No Zil lanes for the dead
The Olympics are going to create a headache for funeral directors and the bereaved in a country where getting to the crem on time is crucial to the smooth running of a crematorium. Some funeral directors are already in despair. According to the Daily Star: Moona Taslim of Muslim funeral home Haji Taslim, which sits […]
The vital importance of being embalmed
“Contrary to popular belief, embalming a body is not required by law. However, every funeral home requires it for an open casket service. Otherwise, there will be odors and the body may look grotesque for viewing, which affects a funeral home’s reputation.“ Source
Sick ghouls
Two callous thieves who snatched floral wreaths from a crematorium so they could use them for free at a family funeral have been fined £35 each. Full story in the, you guessed it, Mail here.
Camref – the Campaign for Real Funerals
The departing board chairman of Golden Charter funeral plans offers this cold sweat-inducing warning to independent funeral directors in a valedictory address in the Golden Charter newsletter, Goldenews, which we are grateful to have had forwarded to us. He says: Co-op and Dignity have both acquired significant additional scale, and unquestionably they are operating with a […]
Picturing Hell – in Lego bricks
Posted by Vale We all wonder about what might happen to us when we die. Well, Dante had the lowdown. While the rest of us wander lost in the woods, he described Hell, Purgatory and Heaven in great detail. The funny thing is that while we might hope for heaven, we all have the sneaking […]
Muriel’s ashes
It was the Jubilee weekend and a year since we had all gathered around Muriel’s hospital bed as she told the Doctors that she wanted no more treatment, no interventions, no resuscitation. She told us she had had a wonderful life, she was ready to go, that she wanted to be cremated and she wanted her […]
RIP Andy
Tomorrow will see the funeral of Andy the police dog, who died on Tuesday in a tragic training accident. It will take place in the gym at the Elementary school in his home town of Vermilion, Ohio. Andy’s handler, Scott Holmes, said: “He was our only police dog, and he was great. He made a […]
Song for a baby
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-xmLD85M8o Evelyn found this – played in memory of a baby The morning cold and raining, dark before the dawn could come How long in twilight waiting longing for the rising sun ohoh ohoh Oh ooh You came like crashing thunder breaking through these walls of stone You came with wide eyed wonder into all […]
What I will and wont miss by Norah Ephron
Posted by Vale Writer and director Norah Ephron died this week. Called an artist of consolation, she is remembered for comedies like Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally, but also wrote screenplays for the more serious Silkwood, fiction and a huge number of books, articles and blog posts. In I Remember Nothing she left […]
Toad or lizard?
From Matthew Parris’ column in yesterday’s Times: “My sister … remarked lightly one evening that as men get old we turn into either lizards or toads: one or the other, there is no escape, no third option.” If you’re a man, which one are you turning into? Male readers only: are you turning into a […]
