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Your Valentine's Day Plans for 2003?
Nos. writes "Valentine's Day is rapidly approaching, and though some of you Slashdot readers will be spending the day alone, there must be some of you out there who won't. So, what are you doing for that someone special this Feb 14th? My fiance is not a geek, and so wouldn't appreciate a 'geeky Valentine's'. Instead, I'm thinking a nice quiet dinner in one of our favourite restaurants. However, I recently got the 'You don't do anything romantic anymore' speech, and quite honestly am out of ideas. Can slashdot help? Obviously slashdot isn't the best place to ask, but I'm sure others are in a similar situation."
The diamond industry is controlled by a global monopoly (DeBeers, who make Microsoft look like boy scouts); they have been known to use violence and intimidation against independent producers/sellers, with machete-wielding militias cutting off the hands of those who don't comply. In southern Africa, the diamond industry exploits miners in atrocious conditions. Those precious stones you may be thinking of buying for your girlfriend/wife/partner fund bloodshed.
The association of diamonds with romance is recent and wholly artificial. It was
engineered in the 20th century by DeBeers' marketing people. They did their job excpetionally well; in America (and to a lesser extent elsewhere in the West), many women are so conditioned to associate diamonds with romance that failing to pay the DeBeers Romance Tax can mean the end of a relationship.
If you're a Linux user, you have said no to the Microsoft monopoly. Why not extend this noble principle to an even more pernicious and murderous multinational corporation? Say no to diamonds, and tell your partner why.
Sorry I'm posting as an AC, but I'm having problems with my account.
What do girls want on Valentine's Day? Just something that a) shows that you care and b) shows that you know her.
My (also geek) boyfriend likes to get me stuffed animals (cute things like Chococat and Hello Kitty and Nyago) and flowers. I love that! He also made me a KDE desktop theme that was really cute.
But, seriously, geek girl or not, you can NEVER go wrong with flowers. Pink rosebuds are nice, and less expensive then long-stemmed roses.
Dinner and flowers, plus a little something (wrapped up?) is failsafe, and really easy to customize.
If your girl wants romantic, take her to a place where she can really dress up; girls like to dress up. Or order in gourmet (gourmet grocery stores will some times do that) or reserve a night at a nice hotel.
Hotels are good options (if you don't mind being late for work the next day) because, as long as it's a nice one, you get a beautiful ambiance, room service, fine dining, and a chance to surprise her with something new and romantic. Add fresh flowers and a (sexy?) gift, and you're set!
Now maybe you guys can help me- WHAT DO I GET MY GEEK BOYFRIEND???