Thursday Thirteen #366

13 facts about Independence Day. My July 4 will be low key, first working at the card shop and then watching Yankee Doodle Dandy on TCM. I'll be celebrating the holiday with my movie group on Saturday. It's fun to enjoy the camaraderie of friends and good food. 

And, speaking of fun, I enjoyed reading these.

About the 4th of July ...

1. There were 2.5 million Americans on July 4, 1776. There will be more than 340 million on July 4, 2024.

2. In the 18th century, it was considered unpatriotic to shop or conduct business on July 4. Today, our biggest retailers (Walmart, Target) and fast food chains (McDonald's, Taco Bell) will be open.

3. Emergency rooms are busy on July 4, due in large part to accidents with fireworks.

4. We like "liberty." 35 towns are named Liberty and 7 named Libertyville.

5. July 4th is the biggest day of the year for hot dog consumption. I've got weiners and buns ready to go!

6. Lots of musicians were born on July 4, from Stephen Foster to Post Malone. Former First Daughter Malia Obama was born on July 4, too.

7. Three of our founding fathers died on July 4 (John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe).

8. Zachary Taylor died on July 9 of a stomach ailment, likely the result of spoiled fruit eaten at a July 4 celebration.

9. As President of the Continental Congress, John Hancock was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence. (What a pretty signature it is, too!)

10. Edward Rutledge of the SC delegation was the youngest person to sign the Declaration of Independence.

11. We have had 27 iterations of our flag. The one we have now -- 13 stripes for the original colonies and 50 stars representing the states -- was adopted in 1960.

12. This is a time of celebration for North America. The Canadians celebrate the anniversary of their Constitution Act on July 1.

13. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts was the first to declare July 4 a holiday. Today it's observed in all 50 states, American Samoa, Guam, Palau, Micronesia, the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. (Perhaps more. Please don't regard this as an exhaustive list of our territories.)

Please join us for THURSDAY THIRTEEN. Click here to play along, and to see other interesting compilations of 13 things.

WWW.WEDNESDAY

 

 

WWW. WEDNESDAY asks three questions to prompt you to speak bookishly. To participate, and to see how other book lovers responded, click here. 

PS I no longer participate in WWW.WEDNESDAY via that link because her blog won't accept Blogger comments. I mention this only to save you the frustration I experienced trying to link up.

1. What are you currently reading? Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall. This novel is about three women living in three different time decades: in the 1970s, a girl is sent to a home for "fallen" women where she awaits the birth of her baby; in the 1980s, a young woman finds herself pregnant with nowhere to turn; in 2017, a woman accidentally comes into possession of a letter with explosive information about a long-ago family scandal, and wrestles with what to do with it.

 

This book takes us back to those tragic days before abortion was safe and legal, and though it's sent in Toronto, it's a harrowing harbinger of what we may be returning to.*

It's important that at the center of each story, the woman are three-dimensional people. When I hear fucking nonsense about babies being born, killed and tossed aside by abortion doctors I want to scream. First, that seldom if ever happens. Second, doctors who perform abortions are not monsters, they are serious professionals who want to provide healthcare. Third, where is the compassion for the women who find themselves in overwhelming and often dangerous and always painful situations?

2. What did you recently finish reading? Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans by Kenneth Womack.  Mal Evans was with the Beatles from their days at The Cavern all the way to their "Get Back/Let It Be" rooftop concert on Savile Row, and even beyond. He had a story to tell, and unfortunately died before he could share it with us fans. His son worked with rock historian Kenneth Womack to get it to us.

There was a lot in this book I found interesting. However, not 580 pages' worth. This tome could have used a good editor. Once the Beatles stopped touring, once they started Apple Corps., the book got way less interesting because I didn't find the intricacies of he music business skullduggery that interesting (particularly because it seldom had anything to do with John, Paul, George or Ringo). I'd say this book is for superfans, except I'm a superfan and I liked it but didn't love it.

 

3. What will you read next? Don't know.

 

*I am personally opposed to abortion. My faith should not be the law of the land, because legislating one religion over another is unpatriotic. I've spoken to friends who are Jewish and agnostic and 100% respect their points of view, and whoever you are reading this, I respect yours, too. Just as I'd never force a woman to have an abortion, I wouldn't presume to forbid her, either. Because as a proud American looking forward to July 4, I respect the separation between church and state.

 

 

Teaser Tuesday

 

Here's how to play.

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans by Kenneth Womack. This book was compiled using the diaries of the late Mal Evans, the Beatles confidante, bodyguard and roadie beginning with their early days at the Cavern Club.

By 1967, the Beatles had stopped touring so his job as "tour manager" had morphed into something else. Mal was an executive at Apple Corps, but he felt he was becoming marginalized by his beloved Beatles. He was drinking and drugging more, his marriage was in trouble, and he was self-reflective in his diary.

"Fear is knowing the right answer," he observed, "while hoping it's the wrong answer." But it also occurred to him that the concept of fear might be something even more problematic, that "fear is not even knowing the right answer." Had his moral compass become so broken that it was too late to reorder his misplaced priorities?