Post-Valentine's Day traditions

Now that Valentine's Day is over and all the heart-shaped antacids have gone on sale, people are already looking forward to celebrating the next holiday. But why wait? There are plenty of things people can do after Valentine’s Day by simply using the tools already at their disposal. Here is a short list of just a few ideas for the single and the frugal.  

The Vulture Game: 

Everyone knows the best part of Valentine’s Day is buying all the cheap chocolate that goes on sale the day after, but why not go beyond that? And why not make a game out of it? In “The Vulture Game” (patent pending), a group of friends all split up around town to see who can scavenge the greatest amount of usable Valentine’s Day items for the cheapest cost. Bargain bin hunting is the most effective way to get those weird pink fluff treats for cheap, but the daring player might try dumpster diving. This is your chance to get nearly pristine bouquets of flowers and pink teddies that have been thrown away after rejections. As they say, one man’s cause for heartbreak and financial loss is another man’s treasure. This game can be spiced up with a reward at the end for the highest-scoring player or a punishment for the lowest-scoring. 

Cheap Chocolate Roulette: 

Anyone who has ever bought cheap boxes of stuffed chocolate hearts finds themselves a victim of this game. The goal is simple: eat one chocolate at a time and hope that whatever the filling may be is edible and good. Possible chocolate fillings range from half-decent caramel to Strontium-19 strawberry syrup. Fortunately, most fall within the category I like to call ... toothpaste.  

With the amount of clichés Valentine’s Day has associated with it, I believe that it's high time we start changing things up so that it doesn’t take itself so seriously. While a full overhaul would be nice, developing traditions around its leftovers is a good way to start a small change to the holiday. So whether you are buying cheap candies or risking your life eating them, it's time to start celebrating the end to the season of love with your friends. 

By Caleb Schaber