Comments on: Unusual choice of Halloween decorations for a retirement home

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 03:28:00 +0000

“It’s that he was speaking for the group.”

Ahh….Gotcha! Understood!

By: acerplatanoides

acerplatanoides — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:08:00 +0000

It’s that he was speaking for the group. Cheers!

By: Analog Kid

Analog Kid — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 10:39:00 +0000

Classy.

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 06:35:00 +0000

Cheers!

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 06:28:00 +0000

Well, yes, humiliating if you died on the toilet, or got hit by a bus — attention having been diverted by a bit of much-too-young omi tschotske.

But, if you went out in a hail of bullets, intrigue, bullets-intrigue or perhaps a conveyance malfunction (car or plane bomb) targeting you, not so ignominious and maybe romantic, if you still believe in romantic death, or, better yet stranding.

By: acerplatanoides

acerplatanoides — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 13:14:00 +0000

I believe that you do not, and I’m not concerned.

By: KittyDelAmour

KittyDelAmour — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:27:00 +0000

I have to agree with you. I work with the elderly at my job, and they crack wise about death and leave me at a loss for words. Let’s not even get into some of the gentlemen who are very appreciative of the ladies. They might be old – but they ain’t dead yet!

By: paul i

paul i — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:22:00 +0000

Gotta love the camera. It really send that “we don’t care enough about you to spend time with you but we want you to know you could be observed at any moment” vibe that seniors love so much.

By: Nell Anvoid

Nell Anvoid — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 12:07:00 +0000

I dunno. That wall looks a lot more attractive than Boca Raton.

By: chrimux

chrimux — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 11:56:00 +0000

Some jokes are only funny if the people addressed in this joke make them. If others do it, it is insensitive at least.

I used to visit relatives in retirement homes and most of them wish they could die. But this is entirely different to other people decorating their dining hall with tombstones. This gives the message “die!”

By: The Cynical Pharmacist

The Cynical Pharmacist — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 05:16:00 +0000

And in the cafeteria nonetheless.

By: Canton Demerick

Canton Demerick — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 04:44:00 +0000

Dying while on the lamb? That would be, uhh, humiliating to say the least.

By: onehoopyfrood

onehoopyfrood — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 04:31:00 +0000

I work on a dementia unit at a nursing home. One of our residents who suffers from Alzheimer’s recently received a birthday card from our management: “Hope your birthday brings many special moments TO REMEMBER” (caps mine) People don’t always think.

By: Justa .

Justa . — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 02:50:00 +0000

On the contrary, I think people are generally overly inclined to think of seniors as being comfortable with ‘death as a reality’ because we as younger people are relatively comfortable with death being a reality for older people, not necessarily ourselves. The 10 (and 20, 30, 40, etc) year old does live in the 80 year old…but I remember being terrified of death as a 10 year old, and I certainly haven’t been able to become what I’d call comfortable with it yet.

By: bersy

bersy — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 02:01:00 +0000

There is a similar scene in the dining room windows of my mother’s nursing home, and it does upset some residents, especially those with dementia. The decorations weren’t put up by the employees – they were provided by a family member of one of the residents. I admit to having a chuckle over it at first, but considering that many of the people there won’t live to see 2013, decorating with tombstones shows pretty poor judgement. These folks have lost so much – they don’t deserve to be reminded of their mortality in such an insensitive manner. So laugh, and then go buy a good long-term care insurance policy, ’cause most of us will end up needing a nursing home eventually.

By: voiceinthedistance

voiceinthedistance — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:24:00 +0000

Their tablecloths are festive as well as functional. Personally, I’m hoping for a little swifter demise, whenever it happens. I’d rather be crushed by a meteor than run over by a slow moving train.

By: Felton / Moderator

Felton / Moderator — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:23:00 +0000

Mostly.

By: Michael Smith

Michael Smith — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:11:00 +0000

My wife bought a burial plot for her living mother when her father died. She suggested we do the same but I declined. I am either going to go the Highlander route or leave no mortal remains.

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:57:00 +0000

I have seen this, but I haven’t seen the living person’s name covered with tape. Many times I’ve seen the name of the living partner and birth-year with a dash, and the death-year left blank. Someone mentioned to me that the living partner will find this comforting.

What is interesting is finding this set-up while browsing in an old cemetery, and the birth-year on the headstone of the surviving spouse indicates that they are without a doubt long-dead.

Did they remarry and are buried with the subsequent spouse? Did they die far, far away, perhaps while on the lamb? Are they a Highlander? Are they ‘Mr. Flint’, or ‘Prof. Oldman’, or someone like him and the others? Perhaps still alive and simply forgot to take care of this loose end before moving on?

By: IamInnocent

IamInnocent — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:57:00 +0000

They come at night.

By: cdh1971

cdh1971 — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:43:00 +0000

Hmmm…..I don’t find SunnJS’ post to be condescending or patronizing at all — and this being an online forum it’s pretty easy to do unintentionally give this impression. I was going to write something somewhat similar, but now maybe I won’t ’cause SJ said it well enough.

Heck, I won’t even correct SJ on the spelling of ‘bizarre’.

By: Sue Broch

Sue Broch — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 23:16:00 +0000

Actually, I think it is just a picture window.

By: That_Anonymous_Coward

That_Anonymous_Coward — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:27:00 +0000

Looks like someone had one to many old people point at them at a wedding and tell them “You’re Next”.

By: Antinous / Moderator

Antinous / Moderator — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:26:00 +0000

Game over, man.

By: Ashley Yakeley

Ashley Yakeley — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:13:00 +0000

Yes they are. They all say “HERE LIES”.

By: niktemadur

niktemadur — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:08:00 +0000

The retirement home equivalent of “Your call is very important to us”.

By: IamInnocent

IamInnocent — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:01:00 +0000

We’re all going to die.

By: Michael Smith

Michael Smith — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:51:00 +0000

I have seen a few where the husband is buried and his wife’s name is printed on the adjacent gravestone but covered with tape.

By: Navin_Johnson

Navin_Johnson — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:16:00 +0000

I think the humor lies in the association of the tombstones and the assumption that hospice/retirement staff would be overly sensitive about ‘death’ themes, rather than thinking that the elderly would be offended or couldn’t have a laugh about it. If that makes sense…

By: acerplatanoides

acerplatanoides — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:10:00 +0000

Ever stop to think how people feel about being patronized and condescended to on subjects like old people and their sense of humour?