Uncle Arthur
Posted by Ariadne For an altar there was the chest of drawers in the corner by the window. Flowers, candles, drawings and sea urchin shells collected from the beach. The bedroom had turquoise walls or perhaps they were white and it’s just memory doing the decorating. When everything was right and ready, I made my […]
Good short life, short good death
Posted by Charles Cowling I HAVE wonderful friends … one, from Texas, put a hand on my thinning shoulder, and appeared to study the ground where we were standing. He had flown in to see me. “We need to go buy you a pistol, don’t we?” he asked quietly. He meant to shoot myself with. […]
The Home Death Movement
I’ve been reading an interesting research report published last month in Australia. Its title: Bringing our Dying Home: Creating community at the end of life. It examines how networks of unpaid carers can supplement the services of professional carers and enable dying people to die at home. It shows that the lot of unpaid […]
Absolute rotter
Here is the best post this blog will ever publish, so don’t glance at its length and give up. Read on! Today is all about Bill Jordan. I first heard from Bill back in December 2010. This is what he said: I am an aging reformed biologist, now more or less a writer, but more […]
Last post
Very much going viral at the moment is the last post of pioneer blogger, musician and technical writer Derek K Miller’s. He died aof cancer last Tuesday. Here’s a snatch: Here it is. I’m dead, and this is my last post to my blog. In advance, I asked that once my body finally shut down […]
Storm in a teacup
You may have seen the story in the papers. Briefly, a Salisbury undertaker (1 hearse, 1 other vehicle, a Rover estate) arrives at his funeral venue in Tamworth, 150 miles away, and looks about for somewhere for his staff and himself to take a break. He tries the church. Locked. He tries the cemetery. No […]
Lords of all they survey
We may worry about societal death denial and a consequent tolerance of poor funerals but there’s no denying we’re not, most of us who work in the death zone, much cop at getting society to sit up and take notice of what we think. It’s rare that we come across a serious treatment of death […]
Meet Angeline Gragasin and Caitlin Doughty
I know a number of you drop in around this time (10.30 am) hoping there may be a new post because you need a little light displacement activity. Well, I’ve got you something that’s anything but little and light. Two short films here by Angeline Gragasin starring/narrated by Caitlin Doughty “documenting the life of a […]
La Santa Muerte
In Mexico there is a cult that is rapidly growing–the cult of Saint Death. This female grim reaper, considered a saint by followers but Satanic by the Catholic Church, is worshipped by people whose lives are filled with danger and/or violence–criminals, gang members, transvestites, sick people, drug addicts, and families living in rough neighborhoods. Eva […]
Laughing it off
I’m not supposed to be here (see previous post) but I can’t resist abandoning packing my water wings for a moment in order to give vent to what may or may not be justified crossness. Funerals have, by many people who ought to know better, been subjected to a reductio ad absurdum: three songs and […]
