Today: Valentine’s Day Gifts and Gougers

Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day are big days for florists. It doesn’t take a genius in economics to figure out that a great way to make more money is to raise the price of flowers when the need is greatest. Of course, that only works if the no one is undercutting the expensive florist’s prices and quality.

The market place takes on a life of it’s own, and when it comes to flowers and Valentine’s Day, there’s a lot of transactions going on.

In addition, flowers have come to be known as a symbol of courtship and love. Bringing flowers or a corsage to a date is very good manners. Bringing flowers to a date’s mother who is hosting you for dinner is also very good manners. Sending flowers on a holiday is considerate and thoughtful. There’s hardly ANY downside to flowers. Even at funerals, flowers are a way of communicating respect and condolences.

WHY THE ROSES?
Red roses are the flower that most directly resembles the human heart. There is no other thing that is as close to the human heart as a red rose. That it smells fragrant and looks pleasing, makes it even more popular as a gift to express love.

WHY THE CHOCOLATES?
Not everyone loves flowers, and some people are lucky enough to get flowers on a regular basis from their honeys, so that’s where the alternative Valentine’s Day gift comes in. It’s tough to buy for someone you love, and there are so many different kinds of clothing, jewelry and perfume to choose from that the easiest thing for men to buy — with success — is candy. In addition, Christmas was just around the last corner, and many men are still suffering from their shopping sprees for loved ones that left them aching for something easy to buy and satisfy their women with. That’s why chocolates — especialy chocolates shaped as hearts or in heart shaped boxes, are terrific gifts that are entirely appropriate for Valentine’s Day. Bottom line — they’re an easy gift for men to buy women.

WHY THE HEART?
The heart is the organ that implies life and death. In a pregnancy, there is medical “viability” when there is a heartbeat visualized on an ultrasound reading of the fetus in utero. The blinking blip on the black and white screen is the indicator that can bring mothers and fathers to tears with joy because they have a baby. Likewise, when the heart stops beating, a person is considered expired. Braindeath, while serious, is not an indicator of death in America — the heart is. If it’s beating, there is life, if it’s not, there is none.

That’s why the heart has come to represent life and the love that makes life worth living. Although a real heart is hardly “heart-shaped” like the perfectly symmetrical, red heart of Valentines, but is resembles the shape we’ve all come to know as the indicator of love and romance. The Valentine heart is an idealized and sanitized symbol of the human heart. It’s image is pleasing because bright colors and symmetry are pleasing to the human eye. It’s also easy to draw, and while that sounds funny, it has a lot to do with the heart catching on as a popular icon.