rant · moment 16 of 23
Ray's Morgue Job and Touching Dead Bodies
from Find Your God (with Dan St. Germain) · #25
Audio-only archive episode — no video to seek.
3 minRay recounts working as a morgue photographer who ended up cleaning and manipulating corpses' jaws and genitals for ID photos, despite only being contracted to take pictures.
- 41:12Tim notes he just sweats naturally, but his friend knew he actually wanted to touch the bodies at the morgue.
- 41:25The morgue staff deliberately placed a decomposed male corpse in the room, apparently to mess with him.
- 41:38Ray confirms he's fine around dead bodies and doesn't get bothered by it.
- 41:59Ray describes morgue work as not always peaceful—slow days involve things like washing old people who have died.
- 42:18Preparing ID photos requires manipulating the jaw of corpses to make them look presentable for families, not pained or afraid.
- 42:54Ray explains he sometimes has to massage and relax the jaw muscles under the smock to position the face correctly.
- 43:23Ray washes entire bodies with a soapy sponge for the ID photo, including genitals, treating them like any other part.
- 43:36Tim notes the job is genuinely interesting in how it handles the practical dignity of preparing the dead for families.