Valentine Wednesday

Celebrate or celibate, that's the question!

Well, of course, such questions do not  matter to this atheist.  But, Lent coming on the heels of Maha Shivarathri, which I didn't  observe (haha!) provides immense materials for me to ponder.

For one, observant Valentines cannot make their love to be a Shivarathri, if you know what I mean ;)

Catholic bishops have been telling parishioners that Valentine’s Day doesn’t give the more than one billion members of the church worldwide an exemption from the holy requirements of Ash Wednesday: abstaining from meat and fasting. (It’s not a holy day of obligation for Catholics, which means the faithful are not bound to attend mass or receive ashes on their foreheads, a symbol of the Christian belief that God created humans from dust.)
“Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are the only two days of the whole year on which fasting and abstinence are required,” Bishop Richard Malone of Buffalo said in an online video.

Abstinence is required ... on Valentine's Day!

The confluence of the events — occurring for the first time since 1945 — has created a dilemma for Roman Catholics and followers of other Christian denominations who observe Ash Wednesday. How can one simultaneously mark a solemn day when foreheads are tapped with a symbol of mortality as a call to humility and repentance, while celebrating one that glorifies the kisses and champagne of romantic love?

This gets even crazier as we look ahead to the end of the Lent calendar: Easter Sunday falls on April 1st, when those among us who love to prank others get all jazzed up to fool others.

So, what's up with all these dates for Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday?  It is all because of the old lunar calendar, which is how most traditional societies kept time.

Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the equinox.  Once this is determined, then the other ones are automatically backtracked from that Sunday. 

Yes, I know, it is kind of strange that this atheist keeps track of major religious days.  But, it should not surprise you one bit.  Even a post marking Lent is not new here.  Most of us folks are way more into religion than most supposedly believing folks are.  We think about our existence a lot more than the "god-fearing" ones do.  After all, the life is an existential struggle for believers and atheists alike, and we atheists are in awe about the mystery of it all!

We non-believers do not have to worry about designated days of abstinence, however.  Every day is a cause for celebration--even for General Malaise ;)

A Valentine's Day note to amorous undergraduate females. Heck, to males too!

To mark the occasion (!) I am re-posting this from last year, which itself was a re-post--maybe I should make this an annual tradition ;)

Am re-posting here most of an entry from two years ago.  That was in the context of male students rapidly falling behind their female counterparts, and universities like the one where I teach having a 60/40 split with men in a shrinking minority.  I think it will work in the context of Valentine's Day too :)

The author ends with this postscript of a Note to the amorous undergraduate female reading this

When you scan the campus and realize what your choices are, I know it is tempting to open a vein and slide into a warm bath. But here’s the thing: you may be an average undergraduate female, but there are above-average undergraduate males out there who are nearly your equal. They are out there. It’s just that you outnumber them about 100 to 1. Still, that’s no reason to open a vein and slide into a warm bath.

It is funny, every single time I read it--well, twisted humor, I know :)

When I was relatively new in my Oregon stint, one bright female student, "K," came to talk with me about her law school plans.  I asked her if she was free enough--without any significant other--to go wherever she wanted to.  Her reply was funny then, and is funny now, but is also a reflection of these gender issues.  "K" replied that she hadn't met anybody even her equal, let alone being better than her, and so it was all the more the reason for her to go far away from this part of the world.  I wonder whether she did find her soul-mate in graduate school.

I wonder how I came across to young girls/women when I was in high school/college.  No thanks to me, did a few young ones prefer to bash their heads against the wall than talk to me?  Or, was I so insignificant that I didn't even blip in their radars?  I ought to check with my old high school classmates, eh!  But then, what if they ask, "Sriram, who?" hehehe ;)

Valentine's Day greetings, y'all!

A Valentine's Day note to amorous undergraduate females

Am re-posting here most of an entry from two years ago.  That was in the context of male students rapidly falling behind their female counterparts, and universities like the one where I teach having a 60/40 split with men in a shrinking minority.  I think it will work in the context of Valentine's Day too :)

The author ends with this postscript of a Note to the amorous undergraduate female reading this

When you scan the campus and realize what your choices are, I know it is tempting to open a vein and slide into a warm bath. But here’s the thing: you may be an average undergraduate female, but there are above-average undergraduate males out there who are nearly your equal. They are out there. It’s just that you outnumber them about 100 to 1. Still, that’s no reason to open a vein and slide into a warm bath.

It is funny, every single time I read it :)

I wonder how I came across to young girls/women when I was in high school/college.  No thanks to me, did a few young ones prefer to bash their heads against the wall than talk to me?  Or, was I so insignificant that I didn't even blip in their radars?

When I was relatively new in my Oregon stint, one bright female student, "K," came to talk with me about her law school plans.  I asked her if she was free enough--without any significant other--to go wherever she wanted to.  Her reply was funny then, and is funny now, but is also a reflection of these gender issues.  "K" replied that she hadn't met anybody even her equal, let alone being better than her, and so it was all the more the reason for her to go far away from this part of the world.  I wonder whether she did find her soul-mate in graduate school.

But then, if men are slacking off, it is the women's fault, especially for misusing their erotic capital!

Valentine's Day greetings in advance to y'all!

India's Hindu-mullah wannabes

Valentines Day in India: what a stupid controversy!

Don't they have better things to do in India, than to come up with some Hindu version of the fashion mullahs?  These nincompoops are carrying out god's tasks?  Bizarre!  Read this:

BANGALORE: After their recent attack on young women at a Mangalore pub, the Sri Ram Sene has now announced an action plan to target couples found dating on February 14, Valentine’s Day.

At a press conference here on Thursday, Sri Ram Sene leader Pramod Muthalik, who is now on bail, said Sene activists across Karnataka would not only hold protests outside colleges, hostels and hotels, where Valentine’s Day celebrations are held, but also forcibly marry off couples found dating in public.

“Our activists will go around with a priest, a turmeric stub and a ‘mangal sutra’ on February 14. If we come across couples being together in public and expressing their love, we will take them to the nearest temple and conduct their marriage,” he said. If the couples resisted the move, the girl would be forced to tie a ‘rakhi’ to the boy.

Mr. Muthalik said his outfit would ensure that Valentine’s Day greeting cards were not sold. Activists would check out stores that sold such cards.