My Body After I Die

First off I would like to say that I do not want to be buried when I die. There are two options that I am considering. The first option is to be cremated and half my ashes thrown off the Midnight Dome in Dawson City and the other half thrown into the ocean off of Separation Point in New Zealand. The second option is to donate my body to science. These are both quite different options.

The reason I don't want to be buried is because I don't like to think of myself rotting in a box six feet under. Also, I do not want to become a ghost. Don't laugh. I don't really believe in ghosts BUT I'm not going to take the chance that I'm wrong. I don't want to become anything else (such as a zombie) except for ashes in the wind and ocean. Then I can travel the world!

My reasoning for these two options are as follows:

Cremation and ashes divided between Canada and New Zealand;

-I love both of these countries so much I could never decide on one of the other, and I'd like to think that I'd forever be a part of  both places.

-The Midnight Done in Dawson City is the most beautiful place during summer solstice. Actually, it is beautiful all the time. You can see so far in every direction of the valley. In summer the sun doesn't really go down so the sunset and sunrise are so close together it's truly amazing.

-My house is in Dawson City, and my family's gold mine is not too far away. So throwing my ashes off of the dome I'd forever be in an area that I spent so much time in when I was growing up and I have so many great memories there.

-Separation Point in New Zealand is the point that separates Golden Bay from Tasman Bay. You have to hike out to the point and it’s beautiful. You can see Farewell Spit and Mt. Taranaki (on a clear day) as well as both bays. My house is in Golden Bay and my Grannies house is in Nelson. My time in New Zealand is spent mostly in these two bays and if my ashes are thrown at Separation point then I could be in the two bays forever (well obviously not, due to the ocean moving my ashes around, but it’s the thought that counts; and anyway I would get to visit new places).

Body donated to science;

-My Grandma did this when she died and I thought that it was a great idea. She also didn't want a funeral but asked her family and friends to have a party in her honour. I also want this as I hate funerals. I’d much rather my family and friends get drunk and have a grand old time telling ridiculous stories about me.

-The best way for students to learn is by seeing and using the real thing, so donating your body to science is really good because you are helping students to learn in a better way.

-Many universities (med-schools) look for body donations; it depends in which country I die on which university that I would donate my body too. I’m not sure which universities in Canada do this (if any?) but in New Zealand I would donate my body to the Otago School of Medical Science because it is the best med-school in New Zealand and it is also where my Grandma donated her body.

-I’m not sure what they do when they are done with the bodies but I’m sure that whatever it is I’ll be ok with it (as I’ll be dead and won’t care, and I’d probably be all chopped up anyways!). Maybe I could be donated to science and then cremated after they are done with me? Then I could have both options!

Because of what I want done to my body when I die I don’t think archaeologists will be getting a lot of information from my remains. I don’t want anything included in my cremation, and I’m sure the med-students don’t want any of my personal items donated with me. I imagine that my family might have something cremated with me but it would almost definitely just be a picture of the family. My family aren't big on funerals and such and we are not religious so there wouldn't be much fuss about anything being cremated with me. I agree with them on all accounts so there would be no conflict with my identity. And that pretty much sums up everything! 

A more detailed introduction to myself

So, a little bit more about myself.

I am originally from New Zealand but my family owns and operates a placer gold mine in Dawson City, Yukon during the summer months. In the winter months my parents return to New Zealand where they brag about all the fishing and hunting and various trips that they go on. I am quite jealous of them. I decided to go to university here because my two best friends in the whole world were on the island. One was in Nanaimo and one here in Victoria. I now don't talk much to either of them much to my disappointment. To make up for that bit of sadness, I got engaged over the Christmas break. I am also a model in the Yukon, and I am a national finalist in this year’s Miss Canada Globe Pageant.

Since I was very little I have wanted to go into forensics. At first I wanted to be like the guys on "CSI" dealing with all the "yucky" stuff. Then I wanted to be like the BAU from "Criminal Minds" and find serial killers. Then I found "Bones". Since then I have known exactly what I want to do. I want to be a forensic anthropologist. I want to "dig up dead people" as my friends would say. Which in a way is true I suppose. I want to find out who they were and how they died. The relatives and friends of the deceased deserve to know what happened to them, and I want to be able to help them with that. Also, I really want to help solve crimes!

I did my first year of my undergrad in Whitehorse at Yukon College. I went to start my second year there and got in a serious car accident that resulted in me having to withdraw from my courses. I started again a year and half later in January 2012 at UVic. In that first semester I took ANTH100 and ANTH250 at the same time. I really enjoyed both courses. I also took GRS200 as an elective; after which I decided that I wanted to do a Greek and Roman studies minor. In ANTH250 I really wanted to look more into nutrition. How diet has evolved and the various effects of different diets on the bones. I was a vegetarian for most of my life and even vegan for a couple of years so I actually know quite a lot about nutrition and I find it really interesting. I loved ANTH100 but I found that it was just so broad and I really wanted to look more in depth at so many different things.

After I finish my undergrad I do want to go to grad school, but I think that I will probably take some time off before I do. I want to go travelling and work for a while before going back to school. As much as I love school I think that it will be good to take a break from it. Especially as I will be getting married I want to take some time off to go off on adventures before truly settling down.

This course interests me the most because I really want to understand how different cultures deal with death. Some shun it and some worship it and I want to find out the reasons behind this. One thing that really interests me is endocannibalism. I know there are a few cultures that have practiced this and it seems for different reasons. It is really fascinating in a slightly morbid way. To most modern cultures this custom appears horrific and extremely disrespectful; I mostly just find it interesting. It is so different from what I know and it makes me want to learn more about it so that I can better understand the custom. I am also interested in the evolution of mummification. I know that it evolved over an extended period of time until the technique was “perfected”. I find it really interesting that they tried many different techniques. I don’t really know that much about the subject but I really want to learn more. There are just so many different funerary customs that I want to learn more about!

Hello and welcome to my blog!

Hello!

My name is Alix (or LixiePixie, as my blog will tell you). I am doing an Anthropology Major and Greek and Roman Studies Minor for my degree. I have never had a blog before so not really sure what I am doing. Hopefully everything will be pretty easy! I am interested in this course because I feel that in all of my courses no one really spends much time on what happens once someone has died. I always wanted to know why people were buried certain ways and the meaning of the grave goods and all that interesting stuff! I am excited to find out the answers to all my questions!

So, welcome to my blog!