Here’s the thing. Flowers, going out to dinner, cards, and candy are all the cliches for Valentine’s Day that couples get each other.
Now, I’m not saying they’re all bad. But unless those cards are Magic: The Gathering, Pokemon, or Spellfire, it’s not inherently going to be the cards your geek wants to receive.
It’s not bad that you put in some effort, but to go the extra mile, I’m here to help you make it special. So here are my suggestions for creating a wonderful Valentine’s Day memory with that special geek in your life.
Read them a passage from their favorite book. Or just read aloud to them from the book they’re reading. It’s time well spent, and depending on what you choose to read you may enjoy it yourself.
Listen to their favorite podcast with them or go one step further and see if you can arrange to get them a guest spot on their favorite podcast. I know it sounds like a tall order and if they only listen to Maron or SmodCast it might be impossible, but if they listen to smaller independent podcasts, you can secretly reach out to the hosts and perhaps even seal the deal.
Super Mario Bros
Play their favorite video game. Or just simply take an interest and watch them play. Because for a certain generation of us, that was part of the fun. Remember taking turns playing Mario Bros?
Buy them a new video game you can both play. It’s not that hard to find a game that features one on one or co-op play. Nintendo has more to choose from with lighthearted games like Mario Kart, but even learning to set up and play on a LAN-party system to dig back into Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness can do the trick.
As with video games, those ideas are also relatively applicable to tabletop board games and collectible card games. So, break out some games: Cards Against Humanity, Monopoly, Risk, Magic: The Gathering, Spellfire, Pokemon, Middle Earth, Super-fight, Stratego. This list could go on and on.
For something a little less competitive, watch a movie or television show. I’m not saying you have to marathon all of the Lord of the Rings extended editions or Star Wars or Harry Potters. Or even that you have to binge all of Daredevil, but conceding to embracing one of their fandoms that isn’t on top of your list can go a long way.
Embracing one of their fandoms, which they think you hate, is as much a gift as any other there is.
Bantha Milk
And since we’re on fandoms, you don’t even have to look past your own cooking skills to make an inspired meal…Tolkien fan? Lembas Bread…Potter fan? Butterbeer…Star Wars fan? Bantha Milk. Creating a fandom related meal, snack, or drink would definitely impress your special geek and probably surprise them as well.
Honestly, these things are valid and special on Valentine’s Day, but I think you know what I’m going to say next. These things should not be limited to Valentine’s Day. Maybe they aren’t everyday occurrences, but surely they aren’t just once a year things either.