We live in such a cynical world today, especially around election time when everyone is pointing out the tiniest flaws in their foes.

Well, some of us have had it up to here (palm faced down, reaching as far as I can above my head).

Before we go into Super Tuesday, Cynic Tuesday, Cut Throat Election Day, or whatever people are calling it these days, let’s take time to appreciate an artist who would’ve been 70 years old this week and seemed to see the best in the world — Bob Ross.

You know who I’m talking about when I say his name, don’t you? Bob Ross — painter and happy man, in general. If you’ve never heard of him, you just haven’t lived quite yet.

Those of you who are still following me, understand what I mean when I say I wish more people saw the world like Bob Ross seemed to see it. He saw a world of “happy little trees” and mistakes were instead “happy accidents” that could be covered up with a little snow or a tree in the distance.

He talked about inanimate things so eloquently like they were living breathing things — asking sometimes, “Where is this snow going to live?” or painting trees that would “live a little closer to us, that are big and strong.”

He was a master of color. He created swatches not even Crayola could come up with. Maybe a little titanium white here, lizard crimson there.

Ross seemed to be a classic guy. He didn’t worry about dirty brushes. If you wanted to know when he’d be in your town for an art show, you wrote him a card and he wrote you one back.

It would be nice, for once, if we saw someone on TV like Ross again, rather than someone nit-picking, fact checking, or ignoring a politician’s every word. I’m sure you can still find a person like this on PBS, somewhere.

But Ross should be appreciated. A lot of people I know have memories of seeing Ross on TV when they were younger. I mention the name and someone connects it to “happy trees.”

That’s the way it should be, right?

But it isn’t. Some of the cynical stuff is entertaining, don’t get me wrong. But things like political hate-ads get a little annoying. Debates where candidates constantly try to see who can shout louder over the other are frustrating.

I’m not saying I’m not a cynic at times, I absolutely admit to it. This week — before all the hoopla coming up next week — we could take some time to remember that guy with a brown Afro we saw painting happy things on blank canvases.

Alex McNamee is a senior journalism major. He can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].