Welcome to Bitching & Mourning, the podcast about grief that doesn’t feature a somber floral design. Today we’re talking about sympathy cards and why they are so, so bad. Alison and Becky went sympathy card shopping and share their worst finds, then Becky tells us about her very, very academic research into the history.

Follow Becky: www.deadparentswhatnow.com and @deadparentswhatnow on Instagram and TikTok

Follow Alison: @alisonlzeidman on Instagram and @alisonzeidman/WELCOME TO HELL!!! on Substack

Free sympathy cards made by attendees at the 17th Death, Dying & Disposal Conference in Utrecht: https://www.deadparentswhatnow.com/sympathy-cards-free

Molly Robison's music: https://mollyrobsion.bandcamp.com/track/roswell

Molly Robison's band Bittersweet Drive: https://bittersweetdrive.bandcamp.com/album/bittersweet-drive-ep

Sources for sympathy cards info: The New York Times, Hallmark, "Sympathy Cards and Death" by Charles H. Lippy, "Consoling the Bereaved: Exploring How Sympathy Cards Influence What People Say" by Kimberly A. Calderwood and Amy M. Alberton

Becky Robison is a writer who has two dead parents. And Alison Zeidman is a comedian who also has two dead parents!

On Bitching & Mourning, Becky and Alison talk about all the shitty things about death and grieving that don’t really get talked about: the pain-in-the-ass logistics, the petty dramas caused by the living, the times when maybe it’s OK to speak ill of the dead….

Basically, it's a place to air grief grievances.

And if you love someone who’s dead and have ever had to deal with the realities of grieving or handling post-death logistics in modern-day America, then this is the podcast for you.

Coming June 21st (Father's Day!)