{"id":31730,"date":"2016-02-02T18:16:27","date_gmt":"2016-02-02T23:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wendybrandes.com\/blog\/?p=31730"},"modified":"2016-02-03T23:24:43","modified_gmt":"2016-02-04T04:24:43","slug":"valentines-dayanti-valentines-day-countdown-2-of-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wendybrandes.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/valentines-dayanti-valentines-day-countdown-2-of-14\/","title":{"rendered":"Valentine\u2019s Day\/Anti-Valentine\u2019s Day Countdown: #2 of 14"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some people loathe Valentine’s Day. “It was invented by Hallmark to sell cards!” they complain. That’s not true, though<\/a>. The holiday can be traced back to the kinky ancient Roman holiday of Lupercalia<\/a>, which was then adapted by early Christians, who liked to de-kink pagan holidays by co-opting them and giving them a new backstory (see also: Easter<\/a> and Christmas<\/a>).\u00a0 By the Middle Ages, people were exchanging homemade cards. Much later, in the Americas, a woman named Esther Howland<\/a> began selling the first mass-produced Valentine’s Day cards in the 1840s. That was decades before the company that eventually turned into Hallmark was founded<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So don’t hate Valentine’s Day because of Hallmark. Hate it because Cupid has been a bitch to you! And show everyone what you think of that annoying (pagan) love god by treating yourself and your friends to my most popular Anti-Valentine’s Day design: the middle finger<\/a> emoji<\/a>. It’s available as a single stud earring in silver …<\/p>\n

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Sterling silver middle finger stud earring. $35 for a single. Click to purchase.<\/p><\/div>\n

… and in 18K yellow gold.<\/p>\n

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18K gold middle finger single stud earring. $225. Click to purchase.<\/p><\/div>\n

While your office colleagues are getting horrendous floral deliveries<\/a> on February 14, you’ll be laughing to yourself over your middle finger necklace (tuck it under a turtleneck<\/a> if you’re in a conservative environment).<\/p>\n

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Sterling silver middle finger necklace. $60. Click to purchase.<\/p><\/div>\n

Tap your fingers to “Cupid’s Chokehold” by Gym Class Heroes …<\/p>\n