Tales From The Morgue

Welcome to the morgue, where everyone one day finds themselves to rest. Come on in, and call me Karner, I’ll be your guide through the afterlife.

[talesfromthemorgue]

Introduction

Hello! You can call me Karner. I'm currently a Mortuary Science major, and love to share my fascination of the inevitable with the world. I seek to not only help normalize the topic of death and dying but also educate people on the matter. On this blog you can expect all sorts of discussions in regard to Death and Dying, with the primary focus being on education. Here you can view my Master List of posts, so if you are looking for any particular topic or resource, you can find it here! My Asks are open, so if you have any questions about Death and Dying, want to provide resources or suggestions, or you simply have any comments, feel free to drop a message! Though I do ask that you do not privately message me, as I likely will not respond.

My Mission

Long before I had been accepted into Mortuary School, I wanted to begin my research into the industry, namely, to decide if this was what I truly wanted to do. While there are resources available online to support families who are in the process of, or have already lost a loved one, resources simply for people who desire to work in the field are harder to come by. What resources there may be are often not intended for those who are new to the industry, making it hard to begin the study or understand what is being discussed. And considering your average person isn't friends with a Mortician that they can go to in hopes of asking for some guidance, their options start to run thin, as was the case with me.

After several failed attempts to find basic beginner information, I turned to my local library, which happens to be one of the largest in my state. Considering its proximity to a Mortuary School, and the overall size of the library, you'd expect there would be some sort of resources available, there were nothing. Even the librarians in my family who have been trained to help people find the exact resources they are looking for, for the first time in their careers had hit a dead end. It wasn't until after hours upon hours of personal time spent researching, that I started to find very basic books on the topic, and eventually expand my knowledge enough to know what I was talking about.

Now that I'm both a Mortuary Student but also Assistant, I've gained access to material that is not publicly accessible, but I've also managed to find the hidden genre of books on Death and Dying, across multiple different fields of study. My goal is to share these resources with anyone who may simply be interested in the topic, considering going into the field, or currently within an industry that works directly with death.

[thatpollguy]

Have you ever been to an open casket funeral?

Yes, several

Yes, one

No, but I've been to closed casket funerals

No, I've never been to a funeral

Voting ended onJan 30

[thatpollguy]

Have you ever been to a closed casket funeral?

Yes, several

Yes, one

No, but I've been to an open casket funeral

No, I've never been to a funeral before

Voting ended onFeb 5

[yourlocalthanatologist]

I’m in the process of costuming a film where part of the action takes place in a funeral home where bodies are in caskets. I e-mailed a funeral director I’m acquainted with about how the bodies are dressed and he wrote this:

“There are two major trends in how people are dressed. First, older people are far more likely to be wearing formal outfits like suits or dresses than those who die before they’re about 40. Young people are generally buried wearing casual clothing. Second, shoes and other foot coverings are far more likely to be brought if the deceased is male. Most women are buried barefoot regardless of outfit, but very few men are. So a blouse, jeans, and bare feet would be realistic for a woman in her twenties and a suit with polished shoes for a man in his seventies.”

Does this seem accurate? I’ve never really given this much thought. I’m a girl, and I suppose I’d rather be barefoot if my family insisted on burying me in a ridiculous plush casket.

Hey there! Sorry about the delay, it’s been a busy time for me 🥺

As far as I have ever experienced it is not common for anyone regardless of their gender to be buried without shoes. Burials and funerals are regional, meaning they have local customs and change from funeral home to funeral home, town to town, cemetery to cemetery and state to state.

Burials in my experience, if you’re an ethical director, should include fully dressing the decedent in plastic protective garments, then undergarments & socks. Your families chosen outfit for you would them by cut up the back and laid over top/tucked around you to give it the appearance of being worn. (This cut is because it is outstandingly difficult to dress an embalmed body, which is most common in the case of burials)

Large pads of cotton are then stuffed into the bra (as needed; to give the allusion of breasts the way they look while standing since they sag into the arm pits when laying back flat) as well as in the arms, tummy, and legs (as needed) to help fill out any weight loss, or shrinkage. With shoes being placed on last, often being tied together in situations of broken hips (your feet will look like a Penguin stands if your hip breaks at some point in life) to keep the hips looking natural. The split top casket drape only covers upper/mid thigh, down.

I have only ever buried children without shoes, but only because they were not brought to me. And children are most often buried and cremated in a “full couch” style casket (it’s completely open). So their feet were visible.

As far as cremations, you’d likely see less shoes there (regardless of gender) as most people put less thought into the outfit they cremate their loved ones in.

Also, hospital deaths do not have shoes or clothes on them at all. Just an open back Johnny (if you had a room), absorbent pads covering sensitive bits (if you died in ER/OR), or sometimes naked (inside a bag). Religious accommodations most always respected.

Some caskets are VERY comfortable, usually pillow top satin or velvet. Good stuff. I have laid in many.

And a fun fact and FYI. All caskets are the same. Made by the same company in the same factory with the same parts whether it’s listed for 2k or 30k. They’re virtually identical in quality and function 👍🏻

[itsrileyiguess]

Reminders from your friendly neighbourhood deathcare worker:

-Power of Attorney expires upon death, it is NOT the same as an estate executor (I will repeat this every single dang time I make one of these posts)

-If you have found family who you want to take over your death plans upon passing, because you know your birth family will not honour your wishes - GET THAT SHIT IN WRITING.

Seriously!! If you are age of majority (most places 18) and legally able to look until putting together a will, do so!! (And make sure to regularly update it as needed, and notify the people who should know that you have done so!!)

Let the people close to you know what you want done! (Ex: burial, cremation, body donation, if you actually want a funeral service etc.)

ALSO- LOOK INTO PUTTING TOGETHER AN ADVANCE DIRECTIVE.

Death waits for no one, and I get it is a scary topic to address for a lot of folks, but it's even scarier for your loved ones to lose you and have absolutely zero idea on how to move forward (or absolutely zero say in how your community says goodbye to you if you werent on good terms with your immediate next of kin whose now in charge of your arrangements.)

Okay cool? Cool.

Back to your regularly scheduled fan art and MYTH rants.

[talesfromthemorgue]

Are people usually buried wearing shoes? My uncle is a mortician, and says it's frequently the case that younger people and women are more likely to be barefoot. It seems to make intuitive sense. Have you found this?

Hello! What a great question, thanks for asking!

A lot of this depends. I’ve personally never run into a case where a certain age group or gender of people were buried without shoes UNLESS they were newborns / stillborns who were too small for any brand of shoes, in which case they were often buried just wearing socks.

I’ve seen certain religious groups which believe in only being buried with clothing that will easily degrade, often consisting of cloths, linens, and burial shrouds.

I’ve also seen cases where families may request to keep the shoes of their loved one, which I normally see in lower income families, but I’ve also seen families do it for reasons unknown to us.

I suppose it IS possible depending on the demographic that your uncle’s mortuary services, but in both mortuary school and at the funeral home I work for, I have always been taught that, unless otherwise specified, we leave the shoes on, or even request shoes should the decedent come in without them (such as someone who died at the hospital, they often aren’t wearing shoes when they come to us)

It’s considered a final act of dignity to leave the deceased as dressed as they came to us. And while I’ve heard of some funeral homes stating “it doesn’t matter because the family won’t see the feet”, it’s still widely viewed as an act of dignity. That doesn’t mean a LACK of shoes is undignified either, as I stated previously, certain religious groups which view it as more dignified to go without shoes all together.

I’ve never heard of anything regarding women and children in particular, but I’m not going to say it’s out of the realm of possibilities. It’s more so just not common practice where I live.

[talesfromthemorgue]

Hi! I would love your podcast/audiobook recs for anyone pursuing mortuary school. I just got accepted into one and feel both so happy yet so overwhelmed 🥹 thank you!

First off, congratulations! I’m super happy for you and I truly hope you enjoy it as much as I have! I wish you all the best in school, and if you need any help don’t hesitate to ask!

To answer your question, here’s a few I recommend!

Unfortunately when it comes to books I’m still having a difficult time finding anything surrounding specifically mortuary science, this becomes even more difficult to find ones that have audiobooks for them. That being said, I definitely suggest reading/ listening to ANYTHING you can about death and dying industries.

While I’m yet to read them myself, though I have purchased them to read, I’ve heard Caitlin Doughty’s books “Will my Cat eat my eyeballs?” “Smoke Gets in Your eyes” and “From here to eternity” are probably some of the best books relating specifically to the mortuary industry.

Two of my personal favorite books, which I’ve covered on my page, are “Stiff” by Mary Roach, which covers a little bit of everything when it comes to death sciences, and “Working Stiff” by Judy Melinek, which covers the gruesome realities of death care. While “Working Stiff” specifically talks about forensic pathology, I think this is a very valuable book anyone working with death should read, ESPECIALLY if they are working with what happens after death. It’s a good way to prepare for what you may see.

I honestly have a whole TBR list that covers strictly death and dying, I need to get back to reading and covering those books on this blog, but if you’re interested in my TBR so you can take a look yourself and see what catches your attention, just let me know!

As for podcasts, I have my favorites.

The Mortuary Show is probably my all time favorite. It covers a little bit of everything when it comes to mortuary science and is honestly part of what inspired me to get into this field to begin with! It’s fun, and easy to listen to. I spent countless hours binge listening to it while on long road trips or while I worked on some of my various hobbies.

Another great one, ESPECIALLY if you’re going to school for Mortuary Science is The Funeral Science Podcast by Ben Schmidt. I will warn, this can be a little difficult to listen to, as it’s meant for education rather than entertainment. It feels like a lecture because Ben is a professor as far as I can recall. But it’s an asset I’m so glad I found before going to school.

Finally, a short one, but another good one is Coffin Conversations by Lauren the Mortician. I’ve always been a huge fan of Lauren and how she keeps everyone up to date about the latest death news. I wish she had done more with her podcast, but regardless, it’s very eye opening into how working in the industry can emotionally affect you and the people around you.

Another podcast which I haven’t had the opportunity to listen to just yet is MortMic, but as soon as I have the time that one is going to be next!

[itsrileyiguess]

I would like to apologize to the casket delivery guy who watched me trip on a snow shovel and eat shit in our back warehouse, and then yeet that thing while yelling "FUCKING SAFETY HAZARD".

Im having a day

[charonsintern]

Podcast

Just listen to it, it is awesome

If you need a good option for a will & Trust (which btw you dont need to be richy richt o get a trust set up), check out trust&will.

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 7 (Spoiler Free)

In your opinion, what’s the worst way to die?

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 6 (Spoiler Free)

This one is another question for my death care professionals. What is your trick to handling decomposition cases? Maybe it’s how you tend to the body, how you combat the smell, or how you psychologically handle yourself during or after the fact.

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 5 (Spoiler Free)

What is a murder case you’ll never forget? Maybe it was one you worked as a death industry employee, maybe it’s just one you know of as a true crime junkie.

[talesfromthemorgue]

You should read the graphic novel smoke gets in your eyes by Anaïs Flogny. Perfect queer mafia literature with beautiful art and an impeccable story. And it shares the same title with that other book you really like, haha!

I’ll definitely have to look into just as a personal read, though I likely won’t cover it on this blog as what I cover on here has to do with nonfiction death sciences, but I am interested regardless and I appreciate the suggestion!

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 4 (Spoiler Free)

What was the most gruesome death case you’ve seen or heard of? You don’t have to go into detail if you don’t want to, a simple Cause of Death or name of the case (if it made the news) will suffice

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 3 (Spoiler Free)

This one is for my death industry workers, regardless of what your job is. What is a case you had a hard time with? Maybe it was difficult mentally, or simply physically. What made it difficult?

[talesfromthemorgue]

Discussion Question

Working Stiff by Judy Melinek, M.D. and T.J. Mitchell - Chapter 2 (Spoiler Free)

What is the most bizarre or interesting Cause of Death’s you’ve seen or heard of? Anything that makes you go “how can that possibly happen?”

[madnessintoopera]