What Are the Best Valentine's Day Stunts? 470
With the oh-so-dreaded Hallmark holiday on the horizon we are flooded with tips and tricks (mostly designed to sell us things our mates cannot live without) of how to please/capture/sedate the ones we care for. One writer even suggests ways to capture the interest of a geeky girl. That said, what are some of the crazier romantically inspired, geeky V-day stunts or activities that you or someone you know has executed to terrible success or failure?
Get her pregnant (Score:5, Insightful)
I never timed it around V-day, but my wife thinks getting pregnant is romantic. :-)
None whatsoever (Score:5, Insightful)
Life is not a romantic comedy. If you're already in a relationship, nice chocolate, flowers, and dinner (or any subset of the above) is plenty celebration. If you're not already in a relationship, don't start one on V-day. Just don't.
Keep it simple (Score:4, Insightful)
Don't be a geek and try to over engineer valentine's day. Keep it simple and if she likes you, good things follow
Stunts? (Score:5, Insightful)
For the record, I hate Valentine's Day. It's just silly to assign a day of the year to plan something romantic.
Note to /. readers... (Score:4, Insightful)
real women like flowers, chocolate, and other mushy stuff. Though a well thought-out stunt may work on a rare occasion, they are much more likely to backfire than a traditional gift. Have flowers and chocolate on hand just in case.
Surprise. (Score:4, Insightful)
I have noticed that my wife tends to really like surprises. It doesn't REALLY matter if I am super-romantic or something... but just surprising her with an outing that's just for her. It's romantic on a deeper level than throwing candy hearts at her.
Re:None whatsoever (Score:5, Insightful)
The Slashdot title didn't really have anything to do with the linked article. It's not really about stunts, but about what might be seen as romantic vs. what might be seen as lame or generic, which of course depends entirely on the recipient, so "Ask Slashdot" isn't really a good place for an answer. I personally don't care for flowers or chocolate for Valentine's day. While I love chocolate, the stuff stores stock for Valentine's day tends to be of low quality, and in tacky, heart-shaped boxes.
I agree that starting a relationship for Valentine's day is a bad idea. For some reason, people seem to think they must be in a relationship, so a lot of bad relationships are probably started for Valentine's day.
Wait a minute (Score:5, Insightful)
Why are you tormenting us poor slashdot readers? You know we don't have significant others!
Re:Fake holiday. (Score:2, Insightful)
Waitaminnit, isn't that the whole point?
Re:Keep it simple (Score:5, Insightful)
Men have been doing that for their families for millennia.
You can’t bring home the bacon without slaughtering a pig.
Re:Stunts? (Score:5, Insightful)
If you love someone you shouldn't need to be forced to do something to make her happy once in awhile. How sad.
Re:None whatsoever (Score:5, Insightful)
Life is not a romantic comedy. If you're already in a relationship, nice chocolate, flowers, and dinner (or any subset of the above) is plenty celebration.
Romantic Comedies are popular in large part because they try and reflect what women dream of happening -- and there are worse ways to prove one's love than planning a big showy stunt that makes your beloved smile. (What worse ways? I'd say blindly giving her chocolate, flowers, and dinner. Unless you KNOW that she likes those.)
Your guiding principle is "what would make her smile." If you know her well enough to know that she would like a big showy stunt, then don't let some nobody on the internet tell you otherwise. If you know that she DOES like chocolate and flowers, then go for it.
And if you don't know her well enough to know what she likes, you don't know her well enough to give her a notable valentine's gift.
no geeky girls please! (Score:3, Insightful)
I shudder to think of capturing the interest of geeky girls! No more geeky girls for me. When they like you, they tend to like you in a crazy manner! I had the experience of one trying to get my attention in every way. She would always try to understand the software projects that I am working on and even google the terminologies that I put in my blog. This is funny, but she asked me out lots of times, I tried to say no but is really persistent. She once caught me having dinner with friends in restaurant and in a very planned manner, went straight to our table talked to a couple of my friends behind my back and then went to me. She tends to approach love and relationships in a very calculated manner. I am already like that and NO I am not going to spend my life with a person who is just like me (why can't I attract the real girls)? :/
Re:None whatsoever (Score:3, Insightful)
And then get hit with sexual harassment suits and/or stalking charges...
And that's why (Score:3, Insightful)
I get some 364 days a year...
Thank you!
Re:Stunts? (Score:3, Insightful)
Have you tried it? If you spontaneously surprised her with something similar on any day other than Valentine's Day, I bet she would enjoy it even *more*.
Just like (to me at least) the best gift is not the one knew you were getting months in advance, it's the one that is perfect, but you didn't even know you wanted.
Avoid going out to dinner (Score:4, Insightful)
Really, this is my best advice. It is hard to really make your wife/girlfriend think she is important when it appears that every other person in the world is also out for dinner at the place your choice (or a nicer place). You will be herded in like cattle, some generic Valentines Day special things will be found at the tables (candles, special napkins, whatever) but they won't be special or unique as every table will have them. It will be loud, crowded, and uncomfortable even if you do drop a good amount of money at a nice establishment.
Usually I will take the time and cook a fancy meal by myself, something I usually wouldn't do. She gets that nice meal and sees me slaving away to deliver it. Our house is much quieter and private than an overloaded eatery which leads to great conversation (except in one case where she was so in awe by my to that point unknown culinary talents that she preferred to keep trying the different things I cooked rather than talk much.) After that, an activity you both like (hopefully...if not you'll have to settle on one she likes) is good. This can be anything but hopefully not going to the Movie Theater...which will also be crowded and irritating like places to eat.
Re:Keep it simple (Score:4, Insightful)
Well and let's not forget that flowers are a plant's reproductive organs.
So it's basically "Hey, honey, I gave you these genitals so you can watch them wither. It's, like, a metaphor!"
Re:welcome to slashdot (Score:3, Insightful)
I am certain that most of the debaters of quantum thermodynamics fail also.
mea culpa (Score:4, Insightful)
i suck, i'm a moron
(red faced)
Mystery Box (Score:3, Insightful)
I have a long distance relationship, several states over, so I don't get to see my girlfriend often. This summer I'm moving out to be with her, so last Christmas I tried to make things go extra well. To prepare for Valentines day, when I knew I wouldn't be able to be there, I hid ten slips of paper all over her room with passwords on them. I gave her clues to find the next one each time she found one, in the form of little riddles. She's found all of them now, and I'm about to send her a box with a microcontroller/display that won't open without the passwords. Inside are some personal things, and candy, a letter, etc.
I was inspired by another project that was location-locked. It had a GPS and merely displayed the distance to the unlock location when a button was pressed.
Best stunt ever is... (Score:3, Insightful)
Seriously, there's a lot to be said for a nice kiss, hug and a sincere "I Love You" - though my wife and I did that every day anyway (yes, every day) for 20 years. She died of a brain tumor in January 2006 and I still give her a kiss, hug and an "I Love You" - every day - with the addition of "I Miss You".
Re:Avoid going out to dinner (Score:2, Insightful)
I would agree - nothing sexier than a man who can cook!
In fact even if you can't cook - an array of yummy finger foods from a fancy deli with a nice bottle of wine is just fine.
Re:Dump'em before, patch it up after.... (Score:4, Insightful)
Here is a relevant comment [slashdot.org] that will help explain the situation.
Predetermined "special" holidays take all the fun out of life. I am much more a fan of spontaneous gestures of kindness and random get-togethers. Expecting things leads to stress and/or disappointment. Being genuinely and pleasantly surprised by things makes me happy.
P.S. I would never dump someone to avoid a holiday, that is cold.
Re:no geeky girls please! (Score:3, Insightful)
Ah, Valentine's. Hacker's holiday. (Score:4, Insightful)
Seriously. Can you tell me any other day when a UPS uniform and a pack of pralines or a bunch of flowers gets you access anywhere?
Re:Her birth star... (Score:2, Insightful)
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
I can't believe how cute that is!
And here, gentlemen, is all the evidence we need... To Wikipedia! (And thanks for saving me 300 bucks for roses)