obits

i have an odd compulsion ever since cancer. i read the obits, and anyone young (under, say, 50) and (especially) female, i try to decode how they died. usually it's easy. "donations can be made to the american cancer society/komen foundation/leukemia lymphoma society, etc...there was one today with a beautiful photo. sometimes the photos are so ugly. i would haunt mike if he did that to me. in one of my journalism classes, we had to write our own obits. i can't remember what i wrote (after 11 years and six months of chemo, who could?), but right now, this is what i'd write: juliet suzanne farmer, age 69, died peacefully in her home in portland shared by her husband michael and their cats. juliet's offbeat writings made their way into many mainstream (and not so mainstream) magazines before she penned three nonfiction works chronicling her life. born in sacramento, calif., april 15, 1971, juliet died of natural causes on february 4, 2040, exactly 45 years after she met michael. in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the komen foundation, a local animal shelter or the national organization for women.am i morbid? never mind, i know i am.