It’s true. This is my first St. Valentine’s Day as a divorced woman. The fact that I am newly single with no sweetheart to grant my Valentine Wish may seem like a downer.  Truthfully, I don’t care that I don’t have a sweetheart for Valentine’s Day. I still have a lot of love in my life.

Instead, I thought it would be fun to do a little Google scavenger hunt on Valentine’s Day. I brainstormed 10 top Google ranked Valentine’s Day phrases.  I typed each in the Google Search and looked at result number 100 for each (10th result on page 10). This is what I found out about Valentine’s Day beyond page one.

1. St. Valentine. Of the 17,900,000 results for St. Valentine, result number 100 offers the history of St. Valentine which is as romantic as the modern Valentine’s Day holiday. In case you did not know, the modern Valentine holiday was derived from the martyred Roman priest, St. Valentine, who illegally performed marriages. Fr. Valentine became the patron of lovers. February became the month for lovers since it was widely believed at the time, that February was the time that birds choose their mates. Red roses are a symbol for martyrs and love, and always a symbol for Venus the goddess of love. The legend and symbols of Valentine’s Day is as intertwined as the mingling of two hearts.

2. Valentine’s Vacations. There are 36,000,000 hits on the Google search for Valentine’s Vacations. There are Valentine’s Day get away packages, Valentine’s Day Inns, Caribbean trips, and even Valentine, Indiana vacation homes. Where in the world is Valentine, Indiana and what kind of vacation can we expect??? Honestly, how much valentine day travel is actually planned for the holiday?

The 100th hit on my Valentine’s Day Vacation Google search yields A Valentine’s Wellness Vacation for Couples and Singles: “The New Relationship– Five Agreements to Make Love Come True”. I’m not sure I would have ever found it had I not been looking, but it sounds fascinating. Sign me up!

3. Valentine’s Day Jewelry. Valentine’s Day jewelry gives up 36,900,000 results on the Google search. Result number one hundred is no longer valid so I skipped on to results number one hundred. This is a simple little buying guide so a certain fella can be sure to buy his Valentine, the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. The key points to the buying guide are: Budget, Size, Style, Gift Wrap. In other words if you’re going to buy jewelry you should know how much you can spend going in to get the most bang for your buck.  It’s important to make sure it fits your gal’s style and don’t forget to wrap – you know how much girls love ribbons and bows. Often times, it’s the little extras that count the most.

4. Valentine’s Day Events. When I searched for Valentine’s Day events, result number 100 provided an amusing list of events put together by a group called Southwest Florida Moms. These events are creative and charming. Perhaps they will provide you with some ideas. The events are as follows:
• A Father/Daughter Valentine’s Day Dance
• A Mother/Daughter Valentine’s Day Tea
• A romantic excursion on a mystery dinner train complete with a strolling violinist.
• Childrens Make a Valentine workshop.
• A program by the local nature conservancy on the attraction of animals in nature.

5. Valentine Wishes. Valentine Wishes provides 67,000,000 Google choices. Choice number 100 is a chat room for gay, lesbian and bisexuals lamenting on their Valentine’s Day wish. Some of the posts were very sad, others were rather blasé and still others were eerily cynical. What is true is that no matter what your sexual orientation, Valentine’s Day touches all of us.

6. Valentine’s Day Poetry. 36,900,000 results for Valentine’s Day poetry. Number 100 is site for Valentine’s Day poetry, prayers and readings for the Christian soul. It seems as though there are unending choices for all of us in need of a soulful Valentine poem. Whether Christian or otherwise, prose to express our lover’s feelings is out there if we have the wherewithal to look for it.

7. Valentine’s Day Décor. 32,400,000 results for Valentine’s Day décor. Number 100 is a DIY site on which someone wants to know if it’s possible to have a Classy Valentine’s Day décor for 2 single adults. Really, are they serious? Upon further inspection it seems that even Martha Stewart was not able to satisfy their need for Classy Valentine décor. Get over yourself! Buy some construction paper, glitter and glue and have fun for goodness sakes.

8. Valentine’s Day Movies. Warner Brothers and the producers for the newly released movie which is the subject of this blog, will be pleased to know their marketing went as deep as number 100 out of 46,100,000 results. I suppose there is much to be said for the press junket!

9. Valentine White. I got 52,200,000 results back when I searched Valentine White. Result number 100 is this creepy anime cat called Lil Valentine White Cat with its Candy Heart Love Art Card. I don’t like that result, and it is my blog….so, I want to tell you about something else I found.

White Day is celebrated on March 14th, in Japan, Taiwan and Korea, one month after our Western Valentine Holiday. Although we jokingly credit Hallmark for the proliferation of our Valentine’s Day holiday, in Japan , White Day is the result of a payback campaign started by the National Confectionery Industry Association. The idea is that the men should payback the women who gave them chocolates on Valentine’s Day. Ergo, White Day – another reason for chocolate. Genius!

10. 14 Days of Valentine’s. Yep, you guessed it. Just like the ubiquitous partridge in a pear tree for Christmas, we have a teddy in a basket of chocolates for Valentine’s Day. Result number 100 for this search is a whole slew of great ideas for long distance lovers. The Long Distance Diva has budget friendly ideas, romantically creative ideas like a Skype date, and ideas for which money is No Object. Why not celebrate this day of romance for two whole weeks – especially if your sweetie is far away. After all, you can never show your special someone too much love, right?

Valentine’s Day has a lot to offer, no matter what your personal footprint is. Be authentic and express yourself in the best way you know how. I hope I’ve demonstrated tfor you that here is many different kinds of Valentine fun out there.  In fact, there is something everyone, if you take a moment and look.