Category: death

Posted on

Is This Woman Wrong for Not Giving Her Late Wife’s Ring Back to Her Family? Here’s What People Said.

I think that I’d be pretty eager to honor a friend or family member’s wishes after they passed away…even if it meant there would be some conflict…

And that’s exactly the situation a guy who shared his story on Reddit’s “Am I The A**hole?” page finds himself in after honoring his late wife’s wishes.

Let’s take a look to see what transpired.

AITA for refusing to return my late wife’s ring to the family”

“I (F30) married my wife (F36) a year ago.

We had been together 6 years, married for 1 before she passed away. It has been a really rocky time for me and I am still struggling but getting there, day by day.

My wife had been close with her grandmother when she was growing up and when she passed away her grandmother left a beautiful ring which had been in the family for generations. My wife used this ring to propose to me and it also became my wedding ring.

I have worn it everyday since she gave it to me, and it is truly my most precious item from her. It feels like she is with me always and when I look at it, it brings my heart some happiness to remember our time together. My wife even spent money on the ring to get it restored as it had a few cosmetic faults, but by doing this it more or less doubled the value too.

It is very unique and shaped like a snake with a diamond in its head and rubies for the eyes, the diamond was cracked and the blue enamel needed repairing which she did before proposing.

My BIL has now decided to propose to his girlfriend and he wants to use the snake ring as their grandmother wanted the ring to be used as an engagement ring for when one of her grandchildren wanted to marry, a first come first serve situation, although, it was never really expected her granddaughter would be doing the proposing it was always assumed the boys would offer it to their gfs but my wife got there and did it first and that was that.

It was never really questioned either as my wife and she had been so close too. Nobody had any objections at the time as the ring was still within the family and neither of my BILs were anywhere near getting engaged.

I refused to give the ring back and now I have caused a huge rift with my family in law. My MIL and BILs are all calling me an AH as they want the ring to continue being part of their family and to be passed down in the generations as it was expected to.

I am distraught, my wife and I were not big sentimental gift givers and this is honestly the only thing she was truly proud to gift me, it was a huge deal for us and meant the world to both of us.

My family in law have also thrown in my face that the grandmother wouldn’t even have wanted me to have it since she was Russian and would very much be against a same s** couple.

This really hurts and feels like a low blow as although it’s definitely true I was accepted my my family in law. The grandmother had long been gone before I met my wife. They are now saying that it should go to the boys as she intended.

It’s all got really nasty and I just don’t know what to do. The family have even offered to buy the ring off me for the full value of the ring with the repairs but I refuse. It is the only thing I have of my wife and parting with it feels like the only piece I have left of my broken heart being taken away.

AITA?”

Wow…what a story.

Now let’s take a look at how folks on Reddit reacted.

This person said that widows aren’t expected to return their rings. Plain and simple.

Photo Credit: Reddit

Another reader argued that the family is acting horribly in this situation and that the woman who wrote the post is, at the end of the day, the rightful owner of the ring whether they like it or not.

Photo Credit: Reddit

Another Reddit user said that the woman’s late wife would undoubtedly be ashamed of her family for acting this way.

Photo Credit: Reddit

And lastly, this reader said that the woman’s family is actually dishonoring their late daughter with their behavior.

I think I agree…

Photo Credit: Reddit

Do you think this guy did the right thing?

Or is he acting hard-headed?

Talk to us in the comments and share your thoughts. Thanks!

The post Is This Woman Wrong for Not Giving Her Late Wife’s Ring Back to Her Family? Here’s What People Said. appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

People Who Have Almost Died Shared What Their “Last Thoughts” Were

This is kind of a scary thought to ponder.

What do you imagine your last thoughts would be if you knew you were going to die.

That’s what the folks you’re about to hear from were faced with…but luckily they all survived…

Let’s see what these AskReddit users had to say.

1. Calm.

“Oh sh*t, my sister had to see me drown.”

I felt pretty calm about it though.”

2. Ouch.

“”Your shoe is untied”

I said that to my dad before promptly falling down a 20 foot cliff into the underbrush. Broken arm, fractured skull, ruptured kidney.

Woke up two weeks later to my dad saying thanks for letting him know his shoe was untied as he could have tripped.”

3. I can understand that.

“As I was getting the Heimlich I remember thinking how embarrassing it would be to die at a Renaissance Fair.”

4. Gonna be messy.

“My heart stopped beating for 7 seconds while I was eating dinner in my hospital bed waiting to be discharged.

I realized I was going to pass out and put my arm across my plate so I wouldn’t fall face-first into it. All I could think of was “this is gonna make a mess.” Glad they took their time with the paperwork.

Ended up walking out of there 7 days later with a pacemaker at the age of 46.”

5. Scary.

“Have you ever had a headache that was so bad? I mean, like call your parents and ask them if you were still on the healthcare plan? Even though you live in Canada and they live in the USA?

Yes, I’ve had this pain, i felt as if my head was goin to implode. I was half right. I had a brain clot. Then bleed.

So a stroke and a aneurysm all at once. My last thought before I regained consciousness weeks later?

I don’t want to die in this sh*tty ground level apartment.”

6. Wow.

“‘Sh*t, wasn’t the car that hit me white?’

As I’m looking down at a car underneath me.

I’d been hit hard enough I bounced up over the car that hit me and had enough air time to clear the second one.

Props to the driver of the third vehicle, he must’ve stood on the d*mned brakes the moment he saw me because he brought the cement truck to a stop before it got to me.

Second time I was hit by a car as a pedestrian. I’m now MUCH more careful crossing streets.. not that it’s helped much, I seem to have a car magnet in my *ss.”

7. No place like home.

“I almost died on a mountain last month.

The thoughts while I was free soloing the cliff were just “I would give anything to be at home safe”.”

8. I feel weird.

““My throat feels weird, my gums are itchy” and blackness like a deep sleep.

Woke up a bit later, found out I was allergic to crab the hard way.”

9. Bad accident.

“I had a guy turn in front of me at a light. My last thought before impact weas, “my bike is only 3 weeks old”.

About 5 minutes later, about 100 feet down the road where I landed, I got into it with the paramedics who wouldn’t let me sit up to check on my bike. Eventually sat up far enough to see her ripped in two. laid back down and shut the f*ck up.”

10. A big jolt.

“I was in the process of being electrocuted, having been working all day atop a scissors lift.

The electricians had left a 277-volt line live and while I was standing and reaching while running the last low-voltage run of the job, I contacted their line. I saw the white light at the end of the tunnel. All I knew was throbbing and 60-cycle noise and the white light.

My last thought was “I wonder if I can tell my knees to unlock?” Obviously they did, since I am here typing this. Severe electrical burns, still here livin ‘ the life!”

11. Bad luck.

“Three times.

Once almost drowning in the deep end of a pool, once trapped under a flipped ATV in a river, and once being shot at by a crazy old man who thought I was a deer.

I thought of my mom crying every time.”

12. Pizza on the brain.

“I thought about how I didn’t buy enough pizzas from my favorite pizza place.

It’s pretty good, but thinking about pizza when you think you’re dying is pretty depressing in retrospect.”

13. Terrifying.

“I was stabbed in the neck by someone robbing my house.

I totally thought I was going to die. I hate myself, but I begged the guy who stabbed me to stay because I didn’t want to die alone. He said “Sorry” and walked away.

That broke my heart. Thankfully he called 911 for me.”

14. This is how it ends?

“”I can’t believe this is how I die.”

Drunk, falling off a 30 foot cliff into about 2 feet of water at Lake Havasu, Arizona on Spring Break.

It just hurt really bad.”

15. Ehhhh…

“Was in a pretty severe car crash in my mid teens – we got tboned by a big Ford van coming home from school one afternoon. I could have swore our light was green but witnesses said my friend went though a red.

I remember looking over and seeing the van and thinking “Eh.” I pretty much resigned immediately to what was about to happen.

I was sitting in the front passenger seat holding onto the little handle above the door – the window blew out and and I had hundreds of little cuts on my arm neck and face it looked like rats had been chewing at me and I had a couple bits of glass in my hand.

The passenger side door crushed in far enough to hit me and left fabric imprint all down my side, completely knocked the wind out of me, and cracked two ribs.

After I caught my breath I had to crawl out of the drivers side, my hand bleeding all over the place, but was so amped up on adrenaline I hardly noticed any pain. The next day I could hardly move I was so sore. Almost my whole right side was bruised. It hurt to breathe too deeply.

My friends mom showed me pictures of the car, it was really surprising I got off as well as I did.”

Have you ever had a near-death experience?

If so, talk to us in the comments and tell us your story.

We’d love to hear from you. Thanks a lot!

The post People Who Have Almost Died Shared What Their “Last Thoughts” Were appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

Should Everyone Be Cremated Because Cemeteries Are a Waste of Space? Here’s How People Responded.

In my humble opinion, people should be able to do whatever they want with their bodies when they die.

Want to be buried? Cool.

Leaning toward getting cremated? Go for it!

Want to be put on a raft and set on fire and pushed out to sea? Actually, I’m not sure if that’s legal, but it sounds pretty cool.

The question posed to AskReddit users was, “Should all people be cremated because cemeteries are a waste of space?”

Let’s check out the responses.

1. More trees, please.

“Keep the cemeteries, but instead of just burying people’s bodies, bury them with a tree seed.

So we can have a bunch of trees instead of rotting dead bodies.”

2. A place to remember.

“I’m still happy to have a place to go and sit and still talk with my husband even though he’s six feet below now.

I feel like it may not be quite the same if it was just ashes to the wind.

I like to picture both of us together on that mountainside someday.”

3. Habitats.

“In a lot of cities, cemeteries are important habitat for a lot of animals and birds.

They’re large stretches of green space that aren’t too frequently visited by (living) people, so are important refuges.

Although I agree with you that there are less impactful methods of interment, and I don’t want to be buried, I quietly support them for the animals.”

4. To each their own.

“I have opted for a green burial when my time comes. The whole embalming-casket-headstone thing creeps me out.

But I get that green burials creep other people out. It’s just that my way leaves room for future generations unlike traditional graveyards.”

5. Please cremate me.

“I want to be cremated and spread in the forests of my home, laws allowing.

My fiancé is wholeheartedly against this, wanting to be buried side by side.

I don’t like being around a lot of people while I’m alive, what makes you think I want to be close to other people in death for eternity?”

6. I agree, BUT…

“I do think that some cemeteries are way too big and a waste of space, but as someone who lost both of my grandparents this year, I’m very glad to be able to go and see them.

I have a big family, and if they weren’t buried, I would have to go to someone else’s house to see their urns.

Since they’re in a cemetery, I can go and sit and talk to them about what’s going on as long as I want.”

7. Emotional support.

“Having a place to go visit a loved one even after they pass away is a huge emotional support for many people.”

8. Respect the dead.

“I don’t necessarily like cemeteries and what they do, but all matters of body disposal isn’t really environmentally friendly regardless. My biggest thing about death is respecting the dead.

Do what they want you to do with their body. Don’t be disrespectful  because “they’re dead and don’t care”. Like if they told you a plan, they obviously cared while they were here and did not want you to do the opposite.

Your final say before you die is how you shall be taken care of and it disgusts me when a family doesn’t respect the final request because they don’t agree with it.”

9. A new idea.

“Cremation is a terrible waste of fuel and source of pollution.

What would make sense is to bury bodies in a biodegradable sack, and after they’ve decomposed for 50 years or so, after everyone who remembered them is dead, recycle the ground for another grave.”

10. Make them more beautiful.

“Some people are (due to religion) are only allowed to be buried.

But I think they should make cemetery’s more like….parks? Like maybe some trees and have like sidewalks.

It would be more prettier and also less depressing that bodies just laying all in a row.”

11. Get natural.

“Cremation increases the carbon footprint. Each death is 100 L of fuel and 200 kg of CO2.

It also risks burning the cremation center (anything that handles fires, gets fires).

I recommend natural burials: no casket, no chemicals, bury me directly in a field. I just become anonymous compost, and create trees or something.”

12. See you on the road!

“I don’t get why people are so caught up with being preserved after death.

It might be the atheist in me but throw me in the middle of the road and use me as a temporary speed bump.

At least that is more useful than being placed in a cemetery.”

13. Interesting point of view.

“If I learned one thing about cemeteries when working in one for some time, it’s that they exist to serve the living rather than the dead.

The dead don’t care, but the living need somewhere to mourn, somewhere memorialize their loved ones. We remain protective of our loved ones remains even after death, and burying them in a safe and beautiful place helps us in our grief.

This is what people critical of cemeteries don’t understand.

Another thing people often aren’t aware of is that the picture of a cemetery as a somber resting place that’s off limits for anything but grief hasn’t always been the case.

In the Victorian era it was perfectly common to hold picnics and other activities in the cemetery amongst your loved ones. In some senses it was a park, just one that bad a bunch of rocks in it.

If we went back to this mentality we wouldn’t have such as issue with cemeteries being a waste of space.”

14. Create gardens.

“Make it into a botanical gardens.

People pay for ceremonies where the deceased person’s ashes are scattered over the Japanese garden or the rose garden or the bamboo forest. Maybe put up kiosks of people’s names on small plaques with names and dates of birth/death.

Then people who want to visit their deceased loved ones can do so in beautiful surroundings.”

15. And then, there’s this.

“In the words of Danny De Vito, “when I’m dead just throw me in the trash.””

Cremation or burial?

What do you think you’d prefer?

Talk to us in the comments and let us know how you feel about this subject. Thanks!

The post Should Everyone Be Cremated Because Cemeteries Are a Waste of Space? Here’s How People Responded. appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

Hospital Workers Discuss Regrets They’ve Heard From Dying Patients

I’d like to think that when my time is up, I’ll have no regrets.

But I guess you never really know what that will be like until you reach the end of the road, right? I think that we can all agree that listening to people talk about regrets when they’re close to passing away has to be very hard…

Let’s take a look at these stories from folks on AskReddit.

1. Needed more time.

“I worked as an oncology nurse right out of nursing school. I was barely 21 years old.

Had a patient about my age who was dying of lung cancer. A few hours before he died I sat with him and he was telling me how much he wished that he would have had more time-to maybe fall in love, marry, have kids. He was so young.

He asked me to call his parents and he died shortly after they arrived. It was awful. His regrets were more about the life not lived. Many older patients had some interesting life stories and most wanted to tell them before they died.

Most were at peace with the life they lived. Many regretted working so much and not spending enough time with family.”

2. Cover up your skin!

“I was a hospice nurse. One of my elderly patients had skin cancer, a huge malignant melanoma on the side of his neck that was growing rapidly.

He had been a farmer all his life and never married. One night we were talking and I asked him if there was anything he wished he had done differently in his life, and he thought about it a minute and said he wished he had worn a hat when he was farming.

I wish he did too.”

3. I’m sorry I can’t help you.

“There was an old man. I’d play cards with him.

We’d talk about working on the farm we had. He was a nice guy. He figured out I was being physically abused. His health started declining and he couldn’t play cards or get out of bed. The last time I saw him.

He said he was sorry he wasn’t younger and that he couldn’t help me. Almost 25 yrs ago and I still remember him.”

4. Not yet.

“”Not yet! I can’t die yet. I still have so much growing to do. I want to see my children and grandchildren grow up…”

I am a physician trainee who has done a decent amount of palliative care. I have been privileged to hear many stories and be part of many deaths, but I still can’t explain why it is that certain lines remain with me and hit me so much harder.

The gentleman who told me the line above was in his late 60s-early 70s. It made me reflect on how I view patients in this age group – yes, much older than myself, but still with growing and living to do.”

5. A love story.

“I think of a woman in her 50s I met early on in my training.

She and her female partner had never married – partly due to laws, partly because it had never seemed important. When she was diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic cancer, they regretted never making that step.

I attended their small wedding in the hospital. She died a few days later.”

6. Heartbreaking.

“I had a patient who I was in the room with when her doctor explained she only had a few weeks to live. I knew her well, spent quite a bit of time talking to her up to the news.

The days that followed, she seemed to have accepted she was dying. She lived this beautiful, independent, and successful life, maybe not money successful, but just plain happy.

Anyways when I was helping her to the tub on day 10 since receiving the news, she just broke down crying and couldn’t stop crying about how much she wished she didn’t put her dog down b/c they could have died together.

Come to find out her dog was on his death bed too. I guess she put her dog down a few days before going into the hospital, she knew her life was over so she put him down first. She hated herself for it and for the fact she blew the opportunity for them to spend their last moments together. Really heartbreaking to watch, to hear that unfold.

She passed early in the morning two days later. I took a couple of mental health days off after she passed and spent some time looking up dogs to adopt and new jobs to apply for.”

7. Over a boy.

“I had a 17 year old girl that came in on a Tylenol overdose.

I normally don’t listen or really even get invested with patients because it’s usually the same faces on a loop but she kept trying to strike up a conversation and eventually I relented and she told me how stupid she was and it was over a boy and where she was going to go to college and what she wanted to do and basically her life story.

I left and she was stable in the ER. Next day I came in and asked if she went home or if she was in an inpatient unit. They told me she died a few hours after my shift.

It’s been like 5 years and thinking about it I start crying like a baby. I don’t cry. I think the last time I cried other than this was my grand pa passing but even that I can discuss without crying now.

Her death is the only thing that completely breaks me down.”

8. Different regrets.

“Top regret was not spending time with family and/or lost time due to a family feud.

Probably number two was wasting their life with their spouse (for various reasons) when they could have possibly been with someone they loved/met a soul mate.

Number three was usually not accomplishing a bucket list item such as living in a foreign country.”

9. This is horrible.

“27 year old male who tried to end his life, died from the injuries. I still remember it clearly, he told me his entire life story. I didn’t sleep for a few days after hearing it and sometimes it still haunts me to this day.

He was bullied in middle school straight until the end of high school. He had mild Aspergers and was quite intelligent but because of his looks and weird mannerisms he was picked on.

Then it got worse.

The girls would make him drink out of the toilet, the guys would chokehold him until he passed out or tied him up inside the gym and woke up alone after school ended, only to go home and get beaten by his parents for being late.

The girls would often make up fake accusations and he’d be suspended, only to be beaten up by parents once more. The guys would steal his clothes and toss them in the dumpster only for him to go crawling in it while naked.

The girls would replace his lunch with rotten food or feces, the guys would pelt him with rocks. It was just unf*cking believable.

He finished high school but just barely, dropped out of college and left home to go into the service industry but it only got worse for him there as he couldn’t do well with stress.

He had his own issues, said he was one of those incels and his only reason for living was so that others could abuse him to make themselves feel better. Told me he tried to end it because he was tired of it and also financially broken by then (this was around 2008 mind you).

He said he wish he stood up for himself from the start, perhaps things would have turned out differently for him.

He passed away a few days later while I was off shift. We all knew inside that he wasn’t going to make it from the start given his injuries, but I still listened to the story and it haunts me to this day.

I hope he’s at peace now.”

10. Didn’t get the surgery.

“I remember of this 40 year old patient that I had was dying from breast cancer that spread throughout her body. She was diagnosed with breast cancer 10 years earlier and had a mastectomy.

The doctor recommended for her to have a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction due to high risk of recurrence of cancer. She said that she wanted to keep her breast (a real breast rather than an implant) incase she remarries and will be somewhat whole.

She regretted not getting the bilateral mastectomy. If she did, she would not gotten cancer in her remaining breast and dying at such a young age. The patient never ended up marrying after all.

A week later, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I instantly told the doctor that I want a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. I also had an aggressive form of cancer.

My doctor kept pushing a lumpectomy which I probably would’ve gotten before I have heard how much she regretted her decision. I feel that she actually saved my life sharing and opening up with her regret of all time.”

11. A better father…

“He wished he had been a better father to his daughter.

He wished they had reconnected. His dementia prevented him from remembering they had reconnected years before and that she visited often.

I wish I could have made him aware that he had accomplished his last wish. But he died not really understanding that.”

12. What they didn’t get to do.

“I’m a hospice social worker, so I have the honor of getting to listen to peoples’ life stories, including favorite memories and regrets. Most regrets center around what they didn’t get to do, like never traveling to Italy when their family was originally from Naples.

Some regret not getting specific education – wanting to go to college but never doing it. Some regret their choice in partner, especially when alcohol/drug abuse was involved, or cheating. Many express a sadness that looks a lot like regret if they are estranged from family. And some have anticipatory grief from knowing they will miss a milestone, like the birth of a grandchild.

Some regret not taking better care of their health (people with COPD who regret ever having a cigarette). In general life is long and time smooths some of the rough edges, so people tend to focus on the good.”

13. More time.

“I work in a hospital. Whenever someone is at the end of their life, they always just want to be with their loved ones.

Any regrets I’ve heard is always family related. They wanted more time with the people they love. Most people are at peace with things though.

People also tend to wish they took their health seriously.”

14. Frank.

“He was one of my first patients as a nursing student, named Frank. He was 92.

After knowing him a few days, he disclosed to me his regret was outliving everyone he loved.. that he and his wife hadn’t had kids, and he was “all that was left” and that he wanted to see his wife again.

I wasn’t sure how to respond , so I just listened… and it made me realize how living so long isn’t great if everyone you love is gone.

He passed away later that week, and while I distinctly recall some of my classmates being upset, I felt relief for him. I knew he was where he wanted to be. I’ve had many patients since, but you tend to remember your first ones.”

Have you ever heard any last words from someone?

Patients? Friends? Loved ones?

Please share your stories with us in the comments.

The post Hospital Workers Discuss Regrets They’ve Heard From Dying Patients appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

Thoughts From People Who Have Been Told They’re About to Die

Nobody likes to think about death even when it seems like a far away concept; something you likely have decades to think about before you truly have to face it. Imagine the mental burden of dealing with the thought of death when you know that it’s much, much closer. When it’s less of an abstraction and more of an oncoming train, how do you prioritize your thoughts and your grief and make use of the time you have left?

These posts are real, anonymously submitted confessions from people who likely don’t have much time left.

10. Predictions

You wouldn’t be the first to beat the odds.

Source: Whisper

9. Colors of the fall

It’s depressing to think how many of us spend our last days in such a sad place.

Source: Whisper

8. Death and birth

The truly tragic part here is how young this person must be…

Source: Whisper

7. Secrets revealed

How do you choose who to tell these things?

Source: Whisper

6. Living it up

Haven’t we all thought about this?

Source: Whisper

5. The burden of knowledge

What they do know might hurt them.

Source: Whisper

4. The undiscovered country

What comes after this? A new place? Nothingness? Both are intimidating.

Source: Whisper

3. Stability

What a horrible place to be.

Source: Whisper

2. 90 day notice

There’s so much to figure out and so little time.

Source: Whisper

1. Fight song

Some will never stop swinging.

Source: Whisper

Death is a beast. It doesn’t just take the life of someone, it scars the lives of those who loved that person. Remember to hold each other tight. Appreciate and be kind to each other. You never know when it may be someone’s time to go.

Do you think about death much? If so, what pops into your head?

Discuss it in the comments.

The post Thoughts From People Who Have Been Told They’re About to Die appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

Funeral Organizers Share the Strangest Funerals They’ve Organized

You have to be a certain kind of person to work in the funeral business.

I’d imagine it takes someone who is calm, collected, and is able to comfort others and make them feel welcome during very hard times.

Obviously, you also have to be very accommodating and make the family members of deceased people happy when it comes to what they want for their loved one’s funeral.

Folks on AskReddit who work in the funeral industry talked about the strangest and most unique funerals they’ve ever witnessed.

1. Wow…

“A family asked us to play some hardcore gangster rap for their mother/grandmother at her service and we happily obliged. I can’t quite remember the name of the song but it had heavy themes of murder, drug use and pretty foul language.

Her service was then finished with a recital of the Lord’s Prayer.”

2. Family tradition.

“Long line of funeral directors.

My great grandfather buried a lady that was over 8 feet talk and worked as a performer for the circus. He had to use an oversized display model for the casket and sat on the coffin for seats (horses back then). Buried the whole site with concrete to keep out grave robbers.

Heard she was a really nice lady.”

3. I’d like to see this.

“A “Viking” funeral.

Putting the ashes of the deceased out to sea in a little boat fashioned out of salt and covered with dry flowers/kindling. Fashioning biodegradable arrows with flaming tips. Everyone shot flaming arrows at the boat and it caught fire then dissolved into the sea.

(Now to be clear, Vikings never did any of this but Hollywood gave people ideas…)

Apparently I am not the first, but it was cool. Put the “fun” back in “funeral.””

4. Whatever you want.

“Former funeral director.

Usually ran the back of the house but met with families on a few occasions. Met with the parents of a 16 year old girl who had died in a car crash. Arrangements were tough at first because how could they not be. We got the official stuff out of the way and then talked about what she (the deceased) would’ve wanted.

Ended up re-arranging the funeral home so that the lobby had crock pots of boiled peanuts and a lounge with the Lion King playing. Inside the main parlor was a purple-themed dance party. The pinnacle of the evening was the girl’s mom leading everyone in doing “the wiggle.”

It was amazing and I am still floored by this family for being able to really celebrate their daughter’s life in this way.”

5. Couldn’t get the timing right.

“Some retired admiral died, and his wife “insisted” that a group of F-18s perform a flyover during the service. Well, this was extremely difficult to pull off, for numerous reasons.

Anyway, the owner of the funeral home was able to make it happen. Unfortunately, the flyover was roughly 2-3 minutes earlier then scheduled.

The wife was so mad that she tried to withhold paying.”

6. Big fan.

“I’m hired frequently to play violin at funerals.

Not sure it qualifies as weird, but it was definitely unique.

Woman died in her late 80’s. Her entire family was there, including 3 or 4 great grandkids even. She had a big family and was well liked in her community, so there was about 100-150 people there. Everyone was dressed super nice, and from talking to everyone, it was clear no one knew what was coming…

Turns out, their grandmother was a huge LotR fan. So, she had a Lord of the Rings themed funeral, with me playing ‘Concerning Hobbits’, ‘Gandalfs’ fall, and the like. It was fun, but the shock on everyone’s faces was hilarious!”

7. Gone fishin’.

“Been in the industry 20 years, my family for over 125 years. The most interesting one I personally organized was a young guy in his early 20’s who loved to fish.

So we put him in his canoe for the viewing/service, and he was cremated later. The service was at a church, the canoe was way too big for the hearse.

The lesson to take away is: You never know exactly whats in a U-Haul.”

8. Human taxidermy?

“Not a funeral organizer, but I work with someone in that business.

I thought everyone was joking until I actually saw the pictures. They had a guy whose family wanted him staged and posed for the viewing.

Like instead of an open casket laying peacefully, they literally had him mounted on his motorcycle in full gear: leather jacket, backwards hat, sunglasses. It was one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen, like it gave me human taxidermy vibes.”

9. Very weird.

“So this is not a weird thing that happened, it’s rather the community. I’m not an organizer myself, but my dad is and I help out sometimes.

I’m living in Germany and we have some kind of remainder of the 3rd reich called Reichsbürger. Just google them, some crazy people…

So usually the are distributed, but for their comrade who recently passed they gathered together to about 50 people. It was so surreal that something like this still exists and is even allowed to do so. I didn’t know about this before and I think I’ll never forget about it.”

10. Surreal.

“I was a Licensed funeral director and embalmer in numerous states but this event happened in Miami Florida a woman Jewish woman with substantial money died in Miami Beach, we brought to the funeral home and embalmed her( more to this) we did a typical service Rabbi in the House and was going to be a graveside Service.

Days prior to that though the woman’s dream of dying was to go be buried in her Mercedes Benz 1984 convertible so we brought the Mercedes to the cemetery and measured and calculated how deep how wide to get the Mercedes 6 feet under and with her in the driver seat and embalmed with her hands and arms stretched out and around the steering wheel.

I looked in and it was so bizarre and surrealI and I will never experience that again mainly because I’m not a funeral director anymore.

Anyway the grave was covered up everybody said their goodbyes and I imagine to this day she’s still there driving around.”

11. This is…odd…

“One was a “Wizard of Oz”-themed funeral, where the deceased woman had loved the original movie and requested that music from it be used.

Pall bearers and friends of the family dressed in costumes of the principal characters as they entered the church, including dozens of Munchkins, Toto, and the Witch.

There wasn’t a dry eye after the eulogy when the soloist sang “Over the Rainbow,” but many smiles as the coffin was carried out of the church en route to the cemetery as everyone sang “We’re Off to See the Wizard, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz!”

12. Skateboarding is life.

“An older, well known, local skater died and we held a Skate Funeral. Hung his board, pads and helmet on the fence.

A good friend of his eulogized him. Some other folks told some stories about him. After that we all pounded our boards on the pavement in synch for about 5 minutes, chanting his name and his various handles.

Skated hard to his favorite bands and passed the hat for his family…I have been to much worse funerals.”

13. Start your engines.

“My parents are pastors and I would help them out occasionally. One guy had a NASCAR themed funeral.

The coffin had headlights and in the middle of the service, the kids in attendance got to slap stickers onto the coffin.

They also played car noises as the pallbearers moved the coffin.”

14. In the Deep South.

“Was a funeral director in the Deep South for about 4 years. We did quite a few Free Mason funeral services and they were always quite interesting to watch. Especially when the Free Mason brotherhood came to perform their burial rites.

Had a lady who died and as per her request she only wanted Lynyrd Skynyrd music playing(sweet home Alabama,Free Bird etc.)in the chapel during the wake and before and after the eulogy was given.

Did a funeral for a convicted pedophile that spent the last 40 years in prison and died while in it due to natural causes. Was odd to witness just 4 people show up for funeral service.”

15. In pieces.

“My dad was a funeral director in a small town.

One day, a guy called and said, I’m going to be dropping off my foot this afternoon. He was like, what?

The guy was diabetic and had to get his foot amputated. He had already purchased a burial plot in a local cemetery, and wanted his foot to be buried there with the rest of him to follow eventually.

Sure enough, the guy came in a wheelchair with a bug bundle containing his foot. He insisted that my dad embalm it. So, he did. It was then buried in his plot.

About a year later, the guy calls up again. “I’m going to be bringing over my leg, I need you to embalm it and have it buried.” Apparently his diabetes had continued to progress, and they had to amputate the leg opposite of the one that was missing its foot. So, my dad dutifully embalmed it and arranged for it to be buried.

About another year or so goes by, and the man finally dies.

My dad embalmed him and saw to it that he was buried with the rest of the parts which preceded him in death.”

Wow…I don’t think that’s an industry I’d be comfortable working in AT ALL.

Now we want to hear from you.

In the comments, please tell us about any unusual funerals you’ve been to.

We look forward to hearing from you!

The post Funeral Organizers Share the Strangest Funerals They’ve Organized appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

Running Once a Week Is Linked to a Decrease in the Risk of Early Death

This is excellent news for all you runners out there. And for those who don’t incorporate running as part of your regular routine, this might make you dig out your jogging shoes and hit the gym or the track pretty soon.

A study from the British Journal of Sports Medicine compiled data from 232,149 people whose habits were tracked for between 5.5 and 35 years. The researchers found that those who ran had a 27% lower risk of death than people who didn’t run.

Tp be clear, the study doesn’t guarantee that being a regular runner will lower your risk of early death, but it shows that there is definitely a link between the two.

Running with Sue

The results of the study also suggest that you don’t need to be an extremely dedicated runner to get some of the health benefits, either. Researchers found that people who run less than 50 minutes per week, only once a week, or at speeds below 6 mph had similar results as intense runners re: early death rates. Non-runners did not.

Željko Pedišić, a co-author of the study, said, “This finding may be motivating for those who cannot invest a lot of time in exercise, but it should definitely not discourage those who already engage in higher amounts of running.”

Jogging 2010

So if you’re not a serious runner, or your schedule of work, family, kids, etc. doesn’t allow for you to run every day, at least consider getting out for one long jog a week or a few shorter jaunts.

Pedišić says that this also might help with your blood pressure, cholesterol, and keeping cancer and cardiovascular disease at bay.

Get out there and start running!

The post Running Once a Week Is Linked to a Decrease in the Risk of Early Death appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

15 People Admit Which Fictional Deaths Hit Them the Hardest

I have a ton of these. Johnny and Dally from The Outsiders immediately come to mind. Don’t even get me started on Old Yeller.

People on AskReddit shared the fictional deaths that hit them right in the gut.

What characters have died in books, movies, or TV that really affected you? Share your thoughts in the comments.

1. The Green Mile.

“John Coffey, The Green Mile. A sweet and innocent soul, blessed (or cursed) with the gift of sight. Sight into people’s hearts and minds. He was accused of murder having come across the bodies of two murdered children (whom he had tried to save). He healed and eased others suffering by taking it into himself.

The scene where he is in the electric chair, terrified, and everyone is watching with accusatory eyes. The guards know of his innocence and are heartbroken because there is nothing they can do. That scene gets me every time. Michael Clark Duncan was a magnificent pick for that role.”

2. That is sad.

“When I was a small child, my father invented stories about a truck that worked hard and drove challenging roads all over the world

Then, he ran out of stories, and sent the truck to the junkyard

Made me very sad as a small child who loved trucks

At age 66, makes me sad to remember.”

3. That is a difficult one.

“Brooks in Shawshank Redemption :’( .”

4. No spoilers back then.

“Spock. Saw it in the theater. Didn’t know it was comin. No internet spoilers back then, lol.”

5. Didn’t see that coming.

“Sweets from Bones.

Did not see that coming.”

6. All choked up.

“Charlotte in Charlotte’s Web. It’s been forty years and I still can’t even think about it without getting choked up.”

7. Upset about this one.

“Prim. Threw the book across the room. What was this all for?”

8. “I was inconsolable.”

“I read Where the Red Fern Grows as a teen. When the dog Old Dan died after saving Billy from a mountain lion. Followed by the other dog Little Ann of a broken heart. I was inconsolable.”

9. Poor Opie…

“Opie in Sons of Anarchy.”

10. Was rooting for him.

“Hank from Breaking Bad. Dude started the series as a stereotypical meathead that I thought I was gonna hate, but had one of the biggest character arcs besides Walt and Jesse. By the end I was rooting pretty hard for him. Imagine finding out someone close to you was a major druglord if you were a DEA agent IRL. That would have to be awful and embarrassing.”

11. Shocked by this one.

“Ned Stark. You watch the entire first season of GOT thinking he will be the main character and then he gets his damn head chopped off. It shocked me.”

12. Still sad about it.

“Sam the onion picker in Holes.

My man just wanted that lady to be his wife so they could live together in onion and peach filled bliss, and goddammit she wanted it too.

Still makes me sad to this day.”

13. Now and then.

“As a kid it was definitely Mufasa, that part of the film haunted me for months.

Now Yondu’s death makes me bawl, Romanoff’s makes my heart break and Danny’s death in Pearl Harbor is a very poignant one for me.”

14. Hits you hard.

“99, a deformed clone trooper who couldn’t serve in the clone wars and just worked as a janitor instead. When he sacrificed himself, that hit me.”

15. Too sad for me, can’t do it.

“The dog from Marley & Me.”

The post 15 People Admit Which Fictional Deaths Hit Them the Hardest appeared first on UberFacts.

Posted on

15 People Share the Ways They Would Absolutely Not Want to Die

This is an uncomfortable question to consider, but that’s what AskReddit is about sometimes, right?

What is a way you would absolutely NOT want to die?

AskReddit users shared their opinions on this unsettling question.

Share your thoughts in the comments below!

1. That’s not good

“I remember reading about this guy that fell into a pit of concrete powder, and he inhaled some of it. It set in his lungs, causing him to very slowly and painfully suffocate.”

2. Burning up

“Lava. it’s a lot worse than movies make it look.”

3. Uggghhhh

“Being put in a big metal container naked then having the container get heated by a fire. It would be way worse than just being caught on fire.”

4. In the mud

“Drown in the mud like soldiers during WWI.”

5. No!

“Glow Worms. The way they kill their prey is one of the most painful ways to die in the animal kingdom. They use the silk stands to attract prey, paralyse them, drill a hole in the side of their head and fill their insides with stomach acid, then leave them – for 2 weeks to digest.”

6. Nightmare

“Getting buried alive.”

7. Quite an imagination

“Surviving a High-speed Car crash only to come out of surgery, live in massive pain for two days and then your heart gives out from all the excruciating pain.

Or surviving a fire but over half your body is covered in 3rd Degree wounds, only to die weeks before being cleared to leave and having to spend all those years in the burn unit only to never see the outside world again.”

8. This is real and scary

“Brain eating amoeba.”

9. Yikes

“Being skinned.

I mean it like being flayed while fully conscious.”

10. Not ideal

“John Jones, who got stuck upside down in a super tight cave passage in Utah and rescuers couldn’t get him out… so they had to just let him die and then sealed the cave up.

Yeah. Not my ideal bucket kicking.”

11. Sounds like a horror movie

“Cheese grater.”

12. Enclosed

“My biggest fear is being crushed to death, or being stuck in such a way that I can’t move. I don’t have severe claustrophobia, I’ll climb in a small enclosed space if it’s safe no problem, I used to do it all the time when I was a welder. But seeing pictures like this just give me high blood pressure.”

13. Scary

“Driving off a bridge into deep water. Its never happened to me, but for some reason the sound of a windshield cracking upon impact with water and the feeling of a seatbelt digging into my neck and hips pop up in my nightmares a lot. I have a hard time crossing bridges in vehicles, thanks to that.”

14. Not pleasant

“That one torture method where they leave a rat on top of your stomach trapped and starve the rat so it digs through your stomach. Crucifixion sounds pretty bad too or being burned in gasoline .”

15. That’s depressing

“Dying alone and slowly from old age, after everyone I know is dead.”

The post 15 People Share the Ways They Would Absolutely Not Want to Die appeared first on UberFacts.