A lush bundle of ruby red roses sits invitingly inside a hand-made vase on the middle of a table that has been carefully lined with red, pink and white heart-shaped balloons.

A man walks into the restaurant, guiding his blindfolded date towards the table and sits her down, quickly revealing what he has planned for the night with a kiss and a box of chocolates, just before the waitress reaches the table to take their order.

&It was so nice, but it sucked,& said Stacey Ames, who has been serving for four years at Chevys.

Ames& tainted view of Valentine&s Day proliferated through her many years of experience at the other end of the date on the holiday that expects men to prove their love and affection for their girlfriend, fiance or wife.

She&s not alone.

Servers are in the forgotten group on Valentine&s Day, and it never fails that every year I end up working.

I usually pick up a double shift and work all day for two reasons.

One, I scorn the holiday that puts so much pressure on couples to be romantic when every day should be like that if you&re in a relationship.

Two, I&m always single at the most inconvenient times.

Not to mention I need the quick cash, which could be counted as a third reason, but isn&t anything new to me.

It&s incredibly annoying when everyone around me is showered with balloons and candy hearts, roses, those stuffed bears holding boxes of chocolate between their paws and jewelry 8211; all while eating at a restaurant where they know the less fortunate people like myself are watching and trying to get through their day without having an emotional breakdown.

Luckily, there&s never enough time during the shift to stop and think about how lonely and pathetic my life is, while working in a restaurant on Valentine&s Day.

It&s inevitably busy all day.

&Every year we&re busy,& said Harry Fong, manager at TGI Friday&s in Sacramento.

Fong said he expects, the holiday will bring the same hectic business this year.

&We&re already taking reservations,& said Sargon Badal, who serves at the Blue Gecko in Sacramento.

More people means more money, but it also means more problems and disappointments for those of us wearing an apron instead of a ring.

Benny Walker, who has been waiting tables for 13 years, said he finds it extremely irritating when couples try to get their &alone-time& in a public place.

&I hate walking up to a table knowing they don&t want you there,& Walker said.

Of course, anyone can see the irony in coming to a restaurant with expectations of being left alone to swoon over each other.

This mentality, that is so characteristic of the Valentine&s crowd, makes servers& jobs more difficult and frustrating than they need to be on a day that has already brought their self-esteem to record lows.

In addition to being difficult to serve, couples are always very impatient.

&They always want everything perfect,& Ames said.

And what about all of that public display of affection, commonly known as PDA?

Please save it for the return home, where no one has to watch you two embarrass yourselves.

Every year, restaurants make for one of the most popular make-out spots on Valentine&s Day, next to a patch of grass underneath the high school bleachers.

&They&re always lovey-dovey and holding hands,& Sargon said. &It&s hard to interrupt people.&

I guess it doesn&t help when the restaurant advertises a Valentines Day special: &Valentines Dinner for two with candle light, red roses and romance over-looking the river.&

Nichele Deguznan, a waitress of four years, said she witnessed a man proposing to his girlfriend at Chevys, of all places.

&We were all laughing,& Deguznan said.

However, she&s one of the few servers who has been able to find some humor in Valentine&s Day.

For the most part, the holiday brings back dismal memories for servers, which can be summed-up in just three words.

&It is hell,& Sargon said.

Forget about getting a good tip to at least justify why you are working all day.

Sargon said the holiday brings out young couples who don&t have a lot of money.

&Couples are usually bad tippers since they have already spent so much money all day,& said Tony Ferraro, who has been serving people for five years.

&I&ve had nights when she&s not happy, he&s not happy,& Ferraro said.

That&s funny.

Maybe servers aren&t the only ones who could do without Valentine&s Day.

A lush bundle of ruby red roses sits invitingly inside a hand-made vase on the middle of a table that has been carefully lined with red, pink and white heart-shaped balloons.

A man walks into the restaurant, guiding his blindfolded date towards the table and sits her down, quickly revealing what he has planned for the night with a kiss and a box of chocolates, just before the waitress reaches the table to take their order.

&It was so nice, but it sucked,& said Stacey Ames, who has been serving for four years at Chevys.

Ames& tainted view of Valentine&s Day proliferated through her many years of experience at the other end of the date on the holiday that expects men to prove their love and affection for their girlfriend, fiance or wife.

She&s not alone.

Servers are in the forgotten group on Valentine&s Day, and it never fails that every year I end up working.

I usually pick up a double shift and work all day for two reasons.

One, I scorn the holiday that puts so much pressure on couples to be romantic when every day should be like that if you&re in a relationship.

Two, I&m always single at the most inconvenient times.

Not to mention I need the quick cash, which could be counted as a third reason, but isn&t anything new to me.

It&s incredibly annoying when everyone around me is showered with balloons and candy hearts, roses, those stuffed bears holding boxes of chocolate between their paws and jewelry 8211; all while eating at a restaurant where they know the less fortunate people like myself are watching and trying to get through their day without having an emotional breakdown.

Luckily, there&s never enough time during the shift to stop and think about how lonely and pathetic my life is, while working in a restaurant on Valentine&s Day.

It&s inevitably busy all day.

&Every year we&re busy,& said Harry Fong, manager at TGI Friday&s in Sacramento.

Fong said he expects, the holiday will bring the same hectic business this year.

&We&re already taking reservations,& said Sargon Badal, who serves at the Blue Gecko in Sacramento.

More people means more money, but it also means more problems and disappointments for those of us wearing an apron instead of a ring.

Benny Walker, who has been waiting tables for 13 years, said he finds it extremely irritating when couples try to get their &alone-time& in a public place.

&I hate walking up to a table knowing they don&t want you there,& Walker said.

Of course, anyone can see the irony in coming to a restaurant with expectations of being left alone to swoon over each other.

This mentality, that is so characteristic of the Valentine&s crowd, makes servers& jobs more difficult and frustrating than they need to be on a day that has already brought their self-esteem to record lows.

In addition to being difficult to serve, couples are always very impatient.

&They always want everything perfect,& Ames said.

And what about all of that public display of affection, commonly known as PDA?

Please save it for the return home, where no one has to watch you two embarrass yourselves.

Every year, restaurants make for one of the most popular make-out spots on Valentine&s Day, next to a patch of grass underneath the high school bleachers.

&They&re always lovey-dovey and holding hands,& Sargon said. &It&s hard to interrupt people.&

I guess it doesn&t help when the restaurant advertises a Valentines Day special: &Valentines Dinner for two with candle light, red roses and romance over-looking the river.&

Nichele Deguznan, a waitress of four years, said she witnessed a man proposing to his girlfriend at Chevys, of all places.

&We were all laughing,& Deguznan said.

However, she&s one of the few servers who has been able to find some humor in Valentine&s Day.

For the most part, the holiday brings back dismal memories for servers, which can be summed-up in just three words.

&It is hell,& Sargon said.

Forget about getting a good tip to at least justify why you are working all day.

Sargon said the holiday brings out young couples who don&t have a lot of money.

&Couples are usually bad tippers since they have already spent so much money all day,& said Tony Ferraro, who has been serving people for five years.

&I&ve had nights when she&s not happy, he&s not happy,& Ferraro said.

That&s funny.

Maybe servers aren&t the only ones who could do without Valentine&s Day.