The week leading up to Valentine’s Day for me is a week of reflection.  Reflection on the relationship with that special someone I’ve decided to give my heart to!   I’m an advocate for working hard at your relationships… even beyond the person you might be married to… ALL your relationships.   If married people would work at their relationship with the same zest and zeal that teenagers do, the statistics would be a LOT different on how well marriages do over the years.   I’m by no means an authority on this as I’ve just had my third anniversary.   I am so very pleased about that.  It’s my first marriage and I really want to celebrate.   I was single for a lot more years than I cared to be… for several reasons I think.   It’s not easy being in a relationship with someone when you are on the road so much of the time.  Entertainers have that in common.   Another reason may be that while I advocate working really hard to keep a relationship fresh and vibrant, the guys I used to date may not have measured up in that way.   Many of them were on auto-pilot after a year or so and then, when you are apart because of work, the glue just slowly lets go.   It’s different for me this time.  I married a guy who supports my career and everything I stand for… 100%.  We’ve known each other for 7 years by now and there’s been nary a dull moment…. even when we are apart.  We are VERY much in love… and I know we’d do ANYTHING for each other… and we do!!  I want to celebrate Valentine’s day!!… and go back to the place we were engaged… AGAIN!  I love reliving that moment….  so wonderful.  I can say my life knows a peace that’s been eluding me for most of my life!  Finding your soulmate is an UNFORGETTABLE experience… and I’ve found him and he says the same.   I am gonna be a little naughty on Valentine’s Day…  🙂

Raff and I have had similarly memorable times in St Petersburg Florida, Palm Springs California, Memphis Tennessee, the Island of Djerb Tunisia, and on and on…. but we were engaged in Winnipeg Manitoba Canada….at the most wonderful East Indian Restaurant I’ve ever been to.   It was very private… away from the flash and glitz my life is often bombarded with.   It’s called the East India Company (shameless plug) next to the Convention Centre in Winnipeg.  It’s the biggest baddest freshest tastiest most colourful yummiest place on earth.   The wide variety of flavours and quality of the dishes are unbelievable.  I’ve had him take me back there every Valentine’s Day since.  We were not engaged on Valentine’s Day… but we’ve never been around Winnipeg on our Anniversary so Valentine’s Day is the closest we get and the day we chose to celebrate that.  After that, I think we’ll spend the night at The Hotel Fort Gary (Shameless plug #2).  The Fort Gary is a Canadian National Railway hotel built around the time when the first railway was completed from Coast to Coast.. in Grand and Opulent tradition where you stay in rooms with 12′ ceilings on virtually every floor (it’s not as expensive as you might think!).  It’s a quarried stone structure that, for many years, was the tallest building in Winnipeg.  It’s just a short walk from an eclectic touristy area called “The Forks” where the Assiniboine River flows into the Red.  The Red River used to have paddle wheel boats running up and down well into the USA and is considered the “Mississippi of the North”… flowing in the opposite direction.   A romantic night with the man I love at the Hotel Fort Gary… and amazing Brunch the next morning that ends in a walk about listening to street musicians at the Forks is about perfect for me on Valentine’s Day.   I’m guessing we’ll hang around the various shops for a good part of the afternoon and have a bite at “A Taste of Sri-Lanka”(Shameless plug #3) or one of the other little walk up food vendors there before we head back and decide it’s time to say good bye to the place.    This is what I’d LIKE to do… and the reality is WE WILL… BUT, I’ll be enroute to Canada from Mississippi late on the 14th this year after a show…. so it will all have to wait a day.  This is what love is all about.  We won’t be “mailing it in”.  We’ll wait for each other but we WON’T MISS a celebration of our love.  Not a chance…  Rock On, music lovers…   🙂