I'm in training to become a mortician, but I'm planning to donate my body to the UTK Body Farm (my sister is studying with them right now). There are so many diverse and fascinating ways to personalize funerals and what's done with remains, if you can imagine it, you can pretty much do it. It's really exciting.

There are several companies that make biodegradable cremation urns filled with seeds, so ashes go in, the urn is buried, and a tree grows from the urn. Insta-tree!

My husband is waiting on his decisions and keeps turning to me in the dark and whispering, "What do I do when I don't get in anywhere?"

My opinion is that of only one person, but as an art historian, I would say that the valuation of art is a collective delusion, forgery/connoisseurship is a lost art, and I would totally save some money and do a reproduction myself. It's not even illegal as long as you don't try to sell it.
Further reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_A._Landis

Evan, this is fantastic. I'm totally a Stapler, but I WISH I were a Skull.

That sounds fantastic, but there are many roads to misandry. My alma mater was all-male for 100 years until they became co-ed during the 1960s, and though the ratio is pretty even now, I've heard several very old, very white, very male professors there say, "I've been her since before women were allowed in, and from the very first year they have destroyed the men and left them in their intellectual dust, and so I entreat you, men, to step up your game if you wish to compete, for the women are your superiors." Hand to God, I've heard this multiple times. So the point is: everywhere can be a misandrist paradise if we all work together and disdain (unworthy) men.

That's another thing, re: doctors and scientific-based reassurance. I'm going to be moving in the next year and getting a new job and thus new insurance, so I'm hoping I can get to a point where I'm financially/coverage-wise able to see a specialist and more importantly, FIND a good one. I freaked out about this same issue in high school because of some arm weakness, and I went to our local Big City World-Renowned Hospital, and they were completely unhelpful. I was shuffled around to people who didn't know anything about the condition until this Doogie Howser type totally dismissed me, saying it was a recessive gene-linked deal and there was statistically no way I'd have it. That would be great news except he was totally wrong, because my dad's specific case was a genetic mutation that could go either recessive or dominant. This doc hadn't even done due diligence on the case file. So I'm scared of running into ignorance and unhelpfulness (I have extraordinarily bad luck with finding good doctors, mostly due to where I live), but I'm older and wiser now and infinitely more knowledgeable and ready to kick ass until I get some answers.

But first I have to pay for it. (Addendum: Big City Hospital is now apparently has a whole dept. dedicated to this disease? That definitely wasn't the case 10 years ago. Feeling hopeful.)

Thank you!

Do you have any running shoe recommendations, or do I just have to go to the fancy store and trust them?

I guess here's the part where I ask for running shoe recommendations.