This has been a strange and unpleasantly eventful week. One of my neighbors got shot because he owed someone or other money for something or other that may or may not have had something to do with a drug deal, my father is in the hospital because of some heart problem the doctors have yet to figure out, and my boss is on vacation so I'm doing some of his job (the answering stupid questions from people high enough in the organization to keep their job despite being stupid part). My father wanted to talk about his funeral arrangements today; he wants to be cremated and doesn't want anyone outside of the immediate family notified until his ashes have been scattered, because he's always hated having to perform his part at rituals like funerals and weddings and doesn't want me to have to do it for him. I, too, hate playing my role at funerals and weddings and such, and now I wonder if anyone wants to go through with that bullshit or if everyone just plays along because they think everyone else wants them to.