Sad Times

I know this whole, "my family is so insane" thing is probably getting old, but my family is SO insane.  This week has been horrid.  So much so that even work told me to take a few days off and deal.  I was fine - composed and everything, but when they heard what was going even the workaholic law firm was like "man, sounds like you need a few days off."

My uncle was found dead in his apartment.  Which was awful.  I was shaking and terrified when it happened - had to call his daughters.  Had to call the coroner.  Had to call the funeral home.  Had to tell my mother her only living sibling was no longer living.

The next day my younger brother and I went over to his apartment and cleaned up the blood off the floor.  He'd fallen.  We didn't know why.  His glasses were lying on the ground soaked in blood.  We didn't know if it caused his death.  A drink was sitting, unfinished on the ledge.

Thankfully the coroner called me and confirmed it was a massive heart attack and not the fall that killed him.  Why does that make it better?  I don't know. Maybe it seems more inevitable and therefore less tragic?

Then there was the funeral home debacle.  My cousin say there gleefully picking out flowers, urns and music and then, when presented with the bill, announced she had no money.  Which we knew and it was fine - we (our side of the family, not me personally) always intended to pay.  We offered, and she just nodded and kept on talking.  No "Gee thanks for shelling out $7000.  I'll get ya back later when I inherit part of his estate..."  ARGH!   We'll present the bill when the estate is administered, but still... ARGH!

This probably doesn't sound that bad itself isn't so bad if you don't know how evil she is.

 But this might illustrate it.  

By way of background, she can't keep a job for more than a week, and has borrowed or mooched thousands from my deceased uncle and aunt, none of which they ever saw again.  So tonight I got a Facebook message from my uncle's best friend, the man who called me crying Tuesday to tell me what happened, the man who found him, who is in a very vulnerable place right now.  Also by way of background, this guy has NO money to spare.  He and my uncle work blue collar jobs and live pay cheque to pay cheque, socking away what they can here and there.  The friend tells me evil cousin has asked him to come over and take some of my uncle's things.  Part of me thinks, "Hm... has she cleared this with her sisters?"  But I decided to not get involved.  Then I get another message from him saying that my cousin is claiming she cannot pay her rent and wants to borrow money from him!!!  And what should he do, because really he doesn't have any money but he wants to help her?  So the plan to "give" him some of my uncle's things was really just a way to lure him over and ask for dough!  I am SOOOOOO furious with her I can barely speak.  I called him to say that if he loans her money, he should be aware he will never see a penny of it again.

I am so furious.  And I'm furious that instead of just being allowed to grieve for my uncle, a man who I was very close to, I am having to deal with this crap.