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You don't even have to bother browsing at the hardware, the outdoor emporium or the hobby shop.

Instead, put on your nicest outfit, dab on a bit of scent and give him the nicest gift of all: Yourself.

An informal poll of Sanilac males suggests that the way to their hearts really isn't through their stomachs, the snowmobile shed or the golf course.

All they want is you.

"If I could have anything at all on Valentine's Day, it would be to just spend time with my Valentine - my wife," said Father Rick Schark of Trinity Episcopal Church, Lexington.

"I'd like a quiet, intimate evening - dinner out or dinner in wouldn't matter," he said. "That's kind of hard to wrap, but it would be a nice gift."

Croswell Chiropractor Dr. Sheldon Strablow agrees.

"I've been married 11 years after being single for a long time and it's the little things I never noticed before that get to be real important - like clean sheets and fabric softener," he said.

"Guys get used to a certain level. But women raise that one level up. My wife Jackie is the accent in my life that really makes it worthwhile," Strablow said.

Tim Ritchey at Ben's Supercenter in Brown City spends all day around new tools, and that's not what he wants to see when he goes home.

"The Valentine I want most is my wife, that's for sure," Ritchey said. "Without her, where would I be?"

Ritchey's co-worker Vince Shephard, laments, "I'd just like a sweetheart. I don't even have one."

Carl Germain at Graff Motors in Sandusky said that a steak or prime rib dinner is nice for Valentine's Day as long as his spouse is across the table.

Sanilac Undersheriff Gary Biniecki said he and wife Debra may go to the Thomas Edison Inn in Fort Gratiot and perhaps spend some time watching the St. Clair River.

"It's a time to get away alone and try to reconnect," he said.

For that matter, the gift of togetherness is what all sweethearts, brides and wives really want too - although flowers, chocolate and a night out are nice perks.