Hahahahaha Sent from my iPhone
> On Jul 4, 2018, at 5:27 AM, M. Mitchell Marmel via Mercedes > <mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote: > > (insert unkind joke about the granite stretch 123 being almost as fast as > the real thing here) ;-) > > -MMM- > > On Tue, Jul 3, 2018 at 11:31 PM, archer75--- via Mercedes < > mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote: > >> >> The Mercedes Benz Tombstone >> >> A Stylish Ride to the Other Side >> >> Located in the peaceful setting of the Linden Park Cemetery in Union >> County, stands a monument to one young man’s love of an automobile. The >> final resting place of Raymond Tse is an impressive enough looking >> mausoleum adorned by marble pillars, urns and relief sculptures of two >> oriental lions set into the facade. But what really puts this tomb in a >> luxury class by itself is the full size granite replica of a Mercedes Benz >> 240 Diesel that is parked right out back. The car, which is an exact scale >> model of the German four-door sedan, was chiseled from a single block of >> stone. There it sits, fully loaded and bearing all of the appropriate >> manufacturer’s insignias, eternally at the ready to whisk the dear departed >> away to the hereafter. It even has personalized license plates bearing the >> name Ray Tse. >> >> https://weirdnj.com/stories/the-mercedes-benz-tombstone/ >> >> >> >> Legend has it that young Raymond had always dreamt of owning a Mercedes as >> a boy, but was killed in a tragic auto accident at age 16, just before >> receiving his driver’s license. Others say that Ray’s older brother David, >> a well to do Chinese-America businessman promised his younger brother a >> Mercedes upon earning his driver’s license. This was never to be though, as >> Ray is said to have taken ill and died before reaching the legal driving >> age. Weird NJ spoke with Richard T. who was a tenant in one of the many NJ >> buildings owned by David Tse and was one of the mourners present at >> Raymond’s funeral. >> >> “David owned several luxury cars himself,” Richard told us, “and promised >> to buy Ray one for his seventeenth birthday. Ray lived in Hong Kong, but he >> visited David in America often. David was about twenty years older than >> Ray. When Ray died, his parents could not accept the loss and shipped the >> body over here for burial. They didn’t even attend the funeral. At the >> service we were all given play money and fake gold bars to throw into a can >> of fire so that Ray would have wealth in the afterlife. They also gave out >> real money, which would have been disrespectful to refuse. I was given $30 >> which I threw in a drawer and did not touch for five years.” >> >> “Ray’s mausoleum and Mercedes take up forty cemetery plots and cost >> $500,000 back in the 70’s. David is said to still visit the grave ever day. >> ” >> >> The monument is a wonder of the modern stonecutter’s craft. The car’s >> grill, windshield wipers, treads in the tires, textured taillights and even >> the exhaust pipe and muffler are rendered in painstaking detail. The only >> thing missing are the two side-view mirrors, which most likely would have >> protruded too much and been broken off. >> >> We asked Anthony Sgobba, who carved the Lightbulb Gravestone in Totowa, >> how he thought that this amazing sculpture was done. >> >> “They took a big chunk of granite, probably three times the size they >> needed, and chiseled away.” He said, adding, “It’s quite a nice stone. They >> probably drove a Mercedes into their shop. It’s all done by sight and hand >> chisels. It probably took a year-and-a-half to cut that stone.” >> >> That would mean that by the time this car rolled of the assembly line it >> was already a late model, just like its owner. >> >> Rock of Ages Carved for Thee >> >> I’d like to share some facts about the stone Mercedes with you and your >> readers. First, the car is made of a single block of stone quarried at the >> Rock of Ages in Graniteville, VT. It was transformed into the stone >> Mercedes at their craft center. It was constructed and paid for by Ray >> Tse’s older brother. There is a Chinese custom that if you promise >> something to someone and they die before the promise can be fulfilled, then >> you must try and do your best to keep the promise to the deceased person. >> Thus, the deceased Ray got a Mercedes behind his mausoleum. >> >> Rock of Ages was very proud of their achievement on the Mercedes. >> Supposedly, they got an actual car to take precise measurements from to >> create the stone reproduction. >> >> >> >> --- >> This email has been checked for viruses by AVG. >> https://www.avg.com >> >> >> _______________________________________ >> http://www.okiebenz.com >> >> To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ >> >> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >> http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com >> >> > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > > To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
