Archive for October, 2009
Chimpanzee Funeral?
31, Oct 2009 The Story Behind Our Photo of Grieving Chimps
Jeremy Berlin, National Geographic Blog Central (October 29, 2009)
Fast on the heels of debatably mourning magpies, I offer you the somewhat more definitive (pics and it happened!) chimpanzee funeral, where huddled, sad chimps appear to pay their last respects to their dead companion Dorothy.
Of course the “funeral” [...]
- By: Meg Holle
- In: Death + Biology| Grief + Mourning
- Tags: animals, funerals, grief
Houdini’s Final Disappearing Act
30, Oct 2009A Halloween Tale: Houdini’s Lonely Grave (New York Times Video Library)
Harry Houdini was quite a character. Not only was he one of the most heralded magicians of his generation, but the mystique surrounding the man grew exponentially when he died on October 31, 1926. Some believed Houdini to be a practitioner of the “dark arts” [...]
- By: Kim
- In: Cemeteries
- Tags: celebrity death, spiritualism
Wal-Mart: Save Money. Live Better. Die Cheap(ly).
29, Oct 2009Wal-Mart Starts Selling Caskets, Urns Online
Emily Fredrix, Associated Press (October 28, 2009)
It’s all over the death-dar: following Costco’s lead, Wal-Mart now offers caskets and urns for sale online, with priority Fed-Ex freight shipment anywhere in the continental U.S.
With prices that undercut funeral home options combined with its juggernaut consumer base — not to mention “and [...]
- By: Meg Holle
- In: Death + Humor| Death + the Economy| Funeral Industry
- Tags: coffins, urns, video
No More Status Updates from Dead FB Friends
29, Oct 2009Facebook ‘memorialises’ profiles
BBC News (October 27, 2009)
It was bound to happen sooner or later. You know, someone dies and then Facebook goes ahead and suggests that you add him or her as a friend. Yikes. It’s one of the many technology dilemmas when it comes to death and dying in the interweb age.
The BBC explains:
Facebook [...]
- By: John
- In: Death + Technology| Death + the Web| Monuments + Memorials
- Tags: Facebook, memorializing
Using Cremains in Memorial Tattoos
25, Oct 2009Samantha asks the Death Reference Desk:
A couple relatives and I just had my aunt’s ashes put in ink for a memorial tat. My question is since she was so sick, will there be a transfer or will it be okay since she was cremated?
The short answer is: Yes, it’ll be okay. Cremators run between 1400 [...]