The Salt Lake Tribune -- Getting in the mood for Valentine's Day MONDAY February 09, 2004 Saved from : http://www.sltrib.com/2004/Feb/02092004/monday/137145.asp Getting in the mood for Valentine's Day There are only five days until Valentine's Day, which brings welcome heat to relationships battling the chill of midwinter (plus millions in profits for florists, chocolatiers and greeting card companies). So where did the holiday come from? What flowers, other than roses, should you buy your sweetheart? And you think you've had a bad kiss? In the name of love, read on: History: Valentine's Day started as a Roman holiday called Lupercalia, a festival celebrating spring and fertility. The celebration was capped off with a lottery in which young men drew young women's names from a urn and were paired for a year as sexual companions. When Christianity swept Europe, the holiday was reformed into St. Valentine's Day. The first valentine was believed sent in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. In the Victorian Era, cards carried swipes rather than sweet sentiments. The "Penny Dreadful" or "Vinegar Valentines" were inscribed with mean and hurtful comments. -- Brooke Adams Roses: 110 million of them will be sold on Valentine's Day. But they aren't the only flowers that say "I love you." Florists say you can communicate other messages with these flowers: Bleeding Heart: hopeless but not heartless Gardenia: I secretly love you Gladiolus: You pierce my heart Lily of the Valley: Let's make up Sweet William: You are perfect Violet: I love you, too. -- Brooke Adams Looking for a love song that says all the words you can't? Check out the book I Can't Fight This Feeling: Timeless Poems for Lovers from the Pop Hits of the '70s and '80s. Here are 10 options from the book for wooing that special someone: Barry White, "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" -- A classic and a no-brainer for a love-laced holiday. Starlight Vocal Band, "Afternoon Delight" -- Punk legends the Circle Jerks do a great version as well. Sheena Easton, "Morning Train" -- Not as hot as her duet with Prince on "U Got The Look," but worthy. John Waite, "Missing You" -- An '80s-era hit that still sounds great. Where is Waite now? Pat Benatar, "We Belong" -- Pat's a rocker, but here she tones it down a notch. Love those clattering electronic drums. Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers, "Islands in the Stream" -- Kenny and Dolly harmonizing grunts of "Uh-huh!" Excellent. Guns 'n' Roses, "Sweet Child O' Mine" -- Best '80s-metal power-ballad ever. Donna Summer, "Hot Stuff" -- Pure sexual energy with disco beats. The Partridge Family, "I Think I Love You" -- Yes, they were a made-for-TV band, but this song is better than anything coming out of the "American Idol" crowd. REO Speedwagon, "I Can't Fight This Feeling" -- Perhaps the cheesiest song from the '70s' cheesiest band, but I got to slow-dance with a cute girl at a 7th-grade sock hop to it, so it will always have a spot in my heart. -- Dan Nailen Bad kissing stories: "I was very nervous before my first kiss. I knew that the guy planned to kiss me that night because he had asked me if it would be OK earlier in the day. I got so worked up that when the moment came, he kissed me and I fainted. That was over 8 years ago and to this day I still see the guy. He's a good friend of the family. He still likes to tease me about it." -- Amber "When my husband and I were dating in college we had a habit of kissing at every stoplight. One day, in the middle of the college campus, we stopped, kissed and my husband rolled the car into the vehicle in front of us. Needless to say, we no longer kiss at stoplights." -- Pam "One evening my husband and I were home alone. I had the sniffles and we were sitting on the couch playing and joking around. As we were kissing he began tickling me and I laughed so hard that I sneezed on his lips and snot went in his mouth. I was humiliated at the time but we get a few laughs out of it now and then." -- Latasha 'Amelie' Seen "Casablanca" and "Titanic" a zillion times? Video store all out of "Under the Tuscan Sun"? Try one of these seven underrated romantic movies: * "A Room with a View" (1986) -- Exquisite passion, exquisitely restrained. * "Roxanne" (1987) -- A witty update of the classic "Cyrano" tale. * "Say Anything" (1989) -- You'll never hear Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes" the same way again. * "Groundhog Day" (1993) -- Bill Murray became a credible romantic lead long before "Lost in Translation." * "Everyone Says I Love You" (1996) -- Woody Allen sings! * "The Truth About Cats and Dogs" (1996) -- Who knew sharp-tongued Janeane Garofalo could do romance? * "Amelie" (2001) -- A shy Parisian woman finally finds love. -- Brandon Griggs Men, women and love: Men focus on the romantic aspect of Valentine's Day when buying gifts while women take a broader view of the holiday, according to a 2003 consumer study by the American Floral Endowment. The study found that men send 82 percent of their Valentine's flowers to their wife or romantic partner. Women, meanwhile, send only 15 percent of their Valentine's Day floral purchases to their men; the other 85 percent go to their mothers, sisters, friends, grandmothers and other relatives. A new national survey by Harlequin, the leading publisher of pulpy women's romance novels, also found some telling differences between the sexes. Asked which type of fantasy partner is most alluring, women overwhelmingly preferred "romantics." Men, on the other hand, preferred "intellectuals," "free spirits" and "bad girls." "Romantics" placed a distant fourth. -- Brandon Griggs Shakespeare 10 classic love poems: * "To My Dear and Loving Husband," Anne Bradstreet * "A Red, Red Rose," Robert Burns * "Sonnet CXVI," William Shakespeare * "i carry your heart with me . . . ," e.e. cummings * "Love Thou Art High," Emily Dickinson * "A Dedication to My Wife," T.S. Eliot * "I Do Not Love You . . . ," Pablo Neruda * "When You Are Old," William Butler Yeats * "Sonnet XLIII," Elizabeth Barrett Browning * "The River Merchant's Wife: A Letter," Ezra Pound -- Brandon Griggs Mood foods: While most people think champagne, strawberries and oysters will get your sweetie feeling amorous, the American Culinary Institute offers these lesser-known taste treats. Coffee: Just the aroma can perk up the senses. Serve it in a demitasse cup to create a special love buzz. Hummus: The Romans fed chickpeas, the main ingredient in hummus, to their prized stallions. Dip pieces of pita bread in hummus as a pre-dinner appetizer. Ice cream: The scent of vanilla alone will bring the aura of romance to the room, although any rich and decadent ice cream will bring bliss to most taste buds. Nuts: Ancient Romans used almonds in fertility ceremonies and threw walnuts instead of rice at newlyweds. Dried plums: Legend has it that Eros, the Greek god of love, dipped his arrow in prune juice for extra effect before taking aim at his love targets. A goblet of silky juice makes an exotic love potion. Seafood: Like oysters, shrimp and other seafood stir amorous feelings, especially when dipped in cocktail sauce. And yes, chocolate: It contains phenylethylamine, the same chemical that creates that dreamy, euphoric feeling you get when you fall in love. -- Kathy Stephenson Chocolate: Speaking of chocolate, that heart-shaped box chock -full of Valentine's Day confections may not be so bad for you. Nutritionists maintain that a little chocolate -- not an entire box -- provides antioxidants, which are believed to help prevent heart disease. "Chocolate has gotten a bad rap from a nutrition and health standpoint," said Joan Carter, a pediatrics expert at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. "It's pleasing to the palate." Carter, who is a registered dietician, said one chocolate bar contains roughly the same number of antioxidants as a serving of red wine. But she cautioned indulgers to pay attention to serving size, as today's massive candy bars may contain several servings. "A little bit of chocolate a day is not a bad thing," she said. You must feel better already. -- Greg Lavine (c) Copyright 2004, The Salt Lake Tribune. All material found on Utah Online is copyrighted The Salt Lake Tribune and associated news services. No material may be reproduced or reused without explicit permission from The Salt Lake Tribune.