RIP Richard Belzer

American actor & comedian Richard Belzer, who began as an edgy stand-up performer before finding further fame as the cynical but stalwart detective John Munch on Homicide: Life on the Street and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, has died. He was 78 and died early Sunday at his home in Bozouls in southwest France. He made his first appearance in 1993 as Munch on the first episode of Homicide and his last in 2016 on Law & Order: SVU. In between those two NBC dramas, Belzer played the detective on eight other series, and his hold on the character lasted for 23 years.

Belzer was born in Connecticut to a Jewish family and describes his mother as “physically abusive” and tried to make her laugh so she wouldn’t beat him or his brother. After graduating from Fairfield Warde High School, Belzer worked as a reporter for the Bridgeport Post. He began his career as a stand-up comic at Pips, The Improv, and Catch a Rising Star. Belzer was the audience warm-up comedian for Saturday Night Live and made three guest appearances on the show between 1975 and 1980. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Belzer became an occasional film actor and had small roles in several prominent films as well as in a few music videos.

In addition to his film career, Belzer was a featured player on the National Lampoon Radio Hour. He also had a recurring role on the 1990s series The Flash, played Inspector Henderson on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and did cameos in music videos for Pat Benatar and Mike + the Mechanics.He followed that with starring roles on the Baltimore-based Homicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999) and the New York City-based Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–2013), portraying police detective John Munch in both series. He retired in 2014 but came back for an episode in 2016. Belzer’s older brother, Leonard Belzer, died by suicide at age 73 on July 30, 2014, by jumping from the roof of the New York City luxury apartment building in which he had resided. Belzer’s father had also died by suicide, in 1968.

Welcome To My Secret Lair

Imagine your own secret lair and explain what’s inside.

A few years ago I came up with this concept of me walking in the night and finding a well hidden – I just happened to find it by chance – spaceship. It was occupied by a dying alien. He gave me the controls of the spaceship and all the weapons and told me a bunch of the secrets before he died of old, old age (like a few 100 years old). He had a suit near by that I could customize as per my wishes – a suit which was bullet proof, bomb proof and which I could use to enter fires, radiation areas – it would make me immune to basically everything short of falling into a black hole or passing through a sun. 

I bury him secretly and take the spaceship and engage the cloak which also makes it hidden from radar and all such detection devices that the earth’s military powers could use. I use the technology in the alien’s ship to fly out to an area in the ocean and build an invisible to others home base, like a secret lair. This would be where I could hide the spaceship and also setup a Batcave like area for me to relax and plan things and even monitor stuff. I had a plan – to use the alien’s advanced technology and as a secret identity to get rid of the evil people in this world, destroy organizations like ISIS, the Taliban, the KKK, the militia guys in the US, pirates and even destroy all the temples, churches and mosques in the world, including the Vatican.

So I start with India and hack into the tv networks so my message is shared to everyone at the same time as my image is shared on all the cable tv channels at the same time, stating that I will be destroying these places of worship in 2 days so no one should be in them. I also attack the den of some immoral people and leave them tied up for the cops to apprehend. Once the first temple, mosque & church are blown up, people take me seriously. The military and the cops are told to apprehend me but they are no match for me. I then continue on this mission and patrol the streets as much as I can looking for bad people to beat up.

My lair which no one could detect has tv screens, computers and surveillance equipment set up all over the world. I imagine me flying in and taking off the helmet of my suit and just relaxing in the lair. Pull out a beer from the bridge and settle on a chair and check the feeds from the monitors to see and plot my next target. I am coming for you.

Prompt from 31 Blog Writing Prompts to Break Your Writer’s Block at Blog.Hubstop

What Are Your Top 5 Tips For Keeping The Romance Alive?


Be spontaneous.

The thrill of doing something new can put the spark back in your relationship. Think jet skiing, trying a new brewery, or exploring an unfamiliar neighborhood—whatever excites both of you. “Research has shown that spontaneity is an important component to happy, long-term relationships.

Touch Each other.

Don’t underestimate the power of touch. Everything from a squeeze on the arm to a hug will go a long way toward keeping the two of you connected. Or you can give your partner a sensuous massage with an aromatherapy massage oil. Random intimate touching can also reinforce spontaneity as well as increase your oxytocin levels helping you both to feel more bonded.

Get flirty.

Stop taking your partner for granted and go back to those old techniques you used to catch their eye in the first place. Once you do, they’ll reciprocate. Think back to the effort both of you made to get one another’s attention. Whether it was a sexy note or some innuendo, it can help you remember the spark that brought you together.

Actually do date night.

Though it may seem predictable, scheduling one-on-one time with your spouse, especially if you have young children, is vital for maintaining your romantic connection. Taking time to enjoy your couple-hood is an investment in your relationship which is good for the whole family, as most experts believe that happy couples make happier parents.

Have more sex.

When you maintain a healthy and frequent sex life, you’re taking the first step to ensure that you and your partner keep the passion alive. Sometimes acting ‘as if’ you’re craving sex, just to get the sexual energy up can give you both the jump-start that helps create a new pattern. Also, having sex on a regular basis will balance your hormones so you’ll want sex more. Sex begets sex.

Aston Villa 2 Arsenal 4

Arsenal scored twice in stoppage time to win a six-goal thriller at Aston Villa and return to the top of the Premier League. Jorginho’s shot came off the crossbar and bounced in off Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez to put Arsenal 3-2 up, before substitute Gabriel Martinelli raced clear to score as Villa chased an equaliser. Villa twice led, through Ollie Watkins and Philippe Coutinho, in the first half. They were pegged back by goals from Bukayo Saka and Oleksandr Zinchenko either side of the break. Victory ended Arsenal’s run of three games without a win and took them back above Manchester City after losing to them in midweek.

There was an electric pace to the game from the off, and Villa took the lead inside five minutes through Watkins’ fourth goal in as many matches. He caught Arsenal cold on the counter, latching on to Matty Cash’s long pass before beating William Saliba and finding the far corner. It took only 11 minutes for Arsenal to respond. Moments after Tyrone Mings cleared Eddie Nketiah’s shot on to the bar, Saka levelled with a powerful effort into the roof of the net. Coutinho, making his first league start under Villa boss Unai Emery, put the hosts back in front, rounding off a wonderful team move with a calm finish from inside the area. On the hour Zinchenko found space at the edge of the box and fired in at the near post from a short corner for his first Arsenal goal, before Nketiah fired over minutes later.

Martin Odegaard shot wide with 14 minutes remaining and it looked as though it would not be Arsenal’s day until Jorginho and Martinelli’s vital contributions. There had been so much talk about Arsenal’s title chances after losing to City, despite the fact they went into this match level on points with a game in hand. For long periods they looked like they may come up short again. But they proved their mental strength with those stoppage-time goals, as well as the fact they twice came from behind. There was no panic as they probed and pushed late on, even when Nketiah and Odegaard missed chances and Villa were going for it themselves. Winning titles is about overcoming adversity under pressure, and that is exactly what Arsenal did today.

Eight Cool Facts About The Planet Mercury

Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, is only slightly larger than Earth’s moon and is pockmarked with craters. The planet is visible to the unaided eye and as such as has long been known to humans. The planet was first observed through the newly invented telescope in 1631 by astronomers Galileo Galilei and Thomas Harriot, according to NASA Science(opens in new tab).

According to Universe Today(opens in new tab), the Sumerians mentioned the planet as early as the 2nd millennium BC (a period spanning 2000 BC to 1001 BC), and the Babylonians called it the planet Nabu. We know it by the name given by the Romans, after their swift-footed messenger god Mercury.

Even though Mercury is the closest planet to the sun, its surface can still be extremely cold, thanks to its lack of a heat-trapping atmosphere. The temperature during the day can reach a scorching 800 degrees Fahrenheit (430 degrees Celsius), but at night, temperatures can plummet as low as minus 290 F (minus 180 C), according to NASA(opens in new tab). That fluctuation equals a temperature swing of about 1,100 F (600 C), the largest of any planet in the solar system.

Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system. The dinky planet is approximately 3,030 miles (4,876 kilometers) in diameter, making it about as wide as the continental United States and only slightly bigger than Earth’s moon.

Saturn’s moon Titan and Jupiter’s moon Ganymede are both larger than Mercury. Pluto was long considered to be the smallest planet in the solar system, but after it was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006, the award of the smallest planet has been bestowed upon Mercury.

Mercury speeds around the sun every 88 Earth days, hurtling along at nearly 29 miles (47 kilometers) per second — faster than any other planet in the solar system, according to NASA. Mercury’s orbit is not only very fast but also highly elliptical. The planet gets as close as 29 million miles (47 million km) to the sun and as far as 42 million miles (70 million km) from the sun.

In 2012, NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft discovered water ice inside some of Mercury’s craters. In 2017, it was confirmed that Mercury has much more ice strewn across its north polar region than previously thought. The existence of ice had first been suggested in the 1990s when Earth-based telescopes detected highly reflective spots in the polar regions.

Mercury has the thinnest atmosphere of any planet in the solar system. The atmosphere is so thin that scientists have another name for it — an exosphere. Mercury’s exosphere is composed mostly of oxygen, sodium, hydrogen, helium and potassium, according to NASA.

Six Things To Do With Left Over Valentine’s Day Chocolate

Ideas for Leftover Valentine’s Day Chocolate

CANDY CAKE

If the worst thing for you is how small Valentine’s Day candy chocolate is, make it big! Create a lava cake with leftover chocolate or make your favorite cake topped with conversation hearts. Yummy!

CHOCOLATE FONDUE

Leftover milk chocolate plus marshmallow crème makes for one delicious party platter. Simply melt the chocolate, then mix in a 7-ounce jar of crème, ¾ cup of heavy whipping cream, 3 ounces of white baking chocolate, and ¼ cup toasted almonds, plus a dash of almond extract. Serve with fresh fruit or cubed pound cake.

CHOCOLATE-COVERED BACON

There is no wrong way to eat bacon, which means that there are numerous right ways to eat it. A drizzle of melted white and dark chocolate is one of those right ways. Many recipes you’ll come across for chocolate-covered bacon are pretty straightforward, and involve just 10 minutes or so of prep time. Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes, and you’ve got yourself a sweet-and-savory post-Valentine’s Day snack.

POPCORN DRIZZLE

Chocolate-covered popcorn is a delicious alternative to the salty, buttery theater staple that you’re used to, and you can make it as simple or as involved as you like. Simply pop the popcorn, drip some chocolate on top, and start snacking away. Or, add in a few more ingredients like cocoa powder and vanilla, place the mixture on an oiled pan, and bake at 250 degrees for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

SWEET FRENCH TOAST

Treat friends (or that special someone) to a post-Valentine’s Day brunch. The standout on your menu: Chocolate-and-banana french toast.

MODIFIED SMORES

The chocolate component of a s’more is traditionally a bar, but who says it has to be? Break the rules and use whatever pieces you have lying around, even if they have nuts or other added ingredients. You may end up creating your new favorite campfire tradition.

Prompt from 29 BLOG POST PROMPTS FOR FEBRUARY at The Network Niche

Some Favourite Ways To Relax And Unwind

What are some of your favorite ways to relax and unwind?

  • Listening to my favourite music. Be it 70s, 80s or 90s pop, rock music, Blues, heavy metal or even some country.
  • Watching some of my favourite movies & tv shows. There is something very therapeutic about rewatching movies and tv shows you have seen before. You’re in a special little comfort zone – you know the outcome and you’re expecting the enjoyment you have previously experienced.
  • Just relaxing in a bar with a couple of beers, some good snacks as they play good songs in the establishment.

Prompt from DAILY JOURNALING PROMPTS – FEBRUARY 2022 at Krafty Planner

RIP Raquel Welch

US actress Raquel Welch, often credited with paving the way for modern day action heroines in Hollywood films, has died at the age of 82. The star passed away peacefully on Wednesday morning after a brief illness, her manager said. Welch became an international sex symbol in the 1960s, widely remembered for playing a bikini-clad cavewoman in the 1966 film One Million Years B.C.  In a career spanning over five decades, Welch appeared in more than 30 movies and 50 television shows. She first won attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage (1966), after which she won a contract with 20th Century Fox. They lent her contract to the British studio Hammer Film Productions, for whom she made One Million Years B.C. (1966). Although Welch had only three lines of dialogue in the film, images of her in the doe-skin bikini became bestselling posters that turned her into an international sex symbol. She later starred in Bedazzled (1967), Bandolero! (1968), 100 Rifles (1969), Myra Breckinridge (1970), and Hannie Caulder (1971). She made several television variety specials.

Raquel was born in Chicago to Armando Tejada, who was an aeronautical engineer from La Paz, Bolivia,  and Josephine Sarah Hall. The family moved from Illinois to San Diego, California, when Welch was two years old.  Welch married her high school sweetheart, James Welch, on May 8, 1959, with whom she had two children, Damon Welch and actress Latanne “Tahnee” Welch (born December 26, 1961). In 1960, Welch got a job as a weather presenter at KFMB, a local San Diego television station. Because her family life and television duties were so demanding she decided to give up her drama classes. After her separation from James Welch, she moved with her two children to Dallas, where she made a “precarious living” as a model for Neiman Marcus and as a cocktail waitress.

Through her portrayal of strong female characters, which helped in her breaking the mold of the traditional sex symbol, Welch developed a unique film persona that made her an icon of the 1960s and 1970s. Her rise to stardom in the mid-1960s was partly credited with ending Hollywood’s vigorous promotion of the blonde bombshell. She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical or Comedy in 1974 for her performance in The Three Musketeers. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in Television Film for her performance in the film Right to Die (1987). In 1995, Welch was chosen by Empire magazine as one of the “100 Sexiest Stars in Film History”. Playboy ranked Welch No. 3 on their “100 Sexiest Stars of the Twentieth Century” list.

Welch’s most controversial role came in Myra Breckinridge (1970). She took the role as the film’s transsexual heroine in an attempt to be taken seriously as an actress. Her looks and fame led Playboy to dub her the “Most Desired Woman” of the 1970s. Welch presented at the Academy Award ceremony several times during the 1970s due to her popularity. She also acted in Kansas City Bomber, The Last of Sheila and The Three Musketeers and the sequel The Four Musketeers, Wild Party, Animal and the comedy Mother, Jugs & Speed in the 70s. In the 80s she acted on Broadway and also was in several tv films while also flirting with a singing career. In 2001, she had supporting roles in the comedy films Legally Blonde opposite Reese Witherspoon and Tortilla Soup. In 2002, she starred in the PBS series American Family, a story about a Mexican American family in East Los Angeles.

Most recently Welch appeared in a sitcom titled Date My Dad (2017) where she reunited with Robert Wagner on screen, four decades after starring together in The Biggest Bundle of Them All. She married producer Patrick Curtis in 1967 and divorced him in 1972. In 1980, she married producer André Weinfeld, divorcing him in 1990. Welch wed Richard Palmer, owner of Mulberry Street Pizzeria, in 1999 but then separated from him in 2003 and later divorced. Welch said she would not remarry.

Arsenal 1 Manchester City 3

Manchester City returned to the top of the Premier League for the first time since November as they leapfrogged leaders Arsenal with a vital victory at Emirates Stadium. The reigning champions turned on the power in the second half in the biggest game of the domestic season as Arsenal paid a heavy price for individual errors. Takehiro Tomiyasu’s poor backpass allowed Kevin de Bruyne to loft a finish over Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale after 24 minutes but Arsenal deservedly drew level three minutes before half-time, Bukayo Saka scoring from the spot after City goalkeeper Ederson fouled Eddie Nketiah.

City, lacking spark in the opening phase, improved after the break and had a penalty of their own ruled out for offside against Erling Haaland before they showed a ruthless streak to punish Arsenal. Gabriel lost possession to allow Bernardo Silva and Haaland to set up Jack Grealish for a deflected finish after 72 minutes before they ended Arsenal’s hopes with 10 minutes left. Inevitably, Haaland was the scorer from De Bruyne’s pass to put City top on goal difference having played one game more than Arsenal. City have returned to the top of the Premier League by striking a devastating blow on the long-time leaders.

City, by their own standards, have not quite hit the heights this season but they now find themselves looking down on Arsenal once more, albeit the Gunners have a game in hand. Even here, City lacked their usual fluency in the first 45 minutes and Arsenal arguably deserved more than being on level terms at the interval. And yet, once they moved through the gears in the second half City carried enough threat to put Arsenal away and return to the position they have occupied so often in recent years. City gratefully accepted the gifts Arsenal offered and once Grealish restored their lead – a touch off the luckless Tomiyasu sending his shot past Ramsdale – this game was done.

Haaland’s goal emphasised City’s supremacy and they closed out the win with ease, the celebrations at the final whistle reflecting the significance of the result. This defeat will be a bitter blow to Arsenal, coming as it did in front of their own supporters. It continued a recent stumble in which they have lost at City in the FA Cup and at Everton in the league, drawn controversially against Brentford on Saturday and now another damaging defeat here. Arsenal and manager Mikel Arteta must not get too down on themselves, although the scale of the setback here cannot be underestimated in the context of the title race.

Some Health Benefits To Adding Walnuts To Your Diet

Aids in Weight loss : Walnuts have high fibre, protein, omega-3 and omega-6 content. These nutrients together act as appetite suppressants. Furthermore, walnuts stimulate the right insula of the brain which boosts the quantity of peptide YY (PYY), a hormone that increases satiety and makes the stomach feel full for a longer time. A study suggests that a walnut-induced diet promotes better weight loss than other energy diets. Including walnuts in your diet on a daily basis not just aids weight loss but may also help in weight management.

Boosts Energy : As per studies, the vitamin B content in walnuts helps boost energy levels. You can add some walnuts to a cup of yoghurt and eat a handful as a mid-morning snack or add it to a smoothie for breakfast to boost energy levels.

Good for Brain : Walnuts are rich in alpha-linolenic acid, a plant-based omega-3 fatty acid. Walnuts also possess more polyphenolic compounds than any other nut. Both omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols are essential foods for your brain. Studies link low levels of omega-3 to mood disorders and thus walnuts can help with mood stability and eliminate depression or anxiety. Reports suggest that early and long-term nutritional intervention with walnuts may have beneficial effects in maintaining cognitive function and protecting against age-related cognitive decline. It also reduces the risk, delays the onset, or slows the cognitive impairment and dementia progression.

Promotes Healthy Skin : Walnuts contain potent antioxidants and vitamin E, which can make your skin look healthy and supple. In addition, vitamin E helps fight free radical damage caused due to oxidative stress. Free radicals damage your skin cells and lead to premature ageing and other skin issues. Thus, consuming walnuts may help improve your skin health. Walnut oil is a great remedy for dry and dull skin. It nourishes the skin from within and keeps it moisturised.

Boosts Metabolism : Research has shown that walnuts are full of essential fatty acids that can boost metabolism, and help with digestion, growth, development, and other metabolic processes. A  study suggests that a dietary supplement of 45 g of walnuts for 16 weeks may improve metabolic syndrome status (MetS) by increasing the concentration of HDL-C and decreasing fasting glucose levels.

Walnuts are Anti-inflammatory : Oxidative stress and inflammation are key reasons behind age-related conditions like dementia. Walnuts contain multiple components that have additive or synergistic effects in suppressing inflammation and oxidative damage. Inflammation also leads to many other diseases like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerosis and allergies. Consuming walnuts every day may help in combating these diseases better.

Walnuts Promote Healthy Heart : Walnuts encourage a healthy lipid supply due to an abundance of omega-3 fats like alpha-linolenic acid and linolenic acid. Studies suggest that a serving of walnuts a day helps lower cholesterol and reduces the risk of coronary heart disease. They are also beneficial in lowering high blood pressure.

Helps Prevent Cancer : Research says that biochemicals, including omega-3 fatty acids, tocopherols etc., present in walnuts have cancer-prevention properties. These components present in walnuts can contribute to suppressing the risk of developing prostate, breast, or pancreatic cancers.

Improves Fertility : Research proves that the addition of walnuts to your daily diet may increase sperm count, quality and mobility. Walnuts may also help prevent sperm morphology or abnormal sperm growth.

What Superpower Will I Love To Have And Use

Reveal a superpower you’d love to have and what you’d do with it.

For me one of the superpowers that I would love to have is, the ability to transport myself at the blink of an eye to any place at any time that I want. That eliminates transit, the need to get ready well in time and avoid traffic jams and saves money. I just think that it would be so convenient.

Another one would be the power to heal – injuries, scars, aches & pain. I have issues, my parents have issues, my extended family members have their aches and joint pains and stuff. If I could take all of that away with a touch of my hand or a device, then I would love to have that. Also why just my loved ones; I’d love to do that in every hospital and every clinic and get rid of the pain of everyone. Please get me that superpower and I would do that for everyone.

I would also like the ability to create anything or maybe I should say, the ability to bring anything that I want and can think off appear in front of me. Like a replicator in Star Trek but this is with my superpower and not using technology. So I guess I should say that I would also like the ability to make things appear and disappear with just a thought. Anything at all! And destroy need and want.

Prompt from 31 Blog Writing Prompts to Break Your Writer’s Block at Blog.Hubstop

Out For Some Beers, Jumbo Shrimp & Fries

So I rarely go out for drinking anymore or drink at home. Since like late August of 2021 at first because I was on a diet, then my illness and then I just stopped going out altogether. I haven’t also bought any beer or other alcohol since August of 2021. 2021 I only went out to have beer twice – once in February and then in December, the day before Christmas.

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Since then I have a been following a diet. My plan was to stick to the diet and break it like once a month or so and enjoy some of my favourite food and drink. Since I started the diet on January 1st, I haven’t moved out of my diet much – maybe a cookie or two – and I was eager to have some beer. And I also wanted to eat some of my favourite food.

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I initially planned this for Sunday but then I was battling a bad cold I caught on Friday and hence decided to rest Saturday and Sunday and if I was feeling up to it, I would go Monday afternoon (I had taken a personal leave well in advance for something else) and I would go and get some beer. So yesterday I got ready by 12:45 pm and booked a Uber to go to Couchyn. As soon as I got there, I ordered me a Corona Extra and a plate of their jumbo tempura prawns.

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Next up I got a Hoegaarden Whit Beer. Something is different – the last two times I felt that the Hoegaarden was better than the Corona but this time it felt way off. I preferred the Corona over the Belgium beer. Maybe it was a bad bottle or something. And I never add lime or lemon to my Corona. So after that I got another Corona and that would be it as far as the beer was concerned. Instead of getting a meal I opted for another snack.

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Once the prawns were done I was thinking of what to get next. I didn’t want a big meal and I thought about getting some beef or chicken. Instead I went with a large basket of their French fries. Why, because I haven’t had French fries in almost 2 months and had started to miss it. Also, Couchyn & the Grand Hotel makes some excellent fries that puts McDonalds, Burger King etc to shame. Really good ones! Once that and my 3rd beer was done, I booked an Uber and came back home.

Valentine’s Day Traditions From Around The World

Denmark: white flowers and guessing games

In Denmark people traditionally exchange pressed white flowers called snowdrops instead of fresh bouquets. It’s also traditional for people to send their crushes “joke letters” called gaekkebrev. These poems or rhymes are signed only with dots, so the recipient has to guess who sent it. If they guess correctly, the sender will owe them a chocolate Easter egg later in the spring.

South Korea: men get pampered

Boyfriends and husbands are spoiled for Valentine’s Day with chocolates and flowers. March 14th is “White Day” when women are doted on with chocolate, flowers and a gift.

Japan: obligatory chocolate

February 14th in Japan is also a day to spoil men. However, it’s not just your sweetheart you’re expected to spoil. Chocolate is given to male friends, coworkers and bosses, as well.  Different types of chocolate are expected for different relationships:   “giri choco” or “obligatory chocolate” is for platonic relationships and love interests get “honmei choco” (true love chocolate) along with a handmade gift. Just as South Korea, women receive the same treatment on March 14.

Germany: chocolate pigs and gingerbread

If someone gave you a chocolate pig for Valentine’s Day, would you consider it an insult? You wouldn’t if you lived in Germany. The pig represents both luck and lust. It’s traditional to exchange pig-themed gifts with the one you love. Germans also celebrate Valentine’s Day with a much tastier version of those “conversation heart” candies: big, heart-shaped ginger cookies with messages written on them. 

Norfolk, England: here comes jack valentine

The English county of Norfolk is known for its particularly lavish and elaborate Valentine’s Day traditions. Many people in Norfolk celebrate Valentine’s Day with gifts from “Jack Valentine,” a Santa Claus-type figure that leaves gifts on the front porch.

The Philippines: Mass weddings

For more than a decade, Filipinos have been celebrating Valentine’s Day with mass weddings. Couples gather to exchange vows and celebrate at the same time.  Local government agencies usually sponsor these mass weddings. For couples living in poverty, this is a way they can afford marriage. 

Ghana: National Chocolate day

In Ghana, February 14th is National Chocolate Day. Tastings, dinners and other events are held around the country to promote Ghana’s top agricultural export- the cocoa bean.

Estonia: the original “Galentine’s day”

In Estonia it’s called Sobrapaev, which means “Friendship Day.” Instead of a day for sweethearts, it’s a day to celebrate friendships of all sorts. 

Taiwan: flowers with a twist

Taiwan celebrates Valentine’s Day on February 14 (as well as another similar holiday on July 1st ). Just as in Western countries, girlfriends expect to receive flowers. However, in Taiwan, the color and number of flowers in the bouquet often carry a secret message. Red roses mean “you’re my one and only.” Ninety-nine roses mean “I will love you forever.” One hundred and eight roses mean “will you marry me?” 

Unhappy In The Loneliness Of The Aging Bachelor

Are you deep down happy on your own? (Why or why not?) Also list down any insecurities you may have.

Short answer no. I am lonely and miserable being lonely. I will not have things in red scattered around. I would love to be able to have someone to buy those Valentine’s day special chocolates and cards and gifts for. Have a nice dinner for two in a romantic setting, candles, soft music, blah blah blah. It’s been so long since I’ve made a woman feel special or being felt special myself.

Every Valentine’s Day, every holiday, every function I am reminded about my lack of companionship. I am pretty sure that I am not the only one in this situation and there are tons of people worse off than me. But that does nothing to alleviate the feelings of loneliness. Sometimes I look around my bedroom just before I go to bed and wish that the other side was where a beautiful woman who loves me and wants to sleep with me lay.

How can I be happy when I ache for having that companionship and love of woman who wants to hold me and who wants to be held by me? To share our lives and love and spend quality time with each other. To cook together, to plan things together and to make love and then fall asleep in each other’s arms. I have nothing to look forward to. My life is going to be a lonely one and I will be alone in a few years and that’s how I will end my life.

Prompt from 28 Enchanting February Journal Prompts at Mercy K

Arsenal 1 Brentford 1

Substitute Leandro Trossard scored his first goal for Arsenal but the Premier League leaders missed the chance to move eight points clear at the top as Ivan Toney earned resilient Brentford a deserved point. After a goalless first half in which the Bees hit the woodwork through Toney, the Gunners took the lead when Trossard struck at the back post four minutes after coming off the bench. But Brentford got the reward their excellent away performance at Emirates Stadium deserved when Toney nodded in Christian Norgaard’s cross from close range. There was a lengthy check by the video assistant referee for a possible offside in the build-up but the goal was eventually confirmed.

Arsenal raised the tempo in the closing stages – including seven minutes of added time – as they searched for a winner but Brentford completed an excellent defensive display by holding firm for a point. Arsenal face Manchester City – six points behind before their game on Sunday afternoon against Aston Villa – in a top-of-the table showdown on 15 February. Brentford, meanwhile, are eighth and just five points off fifth place. Arsenal have been formidable at home this season, winning eight and drawing one of their nine games at the Emirates before the visit of Brentford.

They are one of two sides, along with Newcastle United, in the top flight who are unbeaten on their own turf – but that record was given a stern test against in-form Brentford, who had won four of their previous five league games. Mikel Arteta’s side had plenty of possession but found little joy in unlocking a disciplined Bees defence until their patience was rewarded when Trossard struck midway through the second half. The Belgium forward has looked a fine addition since joining from Brighton & Hove Albion for £27m last month and he was close to adding a second soon after with a shot from distance.

But a one-goal lead rarely looked like it would be enough against a Brentford side who had been sharp in attack, and so it proved when Toney equalised. The draw for Arsenal follows successive defeats in the league and FA Cup to Everton and Manchester City respectively. How they respond to this relative stumble – not least in Wednesday’s home game against City – will be key in determining whether they can win a first Premier League title since 2003-04.