Lupercalia What?

First a Grant UPDATE:
Grant slept without pain last night! Thanks be. This is the first time in a long time he did not need motrin to help dull the pain (from the ear infections...and teething to boot). We are on day 8 of the strong antibiotic Clindamycin. I was wondering if it would ever kick in! I also put him to bed earlier last night...he was asleep by 8PM...and woke for good at 8AM..so he shoudl feel GREAT today! He generally gets a mere 10 hours of in bed time at night..with a 2 hour nap in the day. However...he has been exhausted before nap and considering that he is fighting buggies...extra sleep is probabaly a great idea. So as long as he doesnt start getting up at 6AM...I will continue to bed him down around 8. Oh the excitement of parenting.

We celebrated VDAY this morning. All 3 of us exchanged cards. Dave got a bag of Missouri beef jerky hehe..to show my love for his carnivorous self. I received a box of chocolates (not free trade) and flowers. So yes we are typical american consumers. I must say that we do not celebrate many holidays at all (including xmas)and I actually like VDAY. In fact...a few years ago I had to demand that we as a couple did acknowledge each other on VDAY with at least a letter or card or something tangible. I know its silly...but damn it...I like it.

So in honor of Lupercalia, or Valentines Day or whatever you wanna call it, I will post some interesting historical tidbits. May I just say the PEOPLE ARE F*#@^Ked UP...but you already knew that.

From WIKI: In Ancient Rome, February 15 was Lupercalia, an archaic rite connected to fertility, without overtones of romance. Plutarch wrote:

"Lupercalia, of which many write that it was anciently celebrated by shepherds, and has also some connection with the Arcadian Lycaea. At this time many of the noble youths and of the magistrates run up and down through the city naked, for sport and laughter striking those they meet with shaggy thongs. And many women of rank also purposely get in their way, and like children at school present their hands to be struck, believing that the pregnant will thus be helped in delivery, and the barren to pregnancy.

The word Lupercalia comes from lupus, or wolf, so the holiday may be connected with the legendary wolf that suckled Romulus and Remus. Priests of this cult, luperci would travel to the lupercal, the cave where the she-wolf who reared Romulus (pic) and Remus allegedly lived, and sacrifice animals (two goats and a dog). The blood would then be scattered in the streets, to bring fertility and keep the wolves away from the fields. [4] Lupercalia was a festival local to the city of Rome. The more general Festival of Juno Februa, meaning "Juno the purifier "or "the chaste Juno," was celebrated on February 13-14. Pope Gelasius I (492-496) abolished Lupercalia."

From the HISTORY CHANNEL: "One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men -- his crop of potential soldiers. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailor's daughter -- who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

While some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine's death or burial -- which probably occurred around 270 A.D -- others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine's feast day in the middle of February in an effort to 'christianize' celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival. In ancient Rome, February was the official beginning of spring and was considered a time for purification. Houses were ritually cleansed by sweeping them out and then sprinkling salt and a type of wheat called spelt throughout their interiors. Lupercalia, which began at the ides of February, February 15, was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus."

So ya...VDAY is whatever you make of it (as any holiday). Im certainly NOT going to be sacrificing any animals...unless you count the meatloaf for dinner tonight. So ya I am. Thank you cow...I definitely appreciate your life and your energy. AMEN.

MUCH LOVE TO ALL WHO WANT IT...and the rest of you can suck it.