Attention men! I have good news, and I have bad news.

The good news is Valentine’s Day is still a week away! This gives an appropriate amount of time to find out: is this a statutory holiday, or do we still have to go to work?

The answer to that question, while bad news, is not the actual bad news. The actual bad news is, sometime in the last couple of years, Valentine’s Day became ­Valentine’s Week. It’s now a weeklong pseudo-holiday!

Of course, by pseudo-holiday, I mean a totally real and not made-up holiday that I am 100% on board with and plan to celebrate with all my heart now that my wife is in the room.

A 2023 cross-Canada survey found that British Columbians spend an average of $129.43 on Valentine’s Day. This is the highest amount in the country, followed by Quebec at $115.20 (Prince Edward Islanders spend the least: a used paperback copy of Anne of Green Gables).

The survey also asked Canadians, “Do you ­consider Valentine’s Day to be a real holiday?” 30.1% of ­respondents said YES, and 69.9% refused to answer the question in case somebody else was listening from the hallway.

Unfortunately, Saturday marked the beginning of Valentine’s Week. Sunday is officially known as — I swear I am not making this up —........

© Times Colonist