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    There is buyer’s remorse after you buy a new house. When a time is so looked forward to and that you’ve prepared so hard for you almost sink into a funk after you realize you may have bit off more than you chew.

    The same applies to major holidays; likely the reason people get depressed around the other big days in their lives. Coincidence? I think not. It’s where science actually meets fiction yet neither can be proven.

    I can admit I don’t agree with the idea of Valentine’s Day, but I don’t dislike those who enjoy it (Hallmark executives excluded). I feel the same way about coffee houses ala Starbucks, but I think the place is cozy and has something to offer. Why do coffee houses and even McDonald’s have to keep getting better? Because we all want something to impress and continually set the bar higher than we’d like to admit.

    I’m new to Louisville and a new husband to boot. I’m married to a great gal who claims to be been born and bred here but since I’ve got to know the great people of Louisville I’m a little suspect of any U of L graduate who doesn’t like basketball. I’ve always made fun of her for the fact that she only goes to places within her comfort-zone, which means I am continuously getting off on any exit that isn’t hers (now our) from the east end of town.

    My comfort zone on the other extreme barely extends to the end of the couch during football season. My favorite holiday is when I know I made her happy, and I can live off that high for weeks, yet I keep setting that damn bar so high I can barely breathe. Take this past Valentine’s breathless bar setting for example: Chocolates, check. Red roses, check. Dinner, check. Time for liftoff, literally.

    I hired her a pilot with Air Center 1 out of Bowman Field who would let her fly over the Louisville skyline followed by a sexy dinner at the lovely French Bistro Le Relais (2817 Taylorsville Road) inside the terminal. Romantic? I thought so.

    Fact is however I was simply playing the romantic while exercising my demons of my wife’s driving, lack of Louisville knowledge and fear of heights. Yes, I’m that dumb – it was more about me than my wife. What I didn’t think to ask was what she wanted, even though I already knew what she liked.

    My wife will endure an entire football season on the couch with me and in turn I tend to try and set expectations too high. Although the flight terrified me, on a perfectly fine holiday, I will now celebrate Valentine’s Day as a day where lessons I learned:

    • Don’t try too hard to impress - your friends and family will love you, regardless of your hardest effort
    • Grass is greenest where it’s watered, forget the other side of the fence. •
    • Valentine’s Day is about a couple, not just you.
    • Roses smell just fine hundreds of feet above Louisville, but stopping to smell them (on land) unquestionably improved my experience.
    • When thinking about an event, think of it as if you are making a reservation for a table at your favorite joint, do what you know and make it about “us."

    Check out Air Center 1 at historic Bowman Field www.aircenter1.com if you want to achieve your dream of flying. (Ask for Terry – he’s a great guy and willing to assist anyone…even the most hopeless romantic. Trust me, I know.)

    Kit Helton's picture

    About Kit Helton

    Average single guy who has been able to lead an above average life. Originally from New Orleans and arrived in Louisville after 10 years via Chicago in 2005. Currently residing near Churchill Downs with my dog, Dixie. Owner of a catering company for over a decade and published cookbook author, I am lucky to return to the Food & Dining as well as Arts beats for Louisville.com.

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