Today is Valentine's Day in the US and other countries. From Valentine's Day - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Saint Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day is on February 14. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentine's cards, candy, or donations to charities, often anonymously. It is very common to present flowers on Valentine's Day. The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished."

What a perfect day to initiate my annual "What I Hate Day". Here's a list of things I hate, in no particular order:

• I hate spam. Not the capitalized "SPAM" which I find very tasty, but the other kind. Need I say more?
• I hate email forwards that were forwarded to the sender, and usually forwarded to that sender as well. These are the messages that say things like "Send this to 10 other people in the next 10 minutes for good luck". They make me want to barf.
• I hate being called Ricky. I've hated it since I can remember (which isn't that long really). I don't mind Rich, Richard, Dick, or RT (which is what I was called by my friends in the military, at least for the first three years of it). I prefer RT, but I can't do anything about my family (the ones in the US). With them, I'll always be "Ricky".
• I hate being called Richie. Call me that and prepare to die.
• I hate holidays. Holidays exist to create profit for corporations (commercialism) and churches. Ever wonder why there's always an "Easter Mass" when Easter isn't a religious holiday? I don't work anymore, so I don't even get a day off!
• I hate religion. Religious leaders never tell us what we need to know, but what they think we need to know. And that's only when they're telling the truth.
• I hate politics. Even the best politicians are liars, for sale to the highest briber.
• I hate lawyers, attorneys, and other legal representatives. They take your money whether or not they're working on your behalf (instead of theirs).
• I hate lying to people, just to spare them their feelings or to boost their egos.
• I hate stupid people, myself included (sometimes).
• I hate news networks. They only report sensational stories, most of them bad.
• I hate road traffic, everywhere.
• I hate being locked into a conversation, whether in person or in chat, when I want to be done with it.
• I hate "Happy Days" (the television show) and anything associated with it. That's a story in itself.

There's more where that came from, but you're lucky I can't think of them right now.