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Valentine's Day - funniest and least romantic gestures

(56 Posts)
LaraGransnet (GNHQ) Thu 13-Feb-14 09:51:18

Yes, we know. Valentine's Day is commercialism at its worst and we have an Anti-Valentine's Day page of quotes to prove it. But, inspired by this earlier thread on excellent reasons to break up with someone (hairy nose, mummy's boy etc) we thought a thread dedicated to sharing the LEAST romantic gesture anyone has made (unintentionally or not) might be an alternative way of celebrating this 14th Feb.
Of course, if you're a fan of Valentine's Day then feel free to share your most romantic story too. Randomly selected posts will win either a romance novel (for most romantic) - or a crime novel (for least). Entries by end of play tomorrow Friday 14th Feb.

Maggiemaybe Sun 23-Feb-14 17:44:37

Congratulations, tiggypiro! smile

tiggypiro Sun 23-Feb-14 16:53:03

And I won the crime novel for the least romantic story !
Not sure how but as I am a person who could not win a raffle prize even if I was the only one buying a ticket I am immensely grateful.
It arrived a few days ago and I am looking forward to reading it.

Maggiemaybe Sun 23-Feb-14 15:14:14

Well done, gillybob! smile

cathybee Sun 23-Feb-14 13:33:19

Elegran my post was about something a little more serious than a mis spelling-he said he did not buy anyone anything when I asked about a card and all you got from my post was my mis spelling confused

I wish all I had to worry about was a mis spelling of Valentine'ssmile

Riverwalk Sun 23-Feb-14 10:56:44

Yes, a worth winner gilly flowers

I'm hoping mine will win the most ambiguous category grin

Penstemmon Sun 23-Feb-14 10:19:23

It was worthy winner gilly

glassortwo Sun 23-Feb-14 09:45:02

Well done gilly its lovely when you get something unexpected. I am using my Holiday voucher prize next week we are going away on Sunday until Wednesday. smile

gillybob Sun 23-Feb-14 09:33:01

I received a message from GNHQ telling me that I had won a surprise book (romantic fiction) for my post on the valentine thread maggiemaybe. It arrived yesterday and is a lovely hardback by Susan Fletcher called The Silver Dark Sea.

Thank you very much Gransnet. smile

Maggiemaybe Sun 23-Feb-14 01:29:32

Okay, we've opened our hearts, (and given you our embarrassing stories blush. Where are our prizes then, LaraGransnet?!

Penstemmon Sat 22-Feb-14 21:00:08

in 1976 Valentine's day was on a Saturday and DH and I were invited to a famous lovers fancy dress party at the house where we had first met about 5 years before. I was almost 9 months pregnant. My dad suggested we go as Mme Butterfly and Lt Pinkerton but it was too late to source the costumes so we went as 'childhood sweethearts' we were both at school when we met..I wore my maternity pinafore dress with a sash round my bump and wore a shirt and school tie plus my old battered school boater & put my hair in pigtails and DH wore my brothers school uniform with shorts and cap.

That was the last time we ever went out to celebrate Valentine's Day. DD1 was born 15 days later on Leap Year's Day!

Elegran Sat 22-Feb-14 19:46:09

An aside - why are so many posters saying Valentines ? Are they in the States?

In the UK it is called Valentine's Day, and the first of January is New Year's Day, not New Years.

cathybee Sat 22-Feb-14 19:32:55

When I asked DH why he did not buy me a card on Valentines,
he answered "I didn't buy anyone anything??

MarionHalcombe Sat 15-Feb-14 17:10:52

When dh and I first started seeing one another I met him at his house on Valentine's afternoon to cook a meal for us to have that night, he left me there and went back to work. After preparing the meal as far as I could and setting the table complete with small silver stars I left to pick my boys up from school and take them for a swimming lesson.

As soon as I shut the door I thought "did I turn the ring off", this thought persisted, as they do. I got the boys and then went back to the house.

It was full of smoke as I had not only left the ring on, but had left a pan with food in it on the ring. I had no key to get in so I went round to the back of the house, it was a terrace, i managed to get the back gate unlocked so i could see into the kitchen window. You couldn't see anything for the smoke, so I picked up a chair and smashed the window, climbed in, switched the ring off, climbed out again, rang him to tell him what I had done and went straight onto the swimming pool for the boys' lesson!

I have no idea why I didn't call the fire brigade

He had to scrub the walls, wash every curtain in the house and months later you could still smell the smoke.

Yesterday 14 years on, we had our meal last night with the same silver stars on the table that he rescued from the house that I nearly burned down.

nipsmum Sat 15-Feb-14 16:25:05

One valentines day I got an anniversary card. Our Anniversary was in September.
The excuse was he was abroad and had bought the wrong card before he left Britain without noticing.

On our 16th valentines day I got 16 long stemmed red roses. Within 2 days all the heads had fallen off. Maybe the florist did a cheap deal. hmm.

annygee Sat 15-Feb-14 09:20:21

It's not a romantic one, but a moment which made me smile. At Christmas I bought two little bare trees which had tiny lights fitted to the branches. They looked lovely on the window so I decided to leave them for a while. Wanted to make the conservatory look really special for our 'Contact the Elderly' afternoon tea party which took place exactly on Valentine's day. So - with garlands of little heart shapes draped around the bare branches, the trees looked beautiful and I was very proud of what I had achieved! Husband surveys my artwork before the event and remarks - quite thoughtfully - fancy that - I've never seen trees with red leaves.... ! It's Valentine's day - ever heard of it??? And that was that! I knew not to expect 24 red roses!

mrsmopp Sat 15-Feb-14 01:07:07

I met my husband at a Valentines dance 49 years ago today. I fancied him because he looked like Billy J Kramer! Next year we will celebrate our golden anniversary.

inishowen Fri 14-Feb-14 20:11:20

Every year I go to the supermarket the day after Valentines, and buy myself the cut price flowers! Not romantic, but I would let hubby pay the ridiculous prices they ask on the run up to the day.

Fairy16 Fri 14-Feb-14 18:24:20

My husband and are both in our 80s and have had a great day. We have our heart shaped lights everywhere,our cards to each other and had a light lunch today of boiled egg in our his and hers Valentine egg cups and matching spoons, all on our red heart shaped plates.
We tend to go all out with different things like heart shaped Valentine playing cards and this year we have added the Four in a Row game which has heart shaped slots.
In case you are wondering...yes I made a heart shaped cake this morning. We will be celebrating our59th wedding anniversary next month and send our best wishes to couples everywhere for Valentines day.

kittylester Fri 14-Feb-14 16:57:51

Oh, cathy (((hugs)))

DH gave me a box of nutty chocolates and some chocolate bombs to make 'real' hot chocolate. I think he understands me quite well. smile

cathybee Fri 14-Feb-14 16:37:00

Least romantic is DH stayed in bed all day and has not acknowledge it in any way. long gone are the days that Valentines Day was a day to remember why you were together, now its mostly a day of regret.

tiggypiro Fri 14-Feb-14 16:20:45

At college in 1968 a friend asked ME to send a card to a chap SHE was keen on ! So I put my name and home address on and sent it to my mum to send on to him. He wrote back inviting me to his 21st birthday party in Corpus Christie cellars and offered to let me stay in the college. My friend was now a little worried and came clean to him so we were both invited to the party. We had to ask our hostel warden permission to go and her reply was 'No' and did we realise that Corpus Christie was AN ALL MALE COLLEGE !!!! Oh shock and horror ! We did go but had to stay at a B&B as we were such goody goodies and didn't even think of lying to the warden.
I can remember very little about it except I met a lad who was taking a degree in Arabic as he wanted to go to Cambridge and it was the course with the lowest entry requiements ! I don't think my friends budding romance went anywhere !
As for me - my ex had a job to remember my birthday so Valentines Day was not even on his radar !

Pikkapen Fri 14-Feb-14 15:48:00

He Started Without Me!

On our wedding day, we had arranged to arrive separately but meet our guests before the ceremony, as it was both our second time around.

I arrived traditionally a few minutes late at the Register Office, only to find my husband to be was nowhere to be seen. The guests told me that as there was another wedding after ours, the Registrar had taken him into the ceremony room and shut the door to fill out the details, before I got there!

I knocked on the ceremony room door and walked in alone! I've never quite forgiven him for letting the registrar have her way, but don't think about it very often, thankfully. I felt a right fool and was so embarrassed and humiliated on what should have been a glorious moment.

Florrie64 Fri 14-Feb-14 14:56:07

My first husband came home very late one valentine's night after going straight to the pub from work. He apologised for being late and handed me a bunch of daffodils, I did wonder breifly where he got them from so late at night but went to bed thinking nothing more of it. The next morning I noticed one particularly nice daffodil that was a bit unusual and thought that I recognised it, sure enough, when I looked outside at the front garden, all my daffodils were gone! He had given me my own flowers, lol! shock

Grannyknot Fri 14-Feb-14 14:24:08

I've posted about this before (I think) smile

One year when we were quite newly married, we were living in South Africa and having a barbecue on Valentine's Day for family and friends. As part of the preparations, husband had to mow the back lawn. He mowed a HUGE heart into it and I could see it from the kitchen window where I stood at the sink. And (drum roll) - he left it there for all to see, and endured the ribbing from his mates. Thinking about it now, some 30 years later, I still go weak at the knees.

bikergran Fri 14-Feb-14 14:20:11

GS spent last night making chocolates (apparently there was a little set,, moulds, box,foil etc) on a new cookery mag few wks ago.....he kept saying all week that he didn't know which girl in his class to send valantines/chocolates so......... he made 15 chocs and decided to give ALL the girls in the class one smile although if he suddenly decided he wasn't brave enough to give them out they may still be in his bag ready to be eaten tonight! shock