Back To Normal

Do you hear what I hear?
It’s the most wonderful time of the year.
For a little while anyway.
Now that the primary in New Hampshire is almost here, it will be time to get back to normal.
Nothing makes us more aware of this return to normalcy than when we sit down at night after a long hard day at work to turn on the television to catch the local news and maybe a favorite show or two.
Since last summer we have been bombarded by the repetitious and tedious television ads either promoting one candidate or tearing down another.
Promises of bringing real change, making great things happen, starting over and making sure everyone pays their fair share have been drilled into our brains for months.
Countless millions of dollars have been spent by the candidates and Political Action Committees simply to get us to vote for their guy or gal on February 9th.
It has been impossible to turn on the TV for more than a few minutes without one of these ads playing.
After only a few weeks it became maddening, after a few months it was to the point of unsustainability where we knew that we could not take much more and then, when we are just inches from the breaking point, they will be gone.
There will be no more promises of who is better than whom, which person is more capable of leading our country and which person will cause the most harm.
We will finally get back to reality
Soon now, when I sit down after that hard day and turn on the television I can relax knowing that I am once again in familiar territory.
It will be nice to once again see Bernie & Phyls can give me a better deal than Jordan’s furniture and vice versa.
It’ll be nice to feel safe knowing once again that one car dealer can give me the lowest price of any other car dealer in the area and that the other car dealer who is supposed to be the one they are beating is also offering me deals that are better than their competitor claim.
It’ll be comforting once again, after all these many months of political ads making me false promises, that there will be room once again for the television stations to bring back ads hyping the latest gadget that will change my life forever and not only that it will only cost me $19.95 (plus shipping). As if that isn’t enough to make me feel good, I can get the second one absolutely free (plus shipping). Of course, I realize that four years from now both of these gadgets will more than likely be sitting in a drawer or closet somewhere collecting dust and really did nothing at all to change my life, but hey, it was nice to dream.
No longer will I see cutesy political commercials full of happy smiling faces telling me a certain candidate will be the best thing for America followed seconds late by a more ominous looking and sounding commercial telling me that the same candidate will be the worst thing for this country. I will be able to relax as I hear the commercials of drugs with funny names like “Thiselfixya” and “Duzsumthing” and how they can make my life better while at the same time presenting me with the side effects that might make me feel even worse than I before I started taking the drug; message and time efficiency that candidates should pay attention to in future campaigns.
There are lots of other ads that I will be glad to see back on once the campaign ads are gone. The ones about food products full of preservatives and additives that will be delicious are a one of my favorites.
Of course, all this will be short lived. In only a couple of months the airwaves will slowly fill up with more campaign ads as state races heat up and especially when the presidential nominees are picked. (Of course, living in New Hampshire you will stumble upon a Massachusetts station occasionally where they are only getting started.)
In the meantime, I will enjoy it while I can. Getting away from watching all these ads promising me a better life if I just vote for someone over another and focusing on what is really important to me.
Like that pocket hose thingamajig. I really think that could make my life so much better.

Brendan’s books are available for sale at his website… www.BrendanTSmith.com