A Loaded Shotgun in the Closet
“Do It Yourself” and “When the Pin Hits the Shell” reckon with death by suicide.
One of my favorite things about writing Mundane Mayhem is that I gain new appreciation for songs that never quite clicked with me before. "When the Pin Hits the Shell" has always been one of my favorites, but I'm newly obsessed with "Do It Yourself." If this newsletter has clicked with you, subscribe by hitting the button below and/or forward this email to your friends!
In 1963, my great-grandfather took off his sock and fired his shotgun — at home, in a closet, on his wife’s birthday.
My mom was 14 or 15, and she still remembers the red printed shirtdress she was wearing that day. She remembers hearing adults say “he took his sock off” — the way folks talk when they think kids aren’t listening — implying that he used his toe to pull the trigger. My own grandfather, who died from lung cancer in 2006, maintained into his old age that his dad didn’t kill himself on purpose. Must have been an accident. He wouldn’t have done it on her birthday.