Drained

We had dinner and saw off the last of the out-of-town relatives last night.

One thing about funerals: They are incredibly draining.

There is all the emotion in losing a loved one. Seeing relatives from near and far. The drama involved in getting a large family together. The outlaws, inlaws, and castaways and the strange faces of newcomers.

A couple bright spots from the whole experience.

Family portrait style pictures were arranged at the visitation with a star photographer, me. We grabbed folks before they went into to say goodbye, trying to avoid the red and puffy crowd coming out of the visitation room. Uncle Jim and his father got their picture taken. They didn't have a current, if ever, photo of themselves together. Using Walgreens' online photo application I had 4" x 6" prints of the photos available at the funeral the next day. Emails were collected and directions sent allowing family members to order bigger prints or duplicates.

Speaking of my Uncle Jim being around all this family reminded me how un-creative my family is with names. Here's one example:

James (Jim) Patrick Conway [Grandfather]
James (Jim) Allen Conway [Uncle]
James (Jim) Patrick Conway [Cousin]
James (Jim) Richard Remsik [Father]
James (Jim) Richard Remsik Jr [Me]

Of course when it comes to nicknames:

Jim Conway [Grandfather] = Scotty
Jim Conway [Uncle] = (Dammit?) Jim
Jim Conway [Cousin] = Bones

Now if Dad and I were nicknamed "Sulu" and "Spock" we'd be on to something.