Valentine’s Day brings lots of love, laughter

Likely you’ve seen a plethora of hearts and chocolates everywhere as of late, with Valentine’s Day being prominently promoted in most retail spaces.

Love it or hate it, there’s certainly a lot of it – and, in some instances, sweet stories along the way.

If the latter appeals to you, I invite you to check out the stories some of our readers shared of their sweet romantic moments. You’ll find them on our Valentine’s Day page – along with some local retailers to consider visiting – on the last page of the first section of this past week’s paper or by visiting our Facebook page or other social media accounts.

If you love to laugh, you might be among the many locals who attended the recent run of “A Bad Year for Tomatoes” by the Bay Tree Council for the Performing Arts in Red Bay, a comedy the council brought back 15 years after an initial run of performances.

If you’re looking for something sweet to eat, perhaps you’ve tried my new favorite cinnamon roll – ask for it heated – a tasty treat I discovered Saturday morning at our newest downtown Russellville eatery. I also acquired frosted sugar cookies that are especially enticing.

If Valentine’s Day isn’t for you, perhaps you’ve embraced one of the other “national days” listed online. According to nationaldaycalendar.com, for example, Feb. 13 was National Tortellini Day. Now, there’s a holiday I can certainly get behind.

I’m also told Feb. 13 is National Cheddar Day, a notion I imagine would appeal to plenty of people. Feb. 14, in addition to being Valentine’s Day, was also National Cream-filled Chocolates Day and National Ferris Wheel Day. Yes, I do love a good Ferris Wheel, as long as the operator doesn’t set the speed as an homage to NASCAR.

The same goes for carousels. It’s not a roller-coaster, people! Some of us like to enjoy things at a slower pace – one that doesn’t induce motion sickness.

Another noteworthy day this week is Feb. 17, National Random Acts of Kindness Day, celebrated each year beginning in 1995 in Denver. The idea is to make the world a little better with simple actions and words, just for the sake of kindness and possibly brightening someone’s day.

What do you love to celebrate? Love or friendship, laughter or sweet treats, there’s plenty of love to go around and lots of things worth celebrating.