Friday, February 6, 2009

Down With Hallmark Holidays!

I walked into the drugstore near the end of January and was nearly blinded by all the pink and red. It was as though a mass of innards had exploded all over everything. It was utterly disgusting. After a moment of contemplating the mess, I realized it wasn't guts, but rather a bunch of Valentine's Day crap. It was no less disgusting. This is yet another ploy by marketers, retailers, and greeting card companies to force us to either buy stuff or feel guilty. Or, worse yet, make us feel all alone and unloved.


In the last week, I can't even count how many times I've heard commercials from jewelry stores saying crap like "show her you really love her -- get her some ridiculously expensive bauble." Yeah, like you can't show her you love her by shoveling the snow and warming up her car in the morning. Or by treating her to a romantic getaway without the kids. Or by sticking a sweet note in her lunch bag. (Ok, I kinda gagged myself on that last one.) The only way to show her you love her is to spend money. Lots of money. On something showy that will make her co-workers jealous. Blech! (It reminds me of the equally obnoxious car commercials saying this or that dealer will get you "the Mercedes you deserve." You know what? You don't deserve a Mercedes. You might want one. You might enjoy one. But there's no "deserve" about it. But now you feel bad if you don't have one.) Enough already!


Fight back. Take down the pink and red and join me in NOT celebrating Black Saturday. Refuse to buy into the hype, or, worse yet, BUY the hype. Don't buy any little teddy bears holding hearts, or heart shaped candy boxes, or even pink-frosted cookies. Resist, resist, resist.

Then go show the people you love that you truly love them. Spend time, not money.


(Thanks to despair.com for the poster!)

4 comments:

weezermonkey said...

I agree!

Cathy said...

Denis and I have been on board this wagon for seven years now. I told him that if he ever bought me a diamond, I'd kick him out of the house. I hate diamonds! We spend as much time together as we can each and every day, and it's good time. That's what counts. Not candy, not flowers, not jewelry, not teddy bears. And definitely not red and pink frou frou! Yuck!

BikerPuppy said...

Cathy, you and I are so alike in so many ways! (Although I'm pretty sure you have more hours in your day!!)

Amazon Barbie said...

You know what's horrible? I have a perfectly happy relationship and because of this it makes you feel like if the person you're with DOESN'T do that stuff, you're somehow lacking. It's such B.S.!! And when I was single I would dread even watching TV or listening to the radio at this time of the year.