and Independence Day

 Decided to stay home today. Did my early piano practice, then looked out the window and decided the lawn needed mowing, and I could do that before the 1:30 showing of "1776" (something I try to watch every 4th) on TCM. 

Got that done, came in, sat down, was thinking about washing my hair to get the pollen out, and I switched on the news.

Yeah.

I used to live in Illinois, you know? When I was in grad school, I knew people from Highland Park (mostly undergrads, so I didn't stay in contact after they were done with my class). My dad grew up near there (his family only moved to Michigan when he was a young teen). So it felt kind of personal, and also, just the horrifying nature of a FOURTH OF JULY PARADE becoming a target.

As I said to someone I know a few weeks back: "I know safety experts say 'don't go stupid places,' but what do you do when every place has become stupid?"

I admit, I wondered if I even FELT like watching "1776," which is (mostly, I had forgotten one song in particular) pretty light-hearted and also in a way, shows an idealized view of the nation. 

But I did settle in to watch it, and I'm glad I did. I like how John Adams was written (even if it is probably not historically accurate); I laughed over the line "I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace; that two are called a law firm, and that three or more become a Congress!"

I think also, having read that he was generally quite well liked and respected, and yet in the movie he talks about himself being seen as abrasive and unlikeable - and apparently that opinion is present in his own diaries - well, I feel that. I think Adams is probably my favorite of the founding fathers, and not just for his self-criticism, but he and Abigail were, as the cool kids say, "based." 

It's definitely a diverting movie and I think it helped my mood.

(The TCM showing puts back in the song - Cool, Considerate Men - that allegedly Nixon told the studio to cut, because he felt the point of political commentary, and that apparently wasn't in the original showing. Though the one song I found slightly upsetting was when the young messenger sings "Mamma, Look Sharp" - about mothers searching for their sons killed on the battlefield. Oh, yes, that's a reality of war, and how much worse to have war on your own doorstep where you might have to go out looking for your son's body, but given the earlier events of the day, it hit badly. And of course having heard since February about the war in Ukraine, where women really DID go out and find their sons or husbands dead...). 

I was also struck this viewing by the song "Molasses to Rum" where a Southern delegate takes Massachusetts to task - that they claim to be innocent of slavery's sins, but he points out that they are involved in the trade. And it is a pretty damning song - and interesting to see in a movie from 1972. 

But in general, as I said: enjoyable. I've seen it a number of times, this time I think I picked up on more of the subtle double entendres that are in there - younger me they sailed over my head, and even just-a-few-years-younger me was focused more on the plotline, but yea, those slightly ribald jokes are there. 

I know some critics didn't like the movie when it came out but it's probably my favorite movie musical. Yes, I like it even more than The Music Man, which feels "hokier" somehow. (That came on after it but by that point I was done with wanting to watch things, so I turned off the tv)

While I watched, I knit a bit on the second sleeve; it's a bit more than 2/3 done now. And then I switched over to the corner-to-corner blanket, which is nice when you're a little distressed because it's very simple knitting and you need not think.

I got to the next color stripe:

A dark pink that is maybe slightly purplish. It looks like the pattern is a wider stripe followed by a narrower one, but of course as the blanket grows, all the stripes will become narrower because there are more stitches in each row using more yarn. I'm not even halfway through the first cake yet, I have three, so I can make this very big indeed if I want. (It will be square; I'm thinking of doing it at least 60" on a side so it will work on my bed. Maybe even more than that if I have the patience and the yarn....)