"I want to know" podcast with Greg Jones

I'm constantly 'conflicted' with the calendar, as I'm sure

many of you are as well, i.e; why the months continue

to 'click' off so quickly!

Looking back at the last twelve months; a whirlwind

describes it best so it seems.  If any of you have not

heard any of my broadcasts, you'll enjoy this one

with Greg Jones, host of  "I want to know" on the

world wide web.  It was 'cast' 11 months ago, but

it seems like we did the program last week... guess

that's age for you Stan!  So if you missed it;

you can COPY and PASTE the link into your browser and

it will take you to the program. Thanks Greg for

some incredible exposure and stimulating

conversation!  The link;

http://iwanttoknowpod.wixsite.com/iwtkshow/single-post/2015/07/15/Stanley-Swan-Undertakings-of-an-Undertaker

Saved by the ......bell?

The funeral industry has had some pretty strange

inventions over the past 200 years. One of the oddest

goes back to the 19th century.. when someone invented,

believe it or not....the safety coffin.

Those two words seem to compete with one another

do they not? The idea of the coffin was simple. A long

rope was tied to the hand of the deceased...fished thru

a home in the lid of the coffin..and I assume thru some

type of cylinder to the top of the grave, and finally

attached to a bell near the headstone. The idea was, if

you were buried prematurely, comatose, whatever....

and if you awakened after burial .. you just pulled the

cord and the bell would be sounded.. summoning

someone to come save you!

The Germans were busy

with this, with over 30 different patents for such

devices. One was so elaborate, it had a cord tied

to each hand and to each foot...so the slightest

movement would ring the bell. They didn't realize

that body decomposition could form gas and

bloating...and could actually cause movement

enough to set off the alarm. Amazing.  And so

comes the terms; 'saved by the bell' ...and

'dead ringer'.....so now you know.

Rain much?

So what's going on with our weather this year?
Last summer, at least here east of Rochester.. we had
an extreme drought...and mowing was maybe a
couple of times over the summer..

This year: complete opposite. We have maybe one
or two decent days, then four, five, six or more
of rain to follow that.  It's been tough on local
farmers this year.. usually most things were in
the ground the first week in May...I saw yesterday,
first week of June, some guys just getting out to
plant... it's going to be a tough year for them.

I expect the grape crop will be good, although
they do need lots of sunny days to go with the
rain.

Things are so unpredictable anymore... is it
just the way it is or is it my interpretation?

Not sure....maybe it's the age thing.

Theme for the summer; keep the umbrella handy.

'Glenn's remains disrespected?'

An interesting yet troubling story hit the wires today, regarding the late U.S. Senator and iconic astronaut John Glenn.  The story alleges that some folks were offered a 'peek' at his body before services and burial could be made at Arlington... I'm sure an investigation will now take place... and we'll see  where it goes.... here is the story from USA today;

CINCINNATI — The Air Force is investigating allegations that an airman offered to show the remains of Sen. John Glenn to Pentagon inspectors at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, officials said Friday.  

Col. Pat Ryder, an Air Force spokesman, said in a statement the inspectors declined to view Glenn's remains, but the offer alone was enough to launch an investigation into misconduct.

“The Air Force takes extremely seriously its responsibility to fulfill the nation's sacred commitment of ensuring dignity, honor and respect to the fallen and care, service and support to their families,” said Ryder.

Glenn, who served as a Marine pilot in World War II and the Korean War before becoming the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth, died Dec. 8, 2016, at the age of 95.

Before his internment at Arlington National Cemetery last month, Glenn's remains traveled to Ohio, his home state, which he represented for 24 years as a Democratic U.S. senator.

Glenn’s family has been notified about the investigation, Dale Butland, a longtime spokesman, told the USA TODAY Network on Friday.

'Remembering'....

It's a good weekend to stop and give pause, and to
remember all those that gave their lives for us.

There are service members, men and women,
literally buried in silent graves around the
planet who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Maybe you had a member of your family, or
two or more who served, and for that,
everyone of us in indebted.

Take a stroll through a cemetery this week...
read a few headstones...lay a wreath...
say a prayer... and say thank you.

We've seen some horrific things in our
history.. and I'm afraid, probably more yet
to come...let's resolve that it was all worth it..
and that the sacrifices were an investment in
our children's future.

Remembering... it's something we do too little of..

any day is a good day for it... it's a ritual we
should teach to all of our kids and grand kids.

'Long last identified'....

A most fascinating story about a young girl who passed away
in the late 1800's. Last year her casket found beneath a home that was undergoing renovation. After months and months of
investigation, and some remarkable DNA work, she was
identified and reburied. Here is the story from the
Associated Press.......

The 19th-century body of a girl found last year inside a small metal casket under a San Francisco home has been identified, researchers announced Tuesday.

The child was 2-year-old Edith Howard Cook, who died on Oct. 13, 1876, six weeks short of her third birthday, the nonprofit Garden of Innocence said.

The girl's remains, found by construction workers last May, were apparently left behind when about 30,000 people originally buried in San Francisco's Odd Fellows Cemetery in the Richmond District were moved in the 1920s to Greenlawn Memorial Park in Colma.

Elissa Davey, a genealogist and founder of the Garden of Innocence Project, organized the girl's reburial in Colma last year and began her quest to identify the remains.

After hundreds of hours trying to find Edith's identity, researchers caught a break when they found a map of the old cemetery at a University of California, Berkeley library and matched it to a plot where her parents, Horatio Cook and Edith Scooffy, were once buried.

Once they had the family name, researchers looked for living descendants, one of whom volunteered his DNA for testing.

Marin County resident Peter Cook — Edith's grandnephew — was a match for DNA taken from strands of her hair.

UC Davis Professor Jelmer Eerkens, who helped with the DNA testing, told San Francisco television station KTVU that Edith died of marasmus, which is severe undernourishment.

"It's likely she was sick with some disease and at some point her immune system couldn't combat the disease and probably went into coma and passed away," he said.

The girl's well-off family gave her an ornate burial. She was clothed in a white christening dress and ankle-high boots. Tiny purple flowers were woven into her hair and she held a purple Nightshade flower in her right hand. Roses, eucalyptus leaves and baby's breath were placed inside the coffin, according to the Garden of Innocence report.

Edith's father was a businessman, the report said. Her maternal grandfather was an original member of the Society of California Pioneers, which is an organization founded by California residents who arrived before 1850.

'What's coming up?'.....

I’ve had a lot of email in the last few weeks and

months about what’s coming up next in my

undertakings? It’s a hard question to answer.

It seems that I’m always racing with the clock.

I turn the monthly calendar page, and it seems

like just a day later, I’m turning it again.

When you’re in your thirties, forties, fifties,

you really don’t think much about your own

passing.. at least most people don’t. Then all

of a sudden that face you see in the mirror

is screaming at you like… “when did you get

so grey?”

So…..what’s left to do? Hopefully some more

good writing. My final years of being an active

director are over….maybe that’s a good thing,

not sure. My new found love of writing will

continue to hopefully flourish… with a new

book partially ‘in the drawer’, but not quite

ready to talk too much about yet.  I’m hoping

it will be done before the end of the year and

hopefully you’ll want to read it. 

It’s about… well yes, undertaking. 

But it’s about the way it used to be, way

back in 1875. I actually think I was there

and part of it. Possible? Perhaps.

So stand by, stay strong,

love your family, serve your community,

and remember, you DO make a difference

every day, in everything you do... rejoice

in it!