Had an interesting day yesterday, which is why I didn't post. I have Mrs. Bug-out renter staying with me because she had a couple of doctor appointments in town this week that I was going to help transport her to. Mr. Bug-out renter stayed home. His aged mother has lived with them for a few weeks because she got kicked out of her adult care facility (thanks Medicare for saying that she didn't need the extra help because she was fine). Aged mother was from Nevada and they transported her in their tiny pickup from there to here. She needed round the clock care so Mr. Bug-out renter couldn't help with the doctor appointments. Not a problem, I'll help out.
We got a text message right around dinner last night that aged mother died. He called 911 and just waited. (The ambulance arrived in 24 minutes and it was a priority one. This means that if there's a fire or something it will take the engine 24 minutes to arrive.) I got the family fed, including the extras since we had son and his family plus Army daughter and her family plus Mrs. renter plus myself and the grandkids. Got the kids put to bed and then headed up the hill to the Bug-out place.
Since aged mother's burial plot and prepaid funeral arrangements were in Nevada the question was how to get her from here to there. Also, the bug-out renters are very poor, they barely have the money to drive there and who knows how they'd come up with the money to get home. Mr. renter was going to drive dead aged mom back to Nevada last night. We found out that it's illegal to transport a dead person across state lines unless they are embalmed. Since he had called 911 it was known that she died in California. Fortunately someone from the local trauma intervention program was able to help out and get aged mom picked up by a local funeral home to be embalmed. That funeral home is going to work it out with the prepaid place in Nevada.
It still leave the question of how to get aged mom there. Mr. Bug-out renter is going to drive her (she's going to be in the back of the truck) back to Nevada for a nice burial. I told them I'd pay for gas.
All I want is a little peace and quiet and not any drama! Some day, perhaps when I'm the aged parent? I'll be the one causing the drama but won't know it!
But this got me thinking as I was driving back home after midnight, and coming home to find Mrs. Bug-out renter sleeping in my bed so that I'd wake her up and tell her everything that was going on at her house. I sat on the bed and worked on my paracord belt as I retold the evenings events. But it really struck a cord with me.
What do you do with a dead body? Fortunately I didn't have to participate in making a quick 5 hour run to the border with a body in my truck. The grandkids were having fun this morning talking about who would want to sit next to the dead aged mom during the trip. At least they have a sense of humor. Of course it wasn't their grandmother or mother.
Sure we have ideas such as burials at the local cemetery, at sea, cremation, or however and where ever you want your remains to be. What if TSHTF? Are you prepared to deal with a dead body? I have a body bag in my gear but that won't prepare me for emotional distress of the death of a loved one. (I've been around many dead bodies. It's not too emotional. Their soul is not there so it makes it just a body. Of course this all changes when it's a loved one because you are suffering the loss of their being in your life.) Is burial in your yard something that can be done? What about something like the earthquake and then disease in Haiti? Mass burials. I wouldn't want that. How quickly can you dig a deep hole?
Here in CO, the locals all told us when we were first settling in to dig several holes during the fall in “the back yard” (40 acres) in case of animal deaths over the winter. It’s not easy to do that. Luckily we didn’t lose any of our animals or wife, but in the dead of winter, it can be a problem if you need to dispose of a body and the ground is frozen. Oddly enough, here where I live you can bury a body on your own property. Several houses on the way to town have tombstones in their front yard. Creepy if you have to move, I guess. Either grandma comes with, or the new owners get a graveyard, free of charge.
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