Crazy Is As Crazy Does

My father's side of the family is notoriously classified as the crazy side. With my off-the-wall grandmother and her barely less off-the-wall sisters (four of them), one would agree this is rightfully so. Beyond that are my clinically insane sane and 100% normal cousins. Love them all dearly. With the craziness of my father's side, my mother's side looks quote-on-quote, normal. Although this isn't necessarily true.

Jeff had a headache today. With his positive, glass half full, attitude, he came to the conclusion that he has a brain tumor and is going to die. You can see where he is coming from. Isn't that the first place your mind jumps when you have a headache? Being the supportive wife that I am, I asked if he wants to be buried or cremated. He was quite taken aback by this question as cremation is against our religion. I know this, but I also know that it still happens. I know all too well.

This is where the craziness of my mother's family comes into play. Cremation. What is supposed to happen is a person dies, they get cremated, put into an urn, and then the family disposes of the ashes properly. Since my grandparents lived in Florida and loved going to the Naples pier, I have always thought that would be extremely appropriate.

Perfect right? I believe that was the intention. One thing that was never intended however, was the urn. Since money was spent on a casket, nobody wanted to spend money on an urn that the ashes would soon be removed from and spread off the pier. After much arguing with the funeral parlor, both my grandmother and grandfather left un-urned, so to speak. Pop was in a cardboard box and Grandma was in tupperware. Yea, I said it, tupperware. And yes, it irks me just as much as it probably irks any normal, civilized person. To my mother's family, no big deal. I told you they are crazy! 

I love visiting my family in Florida more than anything. I think it would be lovely to be able to go to the pier and visit my grandparents. But I can't. Their ashes never made it there. They were never spread off the pier as originally planned. However, I do get to spend a lot of time with them, as they are in the closet of my aunt's guest room. They have also been consolidated to one box. Together forever I guess. 

As for Jeff's headache, we have narrowed the time line down. He has been having them now for approximately two and a half to three weeks. Which just so happens to line up with the time I have been here in Cleveland. We have come to the conclusion that Jeff is allergic to me. For us, unlike my grandparents, together may not be forever.