Stalking the Perfect Date

Whether they have just been hit by Cupid's arrow or have been married for 20 years, Valentine's Day is a time for all lovers to celebrate their affection for one another . Although red roses and chocolates are the most traditional gifts, everyone has their own idea of a perfect Valentine's Day date, be it chartering the Concorde to Paris for a romantic evening in the City of Light, taking a hot bubble bath, or picnicking on the beach in California.

"I'd like to get dressed up, go to a really nice fancy dinner and then go to a dance afterward," says Doug M. Cerasoli '89, adding, "either that, or go to a heavy metal concert."

Scott F.M. Duncan '89 says he agrees with the first idea, if not the second. "I think it' d be fun to go out to an expensive dinner, do the roses and candy, and go dancing," he says. "And then rip off all my clothes."

Just any fancy dinner won't do for some Valentine's Day aficionados.

"I'd go to the North End and have a romantic dinner in an Italian restaurant," says Christina C. Jacoby '87.

Says Dean of the College L. Fred Jewett '57, "My idea of a perfect Valentine's Day would be to fly down to New York, go to a really nice dinner, and go to the opera."

Although expensive meals and dancing feature heavily in some perfect Valentines', not everyone wants excitement.

"I'd like some flowers and romance and spending a quiet day together," says Kristin M. Daly '89. "I think it should be a day for people to be together, not a day to run around buying roses at the last minute."

Vice President for Governmental and Public Affairs John Shattuck's perfect Valentine's Day certainly fits Daly's ideal, " My idea of a perfect Valentine's Day is leaving the office at 9:01 a.m. and spending the whole day with my wife," he says.

But staying at home just isn't special enough for some people, like R. Cliff Young '89. "We'd go to Paris on the Concorde and spend the night, which is the afternoon here, have dinner, walk along the Seine and then go out dancing. Then we'd fly back to New York and do the same thing," Young says.

If that fantastic voyage is out of the question, young says " I'd like to rent a car and drive up to Maine and have lobsters for dinner."

While Young wants to spend Valentine's Day in transit, some people would rather spend the entire day in a specific place.

"The most romantic Valentine's Day would be in California, we would go to a park on the beach and have a picnic and a bottle of wine," says Glenn S. Philips '90.

"I'd like to spend Valentine's Day at a ski chalet. We'd spend the day skiing [and then] go back to the chalet," says Sarah W. Lamport '89.

Others say they would do anything on Valentine's Day, as long as they are with that special person.

Vice President for Administration Robert H. Scott says he wants to spend Valentine's Day "on a desert island with Tina Turner."

"The perfect valentine would be that lady on 'Moonlighting'," says Dean of Student Archie C. Epps III. Look out, Bruce Willis.

And others want to do a specific thing. "I'd like to go moonlight skiing," says Milbert D. Shin '87. "It find of creates an atmosphere."

Peace and quiet figure heavily in some people's idea of a perfect Valentine's Day. "Someone would have a drawn, hot bubble bath waiting with a rose and a glass of champagne," says Yolanda Barrera, a proctor in Pennypacker Hall. "That's all I would want. Just Leave me alone to relax for a couple of hours and don't bug me."

Stephen T. Shankland '90 has one of the most elaborate dreams of a perfect Valentine's Day.

"I want to go into a nice big room with lots of pillows with the romantic person of my choice. I'd have a great, nifty-dandy stereo system, all this music that you want to listen to, and as much time as you want," he says. "I'd also have tons of paper so I could draw pictures and write poems."

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, but Financial Vice President Thomas O'Brien might not agree. "My perfect Valentine would be for the President [Bok] to take a three-month vacation every year," he says.

Jon S. Dounchis '90 doesn't have to dream about a perfect day, he's going to live it. "I'm going down to visit my girlfriend at Princeton," he says. "We'll go to New York and go out to dinner, I'm sure."

Whatever they want to do for Valentine's Day, everyone agrees that their plans require one crucial element. "A perfect Valentine's Day would require a perfect Valentine person," Lamport says.