The loneliest man no longer

John Doe, Charleston, S.C.

I imagined John Doe to be a solitary, lonely gentleman but perhaps not. Married to Jane Doe?! Who knew?

According to Wikipedia, in the UK, Australia and New Zealand they use the name Joe Bloggs as we use John Doe? These are other "place holder" names: Average Joe, John Smith, John Q Public, Joe Shmoe and Tommy Atkins.

Below, I guess we can imagine what the Deaconess' favorite expression was.  "Do Jesus." May she rest in peace. Do Jesus.

Theme Day - tombstones/cemetry

Being a Roman Catholic country, the many cemetries here in Poland all play a vital role in Polish culture. Halloween is not celebrated here (though the many language schools and pubs in Poland do try and cash in on this tacky holiday). Instead like every other Roman Catholic country, the Poles celebrate All Saints' Day (1st November), which is a far more serious occassion. Families flock from all their towns to attend the graves of their loved ones. Hundreds of flowers are bought, candles are lit and graves are tidied. Even long forgotten graves are given attention. It's a very moving experience to walk late at night through a cemetary on All Saints' Day and see all the twinkling lights of the candles. All Saints' Day may be a sombre occassion...but it is also about families coming together. After they visit the graves, they all unite for a family dinner to remember their loved ones.

A truly special day.

There are currently 100 blogs participating in this theme day:
St. Louis (MO), USA - San Diego (CA), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - New York City (NY), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Mainz, Germany - Hyde, UK - Arlington (VA), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Toulouse, France - Arradon, France - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Montego Bay, Jamaica - Ampang (Selangor), Malaysia - Joplin (MO), USA - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Seattle (WA), USA - Baziège, France - Baltimore (MD), USA - Chandler (AZ), USA - Sequim (WA), USA - Stayton (OR), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Austin (TX), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Anderson (SC), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Nashville (TN), USA - Tenerife, Spain - Manila, Philippines - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Jacksonville (FL), USA - River Falls (WI), USA - Chateaubriant, France - Quincy (MA), USA - Rabaul, Papua New Guinea - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Crystal Lake (IL), USA - Inverness (IL), usa - Lubbock (TX), USA - Phoenix (AZ), USA - Moscow, Russia - Norwich (Norfolk), UK - Crepy-en-Valois, France - Minneapolis (MN), USA - New Orleans (LA), USA - Montréal (QC), Canada - West Sacramento (CA), USA - Toruń, Poland - Philadelphia (PA), USA - Christchurch, New Zealand - London, England - Paderborn, Germany - The Hague, Netherlands - Selma (AL), USA - Sunderland, UK - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Stavanger, Norway - Fort Lauderdale (FL), USA - Weston (FL), USA - Portland (OR), USA - Forks (WA), USA - Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Boston (MA), USA - Sydney, Australia - Wellington, New Zealand - Montpellier, France - Jackson (MS), USA - Wailea (HI), USA - Petaling Jaya (Selangor), Malaysia - Evry, France - Saarbrücken, Germany - New York City (NY), USA - Santa Fe (NM), USA - North Bay (ON), Canada - Melbourne, Australia - Port Vila, Vanuatu - Cypress (TX), USA - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Paris, France - San Diego (CA), USA - Wichita (Ks), USA - Haninge, Sweden - Prague, Czech Republic - Zurich, Switzerland - Budapest, Hungary - Paris, France - Saigon, Vietnam

"Indian" headstone (by Mark Hoogslag)

This is a photograph of an angel (or is it a native indian?) on top of a tombstone, which was taken by our guest photographer Mark along Przy Kaszowniku street. Here in Poland, burial is the norm due to the Roman Catholic religion and cremation is very rare. The cemetries are all very well kept with relatives regulary tending to the graves.

On 1st November (All Saints' Day) the graves are completely covered in candles and flowers. Even long-forgotten graves are cared for. It's a very beautiful experience.