Thursday Thirteen #136

THIRTEEN POPULAR MOVIES BASED ON BOOKS

In honor of The Help, which moved from the page to the silver screen today, I'm listing the 13 most successful movies adapted from books.

1. Gone with the Wind. 1939. (When adjusted for inflation, it's still the top-grossing movie of all time.)

2. The Ten Commandments. 1956.

3. Jaws. 1975.

4. Doctor Zhivago. 1965.

5. The Exorcist. 1973.

6. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. 1937.

7. Jurassic Park. 1993.

8. The Graduate. 1967.

9. The Godfather. 1972.

10. Mary Poppins. 1964.

11. Thunderball. 1965.

12. The Jungle Book. 1967

13. Sleeping Beauty. 1959.

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August Happiness Challenge -- Day 10

A statue dedicated to Ron Santo. I grew up on Ronnie. He was the Cubs' third basemen throughout my girlhood and then became the endearingly unpolished voice of the team on WGN radio. He has made a number of appearances on this blog because it's felt like he's always been a part of my life.

I was very sad when he lost his twin battles with diabetes and cancer last autumn, but today I'm happy because the Cubs unveiled a statue of him in front of the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field, and because fans turned out in great numbers to applaud it's dedication. Baseball great, philanthropist and broadcaster, our "Perfect 10" deserves no less.

Even better, the CUBS WON TONIGHT!

Well done, good and faithful servant

This is the Chaplain's Medal for Heroism, introduced during WWII to honor men of the cloth who performed with great courage on the battlefield. I am bestowing it posthumously on my uncle's cat, Bennie, who died yesterday.

I mean no disrespect by this post. Quite the opposite. For my uncle loved Bennie enormously and she was the one bright spot toward the end of his life. He suffered from Parkinson's Disease, no doubt exacerbated by his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam, so I consider him a war casualty, even if the government doesn't.

And Bennie, ballsy Bennie who feared nothing, stayed by his side no matter what. He briefly had a puppy, but that little guy was frightened by his twitches and spasms and had to go live with his stepdaughter. How that hurt and embarrassed my uncle! But Bennie had the bearing that comes from knowing her feline ancestors were worshipped as Egyptian gods, so she consistently responded to my uncle with nothing but a loud and accepting purr, no matter what torments his body was putting him through.

She was nearly 20 years old and in poor health. While my mother and nephew really loved having her around at my mother's house, where she has lived since December, I think it would be selfish to expect her to stick around for them. She served our family enough, her work here was done, and it was time for to rest for all eternity with my uncle.

I Want Wednesday

I want this to be behind me. As I write this, I am confirming my appointment with an oncologist. Yes, I saw my gynecologist and he referred me to an oncologist who will see me at 1:30 on August 18. This morning my doctor authorized a CA-125 blood test and he promises to let me know the results tomorrow ... Friday morning at the latest.

Right now, my doctor believes my stapler-cyst is more likely than not benign, but the CA-125 test will give us more (though still not definite) insights. And the cyst itself will have to be surgically removed in tact by my gynecologist and then biopsied, hence the oncologist.

The speed at which this sucker has grown is problematic and worrisome. It is mostly fluid and has not leaked into my uterus or anywhere else, which means even if it is the worst, it's contained.

So, I guess, I have to wait another week or two to put this behind me. I am not happy. But my gynecologist held my hand and hugged me a lot and told me this is not the worst he has ever seen and I should try not to wig out.

Yeah, right.