Sweets for the Sweet

Well, today was an absolutely beautiful day. It was the kind of day that makes you want to go out and take tons of pictures. Unfortunately, it was the day I was stuck inside at a craft show. Not that that would have been a bad thing, but in six hours, we only had about three customers that actually bought anything, which was discouraging, but not as much as if everyone around us had been selling a lot of stuff while we sat there. We were at the Midland Armory craft show, and there just was NO traffic. Not even a little bit. None. My theory is that it was so nasty and rainy the last few days that everyone was doing yard work and cleaning up storm damage while they had a nice day. No one was thinking about doing any Christmas/craft-type shopping. Bummer.

So, today is Sweetest Day. Happy Hallmark holiday, everyone. I've always wondered why we really need Sweetest Day. Isn't Valentine's Day enough? What is the purpose of having Valentine's Day, part II? Or is it just that we need something to get people buying cards again after the long drought from Easter till now? I mean, really, you don't go around buying Memorial Day cards. Fourth of July cards? Nah. Labor Day? Nope. And forget about Veteran's Day and Columbus Day. They're not hardly holidays (unless you work for the USPS or a bank or something like that). So I'm thinking that Sweetest Day is meant to slide you into the card-buying mood again. Think about it. While you're in the store, picking out the perfect card for your honey, you see the Halloween cards. You think about the kids that you know who would just love to get a card from you for Halloween. Oh, yeah, and that reminds you that you should probably send a Thanksgiving card to your kids' teacher and your grandmother in Nebraska. She'd probably get a kick out of that. And then there are the Christmas cards. Multitudes of them. You've got to send those out with the obligatory annual update that everyone writes and very few people read. It's a must. Then after Christmas, just when you thought it was safe, boom - here comes V-Day again. Oh yeah, Hallmark knows what they're doing. You think you're off the hook, but they're just giving you rope to hang yourself with.

The other reason Sweetest Day was invented was to give all the single and lonely people out there a second chance to reflect on life and try to figure out just what's wrong with them. I mean, come on, when you're single and these lovey-dovey days come around, you might as well just lock yourself in a closet somewhere. You can't go anywhere without seeing the happy couples all around you. Every flower shop, candy store, and jeweler has to remind you that people will be getting flowers, candy, and jewelry in the near future - you're just not one of them. And the card aisles at the stores are full of thousands of people, looking for the perfect card that you're not going to get. When you're single on Sweetest Day, it can be depressing. Trust me - I went through it for 10+ years. I know whereof I speak.

So Happy Sweetest Day to all those out there. And get out there and enjoy the fall weather and the beautiful colors while you can - they won't be here for long!