Valentine's Day might be about love and romance but, like other special days, February 14 has been appropriated for all sorts of agendas. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) are using it to preach an anti-meat manifesto. 'Peta wants to turn clogged-up carnivores on to the wonders of 'Veggie Viagra',' a missive for the media says. 'A man who stuffs his belly full of dead pigs in the kitchen can end up boring in bed.' To protest against the meat industry and promote the supposed bedroom benefits of fruit and vegetables, two female volunteers in red lingerie and heels will offer a banana with the message 'get a rise out of vegetarianism' to passers-by at noon today outside Marks & Spencer at Wyndham Street and Queens Road Central. The vegan lovelies will have a 2-metre pile of phallic fruit to hand out. Other folks, though, are taking a decidedly anti-amorous attitude. At Toby Cooper's takeaway, The Chippy, romance boils down to giving all couples a pickled egg to share tomorrow. Likewise, his Globe pub is a Valentine-free zone. 'No flowers, nothing to share, no set dinner. Just beer, pies and sports,' he promises. Likewise, Duke's Deli all week has been playing music like Everybody Hurts, I'm Not in Love and Glad To See You Go by the Ramones, while promoting a singles-friendly pepperoni pizza and beer deal - and throwing in a bag of 'I'm not bitter' chocolate almonds to boot. One event we want to mention is the Cancer Fund's annual fund-raising gala tomorrow night at Swire Island East's ArtisTree space. The theme is eternity, and a 3.03-carat Forevermark round brilliant diamond will be auctioned. If you want to show some heart, contact 3667 6380 for details.
