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funerals bring out the stupid in people. when my mom died i did a lot of things that were really dumb, like dancing in the church lobby because i liked the feel of the space. laughing and joking as people shuffled into the church, as if it was a normal sunday morning instead of a memorial service for my own mother.
eee-yeah. stupid for me.
when grief takes over...nothing works except the stupid.
my condolences.

Oh holy shit, Robin...that was hysterical. And you know that Kara's mother must have laughed herself silly at that.

The weirdest stuff happens at funerals. My father was buried on my 30th birthday and it was almost surreal to have people come up to me and say "I'm so sorry for your loss...and happy birthday!". My dad would have cracked up at that.

Dix, I've had that same funeral experience. My grandma died the day before my 19th birthday. The visitation was on my birthday and the funeral the day after. I had so many people approach me and say, "So sorry for your loss. And happy birthday!" I have never wanted to punch so many people in the same day in my entire life. I mean, honestly!

My mom went into labor with me the night of my uncle's visitation. At Grandma's funeral I had an insane number of people remind me that they'd been hanging out at the funeral 19 years ago that day for his visitation. You know, right before I showed up.

Always good to be reminded that you're the Angel of Death.

speaking as, well, me, that was freakin' hilarious.

mom was probably laughing her head off, too. (of course, granny was probably standing there wonder who the damn fool was.)

ohhhh robin. there is none more precious you when you know your friends are hurting.

i'm sitting here in my room with tears knowing that you are loving kara through this in a way that only you can. which means there HAS to be some true raw comedy.

i love ya, sis.

i'm thinking of you, kara.

So fricking funny, and it times like that, that's when you need the laugher the most.

i think you are awesome. and my sincere condolences to kara. sounds like a great moment during a difficult time.

Kinda reminds me of my grandmother's funeral, where my mom, dad, sister, and I were laughing hysterically during the long trek up the aisle to view the casket. Why? Because we were all sad and nervous and my mother had just violated the sanctity of the occasion by ripping a huge fart.

Oh, that's too funny. Based on what you shared about Claudia, I believe she would have died laughing if she wasn't already...well, you know.

Wow you can make funerals humorous...You are an odd one..Did you know being able to laugh at shit is what makes life good. Do you think Martha Stewart could laugh at this shit...of course she wouldn't have hugged the wrong guy she'd probably have everyones name and face memorized and catagorized and calling the wrong person...well thats just genius.
I can't believe you called kara, and you hugged the wrong guy. I was going to say don't worry Kara's dad isn't feeling you up but a stranger could.
When my grandmother died I had my crowning moment of telling some to shut up when he didn't want to. He was the annoying brother of the boss. I was going to talk to a girl about taking care of my pets and he wouldn't let me get started telling her. We all hated him. Anyway I turn to him and said, "Craig, my grandmother is dying (she hadn't yet passed) so I'm going to talk to bonnie for a moment about her helping me while am away and after I'll talk to you so please wait like I asked the first two times you interupted."

Don't worry - it will be remebered with a chuckle by all involved later.:)

At my mother's funeral we had a bagpipe player that a close family friend insited on hiring. She wasn't Scotish, but it meant a great deal to our friend, so who were we to say no. The problem was that the funeral ceremony wasn't graveside in the great outdoors. It was inside a church with tall ceilings and VERY live acoustics. The loud wail of the pipes was excruciatingly painful and it took all my will power not to shove my fingers in my ears. The amusing part was looking at the grimaces on the faces of al the mourners trying to look polite and dignified while their ears were bleeding.

Also, because other friends were afraid of my Dad and I starving, we got three whole hams delivered. I guess ham is like the fruitcake of funerals.

Thank you so much for sharing this.

I'd say more, but I have a headache from laughing at the image of you pulling that man out of his chair to embrace him. Ohhh my goodness.

My grandma passed away when I was about eight and someone came up with the idea that I should play a song on the piano at her funeral. Well, with my mom being at the funeral home ALL DAY for what seemed like a MONTH, I was at the funeral home too, trying to keep occupied. On a slow afternoon, they showed me where the piano was and said I could practice. (The piano was in a little closed closet right next to the casket). Being all alone, I ran through my music a couple times and then decided to play some other songs that I had memorized. I'm not sure if my mom started running for the viewing room when she heard "The Entertainer" or "The Beer Barrel Polka" but I had played for quite some time before she poked her apoplectic face into the piano closet and said that I had played long enough!

I sincerely didn't understand why she was all worked up but as I look back, I can't help but laugh...My grandma was a very crabby, anti-kid kind of lady, but at least I helped her go out in style!

Great story, Robin! It does seem like something as serious as death makes us totally un-serious.
When Matt's grandmom was dying, he suddenly got the urge one evening to go see her at the nursing home. When we got there, it did not look like she was still "of this Earth". We're standing there, stage-whispering "Touch her", "No, you touch her-it's your grandmom", "I'm scared-you're the tough one-go feel her", "I'm not touching a dead woman! She'll wake up!", and so forth.
I was certain that the second I felt her hand, she would sit up straight in bed and yell for a beer!
We finally just leaned in real close and when we couldn't hear anything, decided it was time to go get the nurse. Then Matt had to decide what to say to his uncle (who was at a Rams game)on the phone message.
Sometimes really horrible things make for a great story later. My ex-fiance was the best man at my wedding, for example!

My in-laws are next door neighbors to the Mizzou kid that passed out on the field last month. They didn't even know the family, unless you count an occassional "Hey" when they happened to be waiting for their dogs to poo at the same time. Yet, that didn't stop my in-laws from being completely obsessed with everything about this family's business and going over there the day after he passed with a bucket of fried chicken and some watermelon. Okay....let me just say that I am NOT racist....in any way.....BUT I just happen to know that it may APPEAR to others to be a racist gesture to give an african american family that you DON'T KNOW KFC and wassamelon! *still cringing* I hope they realize that my mother-in-law is just a very practical southern woman that has no friggin clue!

Poppy, I was laughing so hard that my roommate became concerned for my well-being. This is what I love about funerals - seriously - the stuff that distracts you & reminds you of life. My grandmother's funeral turned into an impromptu family reunion & a bunch of us went out drinking & pool playing the night before. Maybe not what she wouldn've wanted...but perfect for our family. Sounds like you were being a perfect friend in giving Kara a good laugh - I know that's what I'd want.

Hi Poppy! What a cool blog you write. Miss you on the porch. Hugs, equeyaya

Reading your blog entry reminded me that it has been six years since we buried my Dad this month. Your experience reminded me also of the humorous things that happened during the funeral which we laugh about now, although at that time I did not think some things were so funny.

Along with her current beau, my oldest sister had at least five ex-boyfriends and one ex-husband in attendance. The United Nations was in attendance. Two of my younger brothers that were still in college, were accompanied by some of their dorm mates, fraternity brothers, and classmates that were from various countries. The service became standing room only. My father, who enjoyed learning different languages, would have truly loved hanging out with them after the service.

During her eulogy, one sister told everybody that she was his favorite child. Murmurs rippled through the crowd. We already knew she believed that…

One of my brothers raided Dad’s closet for a suit. It was eerie seeing him in it. Another sister walked up in the funeral service in a white micro mini and gold halter-top. My grandmother and aunts were aghast and were surprised that it didn’t faze our mother or us. Although everybody knew our Dad was conservative when it came to dress, we knew that he would not expect our extremely strong-willed little sister change her style for him, not even for his funeral.

Great stories :-) Apparently my grandmother's hearse caught fire on the way to the cemetery. I'm sure she would have loved all the commotion!

I am laughing here! You are a wonderful writer and I think this is a great tribute to your friend.

That was SO FUNNY :)
That could have been an episode of I Love Lucy. . .only, at a funeral. . .
I love the way you see the humor in things.
I bet her mom was somewhere watching and laughing her ass off!

That's hilarious.

We had a patch of deaths in our family and in each instance there was something so off--from spinning around in the funeral home trying to count the blades in the ceiling fan to watching someone take video (YES VIDEO) of the funeral (including the dearly departed).

You just can't imagine what can happen.

Nice blog. Forgot how I got here, but glad I made it.

Fluid pudding sent me over and it was worth the visit. I would like to bring you to the next funeral that I have to go to... as you will definitely distract from my poor behaviour.

I was sent over by Fluid Pudding too. Your sotry was hilarious!!
A friend of my sister lost her mother a few years ago. Her mother had committed suicide, and the funeral was very tragic, it was all so unexpected. Anyway, they wanted that Celine Dion Titanic song played at the funeral, so bought the CD. Whoever cued the music made a huge mistake, and accidentally played the dance club version of the song. My sister said that she and her friend were crying one second, then as soon as they heard the music they couldn't stop laughing.