Oh, Katie, that is so hard. Wishing you strength and love.

There are so many more regulations around cremains than I ever knew before this job. Special permission (or at least paperwork) is needed to fly with them, for instance, and in some cases to scatter them (although that depends on where, I guess).

In my limited experience on the phones for the last 18 months, a huge majority of people are being cremated over traditional burial, and a lot of people don't seem to be bothering to bury cremains, either. I did have a guy call the other day, though, who was having his dad's amputated leg cremated, which was a first for me.

I shall be cremated and scattered, by preference, in the water. If that's impractical, up with Hubby in the mountains will be nice. No engraving anywhere, the universe already knows me.

Me, I'm considering a natural burial, i.e. no embalming, no artificial material in coffin (in fact, cardboard would be fine). What I really want is archaeologists finding me as a rare undisturbed burial of the late 21st Century and speculating badly about my life, "She had extensive dental work -- she must have been a princess!"

Perhaps acquiring some authentic Viking grave goods to be buried with me would be a good idea....

Maybe I'm a weirdo, but I find it a little baffling to care what happens to my body when I die? I mean, it's be nice if it could be useful somehow, but I really don't care if I'm cremated or buried or what the stone would say. I have a preference for if I'm ashes, not being in a box in the closet? Like, display an urn or scatter the ashes but don't just stick me somewhere and forget? But really whatever is easiest for whoever is dealing with it. My assets I have a few feelings about and I'd like a good funeral party, but body? Meh.

We saved my dad's ashes for 16 years (reverently stuffing them in a box on a shelf in the back of a closet) until my mom died and they are scattered together in the memorial garden at my mom's church. My dad was not a churchgoer, but liked that particular church, so he had approved in advance.

I've informed my DH that I want my organs donated if possible and the rest of my body donated to a med school. I'll be gone and I want my body to be useful if possible.

I've got my plot next to DH and I may have already gotten my name on the shared stone, I'll have to check next time I'm over there. I think all it needs is my death date added. I haven't made the actual funeral arrangements, though, which I should do. I do have enough life insurance to cover a simple burial, though, so that's something. Just paid that annual bill, coincidentally.

Dad has backed off on his plan to get illegally scattered in Yosemite and is fine with being illegally scattered/buried on the less patrolled nat'l park land near where they live. Mom is sticking with her "it's not my problem after I'm dead, you figure it out" plan. Most of my dad's family is buried in the Russian/Serbian Orthodox cemeteries either in Colma or Santa Rosa and he has no desire to join them. Mom's family has mostly been cremated and other than my Grandpa's ashes getting scattered up at his ranch I don't know where any of them have ended up. In the back of someone else's closet, maybe.

My folks went to one to many funerals at one point and left specific instructions that they wanted to be cremated and for us to throw a party at their favorite Mexican restaurant. Which is what we did.

I must say, having those written instructions sure made dealing with the funeral parlor easier. Knowing what to do made it much easier to say no to stupid stuff the folks wouldn't've cared about.

Perhaps acquiring some authentic Viking grave goods to be buried with me would be a good idea....

If we'd been rich, Hubby wanted to be buried in an abandoned mine (of which there are many around here) dressed in full handmade armor with his sword and shield, surrounded by grave goods, and a proper runestone extolling his deeds. He contemplated with glee the reaction of archaeologists upon finding a medieval warrior with extensive medical metalwork in his bones and heart.

Pantaleo finally fired. Not sure anyone is going to be satisfied after 5 years. But at least a decision.

I'm with meara on not caring what they do with my body after I am done with it. I've looked at paperwork from medical schools for donation. I told DH he could wrap me in a sheet and drop me into the ocean, but he would probably get arrested. Most likely they will reuse anything possible then cremate the rest.

I felt bad when I went to my late FIL's internment and saw they had a headstone for my late DH. I would have given them the cremains if if knew they were doing that. Too late though as I already had deposited them in a lake.

I love touring cemeteries and find them endlessly fascinating, but I have zero interest in my spent parts being there. I never visit my relatives' graves. To me they aren't there. They left their body behind and that part wasn't them to me.

I'm very thankful that my mom and I had talked about her wishes in the years before she died. Her body was donated to science and then they returned her ashes. For now, she is on the bookshelf because she wanted to be sprinkled in my flower garden. Which I don't have because I have a black thumb. So, for now, she is on the shelf.

In completely other news, I leave Thursday for a long business trip in India. I just found out today that exchanging small gifts is traditional. I had not planned on this. I need to figure out 15 things I can take. Don't have a ton of space in my luggage but I can get creative if needed. Any ideas?