Thank goodness Election Day is this coming Tuesday. I don’t think I can take another political advertisement on TV.
Local television and radio stations are enjoying the revenue from all the ads but the trend these days seems to be negative, damaging and just downright nasty. For me, it’s a turn off.
The Cartwright/Chrin, Casey/Barletta races are hotly contested and seem to be the nastiest.
I really miss the days of candidates talking about their platforms and how they want to make an area, state or country better.
Instead, the ads are getting more and more ugly. I don’t know when politicians switched from being positive to negative but I wish they would go back to some kind of civility.
Regardless of your political affiliation, you must get out and vote Tuesday. It’s important to exercise your right as an American citizen to vote.
If only we could pick up the phone and call in our choices, that would be great. It would be like “American Idol” or one of those dancing shows, but that technology is not available so unless you have filled out an absentee ballot, you have to hop in the car and drive to your voting location.
Voting has become a serious problem. The number of people heading to the polls has decreased over time. We need to reverse that and get people interested in government again.
Do you think there’s a correlation between people not getting out to vote and the amount of negative ads? Am I the only one turned off by this process?
Again, get out and vote. It’s a chance to see your neighbors and friends while waiting to cast your vote. Not only is it a great opportunity to see friends but, after you vote, you’ll feel like you’ve done something constructive and meaningful.
It’s a way to feel like an American without having to sing the National Anthem.
I hope we can see bigger numbers for this election.
Halloween is over
Halloween is gone and the geese all got fat.
We can put Halloween 2018 back in the closet for another year. It seems children and adults were out in force in record numbers this year. I wonder why.
Trunk or Treat seems to be a very popular way of celebrating Halloween. It’s is a great way for many people to congregate in one location and not have to worry about decorating their homes or having strangers on their property. The children like it because of the ease of getting Halloween candy. For many, it’s a win/win situation.
This year, Halloween seemed to be more popular than ever. There were big pockets of homes offering treats to Halloweeners. Yes I know “Halloweeners” is not a word, but it’s a word people use all the time around these parts. Trick or treaters is another term you often hear even thought “treaters” isn’t a word, either.
It seems the same homes decorate every year and the houses that are dark have always been dark.
I could remember one year when my parents didn’t buy any candy for Halloween. We had to turn off every single light in the house and we couldn’t move. It felt like we were hiding from enemy troops.
You know, if they don’t see lights, they will not come. Simple equation, don’t you think? Back in the day, you had hordes of kids, one right after another, singing for their treat. Yes, you used to have to earn your treat by singing a song or reciting a joke.
Today it’s “Happy Halloween” and the kid opens his or her bag for the treat. Kids have it easy today, that’s for sure.
It’s always fun to see what child will say “thank you” or what child will just walk away. Every so often, I’ll hear a parent say, “What do you say?” or “Say thank you” after receiving candy or popcorn and even money from a donor.
I had the pleasure of spending time with the Ambrosino family from West Pittston on their front lawn as Carmen passed out a few baskets filled with candy to those dressed up. It was a crazy stream of people filing past the house looking for a treat.
Some kids and parents dressed up from the traditional princess to the most unique outfits of Jacqueline Cefalo and her daughter Ellie as puppets. Both mother and daughter outfits were designed and put together by Jacqueline. The make-up was perfect. The costumes were genius. I don’t know if they came out of Jacqueline’s head or it was something from Pinterest. Either way, they were creatively fun.
Next up is my favorite holiday – Thanksgiving.
Time to put away the ghost and goblin decorations for the colored corn and cornstalks, ceramic turkeys and pilgrim decorations.
It won’t be long – turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce, here we come!
Quote of the week
“A lot of parents pack up their troubles and send them to summer camp.” – Raymond Duncan, American artist
Thought of the week
“Public office is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” – Boies Penrose, American senator
Bumper sticker
“Autumn, the year’s last, loveliest smile.” – William Cullen Bryant, American write
