day. It is on this day alone that you cannot afford to NOT give your girl flowers. We flaunt them in crowded places, eyeing other girls within a 10mile radius, eyeballing and comparing the size of their bouquets. The bigger your bouquet, the more your bf loves you and the more ‘face’ you get.
Yes I know, it sounds absolutely disgusting, but it is a fact. This is why for centuries florists have been selling roses at ridiculous prices and yet people still buy from them (normal day: $15, 1 week before: $18, on V day: $40). At least now you can put all your ‘birthday bouquet’ and ‘anniversary bouquet’ money into a piggy bank and then splurge it all at once on the most fantastic bouquet of flowers that is guaranteed to make your gf, and thus you, very happy indeed.
I remember on my first Valentine’s with Liang, we went from great world to Orchard to PS and on the way, we rejected hundreds of young girls trying to get him to buy roses for me, and he rejected each and every one of them with a firm ‘no thank you’. I wasn’t expecting him to get me anything but I can’t help feeling disappointed. It wasn’t till we went for dinner that I found out that my roses had been waiting at the restaurant all along, the poor thing, he told me he actually felt compelled to buy me another bouquet just to fend off the flower-sellers. But alas, what’s the point of carrying roses when not many people can see it? (second tip of the day guys, if no more than 100 people see your gf with the flowers, it is as good as not giving her flowers at all. Note: this does NOT include the time when you were embarrassedly holding the flowers before meeting her)
On my second Valentine’s, I wanted to rise above all the shallowness and also wanted to save him some money (I found out the ridiculous price he paid), so I specifically told him, “No flowers!” This time, I did all the ‘no thank you’s while Liang got more and more uncomfortable. I suggested that he could carry around the soft toy (we left it in the car as it was too embarrassingly huge, even I didn’t want to hold it) he bought me as a ‘block arrow shield’, after weighing his discomfort with the embarrassment; he stuck with the “no thank you”s.
This year, we celebrated earlier so on V day itself I know we’re just meeting for a simple meal at JP, which is so ulu I don’t really care whether or not I have flowers. On the way there, I noticed that girls with flowers, even though they have plastic carriers or bags big enough, always either hold the bouquet in their hands or place them on top of their bags, seemingly afraid to crush the flowers, whereas guys have no qualms about putting the bouquets in plastic bags (I saw two, and it was the wet market kind of plastic bag), squashing them in their backpacks or wrapping them up with newspaper.
Anyway when I got off the bus I saw him standing at one corner, with 1 hand behind his back, grinning at me, totally obvious that he’s hiding a bouquet. I thought it was quite cute he did that, but I think the guy in front of me didn’t think so. Since the corner was quite ulu and I was walking directly behind him, if I were the guy, I would also think that I was the one he’s waiting for. Liang said that the guy smiled at him (I personally thought it was a polite sorry-err-I-think-I’m-not-interested smile). Anyway, when the guy turned around and saw me, he gave me a look of relief.
On our way back home on the train at 10pm, I was trying to get Liang to hold the flowers, pretending not to know him, so that people would think that he’s some loser guy whose flowers got rejected by the girl of his dreams, and in walked this guy carrying a gigantic and most beautiful bouquet of purplish pink huge roses, wrapped in purple and tied with a purple ribbon. He was with a guy friend. I whispered to Liang that he must be the loser guy and tried to detect signs of depression. Liang, in a sagely tone, said that maybe…nowadays, times have changed. (if you dun catch his drift think brokeback mountain)
I chanced upon this just now and thought it hilarious:
Red Love, Beauty, Courage and Respect, Romantic Love, Congratulations, I Love
You, Job Well Done, Sincere Love, Respect, Courage & Passion
Red (Dark) Unconscious beauty
Red (Single) "I Love You"
Deep Burgundy Unconscious Beauty
White Purity, Innocence, Silence, Secrecy, Reverence, Humility,
Youthfulness, I am worthy of you, Heavenly
White (Bridal) Happy love
Dark Pink Appreciation, Gratitude, Thank You
Light Pink Admiration, Sympathy, Gentleness, Grace, Gladness, Joy, Sweetness
Yellow Joy, Gladness, Friendship, Delight, Promise of a new beginning,
Welcome Back, Remember Me, and Jealousy, "I care"
Orange Enthusiasm, Desire, Fascination
Black Death, Farewell
Blue The unattainable or impossible
Now I know why I like blue roses so much.
So what colour roses did I get? I got dark pink. Thank you for what I also dunno.
our presents
As you can see, I did the cliche thing and made cookies. I spent A LOT of effort, buying new ingredients and all. I even had to specially make a trip in the middle just to get a new tin of milo, even though I still have a rusty-looking, NON-expired (date: 25/08/2006) tin at home. I thought the powder looks abit mouldy. Then I painstakingly made many many little heart shape cookies (corny I know, but the better to embarrass him with), but the end result was that my little hearts bloated up to become big, fat, ugly hearts that joined together with other hearts so that everything was one big mess. (aiwen if you’re reading this, I know you’re scolding me under your breath. But I DID leave allowance for expansion, I did! I think I didn’t add enough flour, also I creamed the butter so enthusiastically that it’s quite soft and got bubbles. I guess I’m still in the clutches of your yummy cookies)
Haha but I think he enjoyed them as he hasn’t eaten the authentic cookies yet (I usually can’t help but finish them on the day of manufacture itself).
I think this year our plan was quite good as we had a really good dinner at Black Angus. The Valentine’s set was $128+++ but I enjoyed our dinner of prime rib of beef (I spent the whole dinner thinking abt where exactly is the prime rib part) and squid ink pasta (because squid ink is my nemesis), and it was slightly more than half that price.
And now a tip for the girls: it really doesn’t matter that you don’t have the biggest bouquet in the whole of Singapore. it really is the thought that counts. I think the effort your guy put into buying the flowers, searching for a nice restaurant to bring you to, taking time out of his busy schedule to make plans for the special day is more than sufficient for you to feel his love for you. And that is what Valentine’s Day is all about, isn’t it?
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