Whatever your opinion is of Valentine's Day, everyone can agree that men and women view the holiday differently.
I'm a woman in a relationship, and as such, I want my boyfriend to abide by the universally known rules of the holidays - get me something and show me you care. But is that unfair?
I can't help but think that for men, Valentine's Day seems to produce enough pressure to cause an aneurysm.
My guy friends say that they generally hate Valentine's Day for that exact reason. They dislike being forced to conjure up sometimes-fake emotion, they hate that they'll be in the doghouse if they fail to produce a gift and they despise that the holiday is so commercialized.
At the same time, guys admit that if done right, Valentine's Day is somewhat of a guaranteed lay.
As for my girlfriends, as much as theywant those roses, they want a false showing of emotion even less. They also think that men have excuses to be unromantic 364 days a year, but surely they can provide 24 hours worth of pampering?
But here's my take: what does Valentine's Day really need to mean? Does it really mean anything? They're not marriage proposals.
Regardless, spending a Valentine's Day alone can be lonely for both men and women. Single gals seem to love to rally around the "Valentine's Day sucks" mantra, but there are plenty of men who feel equally disheartened to know that there is no one "special" in their lives either.
But being single now has its advantages. Aside from the meaningless, responsibility-free sex, it makes future Valentine's Days shared with significant others potentially even more rewarding.
Truth is, a good relationship carries with it a degree of communication and understanding, so you should be able to gauge the amount of attention - ahem, gifts - the other one expects, but you should also be able to realize that it's just a day on the calendar and isn't necessarily indicative of true emotion.
