Things You Can Do To Avoid Coverage Of That Guy

Seriously.  I've read like a million of these. 

 Words cannot begin to describe how much I detest campaign coverage, particularly of this year’s Republican candidate. The Douche Who Shall Not Be Named is plastered on the TV screen constantly and invades my eaholes seemingly every minute of every day.  We thankfully only have 50 or so more days to go until no one takes his calls anymore. While my wife is a news junkie, I must avoid such things to preserve my sanity and keep my anxiety from exploding all over the living room walls.

Here’s what I’ve been doing.  Also, here are a few things you can do while you avoid the din of modern discourse.

Reading.  I’d like to say I’ve been reading all the time, but it’s just not true. But I have read two books by Peter Clines, which I enjoyed and I reread the completely different author Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One again. I  finished The Passage trilogy by Justin Cronin, and sampled a few offerings by John Scalzi, David Wong and Hugh Howey. For the most part, I’ve we been reading comics on my Kindle.  I’m a noob, so I’m still sorting through seventy years of superheroes and I’m finding out all the good stuff I’ve missed out on.

Never in a billion years would I thought I would enjoy Captain America.  But I do.  The “boy scout” heroes always appeal to me.  I read Iron Fist, Hulk, Wolverine, Daredevil, X-Men, Avengers, Deadpool, Batman, Justice League and a few Spider-Man titles.  I am learning so much about plot construction that I plan to rip off in the future.  I also read Y:The Last Man, which was incredible.  It needs to be a show, not a movie. There are countless stories to sift through, and I’m glad I have comic nerd friends with endless lists of recommendations.

TV.  Of course I watch TV.  I won’t list every show I watch, (although Mr. Robot lives up to the hype).  The popular belief now is that there are too many shows out there, which is what I call a non-problem. The more shows, the better chance of good shows that are worth a damn.

Internet.  Well, it’s there. I don’t get into videos and clips and all of that shit, but I do find myself scrolling through Wikipedia for a trivia fix on a regular basis.

There’s outside.  I live in such a pretty place, but I also have a job where I am out of the house half the day, driving through the countryside half of that time.  I love it, especially this time of year, but I don’t feel as guilty letting some pretty days slip away.  My cup runneth over with natural beauty, and that is another non-problem.

Here’s some things you can do, (and I should follow suit):

If you miss actual news, you can scan the internet in a few short minutes to find legitimate sites for news organizations that report actual news and have some semblance of actual journalism.  (Start with Europe.)  You could also read historical biographies or watch appropriate documentaries.  You’re still somewhat in touch, but no one is screaming in your face.

Conversation with a fellow human being.  This is is tough for me, but that’s no excuse.  Talk about anything other than politics or religion.  Those used to be the two subjects withheld from daily conversation, out of a sign of respect for the other person.  There are a billlion things out there to talk about.  Football. Gardening.  Swedish Fish Oreos and why that’s a thing.

Here’s one:  Turn off the electronics and  just watch your pets run around. It’s quite silly how entertaining that can be.

Create something.  Honestly, I never believe it when people say they have no time. We all have time, we just use it for other things.  Instead of being passive, we can be active.  Build, write, play music and record, draw, paint...whatever.  No it's not for money or for public view.  It might be just for you, but I will invoke one of my favorite motivational phrases: “What the hell else are you doing?”

Almost anything is a better alternative to...him.  We are under no obligation to watch all of this stupid coverage.  It doesn’t make me any less of a citizen or an adult or an intellectual person to avoid the minutiae.  I don’t need to formulate an opinion on everything that ever happens, and there aren’t two sides to every story.  Some stories have one side only, and others have dozens of complicated sides that won’t be solved in two or three lifetimes.

In my adulthood,I’ve had a difficult time sorting out the things with which I need to be concerned. Anxiety does that to you. I think our language fails us when it comes to the word “care”.  We need to expand the definition of things that are truly meaningful to us and things that we care about...in a more abstract sense.  I care about my family my friends and my fellow man, but it’s a different kind of care for who is running what public office for the next term. My empathy has a far reach, but I don’t need it measured and judged.Yeah, so it will be over soon.

Until then, I will continue to peruse the works of Ed Brubaker. Look him up.