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What Have You Done for Philately?
Knoxville is full of streets named after living people. There are several roads named after athletes on the University of Tennessee campus. Many of those athletes are younger than me. I believe that the University will never regret their decision to name a street Peyton Manning Pass. Manning has continued to lead an exemplary life in Indianapolis while maintaining ties in Knoxville.
When I first moved here from California, I wondered what would have happened if USC had named a street after Heisman Trophy winner O.J. Simpson. It would have seemed like a good idea at the time. In 2003, St. Mary’s Parish in Oak Ridge removed Bishop Anthony O’Connell’s name from a building after he admitted to sexual misconduct in the 1970s.
The U.S. Postal Service used to have a rule that only people who have been dead for ten years could be on a stamp. Former presidents got a stamp within a year of their death. A few years back, the postal service shortened the time to five years. They have now decided to drop the waiting period and honor living people on stamps.
So who will be the first living person on a stamp? Fans of 25-year-old Lady Gaga have flocked to Twitter to nominate her. I’ve also seen suggestions for 80-year-old Regis Philbin and 89-year-old Betty White. The stamp should be thought of as a lifetime achievement award. Gaga is still too young for the honor. Regis and Betty are safe bets at this point.
I’ve been asked to do whatever I can to help get a stamp for 83-year-old Dr. Bill Bass. He is a living legend in the fields of forensics and osteology. As one of the comments on Facebook put it: “The world is a safer place because of Dr. Bill Bass. He is a national treasure!” I’ve known Dr. Bass for nine years and can wholeheartedly endorse his character. The praise bestowed upon him at the dedication ceremony for the building named after him made it all the more obvious that he is deserving of a stamp too.
The postal service says the public can suggest potential honorees by several methods. I’ve already started via Facebook and Twitter. Perhaps I could make more of an impact by sending a message in a manner that most others won’t: first-class mail.
Brick and Mortarboards
In the 24 hours since we started the campaign to put Dr. Bill Bass on a U.S. postage stamp, we’ve gotten over 100 “likes” on Facebook and a retweet from famous author Patricia Cornwell. Susan Seals suggested the stamp campaign after the dedication ceremony for the Dr. William M. Bass Forensic Anthropology Center on Tuesday.
The sun shone brightly on the invited guests. I sat between FBI Public Affairs Specialist Stacie Bohanan and Dr. Arpad Vass. In the moments before the ceremony began, I asked Dr. Vass what would happen to a corpse in the sun. It would desiccate, he told me. It might also turn red as the cells under the skin broke down. An array of deans and professors cut the ribbon, and by ribbon I mean crime-scene tape.
Stacie shared some of her photos with me. She got a nice shot of me with Dr. Bass. Author Jon Jefferson planted a surprise kiss on my cheek just as Stacie clicked the shutter.
Before the dedication, we looked around the inside of the building. Several of us joked about climbing onto the autopsy table or onto one of the slabs in the walk-in cooler. In reality, nobody would dare do anything to ruin Dr. Bass’ special day. For the open house, the lab was decorated with large photos of a body going through the various stages of decomposition.
Dr. Al Hazari said it would be funny to climb into one of the huge Blodgett kettles. He did stick his head in for a closer look. In a restaurant, the kettles might be used to cook soup. In the forensic building, they will be used to remove stubborn flesh from bone.
Dead-ication
Susan Seals isn’t done yet. For the past few years, she has been helping Dr. Bill Bass realize his dream for the Dr. William M. Bass Anthropology Center. The new building, made possible by donations from Dr. & Mrs. Bass and Jimmy & Dee Haslam among others, was dedicated on Tuesday. After the ceremony, Susan told me she now wants the U.S. Postal Service to put Dr. Bass on a stamp.
Several speakers, including Dr. Jimmy Cheek and Dr. Jan Simek, praised Dr. Bass for his research which led to advances in anatomy, osteology, anthropology and criminology. They also praised his skills as a teacher, a department head and a role model. During his own remarks, Dr. Bass told one of my favorite stories about the origins of the Body Farm. He needed a place to store a maggot-covered body overnight and figured that a shower stall in Neyland Stadium would be suitable.
Durkee and Fluffing
Susan Olsen was a VIP guest at the “What the Fluff?” festival in Somerville, Massachusetts on Saturday. Her pal Geri “Fake Jan” Reischl was there too as was Allee Willis, who wrote the Earth Wind & Fire song “September” and many other hits. Susan says Allee talked her into going to the festival this year. Geri posted videos of her Fluff experience. Another attendee posted video of this year’s Pharaoh of Fluff being crowned.
I asked Susan which of the delicious Fluff treats she sampled at the festival. She replied that she didn’t eat any! She was too busy selling Fluff Art at her booth. Susan has been creating Fluff Art for five years. She has set up an online shop where you can buy Fluff Art prints for less than $20. In the near future, she’ll have a way to sell autographed prints and limited editions.
Model T
Greg Huff and I were asked to represent Einstein Simplified in a fashion show on Saturday night at Club LeConte. The show was organized by the Women’s Council of Realtors as a benefit for the Volunteer Ministry Center. Many of the models were realtors. There were a few local politicians strutting their stuff too.
Sherry Ailor did a great job as emcee. She had to find each of us backstage and get a few biographical bullet points to go with the scripted information about the clothes we wore.
I wore three outfits from Jos. A. Bank. My favorite was an orange blazer that got applause from the Vols fans in attendance. Catholic blogger Frank Weathers commented on a Facebook photo of me wearing the blazer. He wrote, “Orange is so wrong on you Frank! ; )” I had to laugh because I know that orange is to Irish Protestants as green is to Irish Catholics. Two of the other models, former Lady Vol Daedra Charles-Furlow and former Vols quarterback Sterling Henton said they loved the blazer.
Whitney Kent and Jamie Lynn Drohan were models, as was Ella Nolan from “The Bachelor.” Although I met Ella last year when she was on “Star 102.1’s Dancing with the Knoxville Stars,” it took me a moment to recognize her voluptuous new look.
Gaucho Marks
The fake moustaches were the first things I noticed at the HoLa Festival information booth on Saturday. They were for sale, along with handmade wristbands. I saw several people wearing them. To me, the moustaches looked like they belonged at a Freddie Mercury festival.
My wife had sent me on a mission. I was to find the Argentina booth and buy some of the delicious rogelitos that we fell in love with last year. Most, if not all, Spanish-speaking countries were represented including Estados Unidos. Sadly, there was no food at the Argentina booth this year. I’ll have to find another way to get some rogelitos.
I saw a piñatero preparing to hoist his various creations. My favorite was a huge spider. I also enjoyed the live mariachi music, which reminded me of living in Southern California. I would like to make a return visit to Cielito Lindo restaurant for the food and the music if and when I get an opportunity to travel to Los Angeles.
Last Tuesday, I met a married couple named Isabel and Bill. They are friends of Roy De La Rosa and had come to Side Splitters to see Einstein Simplified. On Saturday, Isabel was dressed in a costume from her native España.
Crema-tour 2
“What exactly do you do for a living?” asked one of the members of the FBI Knoxville Citizens Academy Alumni Association. He was
wondering why I seemed well-versed in the process of cremation. He didn’t know that I had already taken a tour of the East Tennessee Cremation Company and that I had read about the place in several books by Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson.
The FBIKCAAA held its monthly meeting at the crematory this morning. We saw a bit more than I did last year when I toured the place with the Bone Zones team. During the course of our visit, we saw a funeral director deliver a body. It was in a body bag, which he and Helen Taylor placed into a cardboard casket and then into the large cooler. We saw another cardboard casket taken out of the cooler and then placed into a cremator (pictured). We saw three bodies at various points during the cremation process. Two had to be moved forward to be closer to the flames. One was finished and was ready to be raked into a large container.
In the next room, we saw a container of brittle bones pulverized into “ashes” by the processor. That particular set of cremains was placed into a biodegradable Earthurn. One cup was placed in a regular Ziploc bag, which will be given to the family members. They may choose to scatter or save the ashes.
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