Wednesday 15 February 2012

Operation Valentinus--How Did It Go?

Having tried to jump start a movement, I naturally want to know how it went this year. So if you participated in Operation Valentinus, whether you sent cards and chocolates to Single friends or had a party for them, please tell us all about it in the combox.

My dinner party--which was NOT a V-Day party, and we had the GREEN napkins, not the RED--was great fun. I made a creamy, golden winter vegetable soup, roast duck with roast potatoes and snap peas, and a chocolate tart covered with meringue. I did the soup and the tart all by myself, but I admit that B.A. took over the duck, the roast potatoes and the peas, plus made the gravy, so that I could get ready. (Oh, and he whipped the egg whites for the meringue. Credit where credit is due!)

I had an excellent mental health moment when my first pie crust, which was much too dry, fell completely apart and was totally irredeemable. Instead of collapsing on the kitchen floor in tears, which I was sorely tempted to do, I just whipped up another pie crust, which turned out to be the best version of that particular crust I have ever made. It rolled out like a dream.

Really, I am in love with the memory of how the pastry just rolled out under my rolling pin, just like pastry on TV.

And on top of that, it was a very merry party, with bottles and bottles of wine in different guises, plus some very bad vodka, and many jokes and puns and rolling about with laughter. To tell you the truth, Dinner for Two at £45 Per Person at Hadrian's Brasserie (which I pass several times a week, which is why I have fixated on £45 Per Person) would not have been as much fun as our dinner with the Singles.

Meanwhile, being a married lady, of course I got a valentine from my husband, and of course I gave him a valentine, too. I also gave him the last roast potato at supper, deciding he had the principal claim to it "because he is my husband." For some reason, the assembled Singles did not think this was incredibly wifely and romantic, but it was.

Update (Feb 16). AWWW! I just read on Facebook that my nephew Peanut stood by the door on Valentine's Day, awaiting his Single gal nanny, so he could give her a box of chocolates. Peanut is 3 years old.

18 comments:

Maggie said...

I went to another single gal's apartment where a group of us made red velvet crepes, drank wine and watched Pride and Prejudice. It was a lovely evening and we had so much fun no one felt sorry for herself since the company was delightful. MUCH better than sitting at home feeling sulky!

Domestic Diva said...

I didn't have time to do dinner (I was busy all evening, which was good) but I did send chocolates to a number of gals. This was year #2 for me sending chocolates, and it was actually way more fun than last year. Last year I sort of made a leap of faith about it, but I was on someone else's O.V. list, and I enjoyed receiving from them so much that this year I knew how much I was brightening someone's day. This year I didn't receive, but that was ok, because the real gift was the fun of knowing I'd made someone else know they are important to me.

Apple said...

WHAT ARE RED VELVET CREPES?!?!?!

I would like the details and perhaps a recipe, because they sound delicious. Maybe I can make them next year?

Lena said...

I took an evening computer class, so my brain was happily engaged. No time to mope here.

Anna said...

My single gal pals and I planned a couple of nights to hang out; the Saturday before and Valentine's Day itself.

Valentine's Day consisted of a lovely meal and good conversation, as well as a cute, flirtatious 1-year old. I believe most of us felt blessed by our friends in our lives, both single and married.

There's a twist tho. We have reasons to believe that our married female friends were feeling slighted because we didn't include them in our events nor did they get candy & valentines that we singles exchanged with each other. (Never mind that they have husbands who adore them and had fun plans lined up for them.)

Next year I will avoid giving single friends candy in front of married friends! :)

Louise said...

Seraphic, can we get the recipes for the soup and tart? They sound amazing!

Seraphic said...

Anna, that reminds me of the first time I was at a wedding and could not do the "Single Girl dance" and bouquet toss thing. My husband was in the UK, I was in Canada, I was hangin' with my Single friends, the DJ said all the Single girls had to go to the dance floor, and I suddenly found myself all by myself. It was a very weird moment! But of course I got over it very quickly. I'm sure your married friends, if they did feel a bit left at, laughed at themselves later.

bolyongok said...

A fellow single friend (girl) and I are travelling together through Switzerland! We went to the Jungfraujoch in the morning (it was so beautiful!), then spent all day riding Swiss trains until finally arriving in Lugano for a dinner of yogurt and chocolate-filled croissants. Best Valentine's Day EVER! :D Watching the Swiss countryside roll by, I felt as though God was saying "Look, I made you a valentine."
I need to remember that feeling more often!

Anna2 said...

This was also my second year participating in Operation Valentinus. Last year I was thrilled to receive from a friend and it made the giving all that much more exciting! This year I did not receive any gifts (which made me sad for a few minutes but I got over it!) The day was exciting just thinking about my friends opening their surprise packages :D
I also got to go out for dessert with two single girlfriends over the week which was so delicious! And at no point this Valentine's day (or week) did I wish that I were dating someone, which I think is progress.

Beth said...

That sounds like a wonderful dinner party! I went out to a restaurant with some female friends of mine and we swapped Valentines. As a commenter above said, it was much better than staying at home!

Jen D said...

I had a Valentine's party for my girlfriends this past weekend, at which we had mustard-glazed chicken, truffled potatoes, asparagus with hollandaise, homemade yeast rolls, chocolate cupcakes with flaming strawberries on top, and lots of red wine.

I sent one V-Day package to a single friend, which included your book!

Anna said...

I want to be friends with Jen D.

Anonymous said...

I had no time to think about Valentine's day as it was incredibly busy at work. I didn't get home until 11 pm and then I got to hang out with my cuddly cat :)

Silent Jen

Miss Doyle said...

Had an awesome evening with 8 fabulous single girlfriends, we decorated cupcakes, had a chicken thai curry then ate the cupcakes while having tea out of proper china tea cups while watching "Emma".
Best night ever.

Maggie said...

Apple, here's the recipe we used (although I am in the US, so we had to convert the proportions): http://duhlicious.com/2011/03/red-velvet-crepes/

Casey said...

This was my first time participating in Operation Valentinus; it was great fun! My sister and I made home-made Valentines and sent a large stack of them to friends and family. On V-day itself we had our other sister over for an evening of decoration making and a scrumptious dinner of garlic crusted steak, grilled asparagus and baked potatoes with caramel mocha toffee crunch cupcakes for dessert (they were twice as decadent as they sound!). We ended the evening by watching Tim Burton's Corpse Bride. A little morbid for Valentine's Day? Well, it's a sweet story of the power of sacrificial love, so I personally found it quite fitting. And who doesn't like some swingin', Jazz singin' skeletons? :)

Jen D said...

Haha Anna!! :) You can come next year!

Sundancer said...

I actually spent my Valentine's day in the hospital getting xrayed after a car accident instead of going to the party I was invited to by another single friend, and for which I had bought a fabulous dress! I remember thinking in a pain haze that at least I could still wear the dress because the sleeves were short and wouldn't interfere with my arm brace. My friends and family all went out of their way to help me over the next couple weeks though,in a true outpouring of love. Much more satisfying then the forced romantic cloying-ness the media says I should desire on Valentine's day!