Happy Valentine’s Day (or not?)
Ah . . . Valentine’s Day. It’s never been my favorite holiday, and fortunately I have a wife who agrees. I am a much bigger believer in random acts of romance and, even more simply, just being an attentive husband. I can’t help but feel that simple things like spending time with my wife because I want to spend time with her carry more weight than a glittery box of chocolates, but that’s just me.
ANYWAY, I’m guessing that you didn’t dial-in today for relational advice. Still, I want to add a little data to support the idea that maybe Valentine’s Day is not all that it’s cracked up to be:
First is the “Valentine’s Day Spike.” For some time, we have noticed that divorce inquiries on Avvo spike right around Valentine’s Day. So we decided to run the numbers: Over the last two years, on average, we have seen a 40% spike in the number of requests for divorce lawyers around Valentine’s Day, compared to the previous six months. It sounds crazy, but it clearly relates to lovers being disappointed by Valentine’s Day. In addition to the lawyers in the release, I chatted with Jerome Wisselman from Wisselman Harounian & Associates PC in Great Neck, NY about the phenomenon, and he explained it as follows: “It’s a delayed reaction to the holidays. Things really slow down during the holidays as people tend to delay big decisions – like a divorce – during the holidays. This leads to pent up demand, and after the holiday passes unhappily married people feel freer – perhaps less guilty — and take action.”
Next, an (ahem) interesting website made its debut today. It’s called “My Ex-Wife is Crazy” and you can find it at www.myexwifeiscrazy.com. In short it is a place for ex-husbands who are still working through some divorce issues to rant. We know the person behind the website (he’s based in Seattle), but he won’t let us disclose his identity. Maybe most importantly, he is using the Avvo API to help his users find the right lawyer, if they need one.
Finally, we get some crazy questions, but this recent one left us all a bit slack-jawed in the office:
Q: My husband and I got married on a whim last month in Vegas. It was a huge mistake. It turns out my husband tricked me into eating a powerful aphrodisiac called “Soup #5″ at an Asian restaurant shortly before we got married. I’m convinced this soup impaired my judgment. Is this grounds for annulment?
But, alas, all is not lost. You can always marry a lawyer (I did). If you think your perfect mate may be a lawyer, Avvo’s “How to Date a Lawyer” guide uncovers the best places to meet single lawyers and reveals eleven crucial tips for having a relationship with one. Enjoy!
Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!
February 14th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Conrad Saam and Mark_Britton, GJEL Attorneys. GJEL Attorneys said: Check out @Avvo's depressing but interesting #ValentinesDay post on divorce inquiries: http://bit.ly/giAoJ1 [...]
February 17th, 2011 at 9:57 pm
I think you’ve got the right attitude about V-day :)
March 8th, 2011 at 2:51 pm
I am a much bigger believer in random acts of romance and, even more simply, just being an attentive husband. I can’t help but feel that simple things like spending time with my wife because I want to spend time with her carry more weight than a glittery box of chocolates, but that’s just me.