Ken's Daily Musings

Posted 10 June, 2008
The mourning routine:

If you're like most people in America, you get up and turn on one of the television morning shows, such as "Good Morning America", and half listen as you shower and dress in preparation for your day. You listen to someone tell you about weather, and hopefully it's about the misfortune or devistation of someone far away, so that it is just one more thing you don't have to deal with today.

You hear "interest" stories that someone has determined will either mean something to you or will put a more pleasant slant on the reality of the "real" news stories that could only tend to "get you down" after constant replay and exposure. You may even take a quick glance at a morning newspaper, scanning the headlines for some interesting, if not important event. Then maybe it's a glass of juice or cup of coffee or hot chocolate as you continue to listen to the incesant babble of the hosts and newscasters, hoping to gleen some "tidbit" that you will be able to use later in mock conversation with those you will meet throughout the day to let them know that you are "up" on what's happening in the world, even though you don't really care.

If you have time, you may even have checked your email to see if there was anyone out there who knew you were even alive. Sorry, no personal messages, just the forwarding of a few jokes or some "chain" that promised all sorts of good things that will happen to you if you forward it to a dozen of your friends. Oh well, maybe a joke that you can use as an "ice breaker" if needed later in the day.

Once other morning chores have been accomplished, making a "to-do" list, making kids lunches, if you have them, getting them fed and out the door for school or other social activities, it's time to fire up the horseless chariot and join the other thousands of commuters, all doing the same thing.

Of course, the moment you leave the driveway of you tune in another set of fools on the car radio to listen to one of the morning "drive shows", which are usually hosted by either some sweet, cheerful female or some guy bent on convincing you that he has all the right answers to just about every subject going. Again you get more news highlights in the form of short "sound bites," most of them hardly worth the ten seconds of air time they get. To prevent you from getting too depressed from reality, these snippets are mixed with the latest gossip of the totally inane doings of Hollywood and sports celebrities or the latest tidbits from the court trials of mostly sick persons or just plain idots, who have now been turned into instant celebrities. Nothing too in depth, just a once-over on items that would only interest some mentally deranged groupie or a social activist from planet Zork.

The only difference from the early morning TV show being that now the soundbites are mixed with music and pilots in helicopters reporting on all manner of traffic jams, accidents, and construction projects that may be impeding your morning commute. If you are really lucky, you might get to hear a blow-by-blow of some wild police chase of someone who has just robbed a connivance store or is running from the scene of a fatal accident.

Why so many supposedly intellegent people willingly spend their early waking hours dedicated to this pursuit of trevia every morning is a wonder that may intrigue future generations for years to come.