The atmosphere is certainly getting spooky. Strange characters are on the loose. Frightening predictions of doom are everywhere. The airways are filled with warnings that evil incarnate is at the door. Yes, it's almost Election Day. But before we get there, we're doing Halloween - also very creepy but much more fun. In our edition this week we acknowledge both of these auspicious days.
Attendant to the main spooky day, features editor Linda Falkenstein visits the residents of two Madison cemeteries in "Where the Bodies Are Buried," our cover story. In some Latin American countries it is the custom for families to gather at the cemetery for picnics with their departed ancestors (Día de los Muertos). Falkenstein just drops in for tea with some departed Madisonians and relates their stories. There's also some interesting information on reading a headstone.
In the past few issues we've given you race breakdowns for next Tuesday's elections, so as a warm-up to the election immersion, editor Dean Robbins, our resident TV critic, goes above and beyond his duty to the medium by offering his assessment of the avalanche of ads we've all become so familiar with in the last month or two. He calls it entertainment.
TheDailyPage.com provides our digital involvement in both Halloween and Election Day. The official, sanctioned, sorta-boring All Hallows Eve celebration, Freakfest on State Street, occurs on Saturday night. TDP will give you a review of the music headliners, OK Go, on Sunday, along with a photo gallery of costumed revelers.
On Tuesday, the Isthmus election-coverage machine rumbles to life. Interns and staffers will be live blogging on the site, throwing their two or more cents' worth into the mix from on campus and election parties. And you, motivated voter, are invited to join in on the commentary. If we just keep our heads, we should get through this weekend all right.
