Dogg-Style Day

Here we are again......Screw Like Pooches Day, or as known better since its reboot - Valentine's Day.

When I hear Duran Duran's Hungry Like the Wolf, I'm reminded of Valentine's Day. It all started with K-9s.

Prior to Christianity's overtaking of Rome, succeeding St. Valentino as the inspiration for this often misconstrued, expensive holiday - which if it were any kind of holiday, if it landed on a weekday, working people would get the day off - - Rome celebrated love through the Parentalia and Feralia Festivals of Purification. February 14th was the second day of this multi-facated event. It was dubbed Lupercalia, supposedly dedicated to Juno-Lupa, the She-Wolf. Priests called Luperci would congregate at the Cave of Lupercal to sacrifice dogs, wolves in other areas, and goats, then smeared the baptised blood across the foreheads of children of nobility. I'm just going over the relevant detailse, there's much more to this pagan"s party.

In Northern Europe, wolves were sacrificed - their intestines used by males to swipe the blood across their desired female's forhead. I'd written a piece on that particular sect many years ago. Sadly, I've lost all materials related to it. And it dawned on me just today - the coincidence(?) - of The Wolfman being released on Valentine's weekend. I haven't stopped laughing.