The GFG Blog
2010Feb
Holiday reading
Charles
Feb
15
No Comments
John Michell This blog is going on holiday for a week to enjoy fresh sea breezes, long walks and real beers in real pubs. Pubs! The highest proof of the existence of God! I shall of course be packing some holiday reading, none of it death related though, as we
Window dressing
Charles
Feb
13
1 comment
Photo by Dennypoos Funeral directors are often criticised for their inertia and, to be sure, many of them, not all, move forward with foot-dragging reluctance. The most evident manifestation of this is their cod-Victorian attire. They are, they seem to be saying, neither of us, nor of our century. If
Not just for the skint
Charles
Feb
12
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Nice home funeral story here: When Cathleen, a registered nurse, passed away at Hinds Hospice in Fresno, no mortuary was called due to previous planning. The Fresno County Coroner’s Office transported her to their facility and kept her until her funeral Jan. 26. The morning of her funeral, she was
Eliminate the negatives
Charles
Feb
12
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Photo by Dr Neil Clifton Dr Neil Clifton / CC BY-SA 2.0 The hearse pulled up, the conductor opened up the back and one of the mourners whipped out a camera. Something gave her pause. She turned to me (I was the celebrant) and said, “Is this not good in
Open air funerals are go!
Charles
Feb
11
1 comment
In the light of yesterday’s Court of Appeal judgement in favour of Davender Ghai and anyone else who wants to be cremated on a funeral pyre, Rupert Callender of the Green Funeral Company, and a Trustee of the Natural Death Centre, has this to say: The verdict this Wednesday from
Use this land for the dead!
Charles
Feb
11
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Cremationists have always been proud to boast that what they do saves land for the living. It’s true. That more than 70 per cent of Brits opt for the burning fiery furnace saves around 200 acres a year. Having said which, and having visited a number of natural burial grounds,
World without East Ender?
Charles
Feb
10
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From the Independent on Sunday, 07 01 10: Eagle-eyed viewers of EastEnders have been left scratching their heads after spotting Archie Mitchell standing at the back of his own funeral. Archie’s murder on Christmas Day – he was bludgeoned, quaintly, with a bust of Queen Victoria – has been the
Final turn of the screw
Charles
Feb
10
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Here’s a bit of fun, for which I thank my excellent friend Tony Piper. It’s a self-boring coffin, hermetically sealed, with built-in flower and flag receptacle. Two people can (er, theoretically) screw it into place like a capstan. It was patented in 2007, since when there seems to have been
Words, words, words
Charles
Feb
09
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Following my post about the ineptitude and ineffectiveness of words, I stumbled on this piece in the Sydney Morning Herald. It’s actually about citizenship ceremonies, but you’d never guess it from the way I’ve plucked the extracts: Traditionally, ritual, including rites of passage, is embedded in our religious culture. And
