A New Lease on Life

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I felt stronger knowing that I'd dodged a bullet with Jessop

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I felt stronger knowing that I'd dodged a bullet with Jessop. You might even say I got a bit cocky after shutting the door in his face. That had been a learning moment for me, and I liked the feeling of empowerment. I thought I'd won. At least it felt that way. After that encounter, which I considered bullying, I was more angry than intimidated. I didn't file the Articles of Dissolution paperwork for the R. Eaton Funeral Home or even follow-up with our business lawyer about Jessop's heavy-handed tactics. My priority was keeping my dad in one piece, literally, and seeing to his needs.

Spending an hour in the stock room with Jessop gave me some ideas on what I could do to preserve daddy

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Spending an hour in the stock room with Jessop gave me some ideas on what I could do to preserve daddy. Maybe you've heard about something called plastination. It's a process that was first developed by a dude named Gunther von Hagens in 1977. There was some public outrage when von Hagens used his technology on dozens of dead bodies that had been voluntarily donated for the purpose when the stiffs were ultimately exhibited. I think most spectators who attended the traveling shows in galleries and science venues were shocked to find the corpses propped up in bizarre poses – stationary but animated. As Mr. Spock would say – fascinating.

I caught the Body World show at the Ontario Science Centre way back when. Maybe it was my early exposure to dead bodies and interest in science that made me curious about checking out the show. As I recall, there were about 25 full-body plastinates in glass cases, and most were presented with expanded sections of their anatomy so you could really see their guts and innards. Cool!

I brushed up on information about the technique and how the exhibits were produced. The labor was incredible. For example, processing the original specimens for the Body World show employed 340 people at five laboratories in three countries, China, Germany, and Kyrgyzstan. A specimen could take three years to complete. That was time I didn't have, and neither did daddy. I decided to take the plunge anyway, cutting corners where I could, using my ingenuity. I figured between my father's mortuary experience and my skills, we could at least improve over the traditional embalming techniques we'd tried on him.

 I figured between my father's mortuary experience and my skills, we could at least improve over the traditional embalming techniques we'd tried on him

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