Mistakes happen. Cremations happen. But few things capture our morbid imagination like cremation mistakes happening. Whether it’s the horror of cremating your coworker, a misplaced corpse on the way to America’s first modern cremation, or plumes of “human remains particulate” interrupting your Best Buy shopping experience, nothing fans the flames of our phobias like a cremation blunder. This week we talk about things that can go right, wrong, and sideways when you’re in the business of cremating corpses.

Crematory Whoopsies

Welcome to your mortality, humans!  Death in the Afternoon dispels myths about death and dead bodies, dives into history and dark tales you've never heard before, and features conversations with people working to change the future of death care, Hosted by Caitlin Doughty, Louise Hung, and Sarah Chavez.

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The author of history's most influential piece of animal mourning literature had been lost...until now. Learn the incredible true story behind The Rainbow Bridge.  Episode Guest Paul Koudounaris is a  founding member of The Order of the Good Death. He has a PhD in Art History and has written three books about the use of skeletal remains in sacred spaces, Empire of Death, Heavenly Bodies, and Memento Mori. When he’s not hunting skeletons he moonlights as a cat historian, and his book co-authored by his tabby cat Baba, A Cat’s Tale: A Journey Through Feline History, was a 2020 Barnes and Noble Book of the Year. Episode Resources  The Rainbow Bridge: The True Story Behind History’s Most Influential Piece of Animal Mourning Literature   Episode Credits Hosted by Caitlin Doughty  Guest Paul Koudounaris  Produced by the Order of the Good Death, Sarah Chavez  Edited by Alex de Freitas Music by Kissed Her Little Sister Podcast artwork by Jessica Peng The Order of the Good Death (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com) Is supported by listeners like you! Support the Order by becoming a member (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/donate?)  

INTERVIEW: Uncovering Pet Death's Greatest Mystery

A court case in California could force death doulas to become licensed funeral directors. We talk to the doula and the lawyer taking on California's Funeral and Cemetery Bureau.  Episode Guests Akhila Murphy is one of the original co-founders of Full Circle of Living and Dying, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit located in Grass Valley, CA.  She is a trained End-of-Life Doula and After-Death care educator. Currently she serves on the board of directors for Full Circle of Living and Dying as Founding Director and Co-Chair President.  Ben Field is an attorney at the Institute for Justice, a national nonprofit public interest law firm that fights to secure the constitutional rights of all Americans against abuses of government power. A major part of Ben’s practice is protecting the First Amendment rights of people to speak freely in their occupations and without fear of government retaliation. He is counsel to the plaintiffs in Full Circle of Living and Dying v. Sanchez, a landmark case challenging the California Cemetery and Funeral Bureau’s restrictions on the rights of end-of-life doulas to provide advice and guidance to families about end-of-life care. Episode Resources  Defending Your Right to a Good Death Full Circle of Living and Dying Home Funerals   Institute for Justice     Episode Credits Hosted by Caitlin Doughty  Guests Akhila Murphy and Ben Field Produced by the Order of the Good Death, Sarah Chavez and Lauren Ronaghan Edited by Alex de Freitas Music by Kissed Her Little Sister Podcast artwork by Jessica Peng   The Order of the Good Death (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com) Is supported by listeners like you! Support the Order by becoming a member (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/donate?)  

INTERVIEW: The Doulas Taking on California's Cemetery and Funeral Bureau

Go behind the scenes with Cat Warren, who works with cadaver dogs to find the missing dead and locate Black and Indigenous burial grounds.    Episode Guest Cat Warren is the author of the NYT bestseller What the Dog Knows, which explores how scent-detection dogs help find the missing and dead, sometimes even those missing for hundreds of years. She currently researches how best to use human remains detection dogs in archaeology and to help locate African-American burial grounds.   Episode Resources Cat Warren’s Website What the Dog Knows by Cat Warren   What Are Cadaver Dogs Teaching Us About History?  Become an Order Member to access Cat’s 2022 event with us!   Episode Credits Hosted by Caitlin Doughty  Guest Cat Warren Produced by the Order of the Good Death, Sarah Chavez and Lauren Ronaghan Edited by Alex de Freitas Music by Kissed Her Little Sister Podcast artwork by Jessica Peng The Order of the Good Death (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com) Is supported by listeners like you! Support the Order by becoming a member (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/donate?)  

INTERVIEW: Cadaver Dog in the Cemetery

From viral trends to new options for your future corpse, Caitlin and Sarah review the best and worst of the past year in death, revealing how the death positive movement is making an impact on the way we do death.    Episode Resources To access The Year in Death Project, sign up to become an Order member, or make a donation of $50 or more to our nonprofit!    Episode Credits: Hosted by Caitlin Doughty  Co-Host Sarah Chavez Produced by the Order of the Good Death, Sarah Chavez and Lauren Ronaghan Edited by Alex de Freitas Music by Kissed Her Little Sister Podcast artwork by Jessica Peng The Order of the Good Death (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com) Is supported by listeners like you! Support the Order by becoming a member (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/donate?)

Legalization, TikTok, and Angry Elephants: An Immersive Year in Death

In a space of loss that is already difficult to exist in, we need to do more to understand how our language surrounding green burial can better acknowledge difficult histories and experiences.  Episode Resources This episode is an audio version of the article “Whose Green Burial Is It Anyway?” by Corinne Elicona.   Green Burial 101  Locate a Green Burial Ground   So, You Want to Be a Tree When You Die?   How to Green Your Funeral  Episode Credits: Written by Corinne Elicona @CorinneElicona Narrated by Sarah Chavez  Produced by the Order of the Good Death, Sarah Chavez and Lauren Ronaghan Edited by Alex de Freitas Music by Kissed Her Little Sister Podcast artwork by Jessica Peng The Order of the Good Death (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com) Is supported by listeners like you! Support the Order by becoming a member (https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/donate?)     

Crematory Whoopsies

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