Valentine’s Day has always struck me as odd.
Nobody likes to be told what to do, but here we are, having an entire industrial complex tell us to buy flowers.
YOU MUST BUY chocolates stuffed into a cardboard-heart-box.
(Or not stuffed, as the case may be.)
As I see it, if you tell the people you love that you love them, all the time, every day, multiple times…
… and you do nice things for them every day…
…you probably shouldn’t need a greeting-card-holiday to guilt you into dropping $23.99 on bad flowers and worse chocolate.
Right?
This morning, as a Valentine’s Day present to my beautiful wife, Jessie, I shared some really great art with her.
A proper new discovery.
Something I was sure, FOR CERTAIN, would give her massive amounts of joy.
(Narrator’s voice: It did.)
Just yesterday, I’d stumbled upon a Willie Nelson album neither of us knew: Countryman.
It’s a reggae, and at times, dub album, featuring some covers, and remixes of previous songs he’s done.
(A masterful “The Harder They Come,” but also “Darkness on the Face of the Earth.”)
The album is pure happiness, and both Jessie and I needed a bit today.
So she was elated.
Yesterday was one of those max-out days, as both of us juggle working, parenting, kid after-school activities, cooking/housework, and now a wonderful dog pack.
Unfortunately, (though I know it makes us stronger,) we have virtually no support, on a day-to-day basis.
So we juggle it all ourselves, and luckily our children are both mature, and magnificent.
(Happy Valentine’s Day, Theo and Ami!)
Really, though, it’s a lot.
Take last night, for instance.
At Brazilian Jiu Jitsu class.
When the guy’s knee hit me square in the chin, from below, I thought two things:
One, I’m glad I put in the mouth guard.
(Told you about that yesterday.)
Two, probably time to wrap it up for the day.
I’ve praticted martial arts long enough to know to just walk away, and shake it off.
It was fair training, and my partner, Will, was a nice guy.
Train long enough, you learn not to see red, so after a minute, he came and fist-bumped me, and I said “Right on. Good job.”
But it was time to change out of my completely sweaty clothes, have Ami pack her shit, and the two of us called it a night.
My loved ones don’t need to hear me say Happy Valentine’s Day.
What is the spirit of the holiday, though?
Love and appreciation?
Taking a moment to honor someone you respect, love, like, or care about?
OK then.
How about you guys?
The Sunshine and Olly audience?
We haven’t existed even two weeks yet, and here you are. A group of nearly 500 people, (total visitors, so far,) from 5 continents, and 20 countries.
The US, Canada, Mexico, India, Spain, France, (finally,) Germany, the Bahamas, the UK, Ireland, South Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Argentina, Italy, Portugal and Sweden.
Think about that for a moment.
All corners of Planet.
Badass!
Through the power of social-media-tech to spread the word, (and my goodbye post at APE,) a new online community formed, and if I keep up the good stuff, (maybe even some guest writers?), the community will grow.
Good vibes are being spread.
Thanks for being a part of it!
Hope you enjoy the Willie Nelson.
Or whatever makes you happy today.
(Maybe it’s already tomorrow, where you are?)
PS: Please feel free to hit me up directly, and LMK what you think of Sunshine and Olly so far.
This blog is iterative. A podcast, and such things, are in the works. But will take some time, as I’m a one-man-band at the moment.
Sunshine and Olly 
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