Learn to Die.
Learn to Live.
A shelf of everything we know about dying well, and everything families told us they wished they had known. Read a series straight through, or pull one piece out and start there.
Now Reading · Vol. 1
The First 500 Hours
The three weeks after a death are the most disorienting a family will face, and almost none of it is intuitive. This is the whole sequence, in the order it actually happens, from the first hour through closing the estate. Read it straight through, or jump to where you are.
The Shelf · Browse by Series
Five Series.
Pull One Out.
Each series is a sequence of short pieces, ordered the way a family actually meets them.Latest · Straight from the Desk
In Print
All 119 articlesReal, currently-operating LA-area florists with genuine sympathy and funeral flower experience — a research starting point for sympathy arrangements, casket sprays, and memorial displays.
Real, currently-practicing LA-area agents with probate, trust, or inherited-property sale experience — a research starting point for the sell-or-keep decision on a deceased relative’s home.
Real, currently-practicing LA-area probate and estate attorneys — a research starting point for finding legal support to open probate, settle debts, or resolve a contested estate.
Real, currently-operating LA-area funeral homes — a research starting point that includes providers who post itemized pricing online and several offering green burial.
Real, currently-operating LA-area venues that explicitly host memorial services and celebrations of life — a research starting point across cemetery reception spaces, gardens, and sanctuaries.
Real, currently-operating LA-area companies handling estate cleanouts, donation coordination, and full-property liquidation — a research starting point for clearing a home.