13 ways to waste time on Election Day

[View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter]( November 3, 2020 As a wise Florida man (Tom Petty) once said, the waiting is the hardest part. Here are some activities to keep you busy until election results start to roll in. - Scroll through Twitter. A lot of people there have a lot of opinions, but no one actually knows anything. Getting your blood boiling is a nice way to pass the time. - Buy a sandwich, or better yet, make one yourself. It is, after all, National Sandwich Day. Vote in our [Recharge sandwich poll]( about whether a hot dog is a sandwich. - Go grocery shopping. It's prudent to have your pantry stocked in the event of civil unrest. Just kidding! But you're going to want to have a bottle of vodka in your freezer no matter what. Or Kentucky bourbon—it's more American. - Open a book. Stare at the page for a few minutes before turning on the TV. - Head for the mountains and live off the grid. Make no plans to return. - Engage in whatever petty fights you've been putting off. The cable company charged you twice, but you haven't gotten around to having them fix it? Now's the time to listen to that horrible music while you wait on hold. - What do people you went to high school with look like now? Check Facebook to find out. - Throw bread in an open body of water. - Might I interest you in [Wikipedia](? - Sit outside while you wait for Sun-In hair lightener to work its magic on your soon-to-be-golden locks. Try not to think about the absurdity that such a warm sunny day should fall on a Tuesday in November. Let the phrases "human-caused climate change" and "catastrophic environmental collapse" nestle themselves deep in your subconscious, to emerge only when a wildfire starts lapping at your front lawn. - Start drafting your submission for Shouts & Murmurs. You really have a shot this time. - Oh, yeah, maybe vote, if you haven't already. Today would be a good day to do that. - Have Mother Jones’ [2020 election blog]( open in another tab; we'll be feeding you all the updates you need to know. —Abigail Weinberg, with an assist from Ben Dreyfuss [Abortion Access Force]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Biden Got It Right: The 2020 Race Is About the Soul of the Nation]( Will American voters beat back the Trump virus? BY DAVID CORN [Trending] [What to do if you change your mind about voting by mail]( BY SUSIE ARMITAGE [We asked finance experts to explain Trump’s odd business methods in Scotland. They were mystified.]( BY RUSS CHOMA [Win or lose, Jaime Harrison hopes he's proven Democrats can succeed in the South]( BY KARA VOGHT [Flint voters make their way to the polls despite suppression robocalls]( BY AJ VICENS [Abortion Access Force]( [Food] [Special Feature]( [As the Election Nears, Trump’s EPA Chief Gives Georgia Cotton Farmers the Gift of a Nasty Pesticide]( It's just his latest in a string of swing-state events. BY TOM PHILPOTT [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( [Recharge] SOME GOOD NEWS, FOR ONCE [Today Is the Most Important National Sandwich Day of Our Lives]( They say that every year, but this year it’s true. As you squint at the election results, and the ticktock wears on, bear in mind the day’s dual significance. While gambling hundreds of years ago, John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, ordered a slab of animal between two slices of bread for ease of consumption. The origin story is murkier than the naming, but what’s clear is that the ensuing dustup over what constitutes a sandwich, who gets to adjudicate it, and what mechanisms exist for redressing grievances over authoritarian claims on “sandwich” status continues. In 2017, University of Oregon sandwich scholar Nicole Gonzalez stirred debate when she asked her students a seemingly simple question that generated heated disputes: Is a hot dog a sandwich? Merriam-Webster has weighed in and [votes yes](, but how do you? [Cast your ballot](. From 6 feet away, take your hoagie, hero, grinder, subway, sammy, or sammich and watch the presidential results roll in at [MotherJones.com](. Lettuce meat out some justice in this down-ballot race too, unless you’re chik’n. Have your vote counted on National Sandwich Day. Results will be shared in our daily newsletter. Sign up at [motherjones.com/newsletters](. —Daniel King Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755