Going out in style...and why not?

(1 of 5) Vincent Street wipes down the casket of legendary singer Aretha Franklin at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018. Franklin died Aug. 16, 2018 of pancreatic cancer at the age of 76.

Some readers' comments...

I've been humbled by many of those who have purchased Undertakings. I want

to thank them and all of you who have supported the project since 2015. 

 Thoroughly enjoyable book., June 25, 2015

By 

Maria G. - See all my reviews

Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Undertakings of an Undertaker: True Stories of Being Laid to Rest (Kindle Edition)

A very interesting book. Whenever I had to put the book down, I couldn't wait to get back to it. Mr. Swan comes through as a very sensitive and caring man. He mentions the victims of 9/11 and Katrina, but does so with the utmost respect. He participated in both, and relates how he was sent to help out. They are all different stories and they are all pretty interesting. He relates the mortuary business from a very humane side and every once in awhile he relates a story with humor, once again with respect. Loved it!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

 THE POINT OF VIEW FROM A FORMER EMBALMING FLUID SALES REP, April 16, 2016

By 

M.C. - See all my reviews

Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Undertakings of an Undertaker: True Stories of Being Laid to Rest (Paperback)

Having been an embalming fluid sales rep in the past, I find the book to be quite authentic. It is an easy read. You can't put it down once you've started it! I heard Mr. Swan on a radio talk show and became very interested in his book I'm glad I purchased it. It brings back memories when I was on the road selling mortuary supplies and sundries. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the funeral profession, especially funeral directors!!!!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

 Enjoyable !, January 4, 2017

By 

Bellavora (Orange County, USA) - See all my reviews

Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Undertakings of an Undertaker: True Stories of Being Laid to Rest (Kindle Edition)

I had a great time reading this book and I would like to read it again. It is full of stories commemorating life of different people and their families. It is easy to read and brings a smile to your face. Enjoy !

Busy calendar coming up...

Wow....a lot of stuff on the calendar as I look ahead to fall...

return to L.A. Talk radio in September,

Wayland Public Library on Oct. 2nd...

Andover Historical Society on Oct. 23 rd...

Dog Ear Books in Palmyra on Oct. 26th...

Brighton Senior Citizens on Oct. 30th...

I may have to take November just to re-coup!

I have several new subjects to get to here at the blog....

one of which is discussion of Rod Serling and his

grave site in Interlaken which I will be visiting very

very soon..

Come back often, I love it when you visit me, and drop

me  a note anytime at undertakings@inbox.com!

SS

A family tradition...still practiced.

If you've ever flipped thru the pages of an inherited Bible, and come across

a clipping of human hair, don't be shocked.  It's been going on for generations,

and believe it or not, is still practiced today....but why do we do this?

Take a look at the following:

“Locks of hair have long served as sentimental and tangible reminders of deceased or far-away friends and close relations. Among family, friends and romantic partners, exchanging a lock of hair was a sign of mutual esteem and deep affection. Upon the death of a loved one, locks of hair were often cut and kept as a way to both honor and remember the dead” (“Hairwork Jewelry,” FIDM Museum Blog, 5/16/2011).

In the almost four decades I spent in the funeral industry, there were many times

that a family would want to take a snip-it of hair from the left side of a persons

head to save for this tradition. (Removal from the left side was usually indicated

because that side of the person is usually not viewed in a traditional open casket.)

 It was usually done after evening calling hours when everyone had left the viewing

 room, and in advance of the funeral.  The hair sample would be placed in a zip lock

bag, or in some instances, the family would purchase a very small two ounce

cremation container to hold those most precious hairs.

 Was it and is it a strange request?  Not at all. I've also had people ask me to take

a fingerprint or thumbprint and place on a quality piece of parchment so they could

place it as well in the family Bible. 

The action has always given peace to the family, knowing that at least in part, the

deceased person will be 'staying on' to some degree with them.

Honoring the dead, acknowledging that their life was meaningful and appreciated.


Final pictures of the deceased? Oh yes, that is the subject for another future

post here.

So as  you think about making pre-arrangements for yourself or someone else

in you family, tell the funeral director what you would like included.

He or she won't think you are weird or dis-connected.  That person will know

that family is important...and keeping part of you on for others to marvel at

is an exceptional act indeed. 

Still available and going strong..

For my new readers around the planet..Undertakings is still available
on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble....if you'd like a signed copy from
me to you...send me an email at: undertakings@inbox.com and I'll
let you know what the cost is plus shipping...

Lots of speaking engagements coming up in the next three months,
plus a return to L.A. Radio....

If your group would like a most interesting presentation about the
undertaking business, drop a note to the above email... I don't
charge for the presentation and I will travel within a reasonable
distance from here in the Fingerlakes!

Have a great day. SS

Get well Peter..

My friend and fellow undertaker Peter Abraham of Bristol in the UK

recently had some minor heart surgery...he's out of the hospital now,

and I want to thank him on the web, and wish him a fast and speedy

recovery.  Peter, pictured here, has a blog in the UK much like this one, called

Confessions of an Undertaker. He also does a You-Tube program quite

regularly.  I sent him my book some time ago, and a few weeks past,

Peter did a marvelous review of my book, and I can't thank him

enough.  My sales in the UK continue very strong, and a lot of that

is due to his support of my writing, and he'll be first in line when

Tales Unleashed gets released.

So, if you are a newcomer here, and haven't heard his review...you

can copy and paste this link in your browser:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynGqFsFqxlM

His review starts at about 2 min, 11 seconds in.

Again thanks Peter...get back to work soon!

The story...

Many people have asked me how I come up with ideas for new stories.....

and the truth is... they just come to me. As I sit here at my computer station

at Loon Lake, I think back over the last fifty years about situations that I have

encountered or been a part of ... and those memories often generate a story

line or two for a new short story. In Tales Unleashed which will be published

before too many weeks, there are several stories related to cemeteries...but

that would be normal, considering almost forty years spent in the undertaking

business.  And as I drive out a country road, by an abandoned cemetery or

farm house, I think, gee, this would be a great setting for an interesting

short story. And so with all that in mind, and having some recollections of

life in a small town, twenty eight such stories have been created for the

new book. The new book will be smaller than Undertakings of an Undertaker,

it'll be a pocket size paper-back, like the ones we used to read as kids.

And there will be seven to ten pencil drawings I've made to accompany

many of the stories...all in all, I think you'll enjoy it.

Can't promise it will be out by Halloween, but we shall see.

If you like the unusual, the odd, the uncanny, I think you'll find it a good

read. Thanks for stopping by...you'll see some postings on Facebook and

other social media when the book 'hits the stands' as they used to say.

Thanks for stopping by today.. you can leave a comment at the end of any

of my postings here in the comments section following the post.

Have a great day....let's hope for some sunshine for once! SS

What a sad time...

 

What a sad time we live in... when a young college girl is out jogging.. then

all of a sudden is gone, snatched, as if she never existed.

The whole nation has been looking for young Mollie Tibbetts for over a month

since her disappearance in mid July while she was out enjoying her day near

Brooklyn, Iowa.  They found Mollie, today, in a corn field.

A suspect has been taken into custody.

We need to pray for her, her family, and our country. The level of madness

in this country is beyond description, with little hope for an optimistic

corner to be turned.

It can happen to anyone at anytime, anywhere.

We gave up the sanctity of being safe years ago, and garner little hope


of returning to those years of innocence that we

all miss so much.

Say a prayer for Mollie. I was greatly touched by

her story.

On my 'bucket list'...

There's someone very unique and famous buried in Interlaken, N.Y.....

A man who brought you some of the most amazing stories that were

ever put to paper....a man who captured the imagination...breaking the

 barriers of 'real time' to places unknown...places that were in many

instances even hard to comprehend.

He passed away much too early....his name was Rod Serling.

From the Twilight Zone to the Night Galleries, Serling's expertise

at the typewriter was unmatched.

His grave site is on my bucket list for later this year.

So on the 'just right' day this fall, when the leaves are starting to

turn and surrender to the brisk winds, I'll go visit Rod in his

quiet surrounds... and thank him for him contributions.

It's a trip I've wanted to make for years... and experience has told

me not to put things off  for another day...after all, we don't know

how many more of those days each one of us might have left.

I'll talk and listen, and photograph...and bring it back to you here.

I'm actually experiencing a bit of a chill as I write this...knowing

I'll be in the company of one of the true greats. 

UK reading Undertakings...

My recent numbers with my publisher Book Stand Publishing of
California were most pleasing to me this week.

Thanks to my friend Peter Abraham in Bristol, England, my Amazon
Kindle sales were outstanding during July in the UK.

Peter, shown here, has a writing blog also called Confessions of an
Undertaker, and last month did a you-tube review of my book.. and
it must have hit the mark with his audience, which resulted in great
numbers of people buying my book.

So again, thanks Peter...you're the man......

It's going to be a busy fall with lots of stuff already on the calendar...

the summer is ticking by quickly...get out there and enjoy it.

Back on L.A. talk radio....

Thursday night, Sept. 27th, 7:00 p.m. PST, 10:00 p.m. Eastern, I'll be back

on L.A.Talk radio on a program entitled Writers Block. Each week the three

hosts talk to writers around the country about their passions, the hang-ups,

the inspirations, the dilemmas etc. It'll be a fun night to be back on the air.

The week of the podcast, I'll post details here of how you can hear the show

live, and even call in to say hello..

Thank you all who have supported by book, and more details about the new

Tales Unleashed are forthcoming! 

Oct 26th...7 p.m. in Palmyra NY...

---

Death, Lore and Local History.  A conversation with Stan Swan and Patti Unvericht

October 26th at 7 pm

Join local authors Stan Swan and Patti Unvericht for a fascinating discussion about Death, Lore, and Local History. Bring your questions and join the conversation!

~With 35 years spent in the funeral business and now a self published author (Undertakings of an Undertaker, true stories of being laid to rest and Tales Unleashed; coming soon), Stan Swan has pretty much experienced it all in the death care industry.
~An authority on both local history and the supernatural, Patti Unvericht is the author of two books through The History Press, Ghosts and Hauntings of the Finger Lakes (6/5/2012) and Hidden History of the Finger Lakes (7/16/2018).

Parkland...a must see

I'm not sure how I missed this movie...and though this is not a site to
review movies, I'm making an exception here.

The movie Parkland (2013) is the story of Parkland Hospital in Dallas
where President Kennedy was taken after being shot in Dallas in 1963...
if you are old enough...you'll remember the day.... where you were..what
you were doing.

Parkland is a riveting film and reveals some facts I had never been aware
of before...some of those things include:

1. His wife before leaving the emergency operating room where he was
pronounced dead...removed her wedding  ring and and placed it on the pinky
finger of the President's left hand.

2. There was a physical altercation between the Secret Service and the local
coroner at Parkland...the coroner wanted to keep the body there for autopsy..
the presidents men wanted him taken immediately back to Washington D.C...
the Secret Service won out...and a casket was brought within a short time
to the operating room where the presidents body was casketed.

3. The first lady...still covered in blood from the assassination...road in the
back of the hearse with the body on the way to the airport.

4. The Secret Service didn't want the president's casket to be put in the
belly of the airplane like a piece of luggage so they quickly removed several
rows of seats to accommodate the casket...and over ten men struggled to
get it up the steps and onto Air Force One.

5. The U.S. armed forces were put on high alert, not sure if this was
part of a 'first strike' by a foreign government to take advantage of the
assassination. It turned out to be only the act of one deranged man,
Lee Harvey Oswald.

November 23rd, 1963 was a dismal day for the U.S....and those of us
who were alive will never forget it.

If you haven't seen the movie Parkland...see it. It's available on Amazon
Prime and at other locations.

It's ninety minutes of history.....you'll feel like you were there in the middle
of it all.

Let's pray we won't see another day like that ever again.

One final note. The first lady's pink 'pill box' hat has never been found.
It's location remains a mystery.. and I'm guessing, maybe a subject for
this writer to investigate one day in the future right here.