Wheat City residents take a crack at romance

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This article was published 10/02/2020 (2245 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For yet another year the self-proclaimed love experts at Amazon have failed to name Brandon — or any city at all from friendly Manitoba — in its annual list of the most romantic cities in the country.

Every year, the online retailer tallies which cities are buying certain types of products such as sexual wellness items, romance novels, romantic comedies, jewelery and more to determine the list.

While some big cities like Toronto, Ottawa and Calgary made the list, smaller-sized cities like Campbell River, B.C., Bonnyville, Alta. and Pembroke, Ont. made the grade as well. 

The last time Manitoba was represented at all was in 2016, when Winnipeg made it to No. 16 on the list. Brandon was thrown a bit of a bone in 2018 when it failed to rank in the top 20 but was named the most romantic city in the province.

To prevent the affectionate trend-setters in No. 1-ranked Fort McMurray, Alta. from looking down on Brandon, the Sun went to Shoppers Mall in the afternoon to do some interviews and prove that love is alive in the Wheat City.

Shoppers were asked two questions: “What are their plans for Valentine’s Day?” and “What is the worst Valentine’s Day gift you’ve ever received?”

There was great news on the gift-giving front. Except for one person, no one could think of a bad Valentine’s Day gift given to them. People stopped, tilted their heads in contemplation and ultimately came up blank.

Even if Brandon lovers aren’t always hitting home runs when it comes to gifts, no one is dropping the ball.

However, the one negative instance was bad enough that it might downgrade what would be an A+ record down a couple of notches.

Amy Jiroux-Roi said that on one Valentine’s Day a couple of years ago, she went on a date with a guy she’d met through the online dating app Tinder shortly beforehand. Her “gift” was that when it came time to pay for the bill after dinner, he disappeared for half an hour and forced her to pay for everything, later claiming he’d been stuck in the bathroom.

Then they went to a movie. Once again, when it came time to pay for tickets and snacks, he disappeared for quite a while and claimed the same thing.

“It was really, really, really bad,” she said. “I think it was one of my worst (dates).”

This year, (she) is going home to Quebec with friends for Valentine’s Day to spend time with family because her current boyfriend has been deployed to Latvia with the Canadian Forces.

When it came time for other interviewees, it was essentially impossible to judge Brandonites’ date planning skills. A couple of people said they didn’t know exactly what was going to happen because their significant other had promised them a surprise.

“We’re going to be going out for supper,” said Brooke L., who didn’t want to give her last name. She didn’t know where her significant other is taking her. “It’s going to be a surprise for me.”

One older couple shrugged when asked and said they would just be having a nice meal. Another older couple said that at their age, they don’t really do anything special to celebrate the day.

Instead of any grand gestures or acts of desperation, there was a quiet confidence in the interviewees. Perhaps this is a sign that locals are confident enough in their love to not worry about a holiday that you don’t even get a day off for.

That, or the people in Brandon planning dates are flying by the seats of their pants and are hoping that their last-minute decisions will be enough to not disappoint their significant other. If that’s the case, there are plenty of local businesses ready and able to help save the day with gifts and meals.

» cslark@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @ColinSlark