y friend Neil at the Warner bookstore called recently. ''Bill Bradley is going to be here Wednesday at 1:30. I thought you'd like to know.''
He was right. I did want to know. This has been a curious presidential primary and, with the clock ticking toward Feb. 1, I realized I needed to get out more and see the candidates up close and off the television screen.
I feel a bit sorry for the candidates. They have no privacy. They have been getting lots of exposure, which is good. But they end up repeating themselves often and they start to sound scripted, which is not so good. The meeting at the bookstore sounded like an opportunity to see Bradley interact with a relatively small crowd in an informal setting.
In the rear of the store there is a gallery and meeting room where Bradley would meet with the voters. I moved in and staked out a corner from which I would be able to watch the show.
Bradley did a couple of things right, even before he showed up. The room was on the small side with a low ceiling. One of the cardinal rules of campaigning is never book a room that is too big - it looks like the candidate cannot draw a crowd.
The other thing Bradley did right was show up late. It's like going to a party; you don't want to be early, and being on time is almost as bad. Be a little late, enough so the anticipation can build. Bradley cut it close. The room was packed and people were getting restless. A man next to me said to his companion, ''Let's go see him at the Town Hall instead,'' and they left. Town Hall? Bradley, it turned out, would be going across the street to the hall after his appearance at the bookstore.
Finally, the press arrived -- lots of them with cameras, lights and note pads. I got evicted from my prime viewing spot. The crowd was moved back to make room for the press. It's a good thing Bradley is tall, we agreed. We'd still be able to see him.
Then Bradley appeared, and, suddenly, none of the inconvenience mattered. It was great to see him. He was quiet and at ease with the crowd, moving slowly among the people, shaking hands, stopping to talk and sign autographs. I shook his hand. Neat.
I settled in for a Bradley talk and some Q. and A. The talk was very little, a quick thanks for showing up and a two-minute rundown of some of the issues he is campaigning on -- health care, campaign finance reform, and the environment. Then he invited us all to join him across the street and it was over.
One of my sisters had come to visit me two days earlier and had commented on ''the lovely town we drove through,'' meaning Warner. She is right. It is the perfect New England town. A wide tree-lined main street, nice old houses, nice people and a nice Town Hall.
But something wasn't right at the hall. The place was pretty well filled before the bookstore event was over. Some of us stood in the doorway, unable to get closer. The lights, cameras and sound equipment were extraordinary. I've never seen the press with such sophisticated and bulky stuff. And guests were being asked to sign releases as they went in, agreeing to be filmed and shown publicly.
I was still wondering about the releases when Bradley arrived, swept into the room by a contingent of supporters. Partway through the lengthy introductions a man in a suit who saw me taking notes tapped me on the shoulder and asked if I was with the press. I answered, and he told me I would have to leave; the press was not invited to this function and it would be unfair to the other reporters if I were allowed to stay.
Blink! The cartoon light bulb went on over my head. It wasn't a ''town meeting'' with the candidate, it was a TV commercial shoot. Those weren't press cameras, they were Hollywood quality and, I learned later, director Sidney Pollack was on hand. Warner was a set, as was the Town Hall, and we were all props. Oh, well. I left.
The entire state has become a set for this year's campaign, and we're all props. George Bush has made the most of this with his recent television ads, filmed in such places as the Bedford Town Hall and West High School in Manchester. Al Gore, John McCain and Steve Forbes have more generic ads. If we aren't being used for commercials, we are being used with an eye toward a spot on the evening news, a spot with a nice New Hampshire feel to it.
Perhaps the best way to watch this campaign is on television during the news and the debates. The best way to learn about the candidates is to read a good newspaper or two. And if you want to get the candidates' own words, visit their Web sites.
Here are some relevant Web sites, all preceded by the usual www.
Al Gore - algore2000.com; Bill Bradley - billbradley.com; George W. Bush - georgewbush.com; John McCain - mccain2000.com; Steve Forbes - forbes2000.com; Gary Bauer - bauer2K.com; Orrin Hatch - OrrinHatch.org; and Alan Keyes - keyes2000.org. And if you just cannot get enough, try Pat Buchanan at gopatgo2000.com; and The Donald at donaldjtrump2000.org.
Hank Nichols is assistant professor of journalism and writing at New England College. He lives in Sutton.
