Esoteric Bowl

I stopped by Honolulu Hale to have a look at how the absentee voting was going. I was surprised to see so many people standing in line during the afternoon in the middle of the week. Still, with all the people, the line moved with a bank-line-pace and everyone patiently waited their turn.

As I watched everyone standing in line, it got me to thinking about the following list of what to bring along to the polls:

* Picture ID
* Comfortable Shoes
* Compact Disk Player or iPod
* Bottled Water
* A Light Snack
* Something to Read
* An Idea of Who and What is on the Ballot
* A Friend

Throughout the country in state after state, reports show that there has been a tremendous increase in voter registration. Although it’s difficult to say how many people will actually go to the polls and vote, all signs point to a record turnout.

Due to the large numbers expected at the polls, there’s been a slight change in the election plans to lessen the waiting time. Those planning to vote for John Kerry are being asked to go to the polls on Tuesday, November 2nd, while those planning to vote for George Bush are being asked to go to the polls on November 3rd.

Friday, October 22: President Bush signed what is being called “the most sweeping rewrite of corporate tax law in nearly two decades”, providing $136 billion in new tax breaks on businesses, oil and gas producers, engineering, construction, architectural firms, tobacco farmers, NASCAR race track owners, and other groups. Like his previous tax cuts, Bush claims these cuts will help the economy. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called the package, “a classic example of the special interests prevailing over the people’s interests.”

Friday, October 22: The Dow Jones industrial average closed at its low for the year as world oil prices continued to rise. In the past year, the cost of oil has increased more than 75 percent. With the price of home heating oil increasing, the weather turning colder, and with the flu vaccine shortage, it appears that we are in for a grim winter.

Saturday, October 23: The bodies of 49 Iraqi army recruits were found massacred. Iraqi Police said the bodies of the recruits were discovered near the village of Mandali, south of Baquba. Reports are that the recruits were killed in an execution style slaying.

Saturday, October 23: Ed Seitz, assistant regional security officer at the US embassy in Baghdad, is killed. Seitz is believed to be the first US diplomat killed during the Iraq war.

Sunday, October 24: It is reported that 380 tons of powerful conventional explosives are missing from one of Iraq’s most sensitive former military installations. United Nations weapons inspectors had monitored the site for many years, but the White House confirms that the explosives vanished sometime after the invasion last year. The White House claims that national security advisor Condoleezza Rice was informed of the missing explosives within the past month, and that President Bush learned of it only ten days ago.

Monday, October 25: Pentagon and congressional officials said Monday that the Bush administration intends to seek about $70 billion in emergency funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan early next year, pushing total war costs close to $225 billion.

Monday, October 25: President George Bush addressed a hand-picked crowd in Davenport, Iowa, assuring them that, “we are turning the corner.” Bush refused to answer reporters questions about the 380 tons of missing explosives in Iraq.

Monday, October 25: In an interview on the Today Show, Vice President Dick Cheney told correspondent Jamie Gangel, “On the big issues, I think we got it right.”

It’s Monday, and I don’t know what to write about today. I could write about how the humidity in the islands has been terrible lately, and that I take a shower to cool off only to feel sticky an hour later. I suppose I could stretch that into a few paragraphs, but who wants to read about the dire effects of humidity?

Well then, I could write about the World Series. After all, the Red Sox are two games away from winning their first championship since 1918. But then again, if you are interested in such things then chances are you probably already know that. If I were to write about the series, I would certainly mention how Fenway Park is perhaps the most beautiful stadium there is.

I could write about Bob. If you have a blog and receive comments on your site, then surely you know who Bob is. I get a lot of visits from Bob. Bob never fails to leave several comments with links to drug companies, insurance companies, and porn sites. Because of Bob, it has become a daily ritual of mine to spend time deleting his comments. Needless to say, I don’t like Bob very much.

Perhaps I should write about the election and that it’s only few days away and how it’s the most important election of our lifetime. But I’m sure that you’ve heard something about that already.

I could share my thoughts about Crimes Against Nature, Robert Kennedy’s new book that I just completed reading. But I’m no good at book reviews. And besides, who wants to hear how the Bush administration hasunleashed corporate America to pollute the land, water, and air, all in the name of profits? Still, it is an enlightening read.

I could write about my never ending quest for cool t-shirt sites, and how Busted Tees not only makes me laugh with their fun designs, but their descriptions tickle my funny bone.

Ah well. I suppose when it comes right down to it, there really isn’t much to write about today. Dam Monday’s and dam writer’s block!

We sat upon tattered futons
with mismatched dishes on our table;
Using mended utensils
and faded bowls,
we spoke fondly of the past.

I watched your delicate hands
as you poured the last of the green tea;
We sipped slowly and savored,
cherishing what remains of this fallow time.

There is an overpass near my home that takes drivers from east O’ahu towards downtown Honolulu. Underneath that overpass is a short tunnel which leads to a small community of homes and to the back entrance of the University campus. Students comprise most of the flow in and out of the tunnel, either by car, bike, moped, skateboard, scooter, or on foot.

Not only is the tunnel a convenient shortcut, but it is also a favorite site for graffiti artists. The graffiti never lasts for more than a day or two, as there is someone in the neighborhood who paints over it. All along the tunnel there are patches of blue and beige paint where graffiti has been. But like the graffiti that it has replaced, the blue and beige patches don’t last very long without being painted over with more graffiti.

The graffiti is never what one might consider high quality graffiti. I don’t know if this is due to lack of talent, a lack of spray paint, or the knowing that the life expectancy of the graffiti is rather short. The blue and beige paint is applied in similar fashion, drab house paint slapped on with a roller with little thought given to aesthetics.

I never see the graffiti artists, nor do I ever see the person with the blue and beige paint. It is a mysterious dance of back and forth, a tug-o-war where the weapons are paint cans and a roller.

I was sitting in the theater waiting for the movie to start. After the animated candy and popcorn box sang their snack-bar tune, and following the preview for the coming attractions, the movie finally began.

I settled in my seat and gave the film my full attention. Somewhere around forty seconds in, it dawned on me that what I was watching on the screen wasn’t the movie at all. Instead, it was a slick advertisement for American Express. In an odd sort of way, I felt like I had been sucker-punched. I had let my guard down from all advertisements, and they managed to jab one in when I was most vulnerable.

I read somewhere that we in the modern world see an average of 3,000 ads per day. The number sounds rather large and overwhelming, but I suppose many of the ads are so subtle that we give them very little attention, at least consciously.

Early on in life, each of us is forced to develop somewhat of a callus towards advertising or we will be at the mercy of advertising. Anyone that has seen a child throwing a tantrum in the store because he can’t have Froot Loops, knows how powerful advertising can be and how susceptible we are. The callus we develop towards advertising is forever in need of hardening because marketers are continually finding new ways to have their ads seen, heard, and read.

Despite my own callus towards advertising, some ads stick in my memory and there are times when I succumb to their suggestive power. Pizza commercials are a good example of that. Sometimes when I fight off the allure of a pizza commercial, it takes about three days before the residue of temptation is completely gone.