It's February 1st, which means we're only two weeks away from Valentine's Day—the perfect day of the year to Facebook stalk former flames, or just load up on carbs and reflect on all the horrible dating choices you've made in your life. After reading some particularly inspiring V-Day publicity press releases, we started thinking about the unfortunate things that have befallen us on Valentine's Days past. So let's share in the misery together: if you have a terrible Valentine's Day story, send it to tips@gothamist.com before Feb. 10, and we'll pool all our miserable experiences into a collage of misunderstandings, awkwardness and rejection. Because Cupid Valentino was wrong when he said everyday is the 14th—love truly does hurt that much more on holidays carefully constructed by greeting card companies.
Dear Readers: Send Us Your Worst Valentine's Day Stories!
What Are Your Thanksgiving Traditions? The NYPL Wants To Know
Earlier this week, we traveled backwards through time to check out the New York Public Library's fabulous collection of the Thanksgiving menus of yesteryear. Today, the NYPL is trying to archive the Thanksgiving menus that your great great grandchildren will look upon fondly. The Library is looking for photographs, stories, videos and audio clips of different Thanksgiving traditions, old and new alike, and they need your help.
Guiding Light Goes Out
Say goodbye to your stories... well, the story of Josh and Reva at least. Guiding Light is going off the air after 72 years and many story lines only a soap opera could embrace (cloning! time travel!). The Daily News gives the farewell a double article treatment; one focusing on GL's late writer (the "mother of stories") Irna Phillips, and the other on the show's final days as it leaves the airwaves. They note that audiences may not have time for hour-long shows anymore, and As the World Turns may be the next victim of our busy schedules. As for The Light, it will officially go out after airing its final episode this Friday at 10 a.m., and surely Mayor Bloomberg will even shed a tear. Did you know that it's been filming in New York City since 1949? Pat Kiernan has a farewell video.
Waiters' Horror Stories Range from Spit to Sex
A waiter who turned his service industry lemons into publishing lemonade with his blog Waiter Rant has unmasked himself for the Post today, just in time for the release of his tell-all book. After years of anonymous venting about his miserable experiences serving swells at an unspecified restaurant in “the city's affluent suburbs,” Steve Dublanica has outed himself as the man who “prefers more elegant methods of revenge" than spitting in diners’ food – though he assures the Post this does happen often enough.

