Saw "Sideways" tonight.

The SO and I tend to feel that Valentine's day is something of a Hallmark holiday. We know our relationship is special and don't feel pressured to mark it on any given day simply 'cause we're told to.

Nontheless we went to see Oscar-nominated "Sideways" tonight, following a romantic dinner at a restaurant chosen by the SO for its ambience and haute cuisine.

I loved it. The two protagonists represented the best and worst of what men are. The SO observed that it was the female equivalent of a guy getting to listen in to the bathroom chatter that goes on in the ladies'during double dates.

Didn't have to work today, so for a special day the SO and I spent hours helping an old army friend who's now a care aide (and desperate for a job--contact me if you have any leads. She's also a former truck driver and security guard.) construct and send out her resume and cover letters.

This friend had her first kid at eighteen and her first divorce around a decade later. And I somtimes used to wonder whether I should feel sympathetic because of all the bad choices she'd made or whether I should envy her for getting all the lousy crap over and done with early.

Now I know which side I come down on. It's sometimes tough enough for me to find the mortgage every month without having to feed two small mouths as well.

The BLive blog , written by one of my best friends (and worst enemies--it's a complicated relationship) hit the ether waves today. I'm still paddling in the shallows of the software, but learning as fast as my "very little brain" (to quote the bear) allows.

Meantime I'm considering how to tell a potential client that what he really needs is exactly the opposite of what he really wants. More on this later, perhaps.

Happy VD to all.