For those who haven't seen it - "Family Values" by Eva Saks (included in Full Frame Documentary Shorts vol. 1) is about a lesbian run company that cleans up crime scenes. Worth the watch. Available at GreenCine.com.

When I was in High School, my dad and I were sitting out on the deck one evening when we heard a scream from the house next door, and saw the granddaughter of the lady who owned the house bolt out and run into the adjoining park. It was weird because she had just come home.

We ran over to the house and my dad went it first. He immediately called out for me to not come in, and to go look after the girl, who I had dated for a while. He also told me to bring her to our house.

It turned out the old lady had slit her throat and had stumbled from the kitchen to the bedroom, with blood everywhere.

After the police had come and gone, and the coroner had taken the body, my dad called a company to come over and clean up the mess. It cost $500 back in 1983 in Iowa. I'm sure it's much more expensive and involved now.

Come to think of it, I don't think Dad ever got that money back.