cheerily

"Have you got a bad back?" the receptionist asked cheerily.

The director of the board of elections, Sheila Ollis, picked up the phone cheerily, even though Hurricane Helene wiped out 14 out of 19 polling stations and upended much of her careful planning.

"Yep, I probably should have said that the first time," Haley replies with a politician's hollow grin before cheerily adding, "Live from New York, it's Saturday night!"

In the dimly lit basement dining room, wood paneling covered the walls, and paper place mats cheerily proclaimed, “We’re glad you’re here!”

“I’m not just the C.D.C. director, I’m also a mom,” she said cheerily, noting on live television that her daughters, 9 and 11, had already received the latest Covid and flu shots.