Happy Wallenstein’s Day
The Pub Philospher (who I recommend as an enjoyable read):
Not many people know that Valentine’s dayis a relatively recent invention. It was thought up at the turn of the last century by a Jewish card manufacturer in New York called Solomon Wallenstein (the W being pronounced as a V as in the German). He found that card sales were very slow between Christmas and Easter. In the nineteenth century, infant mortality rates were much higher in winter and so fewer people had birthdays in January and February. Consequently the sale of greeting cards dropped in the winter months. Wallenstein made a fortune from selling his cards across America and a new tradition was born.Wallenstein’s innovative solution to this problem was to create a celebration for lovers in the middle of February. He knew that most celebrations were based on medieval religious holidays so he dug out a long forgotten saint and created a story around him. Having a sense of humour, he chose a saint whose name sounded similar to his own - St.Valentine. With some help from his journalist friends, the re-discovery of this ancient tradition was publicised and marketed.
Worth reading the rest as well. Meanwhile, back in LJ land,
Roses are fluorescent green
I hear people sneering
At my failures in
Genetic engineering
Did I mention I’m a cynical bastard most of the year anyway? What, exactly, were you expecting today?
Oh yeah, the LJ gifts thing? Agree with